Free English Girl in New York by Scarlet Wilson Page A

sudden there wasn’t a whole lot of space between them. And it was as if a little switch had been flicked.
    Everything about Dan was making her feel self-conscious. How was her hair? Was her make-up still in place?
    She’d spent the past few months going around in a fog. It had never once crossed her mind how she looked to the opposite sex.
    But there was something about Dan. Something about being in close proximity to him that was making her feel uncomfortable. She didn’t want to have to think about all those kinds of feelings resurrecting themselves. Not when she knew where they could eventually lead.
    Now, she was fixating on his straight white teeth, the little lines of fatigue around his eyes and the sincerity in his face.
    Then he snapped her out of it by giving her a cheeky wink and folding his arms across his chest. ‘If I have to arrest you, I will.’
    She jolted out of her daze. ‘Arrest me?’
    He smiled. ‘To keep you here. To force you to help me look after Abraham overnight. What do I know about a newborn baby?’
    â€˜And what do I know?’ She felt the rage surge inside her along with something else she couldn’t quite work out. ‘Because I’m a woman you think I should know about babies?’
    â€˜No.’ His words were firm and strangely calming. They must have taught him that in cop school. How to calm a raging bull. ‘I think you’re another human being and two heads are better than one.’
    It sounded logical. It sounded sensible. And it made all the chauvinistic arguments that had leaped into her head feel pathetic.
    She didn’t want to spend the night with a new baby. How on earth would she cope? It could end up bringing back a whole host of memories she didn’t know how to deal with.
    Then there was Dan. With his short dark hair and big brown eyes that made her skin itch. No, that made her skin tingle.
    Every now and then he flirted with her, as if it was his natural demeanour. Flirting with women was obviously second nature to a guy like him. But it wasn’t second nature for her. And she just didn’t have the defences for it yet. She didn’t want to be drawn in by his twinkling eyes and cheeky grins. She would look like some hapless teenager around him. This was feeling more awkward by the minute.
    Carrie walked back over to the window, sneaking a look at Abraham on the way past.
    â€˜How long do you think he’ll sleep?’
    She shook her head. ‘Yet another thing I’ll need to look up. Isn’t it usually around four hours for new babies?’
    Dan glanced at the clock. ‘So we’ve got until two-thirty.’ He smiled. ‘Do you want the night shift or shall I?’
    Carrie hesitated. ‘I’m not sure about this, Dan. I told you I’ve got no experience with babies. How am I supposed to know if something is wrong or not? I can’t read everything you’re supposed to know about babies in a few hours. What if we do something we shouldn’t?’
    He lifted his hands. ‘We can only do our best. And anyway, look at you earlier—you were a natural.’
    The words sent a chill down her spine. She knew he didn’t mean for that to happen—he probably meant the words as a compliment. But her mind and body just couldn’t react that way.
    She was trying to partition this whole experience in her head. Put it inside a little box that could be safely stowed away somewhere.
    Somewhere safe.
    This was hard. And the reality was, it was only going to get harder. She’d felt herself waver a few moments before when Abraham had snuggled into her neck and she’d caught that distinctive baby scent in her nostrils.
    She knew it was time to back off. To give herself a little space. And if she could keep doing that she might actually survive this experience.
    And let’s face it. Dan was hardly a strain on the eyes.
    Why hadn’t they ever spoken