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The ladies laughed together, obviously knowing Bob much better than Cammie did.
Even as they all talked, Dane separated himself from the men and headed to the table where Susan, Theresa, and Francine fussed over the baby. He smiled, then chuckled as he caressed a soft baby cheek. The women seemed as spellbound by him as they were by the sleeping child. He made them laugh, he made them blush, and he charmed them. But that was Dane. He could charm anyone.
Then, in the most amazing gesture, he held out his hands to Susan, and she lifted the baby into his waiting arms.
Cammie marveled at the tenderness softening all the aristocratic planes of Dane’s face. Just as on that day at the hospital, his curiosity and attentiveness surprised her. As he held Keegan in his arms, rocking slightly side to side, she swore he was a natural. As if he could be a father. It was usually women who got the urge to have a child, but looking at Dane now, it seemed as if he might actually be thinking about fatherhood himself.
In that moment, the adorable baby in his arms, Dane looked up at her. And smiled.
Cammie’s heart kicked over in her chest. What had he said in the car? That with all his dating, he hadn’t found the right woman? Maybe he was ready to find that woman now. It seemed impossible, yet the evidence was right before her eyes. How good he looked cuddling the baby so tenderly. How manly. How utterly endearing. She couldn’t help smiling back at him.
Though she would have gone on watching forever, Gideon joined them, holding out his arms, and Dane handed over the child. Was that reluctance on his face? The way he looked at the baby boy almost with longing?
Or maybe she was imagining it, and Dane was just being polite.
Yet she couldn’t forget that image of tiny Keegan in Dane’s powerful arms.
Chapter Eleven
“What’ll you ladies have? We’ve got hamburgers, hot dogs, and ribs,” Sebastian called, filling a platter with meat. “And for you, Gabby, there’s a vegan patty, along with a gluten-free bun.”
Gabby sat up, sliding her legs off the lounger, and raised her hand. “You guys are fantastic. Thank you. But can I have one rib too?”
Utter silence fell over the pool deck. The only sounds were the children and dogs playing on the lawn.
“But—” Ari sputtered. Then she dropped her voice to a whisper. “The ribs aren’t vegan. They’re meat.” She almost bared her teeth as she said the word.
Gabby smiled, answering her in the same whisper, loud enough for all the women nearby to hear. “I know.” Then she grinned. “I’m vegan most of the time. But once in a while, I can’t resist a barbecued rib. Even if I have a stomachache the next day.”
Ava laughed. “You’re only doing it because Fernsby’s not here to see you.”
Gabby shook her finger at Ava. “Don’t you tell him. He’ll think he’s won the war.” She raised her voice. “And don’t you tell Fernsby either, Dane.”
Dane put an offended hand to his gorgeous chest and mouthed, Who, me?
Cammie had very occasionally seen Gabby indulge. And only when Fernsby wasn’t nearby.
A few minutes were spent by everyone picking and pouring condiments, adding potato salad and green salad, then taking their seats again to enjoy the barbecue. Cammie couldn’t resist a rib either, and it was definitely yummy.
She licked her fingers clean one by one—because, really, a napkin never worked—and looked up to find Dane’s eyes on her from his perch on the edge of the picnic table by the grill. He raised an eyebrow. She raised one back at him. Then he held up a margarita glass, tipping it side to side, asking if she wanted another. She shook her head. When he held up a plate with a hot dog, she shook her head again. He shrugged and took a big bite, closing his eyes and making faces as if it were the absolute best thing ever. She laughed.
They could say so much without a single word.
Ava’s voice tore her away from Dane’s antics. “I’m so happy for all of you,” Ava gushed, her hands outstretched, her empty plate now on the table beside her.
She was always enthusiastic, her gestures expansive. Cammie could see her confidently taking charge of a boardroom full of men just as easily as she wore the eye-catching royal blue one-piece that wowed unattached men. Today, she’d pulled the waves of her thick hair, the color of dark cherries, high on her head in case she decided to swim.
“But I’m not jealous,” Ava said airily, a glitter in her amber eyes. “I wrote off relationships a long time ago.”
Engrossed in watching Dane, Cammie must have missed a major part of the conversation, because she had no idea how it had reached this point.
