Summer Kisses (14 page)

“I’m glad you’re happy. You promise to stay in contact?”

“I promise.” They hugged for a long moment before Laura turned back to the car and climbed into the backseat next to Ryan’s carrier.

Derrick was folding the stroller at the back of the car and Jill joined him. He placed a hand on her arm before she could get away. “You ran out of my apartment because of the kiss, didn’t you?”

“I don’t know what you mean.”

“That kiss threw both of us off guard,” he told her, “but I want you to know that it won’t happen again. If we’re going to be friends, then we need to keep things cordial between us. It was a mistake and I take full responsibility.”

Great. Just great
. “I think that would be best,” she lied. “Let’s keep things
cordial
.” She put out a hand for him to shake. “Deal?”

He shook her hand as if they were good pals. “Deal.”

Jill tried not to show any emotion as she climbed in behind the wheel and turned on the car. She watched quietly as Derrick squeezed his six-foot-two inch, two hundred and twenty pound body into the passenger seat of her Jetta.

He looked ridiculously squished. “You don’t have to come. I have Laura to keep me company.”

“A team of wild horses couldn’t stop me from coming to Ryan’s doctor appointment,” he said, and he must have meant it, because his knees, the good and the bad, were pressed against the glove box and his head was only a quarter of an inch away from hitting the ceiling.

The engine purred as Jill merged onto the main road.

“What’s going on between you two?” Laura asked. “You’re not really dating, are you?”

Jill didn’t say a word.

“You two can’t fool me,” Laura added.

“You’re right,” Derrick said, “we’re not dating.” He looked at Jill. “What was all that talk in your apartment about the two of us dating, anyhow?”

Jill swished a hand through the air as if it was no big deal. “I told Mom we were dating in hopes that my parents wouldn’t come to visit.”

Derrick frowned. “Why would our dating cause your parents to stay at home?”

“Ridiculous, I know,” Jill said, “but the truth is my dad doesn’t like football players.”

“He thinks athletes are worthless creatures,” Laura added with a laugh.

Not too surprisingly, Derrick didn’t laugh with her. The moment Jill was alone with her sister, she planned to ask Laura what she had done with her real sister—the bashful, quiet sister who never wore mascara, let alone false eyelashes.
What the heck was going on here
?

“Let me get this straight,” Derrick said. “You told your parents that we were dating in hopes that they would stay away.”

“Yes,” Jill answered.

“But you plan to straighten them out the next time you see them?”

“No,” Jill said.

Laura laughed again.

“Why not?”

“Because for the first time in my life I don’t care what they think about me.” Jill used the rearview mirror to glance at her sister. “How long are Mom and Dad planning on staying?”

“Two or three nights,” Laura said. “I think Dad has business in San Francisco.” She reached forward and put a hand on Derrick’s shoulder. “Don’t worry, Hollywood, a few outings, a dinner or two, and it will all be over before you know it.”

“I’m not worried,” he said, “because there’s no way I’m getting involved in your family problems. No outings or dinners for me.”

Jill tightened her grip on the steering wheel. “If you don’t come to dinner with me and my family tonight, then Ryan and I will not be attending your family barbeque this weekend. What’s good for the goose is good for the gander.”

He frowned. “The idea that you were dating me obviously wasn’t scary enough to keep them away. So what’s the point in keeping up the charade?”

“I think they’re calling Jill’s bluff,” Laura said. “They didn’t believe Jill would stoop that low, so they came to California to see it for themselves.”

As Jill nodded in agreement, a glance his way revealed an unyielding jaw. Derrick was not happy with the fact that as far as her parents were concerned, he was pond scum. Well, that was just too bad. Jill figured if she had to suffer through a dinner or two, then Derrick might as well suffer, too. “You did say you wanted to be a part of Ryan’s life,” Jill said. “Be careful what you wish for.”

“Okay,” he said under his breath. “I’ll do it.”

Laura clapped her hands together, making Jill feel as if she had Lexi in the backseat of her car instead of a grown woman.

Keeping her eyes on the road, it didn’t take long for Jill’s thoughts to meander to the kiss. She could still taste him on her lips. Hoping to take her mind off of the heat sizzling within, she turned on the radio and rolled her eyes when “This Kiss” by Faith Hill belted out from the speakers:

I don’t want another heartbreak

I don’t need another turn to cry, no

I don’t want to learn the hard way

She shut the radio off.

“I never would have figured you for a country girl,” Derrick said.

“That’s because you don’t know anything about me,” Jill said, annoyed by the entire state of affairs. “I’m a little bit country and I’m also rock ‘n’ roll all in one. I’m a wild woman, Derrick Baylor. A wild, wild woman.”

“Is that right?”

“She’s kidding,” Laura said, ruining Jill’s fun. “Jill has never done anything remotely wild. Never jumped out of a plane or skied down a Black Diamond trail. She never smoked a cigarette, let alone a joint. I can’t even recall ever seeing my sister on the dance floor.”

“Who are you?” Jill asked her sister, wondering if she had fallen into some sort of black hole.

“How about skinny-dipping?” Derrick asked. “Everyone has skinny-dipped at least once in their life?”

“Nope, not Jill,” Laura said. “She’s safe and predictable. No surprises there.”

“I have a voice,” Jill reminded her sister as she came to a stop at the light.

“Okay,” Laura said with a shrug. “Let’s hear it. Have you gone skinny-dipping?”

“That’s none of your business.”

Derrick looked over his shoulder at Laura. “Your sister just had a baby. Her hormones are still a little wacky.”

Jill rolled her eyes.

“Don’t get me wrong,” Laura said. “Jill has a lot of good qualities. Despite what my parents believe, she’s dependable and responsible. She’s compassionate, too. She’s just lacking a little when it comes to adventure.”

The light turned green and Jill stepped on the gas. “When Ryan is older,” Jill said, “the two of us are going to do many adventurous things together.”

“Sounds like Ryan is in for a good time once he gets out of those diapers,” Derrick said with a smile.

Laura chuckled.

Jill looked over at him and scowled. The sun was coming through the window and hitting his handsome face just so: sparkling eyes and dimples—a deadly combination. If Ryan looked anything like his father when he grew up, she wasn’t going to have time to ski down the Silverfox in Utah, learn how to rock climb, or bungee jump off of a tall bridge, because she was going to be too busy fighting off all the girls vying for her son’s attention.

The ride to the pediatrician’s office felt like hours instead of the twelve minutes it actually took to get there. The streets were crowded for a weekday, Jill thought, as she pulled into a parking space reserved for patients of the medical building. Derrick had a tough time getting out of the passenger seat, but she decided not to worry about him. He deserved to be uncomfortable for setting off fireworks inside of her and then dousing them with cold words and a handshake.

~~~

Although he did his best not to show it, Derrick felt like a heel. Sandy had warned him of Jill’s growing affections and yet he hadn’t tried to stop her earlier from pressing up close and kissing him. He already knew she could kiss like an angel, but he hadn’t known until today that she was a dozen sticks of dynamite waiting to be ignited. If it had been anyone but Jill Garrison, the mother of his child, throwing herself at him, he might have taken what she offered, and then some.

Hell, he never proclaimed to be a saint.

But Jill was nothing like the women he had spent time with over the years. Jill was way too sweet and innocent for the likes of him.

And besides, his heart belonged to Maggie.

Jill deserved to be with someone who could give her one hundred percent, someone who would always be there for her. If not for Maggie, he might think twice about applying for the job. But Maggie was always there, floating in his thoughts—even when he didn’t want her to be. Deep down, he knew his brothers were right. He needed to forget about Maggie—cut all emotional ties and let her go. But he’d already tried that and it hadn’t worked. Loving Maggie was like being addicted to drugs. He needed a twelve-step program if he ever wanted to break free.

There was an art festival taking place downtown and it took a few minutes to weave through the crowds and into the building. Before long, Derrick and Jill were in the examination room waiting for the pediatrician, while Laura waited in the lobby.

Derrick was glad he could finally feel the blood pumping through his legs again. Being in Jill’s car could be compared to being squeezed into a sardine can.

Jill paced the tiny room, back and forth, while Ryan cried his heart out.

“If you hold him closer to your chest, a little further to your right, I think he’ll—”

“I know how to hold my baby. Thank you very much.”

Stretching, Derrick hid a smile behind a feigned yawn.

“I’m glad to see you’re amused,” Jill admonished, “although I really can’t imagine how you could find Ryan’s discomfort comical.”

“That’s not why I’m smiling.” What amused him was the way her eye twitched and her lip curled just the slightest bit whenever she was annoyed. He also couldn’t stop thinking about Jill’s reaction to what her sister had said about Jill not being adventurous. Jill clearly wanted to change all of that. He had some good ideas to help her break out of her shell. “I was just thinking about your family showing up out of the blue. Your sister is quite a character.”

“That woman waiting out there in the lobby is not my sister. My sister is graceful, delicate, and quiet to a fault. She sips Ming Cha tea and nibbles on watercress sandwiches. She never curses and she certainly doesn’t own a pair of leather pants.”

“She eats watercress sandwiches?”

The doctor walked in before Jill could respond. The pediatrician was a man—a young man Derrick guessed to be in his early thirties—a man who looked ridiculously pleased to see Jill.

“Jill! It’s great to see you again.”

Jill’s eyes lit up. “Nate Lerner,” Jill said. “I’m so glad you made it back in time to be here for Ryan’s first appointment.”

Before Derrick could introduce himself, Jill handed Ryan to him and then turned back to the doctor and practically leapt into his arms, hugging the man as if he were a long-lost brother finally returned from war. After she finally broke free, Dr. Lerner took a step back so he could take a good long look at Jill. “You look amazing. Absolutely stunning.”

Derrick held Ryan close to his chest and rocked him until he quieted.

The whole scene with the doctor and Jill seemed a little off, maybe because Jill hadn’t said a peep about Dr. Lerner and now suddenly the two of them were practically getting it on right here in front of him, as if he wasn’t even in the room. Derrick knew firsthand how out of whack Jill’s hormones were and he really didn’t want to stand here and watch her get all hot and bothered.

Jill put a hand to her chest. “You look exactly like your father.” She shook her head in disbelief. “It’s uncanny.”

Derrick cleared his throat, but nobody paid him any mind.

“We’ll have to get together soon and catch up.”

“I would love to,” Jill said with the brightest smile Derrick had ever seen as she clasped the good doctor’s hands between hers.

“So who do we have here?” the doctor asked, after thoroughly checking out Ryan’s mother.

“Nate, I’d like you to meet my friend, Derrick, and my son, Ryan.” Without making eye contact, she took Ryan from Derrick and cradled him in her arms in such a way that Nate could get a better look at her cleavage.

The doctor gestured toward the examination table and Jill obediently followed him that way.

“He’s a handsome boy,” Dr. Lerner said. “Let’s take his measurements.”

“Should I undress him?”

“Please.”

She took her time slipping Ryan’s tiny arms and legs from his blue cotton sleeper.

Derrick stayed where he was, watching from afar while the doctor measured the circumference of Ryan’s head before checking his soft spot.

“His fontanel is just as it should be,” the doctor said. “It’s safe to touch and should disappear in twelve to eighteen months.” Next, he measured Ryan’s length from toe to head, checked his charts, and then asked Jill to remove his diaper so he could weigh him. Dr. Lerner proceeded with additional tests while Jill fawned over the doctor and Ryan in equal doses. With adoring eyes, she watched Dr. Lerner as he used an instrument to look inside Ryan’s ears.

It was enough to make Derrick want to gag. Instead, he took a seat in the corner of the room. His muscles felt tense and it dawned on him that he was behaving like a jealous fool. The emotions he was feeling were absurd and completely out of character. He had no reason to be jealous because he didn’t feel
that
way about Jill. As she had just told the doctor, they were friends. Yes, Derrick liked her, and yes, she looked amazing today, but she looked amazing every day, whether she wore a sweat outfit covered with spit-up or baggy pants and fuzzy pink slippers.

After analyzing the situation, Derrick convinced himself that what he was feeling was perfectly acceptable and normal. He wanted to protect Jill. She was the mother of his son. Any man she showed interest in could be a potential father to his son. It made perfect sense that he might feel anxious under the circumstances.

It wasn’t long before the doctor was finished and Jill was pushing Derrick out the door.

“I’ll catch up,” Jill told him, leaving Derrick and Ryan to fend for themselves as he guided the stroller out of the examination room and toward the lobby.