Page 137 of Winter Vows

Shane tilted his head in a way that was pure Delacourt and studied Dylan. “Am I right? Are you my dad?”

Dylan nodded. “I am.” He hesitated, then asked, “Would you mind if I gave you a hug? I’ve really, really missed you.”

“I guess.”

Shane said it with the obvious reluctance and distaste of a typical boy his age. It was such a normal reaction, Dylan almost laughed. He knelt down, opened his arms and waited until Shane came to him. If it had been up to him, the hug would have lasted forever, but he knew Shane couldn’t possibly understand why such a simple gesture meant so much to him that he wanted it to go on and on.

The instant Dylan released him, Shane turned to his mother. “So, did you bake cookies today or not?”

“Chocolate chip,” Kit said, sounding as emotional as Dylan felt. “They’re in the cookie jar. Take two.”

Shane darted to the counter, climbed up on a step stool and reached for the cookie jar. He came out with a handful of cookies. Grinning, he held them toward Dylan. “You want some? Mom makes the best chocolate chip cookies in the world.”

“I remember.” He accepted the cookies, then asked, “Are these your favorites?”

“Pretty much. How about you?”

“Definitely.” There were a thousand other things he wanted to know, a thousand questions to be asked, but he knew he’d have to ease into this new relationship, give all of them time to adjust.

With Kit staying in the background, they munched their cookies in companionable silence. Dylan felt the situation called for something momentous, but maybe sharing chocolate chip cookies with his son was exactly right. He figured a fireworks display and whoops of joy would have put the boy off. This was—he searched for the right word—this was a beginning, he concluded. He knew, too, that he couldn’t have asked for—much less deserved—anything more.

“Mommy, can I go outside now?” Shane asked, already anticipating a positive response and heading toward the back door.

Kit nodded. “In the yard or, if you want to ride your bike, on the sidewalk out front. Nowhere else, okay?”

“Got it,” Shane said. At the door, he glanced back at Dylan. “Are you gonna be my dad for real from now on?”

“I’d like that very much.”

“Do I have to go away with you?”

“No,” Dylan said, thinking of another little boy who’d been taken from his home all too recently. “I’ll come here, if it’s okay with you and your mom and dad.”

“Will you bring me stuff sometimes?”

“Shane!” Kit protested.

“Well, Jimmy’s real dad brings him presents all the time.”

Dylan winked at him. “Oh, I think you can count on me bringing you things from time to time, if your mom says it’s okay.”

A smile spread across Shane’s face. “Two dads. This is so cool.”

And then he bounded out the door, letting it slam behind him.

Just like that, as if in answer to a prayer, Dylan had his son back. And it was all because of Kelsey and another little boy who’d come into his life and made him see what he’d given up.

He knew then that he didn’t want to wait, couldn’t wait to bring the two of them into his life forever. Waiting could cost a man everything that really mattered. He would never risk that kind of loss again.

Dylan impulsively stopped and bought the biggest diamond in the jewelry store on the way back to Los Pinõs. Kelsey was probably figuring he’d start out slow, maybe ask for a date. He intended to go for the gold right from the start.

He found her at the clinic, surrounded by kids getting preschool physicals. He shuddered at the number already clutching lollipops as proof that they’d bravely withstood their shots. Kelsey caught sight of him in the waiting room and stumbled over whatever she’d been about to say to the mother standing with her. Then she deliberately glanced down at the chart in her hand, gathered her composure and went on as if he weren’t there. As soon as mother and child were on their way, she beckoned to him.

“Mr. Delacourt, come on into my office.” She smiled at the remaining patients. “This won’t take long.”

Dylan followed her into her office, then shut the door. He studied her in her crisp white lab coat and decided she looked just as sexy in that as she did in those shorts she’d worn around the house. Apparently he was going to get turned on no matter what she wore. Good thing, too, given what he was planning for their future.

“You’re back sooner than I expected,” she said, moving behind her desk as if to keep a safe distance between them.

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