Have Baby, Need Beau (7 page)

Mimi’s face flashed into his mind. He’d started out wanting to help her. But then things had gotten out of hand.

He knew they were wrong for each other. But would he ever again experience the mind-numbing feelings he’d had when he’d held Mimi in his arms, when they’d made love? He and Hannah had never had that wild physical spark between them, the very reason they’d never really moved past the platonic stage, despite their engagement. Not so with Mimi. The chemistry was there, but they had nothing else in common.

A knock on the door jerked him from his thoughts, and he invited Delores Flat to come in and sit down. She got straight to the problem. “Georgie’s asking about his father again. He wants to know why he didn’t show up to take him to the ball game like he promised.” She ran a hand over her necklace, the pearls clicking as she stroked them. “It was easy to pacify Georgie when he was little. But now that he’s getting older, he doesn’t buy the excuses I make up.”

“Have you tried telling him the truth?”

“What? That his father doesn’t care about him? That he never wanted to be a part of his life?”

Seth swallowed. If Mimi was pregnant and decided not to include him in her life, what would she tell their child? Although taking responsibility for a baby of his own scared him, he would never let her bring up the child alone. He’d seen enough kids suffer because of broken families.

“Dr. Broadhurst, what should I do?”

Seth shook himself. “That’s not what I meant. Perhaps your husband does care, but he doesn’t realize how much he’s hurting your son.”

“I’ve sure as hell tried to tell him.”

Seth frowned. “Let me talk to Ralph.”

Mrs. Flat’s fingers jerked on the necklace. “What should I do in the meantime? Ralph says he’ll pick up Georgie, but sometimes he doesn’t show up at all.”

Seth steepled his fingers together. “Focus on the fact that his dad is busy and that he does love him, but he isn’t always dependable. Explain that adults have flaws, too. We don’t want Georgie to think his father’s absence is his fault.”

“No, no, I don’t want that.” Tears seeped from her eyes. “It’s just that I feel so alone. No one understands how hard it is to be both mother and father to little Georgie.”

Although every situation varied, Seth had heard the same comment from other single parents. “Look, Mrs. Flat, I’m forming a support group for single parents, and I’d like you to come. It’ll be a chance to meet other men and women facing similar problems.”

Seth glanced at his calendar. “I’ll let you know when the first meeting will be. Maybe you can get Ralph to come, too.” He scribbled a reminder to phone her husband and urge him to attend.

The woman finally dropped her hand from her pearls and stood. “All right, Dr. Broadhurst. Let me know the time and place and I’ll be there.”

Seth watched her leave, his mind sorting through the details. He’d need a relaxed place for the meeting, maybe one of the rooms in the community center neighboring the hospital, a few chairs, some food. A plan formed in his head. Mimi’s café was near the hospital. She catered most of the hospital functions. Maybe he’d hire her to cater the informal gathering. After all, it would be the perfect excuse to keep an eye on her—and any other developments that might pop up from their night together.

* * *

Mimi settled into a corner booth with her father, two pieces of chocolate cheesecake between them, well aware her father had that worried look on his face. But she was an actress, so she plastered on a cheery smile.

“Are you all right, honey?”

Mimi sipped her cappuccino. “Yep. I’m working on a new recipe. Something even better than that mudslinger pie.”

Wiley’s eyes lit up. “That’s my favorite. My gosh, you can cook, honey.”

“It was all those easy-bake ovens you got me when I was little.” She patted her dad’s hand. “Thanks for being so tolerant, Dad. You were great to put up with my messes.”

“Honey, you’ve always been so much fun. I enjoyed watching you be creative.” Wiley cut into his cheesecake, his gaze darting to the newspaper on the table.

Mimi’s stomach did a flip-flop. “You obviously saw the picture.”

He chewed thoughtfully. “You know, I never put the two of you together, but I can see it now. Seth’s a fine man.”

“What?”

“Sure.” His dark eyes rested on her. “Seth’s a fine man. I always liked him when he was dating Hannah.”

Mimi winced.

“Sorry. I didn’t mean to bring that up, but I wondered if you’d had a thing for him while they were dating.”

Mimi’s cup clattered on the saucer. “Of course not.”

Wiley shrugged. “Doesn’t matter now, sweetheart. Hannah’s happily married. And I wanted you to know I approve.”

“You approve?”

“Of course. You’re a special girl, Mimi. Seth Broadhurst would be a lucky man to have a woman like you in his life. You can teach him how to relax.” Mimi swallowed.

“Dad, Seth and I are not together. We … uh, we simply got stranded together on the way back from Hannah’s wedding. The snowstorm and all, the roads were shut down—we had to stop and stay over.”

Wiley’s eyes narrowed. “You mean the two of you didn’t…” He waved his fork in a vague gesture.

Mimi crossed her fingers beneath the table. She hated to lie to her dad, but how could she confess the truth? “No, Dad, of course not. Seth’s a nice guy, and we danced and made the best of a rotten situation, but he’s not my type.” She faked a laugh for emphasis. “You know me, I want someone exciting. Not some boring, stodgy man in a suit who’s glued to his pocket calendar. Why, he’s not even that attractive.”

“Then there was nothing between you. I mean, in the picture, it looked as if—”

“No way, Dad. Seth Broadhurst doesn’t float my boat.”

Her father cleared his throat, and Mimi turned and saw Seth standing behind her. He looked so handsome in his suit with snowflakes lingering in his hair that he nearly took her breath away.

But he wasn’t smiling, she realized in horror. And from the hurt look on his face, he’d obviously overheard every word she’d said.

Chapter 7

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S
eth put on his detached, unemotional face, the one he normally reserved for his patients, in a feeble attempt to pretend he hadn’t overheard Mimi chop his self-esteem into tiny slivers like minced almonds.

Too late.

He saw the stunned look of regret that instantly clouded her bright blue eyes. “Seth, I’m—”

“It’s nice to see you again, Mimi, Mr. Hartwell.” Seth forced his gaze on Mimi’s father, uncomfortable with the way Wiley squirmed and jumped up to pump his hand.

“Good to see you, too, Seth. Wish I could stay, but I gotta run. Business has been booming lately.”

Mimi yanked at her father’s arm. “Dad, don’t…”

“Mr. Hartwell, please…”

Before either could finish, Wiley pecked Mimi on the cheek and bustled out, his white shoes clicking on the shiny black and white tiles of the coffee shop. Mimi stood, her hands clasped, her eyes wide and luminous. “Seth, I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean—”

“You don’t have to explain. I think you made yourself perfectly clear.”

Mimi sighed. “You don’t understand. Dad saw that picture in the newspaper and—”

“So did my parents.” And he had defended her.

“Well, Alison saw it, too, and Dad got the wrong idea and thought we’d—” Mimi paused and lowered her voice to a whisper “—you know … slept together.”

“We
did
sleep together.”

“I know!” Mimi threw up her hands in exasperation. “But he really misinterpreted things and thought we were serious, as in a couple. Can you imagine that?”

No, he couldn’t, could he?

“He’s just so old-fashioned,” she continued without waiting for his reply.

Maybe he was old-fashioned, too, Seth thought. Boring and old-fashioned.

“Before I could him tell how ridiculous the idea of us together was, he told me how great we’d be together—”

“Wiley said we’d be great together?”

“Yes. I had to do something or he’d have us married and settled down in no time. Neither of us want that.”

“No, I can’t imagine you ever settling down.” Of course, according to her, he was already so settled he might as well have one foot in the grave. Besides, if Hannah had left him at the altar, Mimi would blast off in a cannon.

Mimi frowned and stacked the empty coffee cups together. “Since we’d agreed to keep that … er, that night a secret, I figured the best thing to do was make Dad see how wrong we’d be together.”

“I see.”

She bit down on that plump little pink lip, reminding him of the way her mouth had tasted. “Really, Seth, we both know how different we are.”

“Right, I’m boring and stodgy.”

Mimi’s expression softened. She obviously hadn’t meant for him to overhear her comment. But that didn’t mean she hadn’t believed it. “Look, Seth, don’t take it personally. We’re simply wrong for each other and we both know it. You’re a shrink, for heaven’s sake, and I’m impulsive and emotional and I want to be an actress.” She picked up the coffee cups and started toward the kitchen. He grabbed the dirty saucers and followed, well aware she’d said the word
shrink
as if it were a four-letter word.

“You don’t have to carry dirty dishes,” Mimi said.

“I don’t mind. At least I can do something for you. Especially since I don’t float your boat.”

Mimi put the cups in the sink, then turned to him, her hands on her hips. The movement drew her white blouse across her chest, accentuating every enticing curve and conjuring up images of her voluptuous body naked. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to hurt your male pride.”

“So you were just acting last night?”

“No, well, yes. I mean, sure, you turned me on, but we were stranded and there was music and we were all alone.”

Great, he felt better now. “So if another man had been around, you wouldn’t have spent the night with
me?”

“I didn’t say that.”

“Yes, you did.”

“I did not. Stop putting words in my mouth.”

“I don’t have to put words in your mouth. You seem to be doing fine on your own. In fact, you have quite the vocabulary.”

Mimi sighed and waved her hands. “We both agreed we’d forget last night ever happened, that it was a mistake and we wouldn’t repeat it, didn’t we?”

“Yes.”

“So what are you doing here and why are you getting so defensive?”

He jammed his hands in the pockets of his “boring” suit, feeling edgy and out of sorts. He also had to think a minute to remember why he had come. Not to see her pretty face or hear that husky voice or touch her again.

No. None of those reasons.

“I came about work.”

A timer buzzed and Mimi grabbed a pot holder and opened the oven door. “Let me check this new recipe and you can tell me what you want.”

Her
. On top of that stainless-steel counter, naked and hot and writhing beneath him. He paused, stunned at his thoughts.

She pulled a muffin pan from the oven and placed it on the long worktable in the center of the big kitchen, oblivious to his fantasy. Pots and pans and mixing bowls filled the sink and counter.
Cocoa
and flour dotted the surface, and he heard the gritty sound of sugar grinding below his shoe. The mess didn’t bother him as it normally would have because the delicious aroma of chocolate filled the air, reminding him of the hot fudge sundae she’d devoured at the Magnolia Manor and the way he’d licked the rich sauce from her lips.

He swallowed a groan and dug his hands deeper into his pockets. The weather outside was cold, but in the warm kitchen with Mimi he was burning up.

“Seth, are you going to explain why you’re here?”

He tried to focus. “I’m starting a support group for single parents, and I’d like you to cater it.”

Mimi began to frost a pan of brownies. “Is this a one-time deal?”

“No, we’ll probably meet once a week for a while. I’m thinking Thursday evenings.”

“How many people?”

He pulled out his notepad and saw her eyes flicker over the pad. “What?”

“I figured you carried one of those.”

Right. She thought he was predictable, boring. He wasn’t—he was simply responsible. What was wrong with that? “It helps with the job.”

She nodded, looking unimpressed. “How many people?”

“Probably around ten adults the first time. Later on, I’d like to do some mixed groups, kids and parents, but the first meeting should be strictly adults.”

“What do you want served? Hors d’oeuvres or just coffee and dessert?”

“Just coffee and dessert. Nothing fancy.”

“Sounds doable. Why don’t I bring something with strawberries and another dessert with chocolate.”

The same two kinds of desserts they’d eaten in bed together. What was she trying to do, torture him?

“Seth?”

“No, how about fruitcake?”

“Fruitcake?”

He was thinking something with nuts since she was making him nutty. “I suppose not. I guess fruitcake is more of a Christmas dessert.”

“I can try coconut, but really, strawberries and chocolate are much more popular.”

“Fine.”

She dropped a dollop of icing on her finger, lifted it and licked the thick frosting from the tip. His body surged with want, wicked fantasies bursting through his mind. Fantasies that Mimi Hartwell would not find boring at all.

Her gaze locked with his, heat flashing between them in a hot spiral. He brought his finger up and wiped the chocolate sauce from her cheek, then sucked his finger, savoring the delicious texture and taste of the frosting. He desperately wanted to taste Mimi again. Just one more time.

He had never felt desperate around a woman before. He didn’t like the feeling.

Mimi’s breath seemed to catch. “Seth…”

Hell, he didn’t do desperate very well. “I know I don’t float your boat,” he said in a husky voice. He reached up to touch her. “And we’re not right for each other.”

Mimi licked her lips. “Seth, we … we can’t.”

He also knew she was right, but his heart had never pounded like this; his veins had never felt as if they had hot lust running through them with any other woman. Including Mimi’s sister.