Home > Hot for a Cop (The Single Moms of Seattle Book 2)(7)

Hot for a Cop (The Single Moms of Seattle Book 2)(7)
Author: Whitley Cox

 

 

“You’re sure?” Celeste and Bianca asked for probably the tenth time as they stood in Lauren’s entryway, all bundled up in coats and boots.

Lauren nodded and smiled at her two best friends. Ike was sleeping soundly on her shoulder after a good long nurse and an enormous burp. “I’m very sure, guys. But thank you. Ike and I are just going to hunker down, just the two of us tonight.”

“Liam and Richelle said babies and kids are welcome at their party,” Bianca said. “You can put him down in the master bedroom, bring the baby monitor, have some wine and talk to grownups. I think Mason and Lowenna will be there with the twins, and Zak and Aurora with little Dawson. Lots of babies. Lots of arms to hold them too.”

Lauren’s eyelids were heavy, and she smiled again at her friend. “At two weeks postpartum, would you go to a Christmas party filled with people, germs and noise?”

Bianca averted her eyes and twisted her mouth. “Good point.”

“Not that I’m judging the other parents.” She held up her free hand, palm forward. “You know I’m not judgy like that. I’m the last person to pass judgment on anybody, as I sway here with my Booty Call Baby. It’s just …” She shrugged and kissed her son for what was undoubtably the millionth time since he’d been born. “I’m good at home.”

“We just feel bad leaving you is all,” Celeste said, squeezing Lauren’s upper arm. “Like we’re abandoning you or something.”

“You guys have been over here every day since Ike and I came home from the hospital. And you were at the hospital every day too. You haven’t abandoned me. I appreciate all the meals and holding him so I can shower. More than you know. But I think I can handle tonight on my own. He’s less colicky since the doctor put him on the anti-reflux meds, and we’re both sleeping better.”

Her friends’ mouths formed grim lines.

“But it’s Christmas,” Bianca said.

“It is, but that’s okay. I’m going to video chat with my mom, stepdad, sister and brother tomorrow. But tonight, I’m just going to pour a glass of wine, watch George Bailey realize he doesn’t actually have it that bad, and gorge on a tray of nachos. If you ask me, I couldn’t imagine a better Christmas Eve. Just me and my boo and that sexy merlot on the counter.” She pecked Ike on the side of his head but left her nose there for an extra moment, inhaling that incredible, unique, addictive baby scent. How could she bottle it, so when it disappeared without warning, she could still have it when she needed it?

“I’ll bring you over a container of leftovers tomorrow,” Bianca said.

Lauren patted Ike’s butt gently. “My freezer is full. You don’t have to. You guys have been showing up with leftovers every day for over a week. I’m one person. A lasagna lasts me days.”

Both women looked like they were reluctant to go, so she scooted past them and opened the door. “Go. Your families are waiting for you. Ike and I will be fine.”

Celeste and Bianca took deep breaths, finally seeming to accept Lauren’s decision. Just as her friends turned to go, a sexy dark blue Toyota truck pulled into her driveway.

“You expecting someone?” Celeste asked with pinched brows.

Lauren shook her head. The few friends she had here in Seattle all texted or called before they showed up. For the most part, everyone she knew had been incredibly respectful of her and Ike’s privacy and time.

All three of them watched and waited for the person behind the steering wheel to exit the cab of the truck.

Her friends gasped before she did.

“Who’s that?” Bianca whispered.

“Gorgeous is what he is,” Celeste said, her voice a quiet hiss.

She knew he was hot two weeks ago; it was part of the reason why she didn’t want him catching her baby and seeing that nightmare between her legs. But she forgot just how gorgeous he was. Just how perfectly muscular, chiseled and masculine he was. The red hair, blue eyes and long lashes just added to what was already a spectacular specimen of a man. And in the gray knit cap and black winter jacket with dark wash jeans and black biker boots, he looked like the hottest thing she’d seen in a very long time.

With a gift bag in one hand and an enormous bouquet of flowers in the other, he cautiously approached all of them at Lauren’s front door. His eyes turned more and more wary the closer he got to them.

Celeste, who was no longer single, and Bianca, who was still jaded and man-hating after her bitter divorce, watched Isaac approach with heat in their gazes and their lips between their teeth.

His Adam’s apple jogged hard on a swallow. “Ladies.”

“I recognize that voice,” Bianca said. She turned to Lauren. “He’s the cop from the delivery.”

That he was.

Normally, Lauren was the one who completely lacked a filter, because honestly, life was too short to not say what you meant. But at the moment, she was really hoping her friends would activate their filters.

He came to a stop in front of them, his eyes focused on Ike, still sleeping soundly on Lauren’s shoulder. “That’s him?”

Smiling, she swayed and continued to pat Ike’s butt. “This is him. All eight pounds nine ounces of him.”

“We’re going to go,” Bianca said, her brown eyes gleaming. “But we’ll be by tomorrow morning to bring Ike his presents. The kids insisted on each getting him something, so be prepared for an onslaught of gifts.”

Celeste gave Isaac a final once-over before she and Bianca retreated down the driveway. Her friends lived in the same townhouse complex as Lauren, so they only had a few yards to walk to their own units.

Once they were out of sight, Lauren returned her attention to Isaac. “Come in. It’s cold outside.” He didn’t look cold; he looked delicious. But she was cold, and her son was in nothing more than a cotton sleeper.

Nodding but not saying anything, he stepped over the threshold, and she closed the door behind him.

“I’m surprised to see you,” she said, continuing on through her house into her living room. For a single mom with a newborn, she was proud of how tidy she managed to keep her house. Sure, there were a few baby items around, but it didn’t look like a bomb had gone off. She wasn’t embarrassed to have people over and for them to see the state she lived in. It was just her, and Ike slept a lot, so she had time to keep up with the cleaning.

Celeste and Bianca told her that wouldn’t last, and she knew better than to get smug about things, so she was just grateful that so far, Ike was a good sleeper and a sound sleeper.

“I was surprised to get your note,” he said. “I’m sorry I didn’t come sooner. I’m just not sure on the protocol about visiting after a baby is born.”

She sat down on the couch carefully so as not to disturb the baby. “I appreciate that you came. Two weeks is a perfect amount of time.”

He sat down on the edge of her favorite recliner and shook his head. “I had to run your plates to get the tow truck to come grab your Nissan. That’s how I got your address. I’m not a crazy stalker or anything, I swear.”

“I just figured you could find anybody you wanted to since you’re a cop.”

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