Page 39 of Under His Skin

“Oh, I’m so sorry. How horrible.”

“Thank you. Taking care of a baby was definitely a big adjustment, but Conner and his family helped out. And with time, I came to fall in love with not just this baby but this town, and this guy too,” she added, smiling at Conner.

As if on cue, Conner leaned forward and kissed his fiancée. It was a sweet, loving exchange that left Waverley in awe of the love they obviously shared and expressed so freely.

She and Spencer had never been so affectionate in public. They hadn’t been that expressive in private, for that matter.

Lola’s tiny fingers now strawberry-free, the baby held her arms up in the air and looked over at Reynolds. “Unca Wen. Out. Out.”

Reynolds froze, half his hot dog in his mouth. Waverley looked around, noticing that Kim, Conner, and Avery were all watching him with amusement.

“Unca Wen. Out,” the baby insisted.

“Go on, Ren,” Conner said, clearly enjoying himself. “She doesn’t bite. Well, not for the past two weeks anyhow.”

Reynolds wiped his mouth on a napkin and got up, hesitantly approaching the baby.

“Is big, old, grumpy Uncle Reynolds still afraid of you, ladybug?” Conner asked her, his green eyes shining with laughter.

“Hardly,” Reynolds said, even though he hadn’t yet moved to lift the baby from the high chair.

Lola looked up again, her big green eyes wide as she stared at the hulking figure standing over her. “Pwease?”

Waverley studied the reluctant expression on Reynolds’s face, as if he expected the baby’s head to rotate around at any moment, Exorcist style. She laughed, unable to hide her amusement. “You really are scared of her. I’m pretty sure she’s not possessed.”

“Have you seen her when she projectile vomits?” he asked.

Waverley rested her elbows on the table and tucked her hands under her chin as she was now as invested as the rest of them in seeing how Reynolds handled the baby’s request.

Reaching to the safety belt, he struggled for a minute as Lola watched patiently. Once it finally slipped out, she looked up at him and widened her mouth into a big, toothy grin. “Up! Up!”

With little choice, Reynolds picked the baby up and awkwardly held her to him. Fortunately the baby knew how to position herself in his arms and got comfortable before she reached out and shoved a finger in his ear.

“Hair?” she asked with her darling lisp that gave the r a w sound.

They all laughed. Even the guys were rolling on the couch laughing.

“That’s right, Lola,” Conner said, “Uncle Ren is an old, old man and he has lots of hair growing out of his ears. In fact, is that some gray? Right there?”

“I’m barely five months older than you, old man,” Reynolds retorted and scowled around the room.

Only five months? Was that possible?

Lola, however, didn’t seem fazed as she clapped and laughed along with everyone else even if she didn’t know why.

Reynolds looked at the baby’s face again, and even as he tried to keep his face firm and stoic, she saw a tenderness in his eyes as his lips clamped tight, almost like he was trying not to smile.

Snap. And just like that, Waverley’s lady bits that had been retired for what had felt like years leapt to attention as she stared googly-eyed at the grumpy guy holding the baby like she was Kryptonite.

Sure, Reynolds was a little rough around the edges at times, but at his core, he was a big old teddy bear.

Waverley knew that, as did the baby in his arms, who didn’t care if his dark brows were scrunched together in a show of frustration.

Reynolds looked over just then and met her gaze. Instantly, that bolt of energy that usually sat low in her belly shot through her entire body, as if a current was running between them, leaving her breathless.

And with the knowledge that she was in serious trouble.

Chapter 13

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