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Bea looked amused. “Esme read your rules to me.”
“Her rules,” Ryder clarified. “You saw the state I was in here. Do I look like somebody who would be a big draw as a date?”
“Either that’s a rhetorical question, or you don’t own a mirror.”
Ryder felt color race to his cheeks. “I wasn’t fishing for a compliment, and I’m not interested in dating.” At least, not other women if Esme was a possibility.
“And what exactly is your interest in my baby sister?” Bea Fortune asked the question lightly, but Ryder got the impression she expected a serious answer. Was he so transparent in his interest?
“Obviously, I don’t know Esme well yet, but I like her, and more importantly, I respect her. She’s a great mother and has handled this situation with a huge amount of care and maturity. She’s someone I’d like to emulate as far as how a parent should act in the face of a crisis.”
He cleared his throat. “I’m never going to do anything to hurt her if that’s what you’re worried about.”
“You’re right. She’s an amazing mother and has a heart the size of this great state we live in. She considers both of these boys her sons, and it doesn’t matter which one she brought home after giving birth or which one shares her DNA. Noah and Chase are hers as far as Esme is concerned.”
“I feel the same way.” Ryder inclined his head and studied Bea. “Is there something I’ve done or Esme has told you I’ve done that gives you a different impression? I feel like we’re dancing around a topic, and I’m a couple of steps behind.”
The pretty redhead shifted but didn’t drop her gaze from Ryder’s. He respected her for that. “You’re relatively new to Chatelaine. So are we. I’m not sure if Esme mentioned that I’m opening a restaurant in town?”
“She did. She’s very proud of you and your brother.”
Bea smiled. “The feeling is mutual. I’ve met a lot more people than she has at this point. The men in your family have a reputation around town already. I’m not sure if it’s gossip or has been earned, but it doesn’t mesh with the kind of person I want my sister to have in her life.”
Ryder’s stomach churned. He knew what that reputation would be, and although he’d guessed and expected this news, he still hated to think that Esme might believe him to be a player. No wonder she went out of her way to clarify that she was willing to give him space to date.
“She doesn’t know I’m here if you were wondering,” Bea offered. “I just wanted to—”
“Vet me?”
“Speak to you,” she countered.
He nodded, and although he didn’t appreciate people making assumptions about him, he understood the concern. He also liked that Esme had people looking out for her because, with her gentle soul, he imagined she had the self-preservation instincts of a kitten.
“Your sister can make her own decisions, but I meant it when I said I respect her and I’m not going to hurt her.” He should leave it at that. Because while he understood Bea’s protectiveness, he didn’t owe her anything. Still, he added, “I’m not like my father or brother. Not in the ways that would impact my ability to live up to my end of the bargain or be the kind of father these two deserve.”
Bea was silent for a moment, then smiled and visibly relaxed. “I like you, Ryder Hayes, and I didn’t expect to. Thank you for being so honest, and if it’s not too much trouble—”
“I won’t mention this visit to Esme,” he promised.
She snuggled Noah for another minute, then transferred him to his father’s arms. Ryder half expected the boy to wake immediately and cry again, but Noah remained blissfully asleep. Chase had also fallen asleep in the swing. He should move both boys upstairs to their shared crib, but he was too worried about waking them again.
After locking the door behind Esme’s sister, he returned to the couch and made himself comfortable while he watched his two sons.
For the first time in his life, striving for success or his father’s love wasn’t first on his list of priorities. Instead, he enjoyed this moment and the opportunity to appreciate how special it was to have not one but two sons in addition to the woman at his side helping to raise them. The time had come to finally allow himself to become the man he wanted to be.
Esme blinked awake in the darkness, heart pounding like she’d just run a fifty-yard dash. She was confused and disoriented for a few terrifying moments, the nightmare holding her in its grip.
In her dream, she’d returned to the night she gave birth, and the storm had raged even more violently. There’d been two bassinets at the end of her bed, but instead of a nurse checking on her babies, the older volunteer Ryder was intent on tracking down had slowly entered the room, cane in hand and her vivid blue eyes glittering with an emotion Esme couldn’t name.
The woman had shaken her head at Esme as if admonishing her. Then she hooked the crook of her cane over the edge of one of the bassinets and wheeled it out of the room. The relentless crack of thunder drowned Esme’s scream as she watched one of her precious children being taken from her.
Her body quivering with residual fear, she climbed out of bed and silently made her way across the dark hall. Although she knew the dream wasn’t real, she had to check on Chase and Noah and see for herself that both boys were safe.
The nursery door was slightly ajar, causing panic to flare inside her, but the band around her chest loosened as she pushed it open to reveal Ryder standing in the middle of the room, a swaddled baby tucked under each arm.
He swayed back and forth, singing what sounded to Esme like a quiet rendition of “Born in the USA.” He wore a white T-shirt and gray athletic shorts, his hair tousled from sleep. Maybe it was her own exhaustion or the leftover adrenaline her dream had produced, but she’d never seen a sexier sight.
She must have made a sound, or he sensed her presence because his gaze collided with hers, green eyes sparking with awareness.
