Red Lily

Lily came around a turn of the garden.
    “Now that’s a pretty sight.”
    “Yeah. They look good.” The baby wore some sort of romper thing, pink and white stripes, with a little pink bow in her hair—dark hair, like her mother’s. She looked sweet as a candy stick.
    And Mama—tiny blue shorts, a yard of leg, bare feet. Some skinny little white top and wraparound shades. A different kind of candy altogether. Maybe it was sweet, but it was sure as hell hot.
    He tipped up the beer to cool his throat, and Lily spotted them. She let out something between a yell and a squeal—all delight—and pulling away from Hayley made a beeline toward the carriage house as fast as her little legs could manage.
    “Slow down, sweet potato.” David moved forward toscoop her up, give her a toss. She patted his face with both of her hands, gabbled at him, then reached for Harper.
    “As always, I’m day-old paté when you’re around.”
    “Hand her over,” Harper hitched her onto his hip where she kicked her legs with joy and beamed at him. “Hey, pretty girl.”
    In response, she tilted her head to lay it on his shoulder.
    “What a flirt,” Hayley commented as she walked up. “Here we are having a nice walk, having a little girl-talk, she spots a couple of handsome men, and blows me off.”
    “Why don’t you leave her with Harper, put on a party dress and drive on into Memphis with me?”
    “Oh, I—”
    “Sure.” Harper kept his voice carefully neutral as he jiggled Lily. “She can hang with me. You can bring that Portacrib thing over and I’ll put her down when she’s tired.”
    “That’s nice, I appreciate it. But it’s been a long day. I don’t think I’m up for a trip to Memphis.”
    “Fuds and duds, Lily.” David leaned over to kiss her. “I’m surrounded by fuds and duds. I’m flying solo then, and I better get started. See y’all.”
    “I don’t mind watching her if you want to get out awhile.”
    “No. I’m going to put her down pretty soon, then curl on up myself. Why aren’t you going?”
    “Too hot,” he said, decided it was the easiest catchall excuse.
    “Isn’t it? And you’re letting all the cool out. Come on, Lily.”
    But when she tried to take the baby, Lily squirmed away and clung to Harper like ivy to a tree. The sound she made was distinctly da-da.
    The flush glowed on Hayley’s cheeks even as she gave a weak laugh. “She doesn’t mean anything. Those D soundsare the easiest to make, is all. Lots of things are da-da these days. Come on, Lily.”
    This time her arms circled Harper’s neck like a noose, and she started to wail.
    “You want to come in for a while?”
    “No, no.” She spoke quickly now, a tumble of words. “We were just taking a little walk, nearly done with it, and she has to have a bath before bedtime.”
    “I’ll walk back with you.” He turned his head, kissed Lily’s cheek then whispered in her ear so she laughed and snuggled against him.
    “She can’t have everything she wants.”
    “She’ll have to learn that soon enough.” He reached behind him, and shut the door.
    S HE MANAGED BATH and bedtime, kept herself distracted with Lily’s needs until the baby was asleep.
    She tried to read, she tried TV. Too restless for either, she plugged in a yoga tape she’d bought at the mall and gave it a spin. She went down for cookies. She put on music, then turned it off.
    By midnight, she was still edgy and unsettled, so gave up and went out on the terrace to take in the warm night.
    The lights were on in the carriage house. His bedroom light, she assumed. She’d never been up to the second floor, or what he called the loft. Where he slept. Where he was probably in bed right now, reading a book. Naked.
    She should never have walked that way with Lily. All those directions to take, and she’d headed straight toward the carriage house. As besotted as her daughter.
    God, she’d nearly melted at the knees when she’d come around that turn in the path and seen him.

    Leaning against the doorjamb, wearing nothing but those ragged old cutoffs. Hard chest, golden tan, his hair all curly and damp. That lazy smile on his face as he’d taken a sip from a bottle of beer.
    He’d looked so sexy—a freaking billboard for sexy, framed in that cottage doorway, surrounded by flowers, sultry in the heat. She’d been amazed she’d been able to get reasonable words out of her throat when she’d been tingling the whole time, inside and out, while they’d