Chapter Five

      When Cassie awoke it was dark outside. She knew she’d been drifting in and out from sleep and wakefulness for several hours. Or was it days? Her head and throat still hurt but she sensed the fever that had taken hold so quickly had mostly left her body.

      She pushed back the covers and eased herself into a sitting position. The bedside lamp was on and she heard the gentle hum of the humidifier from somewhere in the room. The digital clock read 6:45 p.m. but she had no idea what day it was. She looked down and noticed the cotton pajamas she wore. They were pale lemon and had silly-looking cats on them. Cassie didn’t remember changing her clothes. Didn’t remember much of anything, really. Only a deep voice that had given her an easy comfort as she’d shifted in and out of sleep, and then someone pressing a glass to her lips so she could have some water. Then she remembered another voice, female and familiar. Lauren. Her friend had been looking after her. Of course, it could only have been Lauren.

      Cassie swung her legs off the bed. The house was quiet. Too quiet.

       Oliver...

      Where was her baby? Panic crept over her skin for a second, and then she realized he must be with her friend. Cassie forced herself to stand, and when her knees wobbled she clutched the bed to get her bearings. Once she had her balance she grabbed her robe from the foot of the bed and pushed her arms into it and tightened the belt. She made a quick bathroom stop and then moved back into the bedroom. The door was open and she made her way across the room as steadily as she could. A light illuminated down the hall and she followed it to the nursery. But the room was empty. The panic returned and quickly seeped deep into her bones. Where were they?

      She turned on her bare heels and hurried back down the hall to the kitchen.

      Still nothing.

      When she reached the living room Cassie came to an abrupt halt in the doorway as relief flooded every pore. Oliver was safe. But he wasn’t with her friend. He was lying blissfully asleep against his uncle’s strong chest.

      Tanner was in the recliner, legs stretched out and crossed at the ankles, both hands cradling her sleeping son. He wore jeans and a white tank shirt and his feet were bare. His eyes were closed and his hair flopped over his forehead a little.

      Cassie’s belly rolled over as she watched them. In a matter of days she’d witnessed him form a bond with her son that touched her to her very core. It was the bond she’d dreamed Doug would have had with his son. But it wasn’t Doug cradling her child so gently. It wasn’t Doug who’d been so kind to her over the past few days.

      Doug was gone.

      And Tanner was now in her life. Until he left. Until the house sold and Doug’s estate was sorted. She needed to remember that he was passing through. He was temporary. And once he was gone her life could return to normal. She’d find somewhere to live, go back to work and raise her son...and forget all about Tanner McCord and his sexy smile and broad shoulders.

      She looked at him again. His eyes were now open and he was smiling.

      “Hey there,” he said softly. “How are you feeling?”

      Cassie nodded. Her arms were aching to hold her son, but the thought she might be contagious stopped her from rushing forward. And Oliver looked so peaceful and content resting against Tanner’s chest.

      “Okay,” she replied and stepped a little farther into the room. “Weak. I guess I’ve been out of it since yesterday?”

      “Pretty much,” he said and pushed up from the chair effortlessly. Oliver didn’t protest, but instead seemed to snuggle closer to his uncle. “He was restless,” Tanner explained and gently touched the baby’s head. “And he seems to like this.”

      She smiled warmly. “Thank you for taking care of him.”

      Tanner met her gaze. “That’s what family is for, Cassie.”

      Her throat tightened. Family. It had been so long since she’d thought she had anyone to call family. With her grandfather’s slide into dementia and Doug’s continued absence from her life even though she’d considered them a couple, Cassie had felt very alone for the past few years. Oliver’s arrival had changed that of course, but he was a baby and needed her 24/7. To have someone to rely upon, to need someone herself, was a different kind of feeling. Not that she needed Tanner. Not at all. But he’d said they were family...and for the moment, while she was feeling so weak and weary, it made her feel a little less alone.

      “How about I put him in his crib and then make you some herbal tea?” Tanner suggested quietly.

      Cassie nodded. “That would be good.”

      Careful not to wake the baby, he slowly got out of the chair and came to stand beside her. Cassie’s heart rolled over when she gazed into the face of her sleeping son and she touched Oliver’s head gently. Glancing up, she saw Tanner watching her with a kind of blistering intensity and the look made her insides quiver. His eyes were dark and hypnotic and she was quickly drawn into his stare. So close, with only Oliver between them, she was more conscious of him than she had ever been of any man in her life. There was a connection between them...a link that had developed over the past few days. And it wasn’t simply about Oliver.

      This was something else.

      This was physical attraction...pure and simple.

      An attraction she’d always been able to ignore. Until now.

      “Be back in a minute,” Tanner said, breaking the visual connection.

      He left the room and Cassie let out a long breath. There was nothing right or reasonable about her feelings. Nothing she could say to herself that would assuage the heaviness in her heart. He was Doug’s brother so desiring Tanner was out of the question.

      He returned about ten minutes later and Cassie was sitting on the sofa, legs curled up, her chin resting in one hand. He came into the room with a tray and placed it on the small table beside the sofa.

      “I heated some soup,” he explained and passed her a mug. “You should probably eat something.”

      Cassie took the mug of warm broth and smiled. “Thank you. You’ve been very kind.”

      He shrugged loosely, as though he was embarrassed by her words. “It’s nothing.”

      That wasn’t even halfway to the truth. She managed a wry smile. “Ah...how did I get into these pajamas?”

      “Lauren,” he explained. “She was here this morning.”

      Cassie nodded a little. “Oh, I don’t remember much of today.”

      “Her fiancé checked you out and she organized the medication you needed. She also suggested taking Oliver home