His gaze moved to the kids. Andy was babbling to Shayna again. The funny part was the way he pretended Shayna understood him. She’d grin and he’d nod his head and then show her something as if she’d asked to see it—one of his stuffed animals, a chunky truck that he rolled closer to her, even his hand. Oh, they had a fine conversation about his hand. It was so silly, and so sweet.
“Despite anything else that’s going on, they make me happy,” Brogan said. “And so do you.” After leaning over to kiss her, he said, “I’d call the hospital myself, but Erin advised against it. For one thing, they won’t give out Brian’s info to someone just because they claim to be related; and for another, she said I could get caught up in his debt without meaning to if I identified myself as his son. One thing is certain, I need to figure out where Ruth is.”
“How are you going to do that?”
“I’ll talk to Officer Flynn, see if he has any ideas.” The smile he gave her lacked his usual energy. “I’ll figure it out. You need to get going or you’ll be late.”
This was one of the few mornings Pixie didn’t want to go to work. “Right.” She told Andy it was time to go.
He must have been in a similar mood, because he ran to Brogan. Assuming he wanted a hug, Brogan picked him up, but Andy wrapped his arms around the big man like a little monkey and didn’t want to let go.
Judging by the way Brogan closed his eyes to savor the hug, he didn’t want to let go, either.
“Would you and Shayna like to come to the shop with us?”
Brogan huffed a short laugh. “We’d be in the way, but thank you.” He gave her suggestion a quick thought, then said, “You know, I wouldn’t mind watching this one, though.”
Pixie blinked at him. “You want to keep both kids?”
“Bad idea? I get it. You’re almost never away from Andy.”
“It’s not that.” Accepting that she’d be a few minutes late, Pixie moved close again. “I trust you, so please don’t think that’s it.”
He nodded. “Right. I’m still fumbling along with Shayna. Two kids might be a bit much.”
“For a regular guy, maybe,” she quipped right back. “For you? I don’t have a single doubt you could handle it—just as Iwould handle it, if necessary. But it’s not necessary, not right now, especially with so much up in the air.”
“You mean Ruth?”
“Can you imagine if she showed up and you had both kids to protect?”
His mouth twisted to the side. “You have a point.”
“Brogan?” Pixie put her hand to his jaw. He hadn’t taken time yet to shave, and he took her breath away. “Even in the worst of circumstances, I know both Shayna and Andy would be safe with you.”
Those piercing gray eyes of his searched her gaze, and he finally nodded. “Thank you.” He dropped a kiss on Andy’s head and then pried him loose. “Listen, buddy, go on with Mam, and when you get back, we’ll take another walk, okay?”
“Wok!” He tried to wiggle down.
“Andy Nolan,” Pixie said, lifting him into her arms. “When we get home, you can walk. For now, let’s go see Renee.”
Stubbornly, he pointed at Shayna. “My baby.”
“You’ll see her when we get home.” Home—with Brogan and Shayna, because they were now family. “Let’s go so you don’t make Mam late.”
“Oh, oh,” Andy said, and excitedly pointed at Shayna again. She did a baby feat of rolling twice and coming up against the playpen.
“Wow,” Brogan said, hurrying over to pick her up. “That’s impressive, Sugar.” He turned toward the door and picked up Andy’s diaper bag. “We’ll walk you out.”
Once there, Brogan kissed her again, helped Shayna to wave goodbye to Andy, and then promised Pixie he’d have dinner ready when she got home.
To Pixie, it felt like an eventful start to their new relationship, and possibly a beginning to the “forever” she wanted.
Pixie would be home in a few hours. Brogan had made good use of his time by making a list of available job positions that were both in his field and near enough for him to continue a relationship with Pixie. He’d also checked out various ads for homes or property in the area. Nothing on the lake—Bramble was strict about letting in strangers—but there were a few listings near Marlow’s Whimsy.
When Shayna wasn’t napping, he was playing with her, helping her to sit up, though of course she wasn’t able to do that without support. Still, her every milestone filled him with pride. As he approached her with a bottle, she recognized it and got excited.
“Little glutton,” he teased. Holding her was still a great pleasure for him. He knew one day she’d be using a sippy cup like Andy, but for now, this was their time, with her in the crook of his arm, usually one of her tiny hands gripping his finger.
