Page 15 of An Alaskan Twin Surprise (Home to Owl Creek 2)

Rachel narrowed her gaze as she studied him. “Really? Are you sure? They can be a handful.”

“Of course I’m sure. I’m going to be an uncle soon so I need the practice.” She watched as he fidgeted with his collar. “They seem pretty happy at the moment. How hard can it be?”

“Famous last words,” Rachel murmured as she got up from her seat and headed off in pursuit of Piper.

* * *

Two pairs of eyes trailed after Rachel as she walked away from the table. Within seconds their eyes welled up with tears, then their little bow-shaped lips began to tremble. Before he knew it, both were bawling their eyes out. His heart was beating a mile a minute. One moment he’d been eating a bowl of fish chowder with rosemary French fries and the next he was dealing with two one-year-olds simultaneously crying. And he was clueless as to how to stop it.

Gabriel didn’t know how he’d ended up minding Rachel’s children. He wasn’t sure what exactly had gotten into him when he’d made the offer. Connor and Hank would tease him about his nice-guy tendencies. What he knew about babies could easily fit on a postage stamp. He’d been around Hank’s daughter Addie on numerous occasions, but he hadn’t ever babysat her or changed a diaper. Oh no! A feeling of dread washed over him. Surely he wasn’t expected to change any diapers. That was well beyond his capabilities.

“Okay, Faith. Lizzy. Mommy will be right back,” he said in a cheery voice.

Wait. Which one was Faith, and which one was Lizzy? They were identical even though Rachel had dressed them in distinctly different outfits. One was decked out in baby blue while the other wore red and white. He didn’t know how Rachel was able to instantly tell them apart. He supposed it was tied up in motherhood and the endless days and nights she’d spent caring for them.

At the sound of his voice, they both stopped wailing and focused on him with frowns on their faces. Phew. At least they had both stopped crying. He let out a deep breath. Maybe he could pull this off after all.

His peace lasted all of ten seconds until they began sobbing again. The cries were drawing curious stares from the townsfolk.

Gabriel looked around for anything in sight to entertain the girls. A diaper bag sat on the booth seat where Rachel had been sitting. He reached for it and went through the contents. One small, funny-looking teddy bear. A rattle. A bunch of diapers. A plastic bag filled with Goldfish. Gabriel remembered the girls happily feeding each other Cheerios at Helene’s house. Their plates were now empty. Maybe they were still hungry. He opened up the bag of treats and placed a handful on each of their plates. Suddenly, they were gurgling with laughter and grinning at him as they began eating the snack. A feeling of triumph swept over him. One moment he’d been on the ropes and the next he felt so victorious he wanted to raise his fist in the air.

“What’s going on over here? I heard the racket when I walked in. I didn’t realize you were taking on babysitting gigs.” Connor was standing by the table with his arms folded across his chest. A big grin was etched on his face. “From the looks of it, you’re a natural.”

“I’m just helping out in a crunch,” he said, feeling sheepish. His gaze wandered back to the girls. They were pretty adorable with their infectious grins and the happy noises they were making.

Connor’s face fell. “Wait a minute. Are these Rachel’s girls?” he asked, a deep frown marring his brow.

“Yes,” he admitted, bracing himself for his pal’s reaction. “And before you lecture me about being a pushover, I consider it simply being a good guy in a moment of need.”

Connor sucked his teeth. “What are you doing, Gabe? After everything she did to you, you’re still allowing her to walk all over you. Why would you even want to do her a favor? It’s opening a door that should be firmly closed.”

Gabriel bristled. He hated how being a generous person always resulted in his being called a softy. His faith had taught him to give of himself without reservation. He didn’t know how to be any other way. Rachel had wronged him in the past, but it wasn’t a reason not to grant her a simple favor, especially when it benefited Piper, as well.

“You don’t know what you’re talking about!” he said through clenched teeth. “She doesn’t have that power over me any longer. This is simply a good deed. End of story.”

Connor leaned over so he was eye to eye with Gabriel. He spoke in a low tone. “Whether you realize it or not, you’re in danger of getting tangled up with her all over again. If you’re not careful, you’re going to find yourself right back where you were three years ago. That’s not a place anyone who cares about you wants to see you in.”

With a shake of his head, Connor strode away from the table and headed over to the pick-up counter. Gabriel chewed on his lip as he replenished the Goldfish on the girls’ plates. Whether he wanted to admit it to himself or not, he was forced to consider Connor’s dire warning. The last thing he wanted was to relive his painful past with Rachel.

He’d barely made it through in one piece the last time.

* * *

Rachel knocked gently on the office door in the rear of the kitchen. She slowly turned the knob and entered, even though she hadn’t heard Piper telling her to come in. Her heart dropped the moment she saw her friend sitting at the desk with her head bowed, shoulders heaving with silent cries.

Rachel rushed to her side. “Piper, I just need to know that you’re all right. I’m here for you. I’m so sorry if I said something to upset you.”

Piper slowly raised her head up. Her eyes were red rimmed and slightly puffy. Rachel knew instinctively this was no simple matter. Her friend wasn’t the type of person who was easily reduced to tears.

“It’s not your fault. The truth is, things aren’t going well with the Snowy Owl.” She began sniffling to stem the tide of tears. “If I don’t come up with ways to increase revenue, I might be forced to close the place.”

Rachel let out a gasp. She knew all too well what the Snowy Owl meant to Piper. It had been her father’s pride and joy. He’d worked endless hours to make the diner a huge success in the community. How in the world had things

gone downhill so quickly over the past few years?

“What happened? I always thought the business was solid.”

“That’s what I believed too,” Piper said, her breathing becoming more labored. Her face crumpled again and more tears began to leak from her eyes. “After I began running the place I dug into the books and spotted a few red flags. When I crunched the numbers it became obvious to me that my father overextended himself financially. It was pretty shocking to realize I was facing an uphill battle with the business. There was always something I needed to fix around here and bills to pay. Daddy must’ve been overwhelmed, and he let things go by the wayside.”

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