3. Samantha
3
SAMANTHA
S amantha was back at her desk responding to emails when the door flew open exactly one hour after Mr. Cassidy’s original appointment time.
A rush of cold, snowy air swirled in along with him, and Sam looked up in time to see a huge man with a small blue bundle in his arms standing in the doorway.
“Mr. Cassidy,” she said, jumping up. “Thank you for coming in.”
He closed the door behind him and when he turned back, she saw what was in his arms.
“A baby,” she said out loud, immediately feeling silly. He already knew it was a baby. He was holding it, after all.
But he was holding it in a way that seemed like maybe he thought he was going to have to fight someone for it. His jaw was tight, and his brilliant blue eyes were narrowed.
“Come on in,” she said, tearing her eyes from his face and slipping automatically back into work mode. “Please have a seat. It’s cold out there, isn’t it?”
She was used to working with men who felt profoundly out of their element. What they had sacrificed wasn’t easy, and the cruel truth was that coming home could be almost as hard for a lot of them.
But there was something about Wolf Cassidy that had her wanting to handle him even more gently than she usually treated the men and women she served.
“Can I bring you a hot cup of coffee or tea?” she asked. “Something to eat?”
He shook his head, his eyes fixed on the baby.
While she watched, he extended his right thumb to slowly stroke a pillowy pink cheek, and her heart felt like it was splintering in her chest at the sight.
What in the world is happening here?
“Sorry I’m late,” he said, his eyes still on the little one.
“It’s perfectly fine,” she assured him, uncertain how to proceed.
She glanced over at Amelia, whose little head had popped up from her book. She was studying Mr. Cassidy too.
The room stayed quiet for a moment, until the sudden ring of a cell phone made Sam almost jump out of her seat.
“I have to take this,” Mr. Cassidy said, wrestling his phone out of his coat pocket with one hand while trying to hold the baby securely in his other arm. “She’s finally calling back.”
He placed the phone on the edge of Sam’s desk, and picked up on speaker, without showing the least amount of concern that she was going to be able to hear the call.
“Angela,” he said, the brittle sound in his voice gone, replaced with relief and emotion instead.
“ He left you a baby? ” a woman’s voice demanded.
“Ezra,” he replied, wonder in his tone as he said the name.
“ Ezra, ” Amelia echoed quietly from her spot in the comfy chair.
Sam turned to her little sister, putting a finger to her lips. She was trying to figure out how she and Amelia could quietly slip out of the room and give him some privacy when the woman spoke again.
“ What kind of friend just leaves you a baby? ” the woman asked.
“Barry didn’t have family,” Wolf said.
“ Well, we are not having kids, Wolf, ” she said warningly. “ We agreed on that already. We both have careers. We don’t have time. ”
“But, he doesn’t have anyone else,” Wolf said softly, a pleading tone in his voice that nearly brought tears to Sam’s eyes. “He only has us.”
“ He only has you ,” the woman said. “ You can leave me out of this.”
“What do you mean?” Wolf asked distractedly, his eyes still on the baby, who had reached out of the blue blanket to grasp at his fingertip with a chubby fist.
“I mean,” the voice on the phone practically screamed. “ I can’t believe you would just bring home a baby without even talking to me about it.”
“I called you a dozen times,” Wolf said, frowning.
“ Well call someone else,” she spat, then sighed. “ Sorry, I just… Wolf, I thought we had everything figured out for us. We had plans. And I’m not ready to let go of mine. But if this feels like something you want to do…”
“Something I have to do,” he said.
“Something you have to do,” she allowed. “Then do it. But I can’t do it with you. I’m sorry, Wolf, but you’re going to have to fly solo on this one. Good luck.”
His eyes finally left the baby and landed on the phone. But the call was gone. The woman had hung up.
Sam was so drawn into the drama playing out in front of her that when Wolf Cassidy’s eyes flashed up to hers, she felt pinned in place.
But he only blinked at her, tilting his head slightly, like he was searching for some kind of answer in her eyes.
I can’t help you , she wanted to tell him. I’m new to raising a child too.
“If this isn’t a good time anymore…” she offered stupidly.
“Meeting’s on the books,” he replied, bringing her up short.
“Um, well, do you have any idea what you might like to do next?” she asked automatically. It was the classic opening question she always asked.
“Until about an hour ago, I knew exactly what I wanted,” Wolf said. “Now? I have no idea.”
But his eyes were already back on the baby, who had started making small growly sounds.
And for the first time since he walked in, Wolf Cassidy looked happy.