Page 29 of Daring Lance

Lance sprinkled some bubbles over Jessica’s belly, and the baby immediately smacked the water with her tiny hands, spraying both Lance and Willow with water. “None of my brothers have ever babysat Will’s kids. I don’t think that his wife is a big fan of the idea.”

He wiped away several droplets of water from Willow’s cheek, and she smiled back at him. “I don’t know your brothers, but if they are anything like you, then I guess I understand.”

Lance smirked. “Exactly.” He scooped up some of the soap bubbles from the water and blew them in the air. Jessica squealed in delight, and Willow almost lost the grip she had on the baby’s arm. “Whoa, I didn’t realize how slippery babies are when wet. She almost slid out of my hands.”

“I would have caught her, right Jessica? I don’t let pretty girls slide away from me.” He shot Willow a knowing look and she pretended to be occupied with wiping the suds off of Jessica’s back. Fortunately for her, the toddler yawned, and Willow could declare bath time over. “I think we have tired her out, and she’s definitely clean. Can you please grab a towel for her?”

“Already did. Here you go.” He handed Willow the towel, resting his hand on Willow’s shoulder as he did, and once again, to her annoyance, Willow found her mind fantasizing about a time when she and Lance would be doing the same thing with their own child. “And I got one of those one-piece things she wears, plus a diaper. They’re on top of my bed.”

Willow forced herself to snap back to reality. “Oh, good,” she murmured absently. She wrapped the baby in the towel, not surprised by how soft the infant’s skin felt against her fingertips. She brushed back a golden lock of hair from Jessica’s forehead as she yawned again. “I hope Andrew left you a baby bottle because I think we need to feed her before she falls asleep. You don’t want her waking up in the middle of the night, hungry and needing a bottle. You’ll be miserable in the morning from lack of sleep.”

Willow laid the baby down on the bed, making sure she was completely dry before putting on her diaper.

Lance placed his hand around her forearm. “Wait, what do you mean me? You’re staying with me tonight, aren’t you?”

The pleading in Lance’s voice could only be considered comical. Who would have thought that a tiny one-year could terrify a grown man as much as this one had done to Lance? “I hadn’t planned on it, Lance. I am in the middle of translating a Chinese drama with thirty-two episodes. I need to keep working on it tonight.” She glanced away from him to avoid letting him see her lips twisting in amusement.

“What? No, please. I’m begging you. I’m desperate here. Please, Willow—”

Willow picked up the now freshly bathed and dressed Jessica and then handed her to Lance. “I’m teasing, Lance. I’ll stay, but if she wakes up during the night, you are feeding her. I assume her baby bottles are in the refrigerator?”

Lance let out a prolonged sigh. “Yeah, they are. Thanks, Willow.” He paused and then dipped his head and pressed a soft kiss on her cheek. “I love you.”

Willow walked away, shaking her head as she did. She was tempted to sneak a peak of Jessica snuggled in Lance’s arm but decided not to because her heart could only handle so much when it came to Lance Bennett. “Yeah, yeah, Sir Lancelot, I know. Meet me with Jessica on the couch. I’ll feed her while you set up her portable crib.”

* * *

“I thinkI did pretty good with that crib tonight. She fell asleep almost immediately.” Lance had his arm resting across her shoulders, and he took the moment to squeeze her upper forearm.

Willow lifted her head from off of his shoulder to look at him. His sandy blonde hair lay tussled against his forehead, several pieces taunting the corners of his sea blue eyes. She knew without a doubt she had never seen a more handsome man in her life. Each time she thought about his leaving for Costa Rica, her heart clenched beneath her ribcage. If only she could convince him why it was so important for her to stay in Florida, to build a life here and with him, but she was more convinced with each passing day that was not going to happen. Lance’s excitement to begin his new project in Costa Rica grew daily. She heard it in his voice and witnessed it in his movements. There was an underlying anxiousness to everything he did.

“It was a portable crib, Lance. All you had to do was pop it open. There was nothing to put together.”

“Still—”

Willow rested her head back down on his shoulder. She was tired, but in a good way, which felt strange and not something she was sure she understood. “Please.”

Lance pressed a kiss to the top of her head, and she sank further into his embrace. Jessica had fallen asleep after drinking her bottle and had slept peacefully in the portable crib until Andrew’s mother-in-law had shown up an hour ago.

“I’m surprised Andrew’s mother-in-law arrived when she did. She seemed really out of sorts and relieved to find Jessica safe. I swear Andrew mentioned that she was in Atlanta for some family wedding.”

Willow and Lance were in his bed, propped up against several bed pillows. Lance’s arm was around her, and she had taken the opportunity to snuggle into his embrace. Now, she bent her head back to look up at him, raising an eyebrow high on her forehead. “She was in Atlanta, and she told me that she’d practically had a heart attack when Andrew called her. You’d never met her before, had you, Lance?”

Lance paused. “No, why?”

Willow toyed with the hair at his nape. “I figured you might have, the way the woman hopped on a plane as fast as she did to rescue her granddaughter.”

“Ha, ha.” Lance placed a kiss on the top of her forehead as Willow smiled up at him. “Who would have thought such a little thing would take so much work? That was exhausting.”

Willow giggled against his chest. “You watched her for a whole six hours, Lance, and she was asleep for four of them. Can you imagine having to take care of a baby full time? Doing that and taking care of other children as well? Whew.”

She felt Lance stiffen beneath her. “Lance?”

Lance placed his thumb under her chin and tilted her head back. “Actually, I think I can, Willow, if it’s with you.”

It was Willow’s turn to stiffen in his arms. She immediately pushed herself out of Lance’s embrace and sat up. “Lance, please don’t say things like that, not now, not when you are leaving in two days. I can’t handle it.”

“Willow—”

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