Page 115 of Set Me On Fire

“Just support her head,” Kelly said in a low voice. “That’s it. There you go.”

I was holding her. My eyelids fluttered because I was ready to take it all back. The baby seemed like some wide-eyed lump, but some sort of magic happened when she was in my arms. Her legs stopped working, her hands stilling as she just stared at me and I stared back.

“Oh, she likes you,” Kelly said. “Sure you don’t want to take her home?”

“Has she got colic?” Belinda asked.

“Just like all my other children.”

Kelly sounded tired, so tired, but the conversation just dropped away. I wasn’t sure what it was, if I was tapping into some long lineage of mothers spanning back centuries or some hidden instinct I didn’t know I possessed. Whatever it was, it swelled as I stared into the little girl’s eyes. I dared to smile and her face muscles twitched as she let out a particularly emphatic grunt. My finger moved then, getting within her reach, and she latched on with that chubby little hand, gripping it tight.

“She’s strong.” Kelly and I shared a look, and it felt like there was something else beyond meeting an acquaintance from work. It was almost like she saw herself in me, and I was proud of that comparison. “Watch out for her nails. The little bugger scratches like a kitten without meaning to.”

“You would never.”

Where the hell had this soft tone come from? I didn’t know, but Tessa seemed to like it. Her grip tightened, her expression growing brighter as I smiled and smiled. The weight of her in my arms, it felt perfect.

So of course, something had to go and ruin it.

A high-pitched giggle was what heralded their arrival, the women all turning around and groaning.

“Who the hell did Dave bring this time?” Sally sighed.

“I thought he was still with Katie?”

“Nope, she finally kicked him to the curb, which makes me wonder if Rhett is going to make his move.”

“I hope she did, because how many girls did he bring with him?”

“Badge bunnies,” someone said dismissively and I was forced to turn around to find out what that meant. I saw Dave with a very pretty blonde girl on his arm, three other extremely attractive women by her side. Long glossy hair, perfect makeup, and skirts just a couple of centimetres shorter than was strictly permissible in the office, each one was a total glamazon. Every man in the pub was looking their way.

Including Knox and Noah.

I caught the moment when Dave looked them over, a predatory look in his eyes. He whispered something to the women, and they sauntered forward.

“Oh my god…” Belinda hissed. “Is Dave siccing those girls on Knox? They wouldn’t have a chance in hell with him.”

“Or Noah.” Sally shot me a long look. “He’s never been one for the ladies.”

Everyone was talking at once, Dave’s actions obviously setting the cat amongst the pigeons, but a plaintive little cry had me focussing on what was important. Miss Tessa did notappreciate being ignored, her face screwing up into an alarming expression.

“Oh no…” I said in the kind of sing-song voice people used with small children. “No, no, no. You’re OK. You’re OK.”

“She probably needs a feed.”

Kelly reached for her daughter and I, of course, handed Tessa back.

But I didn’t want to. I missed the warmth of her, the weight, as soon as Tessa was gone, because what replaced it was a sudden feeling of emptiness.

“Hello, love.”

Belinda’s husband had come over and pressed a kiss to her cheek, taking a seat beside her. All of the hubbies seemed to have beaten a hasty retreat, putting space between them and this phalanx of hot girls. Seats were shuffled, the group expanding to admit each one as Henry snorted and shook his head. He’d been here the entire time.

“Not sure what the hell Dave is playing at,” Jason, one of the husbands, said. “We are usually fighting off badge bunnies, not bringing in our own.”

But I knew. Dave couldn’t just leave the situation alone. He’d had a niggle at me with the flowers and when that hadn’t worked, he was taking a more direct route to send a message. He wanted me staring across the crowded pub at two of my guys, barely able to see them now for the girls. They’d surrounded the guys like a pack of hunting lions.

“Someone needs to rescue those poor guys,” Jason chortled. “Noah would never have the balls to tell the girls to piss off on his own.”

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