Page 32 of Sweet Surprise

Jess shrugged. “No idea, but the kid did party hard.”

“He was a bigger hit than the bride and groom.”

“Okay, you two,” Alice came up beside them. “Go put your son to bed. We’ll finish cleaning up.”

“We’ll be back to help.” Carson took a step in retreat.

“No.” His mother turned to face him. “No bride and groom clean up after the party, they go on a honeymoon. And since y’all aren’t taking a honeymoon, you can at least go enjoy the rest of your night. Alone.”

Jess was pretty sure her cheeks were flushing bright red. Alice’s implication was quite clear.

“Well, uh.” Carson cleared his throat. “I’ll get Mason.”

Even as a toddler, Todd had never carried Mason with such ease and caring as Carson did from the back barn all the way to the house, up the stairs, and then into his new room. She reached for one boot and Carson the other. While he went to retrieve her son’s pajamas, she tugged off the boy’s jeans. They worked in surprising unison as if they had been tucking in a sleepy child all of his life.

How could that be? How is it that they slid into the parenting role so flawlessly? Could anticipate the other’s move, need? Was this a magical byproduct that came with all marriage licenses?

With Mason changed and tucked in, they each gave him a gentle kiss on the cheek and turned, quietly latching the door closed behind them. Slightly down the hall was the master bedroom. The one that had been Alice and Charlie Sweet’s, then Preston and Sarah’s, and now, her and Carson’s. Oh, boy. Now what?

“I, uh,” Carson stood just inside the doorway, “spoke with Preston and Sarah. They said that, the king size bed made sleeping arrangements pretty simple.” He shuffled to one side. “If you, uh, would like, I could, you know, put a bunch of pillows or something down the middle.”

“Like in that old movie?”

“What?”

“Never mind.”

“I’m sure there are extra pillows in the linen closet.” He spun around. “I’ll be right back.”

She grabbed hold of his arm. “That’s okay. I’m sure we’ll be fine. I sleep in one spot.” No point mentioning Todd liked his space and she’d learned to not inch over or accidentally bumping Todd wasn’t much different from waking a sleeping bear.

“Yeah, okay, so do I.” His gaze slid from her eyes to her lips and then back. Clearing his throat, his hand reached for hers.

For just a moment she thought he was going to propose a totally different arrangement. And for another moment, her heart racing, she considered what the heck would she do. Except the decision was made for her when Carson leaned over, kissed her gently on the cheek, and softly uttered, “Thank you.”

Nodding, she somehow managed to spit out the same. “Thank you for giving our son a brighter future.”

He nodded, let go of her hand, and took a step back. “You can have the bathroom first. I’m going to go get a little fresh air. I won’t be long.”

Standing in place, she watched his back leave and once again wished she hadn’t been such a fool all those years ago.

Chapter Thirteen

Carson squinted against the morning sun, watching the small moving truck rumble up the drive. He’d hoped the truck would be here before the wedding, but the day after was better than not at all. For the tenth time that morning, he wondered if he’d made a mistake. The plan had seemed perfect when he’d first spotted the forwarded notice from the Dallas Courts system tucked in with the other mail. He hadn’t opened it—he’d never invade Jess’s privacy like that—but the return address and official seal told him enough. That, combined with her casual mention of month-to-month rent and the obvious financial strain she was under, hadn’t taken much to piece together she was being evicted.

A quick call to his friend Declan and within hours, his suspicions had been confirmed. It had taken a bit more finagling to locate the name and phone number of the one neighbor Jess spoke of fondly. In exchange for paying the back rent, the landlord had agreed to allow the neighbor to box up all the belongings in the tiny apartment.

The truck came to a stop in front of the house, and Carson took a deep breath before heading down the porch steps. A skinny man in his forties hopped out of the driver’s side, clipboard in hand. “Mr. Sweet?” The driver extended his hand. “I’m Dan. Got a delivery for you from Dallas.”

“Thanks.” Carson shook the man’s hand. And once again, he wondered if he should have said something last night while he tried hard not to toss and turn and ignore the beautiful woman sleeping a few feet away from him.

The screen door swung open, and Carson turned to see Mason bounding out, followed by a curious-looking Jess. The driver lifted the tailgate and Jess’s gaze settled on an old sofa. “That looks like mine.”

Carson nodded.

Jess’s hand flew to her mouth, her eyes widening as she stared at the contents of the truck. “How did you…? When did you…?”

“I saw the court notice in the mail,” he admitted. “I didn’t open it, but I had Declan confirm a hunch. Mrs. Kellerman agreed to help pack it all up. She insisted on making sure that the movers didn’t pack and take trash.”

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