Free Granted: A Family for Baby by Grace Carol

forgotten,” he said. The memory of her mouth on his, of her beautiful breasts pressed against his chest made his body throb with unfulfilled desire just thinking about it. It would be hard to forget and he wasn’t even going to try. “I’m not sorry it happened, but I’m sorry I put you in an awkward position.”
    She gave him a rueful smile. “Looks like you’re the one in the awkward position. And it’s my fault for dropping the hammer.”
    “Let’s stop blaming ourselves or each other,” he suggested. His toe was throbbing and he was tired of apologizing for something that had left him dazed and shaken and experiencing feelings he didn’t want to deal with. And he wasn’t talking about his foot. “Take me home,” he instructed, “and tomorrow we’ll go on as if nothing happened.”
    “I’m not taking you home,” she said. “Not when you’re supposed to stay off your foot. I’m taking you to my house for the night.” She pulled up in front of her mother’s house.
    “If you’re feeling guilty,” he said, “don’t.”
    “Don’t tell me how to feel,” she said, and marched up the steps. In a few minutes she was back with Travis in her arms.
    He squealed with happiness when he saw Brady. Brady grinned, despite his pain, remembering the night Travis called him Da-da. Kids were so great. At least this kid was. He really hadn’t known any others. But they didn’t seem to worry about who kissed who first and whose fault it was. They were either happy or sad. If they were happy they laughed, and if they were sad they cried.
    When they got to Suzy’s house, Brady opened the
     car door and stuck his good foot out. Suzy unbuckled Travis from his car seat and headed for her front door.
    “Stay there,” she told Brady. “I’ll be back for you.”
    “No way,” he muttered, bracing himself on the car door. He would not be treated like a helpless invalid.
    “I’m not a helpless invalid,” he said when she returned to get him and he hadn’t made any progress on his own. He blamed that on the beer. He had had a lot to drink. But, he who’d never leaned on anyone, leaned gratefully against her shoulder for the second time that night. She was stronger than she looked. Both physically and emotionally. He guessed she had to be to raise a child on her own. He admired that. He admired everything about her. Her spunk, her humor, her good nature. And her big, meltingly soft eyes and her mouth and her long legs....
    Yes, that’s what got him in trouble earlier that day. Admiring everything about her. He shouldn’t be there. He shouldn’t stay at her house and sleep under the same roof. It was just going to make it that much harder when she left. When she worked at the diner and went out with other men. He groaned.
    “Does it hurt?” she asked, bringing him into the living room.
    “It hurts to have to depend on someone to walk.”
    “Hurts your pride, you mean. There’s nothing wrong with depending on someone else. Even if you’re the big, tough sheriff.” She led him to the couch and he fell onto it, grateful to be off his feet.
    She dragged the coffee table up and he stretched out his leg. “You don’t think anyone saw you help me out of the saloon, do you?” he asked.
    “Only about twenty-five men and seven women. Didn’t you hear the cheering as we left?”
    “I thought it was jeering.” He sniffed the air. “What’s that smell?”
    “Pot roast. I put it in the crock pot this morning. Too big for one and a half persons, but I like to have leftovers. Probably not as good as the diner’s, either, but I do my best. I’m going to put Travis to bed.”
    “Without his pot roast?” Brady asked.
    “My mom fed him early and he’s tired. Will you be all right?”
    “Will I be all right?” he repeated. “As long as you’re not gone more than five minutes. After all, I’m suffering major injuries here. Not to mention thirst and hunger and humiliation. You can’t just walk off and