He’s in over his head...

And calling for backup!

Police officer Mike McMann is always cool under pressure, but taking custody of his infant nephew has left him in a cold sweat. Coming to his rescue is social worker Paige Stedler. Paige gives him a crash course on parenting—and a tempting glimpse into a life beyond the badge. But is Mike ready to trade in his SWAT team aspirations for a white picket fence?

PATRICIA JOHNS writes from Alberta, Canada. She has her Hon. BA in English literature and currently writes for Mills & Boon’s Love Inspired and Heartwarming lines. You can find her at patriciajohnsromance.com.

Also By Patricia Johns

Home to Eagle’s Rest

Her Lawman Protector

Falling for the Cowboy Dad

A Baxter’s Redemption

The Runaway Bride

A Boy’s Christmas Wish

Montana Twins

Her Cowboy’s Twin Blessings

Her Twins’ Cowboy Dad

Comfort Creek Lawmen

Deputy Daddy

The Lawman’s Runaway Bride

The Deputy’s Unexpected Family

His Unexpected Family

The Rancher’s City Girl

A Firefighter’s Promise

The Lawman’s Surprise Family

Discover more at millsandboon.co.uk.

The Lawman’s Baby

Patricia Johns

www.millsandboon.co.uk

ISBN: 978-1-474-09743-7

THE LAWMAN’S BABY

© 2019 Patricia Johns

Published in Great Britain 2019

by Mills & Boon, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers 1 London Bridge Street, London, SE1 9GF

All rights reserved including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form. This edition is published by arrangement with Harlequin Books S.A.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, locations and incidents are purely fictional and bear no relationship to any real life individuals, living or dead, or to any actual places, business establishments, locations, events or incidents. Any resemblance is entirely coincidental.

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Version: 2020-03-02

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“He’s very sweet...”

Mike smiled hesitantly. “I don’t know how to take care of him, and that scares me a whole lot. I’m better with perps and bad guys than I am with babies.”

“I can see that,” Paige said wryly.

“I can pay you for your time,” Mike added. “Basically, I’ll need to get some sort of childcare arranged, but in the meantime, I’m looking for someone to take care of Benjie while I’m at work, and to teach me everything I need to know.”

It should be simple—a few baby-care lessons and a little baby minding for a couple of weeks. Maybe it would help her get out of her head so she could decide on what to do with the rest of her life. Was she sticking with social services, or was she quitting for good?

“I’m not a long-term solution,” Paige said.

Mike met her gaze, those gray eyes locking on to hers so powerfully that her breath caught. “I’m not looking for long-term. I’m just looking for some help right now while I get my balance. What do you say?”

Dear Reader,

When I write, I often think about my reader—what she might look like curled up in a comfy chair, sitting on a bus, standing in a long lineup somewhere—and what she might get out of the story I’m writing. If there is one thing I hope you feel at the end of this story, it’s brave! I hope you’ll feel courageous enough to take a risk when it really matters. Love is complicated and oftentimes messy. But it’s always worth it.

I write for Heartwarming and Love Inspired here at Harlequin, and I hope you’ll check out my other books. You’re guaranteed to get sweet romance with a lot of heart!

You can find me on my blog at patriciajohnsromance.com, on Facebook and on Twitter. I’d love to hear from you.

Patricia Johns

To my husband, my very own happily-ever-after. I love you!

Contents

Cover

Back Cover Text

About the Author

Booklist

Title Page

Copyright

Note to Readers

Introduction

Dear Reader

Dedication

CHAPTER ONE

CHAPTER TWO

CHAPTER THREE

CHAPTER FOUR

CHAPTER FIVE

CHAPTER SIX

CHAPTER SEVEN

CHAPTER EIGHT

CHAPTER NINE

CHAPTER TEN

CHAPTER ELEVEN

CHAPTER TWELVE

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

EPILOGUE

Extract

About the Publisher

CHAPTER ONE

PAIGE STEDLER WALKED up the front stairs to the Eagle’s Rest Police Department and tugged her coat a little closer. It was a chilly fall morning, and an eddy of wind whipped a pile of leaves against the police station front doors. The police chief had called her in as a special request. Everyone knew that Paige was on stress leave, but this wasn’t exactly related to her job as a Social Services agent. Or so the chief had assured her.

She did feel a lot better than she had three weeks ago when she’d had her fifth panic attack while at work. But Paige wasn’t sure what the chief even wanted from her. Here was hoping it was just a form to sign or something like that. She pulled open the front door and headed into the station’s warmth. The receptionist, Ellen, shot her a smile.

“Paige!” the chief’s voice boomed across the office.

Paige returned Ellen’s smile on her way past and headed toward Chief Simpson’s office in the back. The chief was an older man with a potbelly and a demanding stare that softened when he waved to her. He strode across the bull pen and met her halfway.

“Thanks for coming in, Paige,” he said, lowering his voice.

“No problem.” It was only half a lie. “What can I do for you?”

“We have a situation, and I think you’re the person we need. One of our new officers just became guardian of his sister’s newborn, and he’s overwhelmed, to put it mildly. He needs a hand getting used to child care. For a bit. Just while he sorts things out. And since you were on leave...”

As if stress leave were paid vacation!

“Why do you think I’m the only one who can handle it, Chief?” she asked.

“You’re the best,” the chief replied.

“I’m on stress leave,” she countered.

“You’re still the best.” He met her gaze. “And your brother’s worried.”

Paige’s brother, Nathan, was a cop, too, but he was stationed in a small town a couple of hours away. Serving the public was in the Stedler blood...except Paige didn’t seem to have what it took anymore.

“You could ask pretty much anyone to help out with a baby,” Paige said.

“This particular baby is pretty small, and he was born with cocaine in his system. He doesn’t seem to be going through any withdrawal, miraculously enough, but it’s still a touchy case,” he said. “And no one else is available. I did ask around, for the record. If not you, we’re moving on to some local grandmothers who might lend a hand, and I’d rather recommend someone who’s trained in social services. You have...more of the experience that we need, considering this infant’s shaky start.”

“Oh.” Yes, that did make sense. Still...

“Nathan’s not the only one who’s been worried about you,” the chief added with an apologetic shrug. “I know you pretty well, Paige, and I want to help you get back in the saddle. I’m guessing you want that, too, or you wouldn’t be here.”

“Did you run this past Dana?” Paige asked with a teasing smile. Dana was Chief Simpson’s wife—twenty years his junior, short, slim, and with a mop of curly hair that set off a pair of sparkling eyes. She and Paige had always gotten along.

“No,” he said, but he returned the wry smile. “She would have told me to mind my own business and let you deal with things your own way.”

“So this baby care thing—this is for me,” she said.

“Come see the situation,” Chief Simpson suggested quietly. “Meet the officer, the baby... And if you don’t want to help out, then no hard feelings and I’ll start talking to local grandmothers.”

“And you can tell Nathan that you did your best,” she said.

“Something like that. Unless you want me to tell him I tried but you’re not interested. I’m not going to push you into something you’re not ready for.”

From across the bull pen, the soft cry of a baby filtered toward them, and Paige’s heart softened. A new dad and a new baby...complications aside, she was curious.

“Let’s go,” she said, and the chief shot her a grin.

“Thanks for this, Paige.”

Paige followed the chief through the bull pen. A couple of officers who stood by the coffeemaker nodded at her. Three others were working at their desks. She knew most of these cops from various cases she’d been called in to. The chief led her to his office, and gestured her in first, then followed, shutting the door behind him.

A large, muscular man sat inside, a baby car seat cradled in his lap. He looked to be around thirty, with short-cropped brown hair. His attention was fixed on the car seat he was holding in his lap. He was rocking it—the entire car seat—and the baby seemed to be settled again. He looked up, his steely gray gaze drilling into her. Paige glanced between the men.

“Hi,” she said feebly.

“This is Officer Mike McMann,” Chief Simpson said. “He’s just transferred over from Denver.”

“Pleasure.” Mike reached out to shake her hand, and she was struck by the sheer size of him. His arms were thick with muscle, but as his broad palm engulfed hers, that iron gaze of his melted, and she caught a flicker of emotion under his professional reserve. And he looked—scared?

From the car seat, another little mewling cry arose, and she bent down to get a closer look. Inside was a tiny newborn baby who couldn’t have been much over five pounds. He was swimming in a blue newborn sleeper that had been rolled up at the sleeves, but the legs just flopped empty underneath him.

“This is my, uh, nephew,” Mike said hesitantly. “His name is Benjie. Well, Benjamin Alexander McMann. It’s kind of long for a guy this small, though.”

“Benjie...” Paige bent over the car seat, and the baby squirmed again and wrinkled up his tiny face in a cry. “Have you held him yet, Mike?”

“Um. Once. I put him right back, though.”

“Once!”

“I didn’t want to hurt him,” Mike said, eyeing her.

“You won’t. He’s not that fragile. Babies are meant to be held—it’s good for them. They need the contact. Do you mind if I pick him up?”

“No, that’d be fine.”

Paige unbuckled the straps and lifted the tiny infant from the restraints. “You’re supposed to hold him as much as possible,” she said. As she pulled the baby up to her shoulder, Benjie instinctively nuzzled into her neck, tucking up those little legs underneath him. There was just something about that milk-sweet scent and the tiny rump in her palm that slowed her heartbeat down. She leaned her cheek against his downy head.

She needed the contact right now, it seemed, and when she looked down at the baby, he opened his mouth in a tiny yawn. She smoothed a hand over that little back. He was thin—which was natural when a baby was born a few weeks early. He didn’t have any of that healthy newborn chub.

“I kind of knew that, but he’s pretty little, and I’m kind of—” He looked down at his hands. “I’m in over my head.”

“He’s your nephew, you said?”

“Yeah. I only found out about him at one this morning. That’s when the hospital tracked me down. He was born four days ago. It took them that long to find me and to be certain that he wasn’t born addicted. He, um, had cocaine in his system.”

“Yes, the chief filled me about that,” she confirmed quietly.

“My sister left him after he was born,” Mike went on. “I’m her only living relative, so he’s in my hands now. I’m obviously working full-time, and add to that, I have no idea how to take care of babies.”

“So you need to learn how to care for a newborn,” she clarified.

“That among other things, I guess. I just need...” He shrugged weakly. “Help.”

Paige could see that much. Mike looked down at the car seat in his lap, and then placed it on the floor. His movements were carefully controlled—she could see the police training in him as he kept himself contained in the chair that was too small for his muscular frame. He rose to his feet and rolled his shoulders, then let his gray gaze move over Paige, finally settling on the baby in her arms.

“Did Chief Simpson tell you that I’m on stress leave?” she asked.

“He mentioned that you had some time off,” Mike replied, glancing toward the chief. Yeah, she was sure the chief had explained more than that.

“I’ve been working in Social Services for seven years now,” she said, “and I’m burned out. You should you know that up front. I need a break—desperately.”

“And helping me out...isn’t exactly the break you’re looking for.”

“Not exactly,” she agreed. The baby nestled closer against her neck, and she patted his back gently. He was so tiny and so desperately in need of love, and she looked over at the infant, her heart melting in spite of her. “He’s very sweet, though.”

It was this sort of scenario that had drawn her to Social Services—parents in need of support, children in need of love. But there was always deeper heartbreak underneath, and that was what made this career so draining. She couldn’t fix it all. She couldn’t fix much actually. Everything she did for the good ended up hurting whoever was on the other side. There was never an easy right or wrong decision.

Mike smiled hesitantly. “I don’t know how to take care of him, and that scares me a whole lot. I’m better with perps and bad guys than I am with babies.”

“I can see that,” she said wryly.

“I can pay you for your time,” Mike added. “Basically, I’ll need to get some sort of child care arranged, but in the meantime, I’m looking for someone to take care of Benjie while I’m at work, and to teach me everything I need to know.”

It should be simple—a few baby care lessons and a little baby minding for a couple of weeks. Maybe it would help her get out of her head so she could decide about what to do with the rest of her life. Was she sticking with Social Services, or was she quitting for good?

“I’m not a long-term solution,” Paige cautioned.

Mike met her gaze, those gray eyes locking on to hers so powerfully that her breath caught. “I’m not looking for long term. I’m just looking for some help right now while I get my balance. What do you say?”

* * *

CHIEF SIMPSON HAD recommended Paige Stedler because he claimed she was the best. And looking at her with the baby nestled next to her chin, her undecided blue eyes meeting his, Mike had to wonder if this was a good idea.

When the chief mentioned a Social Services agent on leave, Mike had figured she’d be older, and maybe a little less attractive. Instead, he was faced with a petite blonde, her hair loose and wavy around her face. Her blue eyes were expressive, and he could read all the concerns flitting through the clear gaze that regarded him.

Paige broke eye contact and looked down at the baby again, adjusting him so that he lay in the crook of her arm. He looked snug and cozy in her arms—and she seemed so confident holding him. Mike had been scared that he’d drop the baby, or hurt him somehow. Benjie was just so small, with thin little arms and legs he was afraid he’d snap if he held him wrong.

“Here’s what I can do,” she said finally. “You have me for three weeks, so make sure you line up some alternative child care for after that. In that time, I’ll teach you everything you need to know about baby care and help you get comfortable. While you’re at work, I’ll take over, but when you’re home I expect you to be hands-on.”

“Okay,” he agreed.

“My stress leave is up in three weeks, so I’ll either be going back to work or tendering my resignation there,” she added.

“You’re thinking of quitting?” Mike asked in surprise, then he softened his tone. “Sorry, I just thought—”

“I have decisions of my own to make, is my point,” she said. “But maybe helping you with Benjie will get my feet wet again so that I can be sure of my choice.”

Mike saw Paige’s gaze flicker toward the chief, whose eyebrows were raised. Color rose in her cheeks. Obviously, this was news all around. But it shouldn’t matter to Mike. She was offering him three weeks of help, and he was grateful.

“Thanks,” he said. “I appreciate you being willing to give me a hand. All things considered.”

“You’re welcome.” Paige looked back in control again, her confidence in place. She was so petite, but she intimidated him a little. Maybe it was that he needed her help so much. He was more comfortable in the role of rescuer than...this.

“Take the day off,” the chief said, turning to Mike. “You can start fresh after you’re settled in.”

“Thanks, sir,” Mike replied. He looked down at Paige, feeling better already. Until he figured this out, he’d have some support from someone who knew what she was doing when it came to infants.

“If you’re willing to start now, we can head back to my place,” he said.

“Sounds good.” For the first time, she smiled, and he was struck by how it transformed her face. She went from pretty to stunning, and he turned his attention to the car seat instead. He was glad she was willing to give him a hand, but he’d have to stop noticing just how attractive she was if they were going to make this work.

He wasn’t sticking around Eagle’s Rest for long, anyway. This was a demotion, and everyone knew it. If he’d had a better relationship with the chief in Denver, Mike might have been able to pursue getting on to the SWAT team there, but things had gotten complicated between him and Chief Vernon. To say the least. If Mike stuck around Denver any longer, Chief Vernon would find some reason to write him up again, and his career as a cop might be over completely. Accepting this position in Eagle’s Rest was the smartest move under the circumstances.

SWAT was where Mike belonged, and he knew it. Not only was he built for the job—two hundred and fifty pounds of solid muscle—but he was also in peak physical shape and an excellent shot. But he was hungry for this position on more than a testosterone level. This was personal for him...atonement for past mistakes. He hadn’t always been this capable.

“Let’s get him back into the car seat,” Paige said, and for the next couple of minutes they got Benjie settled into the seat and buckled in. Paige tucked the blanket around him, and then stood back for Mike to pick it up.

“Thanks for the introduction, Chief,” Mike said, shaking the older man’s hand. “I’ll be back bright and early tomorrow morning.”

“Good luck.” Chief Simpson reached out and shook Paige’s hand. “To both of you.”

Mike and Paige headed out the door of his office and out into the bull pen. Paige glanced up at Mike, and he gave her a small smile. She was pretty, and she had a confidence about her that set his own frayed nerves at ease. They didn’t say anything else as they wound their way around desks and headed out of the station and into the chilly, autumn air.

“Let’s get him buckled into your car,” Paige said. “I’ll follow you back to your place.”

“Right. Sure.”

He’d gotten the car seat into his vehicle before, and it didn’t take him too long to get the car seat clicked into place now.

“I do appreciate this,” Mike said as he closed the door gently.

The wind ruffled Paige’s hair and she hunched her shoulders. “It’s no problem.”

“All the same...”

She smiled again. “Don’t thank me too soon. I’m a toughie. I’m going to make you do all this yourself, you know.”

“Probably for the best,” he said with a rueful smile. “So... My place is in the west end of town. You said you’ll follow me there?”

“I’ll be right behind you. I’m parked just over there.” She hooked a thumb toward a little blue hatchback, then raised her hand in a farewell and started off in that direction. He watched her for a moment, then heaved a sigh. He’d figure this out.

When Mike got into his cruiser, he glanced into the backseat. He couldn’t see into the car seat from that position, so he turned front again and sucked in a deep breath. He hadn’t slept since that phone call telling him about his nephew, and he hadn’t had a chance to process it all, either.

He started the car. Feeling any of this was just going to have to wait.

On the drive, Mike kept an eye on his rearview mirror, and Paige’s little blue car stayed steadily in the center of it. Eagle’s Rest was a small town in Colorado’s Rocky Mountains, and it didn’t take him long to get to his place and park out front. Paige parked beside him. Having her here to help him out did make him feel a bit better.

It was midmorning and the sun was shining despite the chilly wind. Mike got the car seat out of his car on his own. Benjie was covered up in that blanket that Paige had tucked around him, but even so, Mike hurried to unlock the front door, balancing the car seat in one hand as he fiddled with his key ring in the other.

The door swung open, and Mike gestured Paige in ahead of him.

“Here we are,” he said, casting a quick glance around the place. It looked like the bachelor pad it was. He had a couch—relatively new—a TV, a kitchen table that sat between the tiny kitchen and the living room. The master bedroom was down the hall, along with a second bedroom that was full of packed boxes. Where was the baby supposed to sleep? The thought only occurred to him now. He looked over at Paige in mild panic.

“What?” she asked.

“I only have one bedroom that isn’t full of boxes right now,” he said.

“I’m not staying the night,” she said wryly. “You’re doing night duty on your own.”

“No, I meant—” He smiled at her dry humor. “The baby. Where is he going to sleep?”

“He’s a newborn. He’ll be in your bedroom,” she replied.

“Yeah?” It wasn’t very big in there, either.

“I’ll suss up a bassinet for you and a couple other necessities. But he’ll sleep in your room so that when he cries, you can feed him more easily. It’s good for bonding, too.”

“Bonding.”

“He needs to know that there’s someone who will respond when he’s lonely, or when he’s hungry, or when he’s scared.”

“A mother,” he murmured.

“A parental figure,” she corrected him. “That’s you.”

“Yeah, right.” He was still getting used to that concept. He was going to be like a dad to this kid. For a while at least. It felt wrong, though. He was Benjie’s uncle. This was Jana’s child. Not his.

“Your sister...” Paige began, then winced. “Can I ask about her?”

Jana was out there somewhere—alone, for all he knew. She’d be recovering from childbirth, and he had no way to find her. At least not immediately.

“Why not?” Mike sighed. “The administrator at the hospital told me that she gave my name and said I was a local cop. She didn’t know I’d moved out to Eagle’s Rest—I had no contact information to even let her know. Anyway, the Denver department passed along the message.”

“But what’s her situation?” Paige asked.

“Jana’s an addict.” He swallowed hard. “I haven’t seen her in a long time. She ran away as a teenager a couple of times. The second time, she didn’t come back. This was the first contact I’ve had with her in about three years. And I’m not sure it really counts as contact, if I never saw or spoke to her, does it?”

“I guess not,” Paige said softly. “I’m sorry.”

“Yeah, well...” He wasn’t sure what to say. He didn’t talk about his sister—she wasn’t an easy topic. There weren’t any answers.

“What caused her to run away?” Paige asked.

“We were raised by our grandmother when our mom took off. Grandma wasn’t really equipped to raise two kids. Her health was failing, and frankly, she was just tired. But it was better than nothing. Anyway, Jana and I handled our upbringing a little differently, I guess. I toughened up, and she...didn’t. She was sensitive, and we went to a rough school. I didn’t notice that she was struggling until it was too late.”

“Was there abuse in your home? Addiction?” Paige asked. Yeah, that was the social services shining through. She would probably have seen a lot of this sort of thing in her career.

“Mostly it was neglect,” he replied. “We raised ourselves, and I was pretty busy with my own friends, drowning my own sorrows. I thought she was doing the same thing—just riding it out. Grandma hated Jana’s boyfriend. He got arrested a couple of times, and Grandma had enough, told Jana to stop seeing him. So she ran away with him. She came back when they broke up after a couple of months. I thought it was over, but she never did settle back in, and the next time she took off, she never came back. And we didn’t find her.”

“How old was the boyfriend?” Paige asked.

“Three years older than her. She was fourteen. He was seventeen. Looking back on it now, they were both pretty young.”

“You didn’t find her until now?” Paige asked.

“No, I tracked her down a couple of times. Once she found me and asked for money. Another time I found her when her name came through the system—arrested for petty theft. I don’t know where she is right now, though. They can’t tell me anything under the Safe Haven law that gives a mother the right to relinquish her infant within three days of birth, no questions asked. I guess she did the same thing Mom did with us—dropped her kid off with someone she knew would care, and left.”

“The police are still looking for her, though, right?” Paige asked.

“I’m personally looking for her,” Mike retorted. “I’m not going to let her down again.”

The baby started to whimper from the car seat, and he looked over at Paige expectantly.

“I told you that you’d be the one doing the baby care,” Paige said with a small smile. “No time like the present to get started.”

He stared down at the little guy, trepidation rising up inside of him. He reached down and undid the buckle.

“I’m not sure how...” he admitted.

“One hand under the bum, one hand under the neck and head,” she said, standing back, her arms crossed over her chest.

“Right.” He did as she instructed and lifted the infant out of the car seat. The little arms and legs flailed as Benjie opened his mouth in a plaintive wail. Mike pulled the baby into his chest, and Paige draped a blanket over him as Mike got adjusted. Benjie felt so small in his hands, and as the baby wriggled, squirming toward his neck, he was surprised as the little guy’s strength. Mike boosted him higher on his chest, and Benjie let out a soft sigh as his head made contact with Mike’s neck just under his chin. He couldn’t see the baby anymore now—just feel him as he settled over Mike’s heartbeat.

“Okay...” Mike breathed. “Got it. He’s really small, isn’t he?”

“They start out that way,” Paige said. “Especially if they’re born a little early. I’ll cut you some slack and get the bottle ready. At his size, he’s going to be eating every hour or two. He’s got some catching up to do.”

“As in twenty-four feedings a day?” Mike asked incredulously.

“Give or take.” She bent down, picked up a box of supplies that had come from Social Services in Denver and headed toward his kitchen. Her cheerful voice filtered back to him as he heard the tap turn on. “You’re about to find out what tired really feels like!”

And then she laughed, this buoyant, cheerful tinkle of laughter that made him feel a little better, in spite of it all.

CHAPTER TWO

PAIGE STOOD BY the kitchen sink shaking up a bottle of formula. Mike’s kitchen was neat—a pot in the farmhouse-style sink waiting to be washed, but other than that, the counters were wiped and everything looked in order. Paige could appreciate a neat kitchen. It was soothing.

The milk frothed in the bottle, and she paused, let it settle, then shook it again. The view from the kitchen window opened up into a backyard with a lawn that seemed to fade into some brush and forest. Trees flamed red and gold; the wind rippling through autumn leaves clung resolutely to the branches. Beyond the trees, the mountains loomed. A cape of evergreens mingled with a few deciduous trees that were in full fall display climbing up the mountainside toward the bare, rocky peaks that were obscured by cloud.

“It’s quite the view,” Mike said behind her, and she turned. The baby was still snuggled up under his chin.

“It really is,” she agreed, and she turned on the hot water tap to warm the milk in the bottle. “I’ve lived here my whole life, except for my college years, and I never get tired of that view.”

“Really?” Mike raised his eyebrows. “All your life?”

“It’s as good a place as any to grow up,” she said, turning off the tap and shaking up the bottle again. “I love this town. We have more than our fair share of eagles, which draws in a lot of tourists. Have you ever seen one up close?”

Mike shook his head. “Not yet.”

“It’s only a matter of time around here,” she said. “Most people want to come out this way for the wildlife.”

“Not me.” His voice was a low rumble.

“So why did you?” she asked.

“I didn’t have a whole lot of choice,” he replied. “My boss strongly suggested I transfer out, and Eagle’s Rest was the only place hiring.”

“What happened?” She eyed him for a moment, standing there with the baby in his arms and an irritable look on his face. “Never mind. I think I can guess.”

“Yeah?” He shot her an amused look. “Go ahead. Give it your best shot.”

“My brother’s a cop, and I’ve worked with police officers for a long time. The one thing you all seemed to share in common is a tendency to balk at authority—ironically enough. It takes a certain personality type to want to chase down bad guys...and that personality doesn’t like authority, either.”

He laughed softly. “You’re insightful.”

“I am.” She shot him a smile back. “So, I’m right?”

“Sort of,” he said. “I want to join the SWAT team, but that involves both a passing mark on the qualifying exams and a recommendation from my boss to even get into the Denver SWAT training. Chief Vernon wasn’t going to give me the recommendation. He said if I wanted to start fresh somewhere else, I was welcome to. There was an opening here, and I figured I’d take his advice and see if I couldn’t get a new chief to help me get there.”

“SWAT.” She eyed him for a moment. “That’s elite. Have you done the exams?”

“Yep. Just waiting on the results.”

“If the chief didn’t think you had what it took, why let you sit for the exams to begin with?”

“I think he was hoping I wouldn’t pass and he could shut me down for a while. I’m more stubborn than that.”

She could see it now—the cocky cop, the determination, the attitude... Now this officer was here in quiet little Eagle’s Rest with a newborn. He was going to hate this.

“You don’t plan to stay, do you?” she asked.

“Only as long as I have to, honestly,” he replied. “I know what I want. I know where I can contribute the most. And it isn’t here.”

Paige handed him the bottle. “Benjie’s going to be hungry pretty soon.”

The baby wriggled and opened his mouth like a little bird as if on cue. Mike’s confidence seemed to evaporate and he looked from the bottle to the baby and over to her with an expression of misgiving.

“How do I do this?” he asked.

“Here—” She took the bottle back. “Just tip him onto his back in the crook of your arm.”

Mike took a moment to get the baby into the right position, then she handed him the bottle again.

“Test it against your wrist,” she said. “There are a lot of nerve endings there. The milk should feel warm but not hot.”

Mike tapped the nipple against his wrist, nodded, then held it over the baby’s face. A drip of milk splattered across the infant’s forehead, and Benjie let out a squawk of annoyance. Paige chuckled, then stepped closer, put her hand over Mike’s broad one and guided the bottle to Benjie’s searching mouth. The baby latched on and started to suck.

“There you go,” she murmured.

Paige was standing close, and when she looked up at him, she found his steely gaze locked on her. He smelled good—the wrong thing to be noticing right now.

“Thanks,” Mike said.

“Sure.” She shot him a brief smile, and his gaze moved back to the baby. He probably had no idea what that stare of his did to a woman. He was just so...male. It had been a while since she’d noticed a man in this way.

The bottle was dwarfed in Mike’s big hand as the baby drank, the milk in the bottle steadily disappearing.

“So, you’ve figured me out,” Mike said quietly. “What about you? How come you want to quit? You have that trouble with authority, too?”

“No, not me. I just...lost my faith in being able to make a difference.”

His eyes flickered up toward her again. “One case in particular?”

“It was a dad with two young children,” she said after a beat of silence. “He struggled with alcoholism and was doing well for a while, but then slid back down into it. I came by to check on the family and found the kids alone in the trailer. It was a mess. No food in the fridge, just a TV blaring to keep them company. I had to call in Children’s Services, and they were taken away.”

“Sounds like it was the only call you could make,” he replied.

“It was.”

“So what was the problem?”

“The dad came by my office a week later, sober again. He sat down and sobbed. His heart was just breaking. He said he loved his kids. This was the kick in the pants that he needed. He’d never drink a drop again.”

Mike was silent, watching her, and the memory came back with the force of a load of bricks. That heartbreaking sob torn from the chest of a broken man. The way he’d pleaded with her, begged for another chance. She couldn’t give it. She knew she’d made the right call...but somehow, that man’s desperation had sunk past all her defenses.

“I had his kids taken away,” she said, bracing herself against the memory. “And while I know I had to, I broke three hearts that day.”

“It was the right call,” he said.

“I felt it too deeply, though,” she said. “I didn’t have that professional glass between me and that man’s pain. I used to have it...”

“You don’t think you’ll get it back?” he asked.

“I don’t think I want it back,” she replied. “That’s my problem! When I think about getting professional reserve back, being able to protect my heart from other people’s pain... It’s kind of depressing. Maybe I don’t want to be tough again. Maybe I just want to be normal.”

“What’s normal?” he said with a short laugh.

He meant it as a rhetorical question, but Paige had a very good idea of what normal looked like.

“I want a regular life,” she said. “I want a job that doesn’t break my heart. I want a white picket fence and a view of the mountains. And that’s it. I want hobbies, and friends and work stories about Karen from Accounting.”

“You want to be a civilian again,” he said quietly.

“I really do.”

“No one likes Karen from Accounting,” he added, his expression deadpan, but she could hear the humor in his voice. “She’s awful. You might want to consider that.”

Paige chuckled. “I want regular, civilian annoyances. Including Karen. At least she doesn’t break my heart.”

“I suppose.”

“Don’t you see the appeal of that?” she asked, meeting his gaze. “I mean, after all you’ve seen...don’t you ever look at a regular Joe and think how lucky he is?”

“Nah,” Mike replied as the baby drained the last drop from the bottle. He pulled the nipple out of Benjie’s mouth with a pop. “I’d rather know the worst.”

“Really?” She eyed him for a moment.

“I missed out on what was really going on with my sister,” he said. “I just wanted to focus on my own stuff back then. I was only seventeen, after all. Same as her boyfriend. I liked cars and girls. But if I’d opened my eyes and actually recognized what was happening with my little sister, I might have been able to help her. So, no. I don’t want to shut my eyes to it again. I want to chase it down and toss it behind bars. I want to find out who’s to blame and make them pay. That’s how I feel better.”

She nodded. Sure. Faced with the tough stuff, he wanted to beat it up. But when she faced the same tough realities, she was left a heartbroken mess. He belonged out there in the middle of it all. She just didn’t think that she did.

The baby started to squirm, and Paige grabbed a dish towel and tossed it over Mike’s shoulder. “Time to burp.”

He took a moment to awkwardly reposition the baby up on his shoulder.

“Just rub some gentle circles on his back,” Paige instructed, and Mike did as she told him with the tips of two fingers. Benjie squirmed and lifted his head, then dropped it back onto Mike’s shoulder.

“Is he okay?” Mike asked, turning his head to look at the baby.

“He’s working up a burp,” she said.

“He doesn’t like this towel,” Mike said, and he pulled it out from under the baby. “Do you, buddy?”

“You might not want to—” Paige began, when Benjie came up with a resounding, wet burp. The dribble of milk ran down Mike’s uniform, and the baby stopped squirming, settling down into comfort. Mike looked from the towel to the baby, then over at Paige.

“That’s why we use a cloth,” she said with a small smile. “Live and learn.”

She picked up the towel again and came over to wipe up what she could. Mike’s breath brushed the top of her head as she wiped, the heat from his chest emanating against her. He felt comforting, and she knew that had very little to do with who he was and very much to do with her current state of mind. She was feeling vulnerable, and a big, strong guy was comforting on a DNA level. Who didn’t want to be protected by a man like this? Except the reality was, this bulky cop was filled with attitude and misgivings and was hip-deep in the life she was running away from.

“You’re going to need a bassinet for him to sleep in,” Paige said, stepping back and tossing the towel onto the counter. “And a few other things I can pick up for you. If I keep the receipts, you can reimburse me. I won’t be long.”

“Wait...what?”

And the tough cop seemed to evaporate, leaving behind a slightly panicked man with a stain on the front of his uniform. His hand on Benjie’s rump covered the baby almost up to his little shoulders, and those gray eyes softened to charcoal as he met her gaze in dismay.

“You’ll be fine,” she replied, forcing herself to smile. “I’ll make up another couple of bottles for you before I leave, but this will be good for you. I promise.”

And Paige would be even better once she got out of here for an hour or two and could think straight. Maybe what she really needed wasn’t a muscular cop or a job that could let her get her feet wet again...but a nunnery. She needed some solitude and then some bracing older women to tell her what to do.

But that wasn’t likely, and she’d already taken the job.

* * *

PAIGE WAS GONE longer than Mike had anticipated. He didn’t have anywhere to put the baby down besides the car seat. Funny, he hadn’t thought of that before—where to put the baby. The car seat was by the door, and he moved it over to the couch and tried to get Benjie settled inside it again, only to have Benjie’s little mouth turn down. Then his eyes welled up and that plaintive cry erupted from deep inside his tiny chest. So Mike picked the baby back up and paced through the living room to the front window, then across again to the kitchen, all the while wondering what he was supposed to do with himself. If nothing else, he was getting his steps in on his fitness tracker.

Mike glanced toward the TV as he headed back into the living room, and that seemed like a good idea, so he sank into the couch, the baby on his chest, and flicked through some channels, keeping the volume low. Benjie wriggled a little bit, but when Mike put a hand over his back, he settled down and fell asleep. Twice, Mike tried to sit up to get Benjie into that car seat, but Benjie woke up each time, and that cry would start up again, so he’d lean back again and flick through a few more channels.

An hour passed, and Benjie woke up, his little mouth searching against Mike’s shirt, so he got another of the bottles Paige had prepared from the fridge and warmed it under the tap like she’d shown him. Feeding the baby was a little easier this time because Mike didn’t have an audience, and he sat down on the couch, a talk show keeping him company, the baby propped in his lap. Benjie’s eyes were wide open as he slurped back on that bottle, and Mike couldn’t help but smile.

“You’re cute,” he murmured as milk dribbled down Benjie’s chin. He was so tiny yet so solemn as he went to town on that bottle. And in the baby’s face, Mike thought he could see a little bit of his sister.

Jana had always been overly solemn, too. He would tease her when she was little. And when she’d get upset about something at school—some mean girls making fun of her clothes, a teacher telling her off for not trying hard enough—he’d counsel her to just ignore it. It was what he did, after all. He always blocked out the stuff he didn’t want to see. He’d been just as abandoned as she was, after all, and he didn’t let it get him down.

Looking back on it, he wished he could change some of those reactions. He hadn’t been helpful. But then, he’d been a kid, too, and it wasn’t fair to expect him to know how to fix problems that adults struggled with. Jana hadn’t needed him to tell her that the things that made her sad shouldn’t. She’d needed...what? Maybe just to be understood. And he hadn’t even managed that much for her. She’d run away from home...and from him.

“I’m going to do better by you, buddy,” Mike murmured, and he felt his throat tighten with emotion. Somehow, even with all his failure when it came to his sister, she’d still chosen him to take care of her little boy.

Did she think he’d do better now that he was grown, or was she simply desperate?

And where was she now? If he knew, he’d find her, bring her here. He’d keep her safe at long last. But his only connection to his sister was her tiny baby.

Benjie finished off his bottle, and Mike dropped it onto the couch next to him. He looked around for a cloth, found one and put it up on his shoulder. He wouldn’t make that mistake twice.

Mike’s cell phone rang, and he glanced down to see the station’s number. Work—that was actually a good thing right now. He flicked off the TV and hit the speaker button, then lifted Benjie up to his shoulder for that burp.

“Officer McMann,” he said.

“Hi, Mike, it’s Ellen.” The receptionist at the station. “How are you?”

“Not bad. You?”

“I’m fine.” He could hear the smile in her voice. “The chief wants to know if you’re free Sunday afternoon.”

“I don’t think I’m scheduled to work,” he said. Benjie squirmed and let out a little whimper, and Mike kept doing those circles on the little guy’s back with his fingertips.

“Good, because we want to throw you a baby shower,” she announced.

“What? No.”

“Yes.” She sounded so matter-of-fact.

“Ellen, I appreciate the thought, but I’m not really a party kind of guy. Besides, I’m not...a mother...”

“We’re having a baby shower,” Ellen said. “If you don’t come, it’s going to be a really awkward party.”

Mike sighed, and shut his eyes. Benjie let out a loud burp, and Mike looked down at the little guy, who looked rather pleased with himself.

“Sunday,” Ellen said when he hadn’t replied. “This is coming from the chief.”

Great. It was an order from the one man he needed to impress. If he’d come to Eagle’s Rest without family complications, he would be spending his time at the firing range and doing physical training. How was he supposed to prove to the chief he was SWAT material when he was being mollycoddled at the precinct?

“Thanks, Ellen,” he said.

“No problem,” she replied cheerily, and hung up.

The very last thing he needed right now was some stupid baby shower. This wasn’t funny—some joke played on the muscle-bound cop who now had a baby to take care of by himself. Hilarious. He hardly knew these people.

It was then that he felt a rumble in Benjie’s diaper. It started out small, and then started to grow. Mike looked down at the baby in surprise and saw that Benjie’s face was scrunched up in a look of intense concentration. The smell came next, and Mike held Benjie out in front of him like an unwanted Christmas fruitcake.

“Better out than in,” Mike said. He felt the obligation to say something encouraging, and he waited until the rumbling stopped. “Done?”

Benjie blinked a couple of times, and then there was another rumble.

“Wow. Kiddo. This is really something,” Mike said, looking around the room. Some leaks were starting to seep into the sleeper, and Mike quickly realized he was in a bind. This baby needed a new diaper—heck, maybe two, at this rate—and he had a very faint idea of how to make this happen.

“Benjie, you and I have a problem,” Mike said, pulling the baby back against his body again. There was going to be a smell, and probably some leaking, but he couldn’t just walk around for the next ten minutes, holding a five-pound newborn like an offering to the gods. He’d have to survive a little baby poop.

The diapers were in the box in the kitchen. So he headed in that direction. There would be wipes, too. He knew that much. He rummaged around, past bottles, soothers, some plastic doodads he didn’t recognize...and emerged with a small package of diapers. He tossed them overhand toward the couch, then snatched up the tub of wipes.

He was feeling better already. This wasn’t so bad. He’d been a little freaked out when Paige took off to run those errands, but maybe she was right—he was doing okay.

There was a sweatshirt hanging over the arm of the couch, and he tossed it onto the floor to give a bit of padding. Then he sank to the floor next to it, lowered Benjie onto the sweatshirt and started undoing snaps on that little sleeper. Getting him out of the soiled sleeper was easy enough, but the diaper was a whole new challenge. He couldn’t figure out how to get it off Benjie, and it was more than full—it was overflowing. Mike eyed it for a moment, considering his options. He briefly considered just using some scissors and cutting the kid out of the diaper, but pointy scissors and a tiny, squirmy baby were a bad combination.

But then it occurred to him that he could just slide the baby out of his diaper like a pair of shorts. The whole diaper, now that it was overflowing, was hanging rather loose and low, anyway, so he gave it a little shimmy, and his plan worked...for the most part.

He now had a dirty diaper, and a baby dirty from the waist down, since he’d pulled Benjie through the diaper to get him out of it. He left the diaper where it was on top of the sweater and carried Benjie out in front of him, thumbs under his arms and fingers supporting his tiny head from behind, and headed for the kitchen.

He needed the sprayer nozzle on the tap, but before he could do anything with the sprayer, he needed a hand free. That meant the dirty baby went back up on his shoulder, and one hand went over the dirty bottom. He grimaced. There was an easier way for all of this, he was sure.

Once he got some warm water, Mike rinsed off his hand under the tap, then lowered the baby into the empty sink and sprayed him off, too. He was being gentle, but Benjie scrunched up his face and started to cry.

“Hey, buddy...it’s not so bad. You’ve got to be clean. I’m sorry, okay? I’m sorry...”

Behind him, Mike heard the front door open.

“I’m back!” Paige’s voice filtered over to the kitchen. There was a pause. “Oh, my God! What happened in here?”

“I’m in the kitchen,” he called, and he turned off the water, then scanned the room for something to wrap the baby in. Benjie’s plaintive wail made him feel bad—no one liked being hosed off, even if the hose was warm and gentle.

Paige appeared in the doorway, her eyes wide as she took him in.

“There is baby poop literally everywhere,” she said.

“Except on the baby,” he said, lifting up Benjie as proof. He was feeling rather proud of that achievement. He snatched a dish towel off the handle of the stove and wrapped it around Benjie, who stopped crying the minute he was wrapped up again. “Would you mind holding him?”

Paige stepped forward and took the baby without complaint, staring at Mike with a look of bewildered shock.

“I’ll just...change,” he said, looking down at his now smeared uniform. “This comes out in the wash, right?”

Paige didn’t answer, and he headed for the bedroom to find something else to wear. The smell of the diaper followed him, and he wrinkled his nose.

“So what did you pick up?” Mike called as he grabbed a pair of jeans and a T-shirt from his dresser.

“A bassinet, some burp cloths, a few preemie sleepers, since he’s pretty tiny still,” Paige called back. “Mike, what did you do to that diaper?”

“Nothing.” Mike emerged from the bedroom fully dressed. He went over to the sweatshirt protecting the carpet, picked it all up with one swoop and headed for the garbage. Whatever—he wasn’t attached to that sweatshirt, anyway.

“I think we need some diaper lessons,” she said. “Grab me a diaper, and I’m going to run through the basics.”

Mike passed a diaper over, and she held it up in front of her one-handed, the baby in the other arm. “This is the front. This is the back. These little tabs work like stickers.”

And for the next five minutes, Paige gave him a brief overview of diapering and dressing a baby—Benjie getting buttoned into a sleeper in the process. So, yeah, there had been an easier way, but in his defense, he’d panicked. Looking over at Paige’s sparkling blue eyes as she gave her super-detailed explanation of diaper duty, he realized that he was more than glad she was here to help him out—he was deeply grateful.

“They’re throwing me a baby shower at the precinct,” he said when she stopped talking.

“Good.”

“I don’t think so.”

“You need baby things,” she said, rising to her feet and cuddling Benjie close in her arms.

“What about that box in the kitchen? And you just bought baby things, I thought.”

“I got a few necessities,” she said with a small smile. “Trust me, Mike, you need a whole lot more baby stuff than you already have, and baby showers are a great way to get it.”

“I don’t like this,” he said.

Paige shrugged. “You’ll survive. You also might end up with something really useful, like a stroller, so...”

He found her lack of pity annoying, but he shot her a grin, anyway. “I take it the baby stuff is in the car still?”

She rummaged in her pocket for her keys and tossed them over to him. He caught them and headed for the front door. “I’ll write you a check.”

He was a lot more comfortable carrying boxes out of the car than he was dealing with his infant nephew, but when he glanced back at Benjie snuggled up in the crook of Paige’s arm, already fast asleep, he felt a wave of tenderness. Funny how an explosive diaper could be so bonding.

He and Benjie would be okay. Eventually.

CHAPTER THREE

PAIGE AWOKE FIVE minutes before her alarm went off the next morning, and she rolled over to grab her cell phone from the bedside table. When she pushed a button to light up the screen, she saw she had no missed calls. She yawned and put it down, then rubbed her hands over her face. She’d left her number with Mike before she left last night, just in case he found himself in over his head and in need of help. So she had slept lightly, expecting the phone to ring.

But it hadn’t, and she wasn’t sure what that meant. She’d agreed to be at his home by seven in the morning. So she flung back the covers and shivered in the chilly predawn. She grabbed a bathrobe and pulled it on before she flicked on her light and opened her closet.

Paige got dressed in some warm layers, ending in a soft, mauve sweater and a pair of jeans. It felt good to be dressing down for a change—she had to admit that. But waking up this early and plunging out into the morning cold still felt like it was a workday.

She’d had a few appointments with a counselor about her panic attacks and decisions for her future, and one of the things the counselor had pointed out was that Paige had never taken a proper break. What would life look like if Paige didn’t have this job? Stress leave was about more than giving her frayed nerves a rest—it was an experiment in what life would be like without her duties as a social worker.

So far, that had meant ordinary days—grocery shopping, watching Netflix, looking through the want ads at the jobs that came up in Eagle’s Rest. She hadn’t found an encouraging number of jobs she was qualified for, or interested in.

She’d considered getting another appointment with the counselor, but she needed to make her own decision. No one else could do this for her. If she left her career, she’d be the one to reap the rewards or live to regret it. And this assignment with Mike and Benjie was a bit of a relief. It was less time in her own head. Less agonizing about her decisions.

Paige’s house was a two-bedroom bungalow with an unfinished basement and ancient plumbing, but it suited Paige just fine. She stopped in her little kitchen for a cup of hot tea and toast with extra butter. Then she cleaned up, put on a bit of makeup and let herself out into the chilly predawn darkness.

The sky was clear of clouds, and she paused in the driveway in front of her house to look up. It was a habit from childhood—looking for the constellations she knew. But she could see only the brightest of the stars still visible. The mountains loomed like a black wall to the west, and she shivered as a gust of icy wind wormed its way against her neck.

Paige unlocked her car and got in. She turned the key and rubbed her hands together, then pressed them between her legs while the engine warmed up and the frost melted off her windows. Winter was coming—and soon enough the mountain snow would work its way down to them.

This really did feel like going to work, except for the casual dress, and she had to remind herself that this wasn’t. Not really. Mike had agreed to pay her a fair wage for the three weeks, but this wasn’t the job that had her heart in knots. This was a strange break—a newborn, a clueless guardian and a couple of weeks where she could put off making the biggest decision of her career. She sucked in a few deep breaths, counting four seconds in, holding it for four seconds and then releasing for four seconds. It helped to center herself in the moment.

“I’m fine,” she murmured to herself. “It’s early, and I’m tired, but I’m fine.”

Her phone dinged, and she looked down at an incoming text. It was from her friend Liv Hylton. She’d just gotten married and was both pregnant with her first child and running a successful bookstore in downtown Eagle’s Rest, but she’d made time to chat with Paige last night. For that Paige was grateful.

Speaking of new career ideas, ever think of running a day care? Eagle’s Rest could use one.

What were friends for, if not to help a girl brainstorm a whole new career? She was too young to call this a midlife crisis, but it was a crisis. She flicked on the heater in the car before she started texting back.

Not a bad idea actually. I’m looking forward to being a nanny for a few weeks. This baby is so adorable... 5 lbs of cute!

She was making light of things, as if a cute baby and three weeks with a ruggedly good-looking cop could solve her problems. They couldn’t, obviously, but neither could Liv, so Paige wouldn’t unload on her pregnant friend this morning. Paige might feel overwhelmed, but that was no reason to be a burden on her friends. She wasn’t even willing to call her brother this morning, and she and Nathan had always been close.

She tossed her phone onto the passenger side seat and put her car in Reverse. She didn’t want to be late.

Her phone pinged again, and Paige glanced at the incoming text from Liv.

The 250 lbs of cute can’t hurt, either.

“Har, har,” Paige said aloud, then chuckled as she backed out of her driveway. But Mike wasn’t quite the diversion from reality that Liv seemed to think.

The drive across town only took ten minutes, and most of that was stopping at empty intersections. This time of year, there were fewer tourists to clog the roads, but they still had the traffic lights that were so necessary in the busy season, and Paige seemed to hit every single red light. She stopped at the elementary school, the window already aglow this early, and then she stopped again at the corner with the laundromat and the diner. The next red light was by the bus station, and she watched a teenager sitting with a backpack inside the well-lit waiting area.

Going somewhere...alone. It sparked Paige’s instincts because she had dealt with a few runaways in her career. But then an older woman appeared at the girl’s side, handing her a can of pop and sitting down next to her. The light turned green, and Paige pressed on the gas again. Eagle’s Rest was her town, and she felt like one of the guardians here—keeping it safe and secure for everyone else.

When Paige pulled into Mike’s driveway, the sun had started to peer over the horizon, flooding the sky with pink, setting the snowcapped mountain peaks into a golden glow.

Lights shone from the windows of Mike’s little bungalow, and when she knocked on the side door, it opened almost instantly.

Mike stood in the doorway barefoot, Benjie wrapped in an afghan, his little eyes open wide and his downy hair standing up straight. Mike’s uniform shirt was unbuttoned and hung open, revealing a white undershirt beneath, and he looked like he’d had a rough night.

“Morning,” he said, stepping back. “Am I glad to see you.”

“How’d it go?” she asked. She closed the door behind her, then bent down to touch Benjie’s soft little cheek with the back of her finger.

“Long. He kept waking up hungry. Like, every hour.”

“I warned you,” she said. “That’s actually a good sign.”

“Yeah, yeah.” Mike yawned. “You want to hold him?”

“Sure.”

Mike eased the baby into Paige’s arms, and she looked down at Benjie with a smile. She smoothed a hand over his ruffled hair and sighed. This was soothing... She glanced up, expecting Mike to head back the bedroom to get ready for work, but instead he yawned again and opened the fridge.

“Have you eaten yet?” he asked over his shoulder.

“Not much,” she admitted.

“I fix a mean omelet,” he said. “Interested?”

“Will I make you late?” she asked.

“Nope, I’m cooking, anyway,” he said, pulling some ingredients from the fridge.

Paige peeked into the living room and spotted a few cloths strewn across the couch, three empty baby bottles sitting on a side table.

“How do you feel about me taking Benjie out today?” Paige asked. “I might want to go out for lunch or something. Are you comfortable with that?”

“Sure.” He glanced over his shoulder. “That’s not daunting for you?”

“Not really,” she said.

He turned back to the stove. “You weren’t the one up all night.”

“You could have called,” she said. “I actually expected you to.”

“Nah.” He stifled a yawn. “I’ve got to soldier through, right?”

Paige headed for the coffeemaker. “How do you take your coffee?”

“Black. Why?”

She poured a mug and slid it across the counter toward him. “Drink up.”

Mike accepted it without another word and gingerly took a sip.

“Here,” she said. “Take the baby. Drink your coffee. I’ll make breakfast.”

“It’s my home, I feel like I should do the cooking,” he said.

“This is also your baby, and I think he needs a change,” she retorted with a grin.

Mike chuckled. “Just you wait until I’m all the way awake.”

But he did as she asked, and took the baby from her arms. He blew on the coffee, took another sip, then headed into the living room. Paige started sautéing some mushrooms and onions for the omelets, and for a few minutes there was nothing but the hiss of frying food.

“There you go, buddy...” she could hear Mike say from the other room. “You’re awake now, aren’t you? Well, I’m not. No one lets me nap like they do for you. You could get away with murder because you’re smaller than a loaf of bread. I’m bigger than a loaf of bread, so there’s more judgment there.”

She couldn’t help but smile as she listened to Mike talk to the baby. He didn’t seem to have the regular baby talk that most people used on infants. His was earnest and logical...and he sounded exhausted.

By the time Paige poured the egg mixture into the pan, Mike emerged into the kitchen, the baby in one arm and wheeling the bassinet ahead of him.

“Almost done,” she said.

Mike laid Benjie in the bassinet, then straightened, stretching his shoulders and back.

“I’m not normally this helpless,” he said, coming up beside her and opening an upper cupboard. He pulled down two plates and put them on the counter next to her. “I feel like I need to say that.”

“I believe you,” she replied, then used the spatula to cut the omelet in half and serve it up. “Maybe it’s lucky you’re here in Eagle’s Rest right now. At least your shift should be an easy one.”

“Yeah, that’s part of the problem,” he replied, and she could hear a note of bitterness in his tone. “I’m the kind of guy who doesn’t relax too easily. I need a challenge. A bad guy. A crime ring. Something.”

“A baby?” she said, raising an eyebrow.

Mike passed her a fork. “That came out of left field.”

“This boring tourist trap is actually a great place to raise kids,” she said. “I grew up here. It’s calm. Safe.”

“How calm is it if you’re burning out in Social Services?” he countered.

“To be fair, I service the surrounding towns, as well,” she replied.

But he had a point. That was the problem with this job. She could live in a gorgeous little tourist destination, and still be faced with the most heartrending cases. No community was immune, because it was life. She believed in the job, in the importance of what social workers did for the community. She just wasn’t sure she could do it anymore. There were tougher people who could pick up where she left off.

Paige followed Mike to the table and sat down. He pulled the bassinet a little closer and looked inside. Benjie had fallen back to sleep, and for a couple of minutes they both ate in silence.

“You know what it’s like,” she said. “There’s always someone getting hurt, needing help. And for the longest time, I thought that if I could just offer that help, I’d be doing something for those vulnerable people.”

“But it’s always more complicated than that,” he concluded.

She nodded, then leaned back against her chair. “Aren’t you ever tired of being seen as the bad guy? I mean, you’re the one who has to arrest the abusive dad in front of the kids. You’re the big, bad authority figure. For a lot of people, you’re the enemy.”

“It’s all perspective,” Mike replied. “I’ll be the bad guy to someone. Especially, if I’m locking him up. But I’m the good guy to someone else who’s being protected.”

“Even if you’re doing the right thing in arresting the abusive dad, the kids don’t think you’re the good guy,” she countered.

“Sure. I guess.”

“The very people you’re protecting are going to hate you,” she said. “At least, that’s the way it seems to turn out all too often.”

“I figure anything worthwhile is going to tick off somebody.”

Paige wanted to make a difference, too, but how much of her own emotional health was she willing to sacrifice in order to do that?

Mike finished the last of his omelet and stood up.

“Thanks for cooking breakfast. Leave the mess in the living room. I’ll take care of it tonight.”

“I can tidy up,” she said.

“I’m not the kind of guy who expects a woman to cook and clean. You’re here for the baby, not for me. I should be able to take care of myself at this point.”

“You’re part of the job, Mike,” she said.

“Not really.”

“Oh, completely.” She smiled ruefully. “I’m teaching you baby care, aren’t I? And Benjie won’t thrive unless you’re okay, too.”

“I’m okay,” he said.

“If you need anything, you have to tell me,” she said. “You’ve got me for three weeks, so make the most of this.”

“Yeah.” He met her gaze with a small smile. “I will.”

He started doing up his shirt buttons, then slowly turned and headed out of the kitchen, still buttoning. She watched him go. Mike was very much part of her job. Unfortunately, her emotions were at risk of getting entangled wherever she put her energy—into caring for a baby, or into the floundering dad.

* * *

“OFFICER MCMANN,” THE chief said as Mike came into the station that morning. Mike had a travel mug in one hand, and he took a sip of coffee as he turned toward the chief.

“Good morning,” Mike said.

“You look like a train wreck,” the chief said with a short laugh. “How’s the baby?”

“Eating often,” Mike replied. “But otherwise good.”

“Glad to hear it. Is Paige working out?”

Working out. She wasn’t a housekeeper or something... She was turning out to be a lifesaver, and an image of her concerned gaze and her hair tucked behind her ears as she shook bottles full of formula crowded his overtired mind.

“Yeah, she’s...great. She knows what she’s doing, and that’s what I need, right?”

She was also comforting, and a little distracting. Not that he’d tell the boss that.

“If you need another few days off—” the chief began.

“No, no,” Mike said with a shake of his head. “I’d rather get back to work.”

“You sure?”

“Positive.” Work had always been his solace, and right now, he didn’t need to be leaning on the too-pretty nanny. She said he was part of the job, but he didn’t intend to be. He’d take care of himself.

Mike headed toward his desk in the back corner of the bull pen, rubbing a hand through his hair. It was going to be a long day, but he had good reason to want to be here, and it had nothing to do with impressing his boss. It wasn’t only the baby that had kept him up last night. He was worried about Jana. His sister had just abandoned her newborn, and while Safe Haven laws meant that Jana was perfectly within her rights to hand her newborn to a hospital employee with no questions asked, Mike was her brother—and he was damn well asking a few questions. He just wasn’t sure how he was going to get those answers.

He logged into his computer and pulled up the phone numbers for the hospital where Benjie had been left. His sister had given the nurse a lot more information than most mothers did who were taking advantage of the Safe Haven laws. She could have simply handed the baby over and walked out, but she’d obviously wanted her son to go to family.

Was Jana going to change her mind? Would she want the baby back?

He had too many questions, but the main one was what had happened to Jana to make her give up her newborn baby? She had been together enough to know about the laws, to remember to give his contact information... Was she still with the father? Was she on her own and desperate? Or was there some loser involved who she couldn’t get away from? She was obviously doing some drugs, and that was never a good sign. But if he was going to help her, he needed detailed answers.

Mike called a few different numbers, and was transferred three times before he was put in touch with the hospital social services worker who had done the paperwork for Benjie.

“Officer McMann,” she said with a smile in her voice. “How’s the little guy doing?”

“Good. Really good,” Mike said.

“I’m glad to hear it. What can I do for you?”

“I was hoping to get a little more information about my sister.”

“You know I can’t do that.” Her voice softened. “She was within her rights to relinquish the baby, and if we don’t respect those privacy rights, the whole system fails.”

Yeah, he did. The Safe Haven laws were in place so that babies need not be abandoned in unsafe environments. If a mother didn’t want her baby, she could simply hand it over to a hospital employee or a firefighter within three days of the birth. If they started chasing down parents who abandoned those babies, people would be afraid to do the right thing and those babies might be left in much worse environments.

“I’m worried about her,” Mike said. “She’s my sister. She’s recently given birth. She might be in medical distress—it’s a possibility! I just want to find her and make sure she’s okay.”

“I can’t do that, Officer McMann,” she repeated. “I would if I could. I do sympathize with your worries, but—”

“Was there any hint of where she might be living?”

“None.”

“Was anyone with her when she left the hospital?”

“I can’t reveal that information unless you’re investigating a crime. Are you?”

“No.” He sighed. “I’m not.”

“May I give you some advice, Officer?” the woman asked gently.

“Might as well.”

“The baby is safe. Your sister knew where to find you—even if you didn’t know where to find her. Wait a few days or weeks. Maybe she’ll come see you herself.”

“Did she seem...okay?” he asked. She was silent, and he sighed. “Just wait. Right.”

“It’s all I can say.”

“Thanks,” he said. “I guess I don’t have much choice.”

Mike hung up and rubbed his hands over his face. Those blasted laws... Yeah, he understood how they worked, but what about the times that the mothers might need medical intervention? She wasn’t okay—if she were, she wouldn’t have left her baby, he knew that. She’d been abandoned when she was tiny, too. She grew up wondering why her mom had just dumped her with Grandma and disappeared. So she wouldn’t do that to her own child—not if she could help it.

“Mike?” He looked up to see Jack Talbott coming across the bull pen. He and Jack had worked together in Denver before Jack transferred out here to Eagle’s Rest in order to get married.

“Hey,” Mike said. “If you mention how tired I look, I’m going to deck you.”

Jack laughed. “That’s going to be me soon enough.”

“When is Liv due?” Mike asked.

“Six weeks.”

“Yeah... This will be you soon enough,” he agreed.

“Are you okay, though?” Jack asked, pulling up a chair opposite Mike’s desk. “Have you heard from your sister?”

“No,” Mike said. “I left instructions for the Denver precinct to give her my contact information if she tries to find me. The Social Services agent who dealt with her when she relinquished the baby won’t give me any other information.”

Jack nodded slowly. “Have you checked for any arrests or detained individuals in the last few days? I mean, not saying she’d have been in trouble, but...”

“It’s something to check,” Mike agreed, and he turned to his computer. He’d found her once before the exact same way. “I called the Denver precinct last night and asked around if anyone knew anything, or had any idea of where she might have gone. It was a long shot, but they don’t have anything, either.”

“You might just have to be patient,” his friend replied.

“What would you do, if you were me?” Mike asked.

“If I contacted her, I’d be worried that she’d want her baby back,” Jack said.

“That crossed my mind,” Mike agreed. If he found his sister, would she even want his help? Or would she want Benjie back? A mother didn’t give birth and then just cut all her emotions off—he knew that much.

“But I’m worried about her, too. She needs help.”

“Yeah, I get it.”

Mike shrugged. “If you hear anything, let me know.”

Jack tapped Mike’s desk in a farewell. “You bet. Take care, buddy. See you out there.”

Mike nodded a goodbye, but remained at his desk. He was just going to have to wait for his sister to contact him. Because as much as he wanted to treat his sister’s situation like he treated every other challenge in his life—go conquer it with testosterone pounding through his system—he couldn’t. SWAT tactics weren’t the answer here. Jana might have given him her child, but so far, she didn’t want to be found.

He pushed back his chair and rose. Patrol of this sleepy little tourist spot wasn’t exactly exciting, but it did give him time to think. His sister needed his help—he was sure of it—but this was going to take a softer touch than he was accustomed to using.

He’d come to Eagle’s Rest to prove himself tough enough to be part of the most elite squad in the force. So far, he was being forced to soften up in ways he’d never anticipated—a newborn baby’s care, and possibly his sister’s life, depended on it.

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