Free Bachelor Father by Jean C. Gordon Page A

asked, “I’ll
hear from you, then, soon?”
    Brett paused, his eyes focused on her face, as
if searching for an answer.
    But Molly didn’t know the question. She pulled
the door open slightly. Wedged between him and the heavy oak door,
she felt so small, almost insignificant. Say something, anything,
she wanted to blurt.
    “Sure, he answered slowly. Give me a day or
two to think about your offer.”
    Brett watched the door close behind Molly and
listened for the sound of her car starting before he returned to
the living room.
    “What was that all about?” Tina
asked.
    “A proposal,” Brett answered cryptically,
joining her on the couch.
    “Korean Child Welfare has offered an
alternative to Thayer House taking custody of Jake?”
    “No, Molly has offered an alternative, a
proposal, you might say.” And a very inviting one at that, he added
silently, a slow grin spreading across his face.
    “From the look on your face, Brett Cahill,
this alternative must be a little, might we say, out of the
ordinary.”
    “Yeah,” Brett said, still grinning.
    “Just what did Ms. Hennessey
propose?”
    “Marriage.”
    “Say what?” Tina spoke so loudly she startled
Jake, who was putting the finishing touch on a block tower. The
blocks tumbled to the floor, punctuating Tina’s question with a
crash.
    “Molly proposed that we get
married.”
    “How would this help you?”
    “Molly’s certified by the county as a foster
parent. She can have herself named as Jake’s temporary guardian.
Then, we get married and she moves in here until the adoption is
approved.”
    “Wait a minute. Why not simply have her move
in and skip the marriage part?”
    Brett looked purposely askance. “And ruin my
reputation?” For a moment, he thought Tina was going to pick up one
of the pillows on the couch and hurl it at him. He looked around
expecting to hear his sister Kate urging Tina to go ahead. She and
Tina were always ganging up on him. Of course, Kate wasn’t
there.
    Brett swallowed the lump that had suddenly
lodged in his throat. “Tina, I think it will work. You know I’ll do
almost anything to keep Jake.”
    “Maybe,” Tina said cautiously. “But,
seriously, why marry?”
    “It’ll look better to the authorities than if
Molly simply moves in here.”
    “Since when did Brett Cahill care about how
things look to others?”
    “I guess since I became responsible for Jake
and had more to think about than myself,” Brett said
quietly.
    “Is that all?”
    “No,” he said reluctantly. Brett wasn’t sure
how Tina would take the rest of his reason, particularly her
attorney side. “By marrying Molly, I can pay her back for helping
me keep Jake.”
    “Brett, just what do you have in mind?” Tina
changed from friend to counselor before his eyes.
    “Nothing like anything you’re conjuring up.
Once we’re married, Molly will have access to a trust fund her
mother left her. It’ll give her the money she needs to buy her
condominium in Albany.”
    “That’s it?”
    “Yep.”
    “Nothing else?” Tina prompted.
    “Nope. Once the adoption is approved, we’ll
have the marriage annulled. Neat, simple, clean.”
    “Unless Ms. Hennessey decides she doesn’t want
an annulment after all, or you decide you don’t. You can’t very
well make a pre-nuptial agreement to end the marriage before it
starts.”
    Brett took his friend’s hands in his. “Tina,
come on. This is me. Can you imagine me actually married to
anyone?”
    “No,” she conceded. “But, then, up until a few
weeks ago, I couldn’t imagine you putting your entire life on hold
for a baby, either.”
    “My life isn’t on hold,” Brett protested. I’m
just still adjusting to having the little rug rat underfoot.” He
looked fondly at Jake, who’d gone back to building his block
tower.
    “Having Molly here underfoot will take some
adjusting from you, too.”
    “I can’t see that it will be any great
hardship.” Molly certainly wasn’t hard on the eyes, and