A Husband of Her Own (Dundee, Idaho #2)(67)
Author: Brenda Novak

Delaney lay sleeping beneath a light blanket, her face serene. Conner, the concerned and doting father, had finally dozed off in the chair next to her bed. Rebecca held Delaney’s new baby girl. She’d considered leaving many times. The baby had been born nearly eight hours earlier and it was getting late. But Rebecca was still too emotionally charged and enamored with little Emily to go anywhere, despite the exhaustion that edged closer as the clock ticked toward midnight.

In the light spilling through the partially open doorway, she studied the miracle in her arms. Emily was wrapped tightly in receiving blankets and wearing a knit cap to keep her body temperature stable; only her tiny red face and long perfect fingers showed. But she had that sweet smell so peculiar to newborns, and the slight weight of her felt satisfying in Rebecca’s arms.

Toying with Emily’s hands, Rebecca admired them with the same reverence she’d experienced during the birth. “You’re incredible,” she murmured, brushing a kiss across her satiny cheek. “Seeing you come into the world makes me believe in all things that are good, little Em.”

“Sounds like you’re ready for a baby of your own,” Delaney said.

Embarrassed to realize she’d been overheard, Rebecca glanced up to find Delaney watching her, a gentle smile curving her lips. “I should find a husband first, don’t you think?” she replied, trying to steer the conversation away from the emotional.

Delaney arched her brows. “They may not be absolutely necessary, but I think it’s definitely the better way to go.” She leaned up on one elbow to see Conner, still slouched on the chair and dead to the world. “He made a pretty good coach today, don’t you think?”

“Oh, he got in my way a few times, but I forgive him,” Rebecca said. She’d actually told Delaney, repeatedly, that she’d wait in the lobby with Aunt Millie and Uncle Ralph, Delaney’s adoptive parents. She hadn’t wanted to intrude—and she hadn’t particularly wanted anyone to see the tears streaming down her face as she watched Delaney’s baby take her first breath. But Conner’s mother hadn’t arrived from California yet, and the doctor allowed two visitors in the room. Delaney and Conner had both insisted she share the experience with them.

“He gets in my way sometimes, too,” Delaney said. But the tone of her voice suggested she liked having Conner in the way.

“I’m glad you two are happy,” Rebecca said.

Delaney smiled proudly at her sleeping husband before turning back to face Rebecca and her baby. “I know you are. I just wish things had worked out for you and Buddy. Were you thinking about him a few moments ago?”

“No, why?”

“When I first woke up, you seemed to be in your own little world.”

Rebecca had been in her own little world, but she’d been thinking of Josh, not Buddy. But for some reason, it was difficult to talk about Josh, even to Delaney. Ever since their phone conversation, in which Rebecca had claimed she felt nothing for Josh, she’d purposely not mentioned him to Delaney again. It’d been easier to let her best friend—and everyone else—believe she was pining for Buddy. Pining for Josh felt too much like crying for the moon. But the added closeness inspired by having so recently shared Emily’s birth seemed to demand less caution and more honesty. “I’m over Buddy,” she said.

Delaney blinked in surprise. “That was quick.”

Little Emily began to squirm, rooting for her mother’s breast, and Rebecca reluctantly passed her to Delaney. “I don’t think we were right for each other to begin with,” she said. “And…” Making the admission that was on the tip of her tongue was still difficult. Fear threatened to choke her. But, considering Hatty’s announcement at the salon today, Rebecca knew there was little point in withholding the truth. “…And I think there might be something between me and Josh, after all.”

Delaney had been looking down, trying to settle her baby to nurse, but now her head snapped up. “Seriously? You’re finally admitting it?”

Rebecca nodded.

“To him? Or just to me?”

“Last night he made me admit that I wanted to be with him.”

“And what did he say when you did?”

“That I’d tell him I love him someday.”

Delaney’s eyes rounded. “What do you think?”

Suddenly Rebecca felt fidgety and thought of having a cigarette for the first time in well over a week. Resolutely shoving the temptation away, she clenched her fists. She’d come too far to slip up now. “I think I could tell him I love him today and it would be a terrible understatement.”

Worry instantly shrouded Delaney’s face. “Oh, no…”

“That’s all you’ve got to say?” Rebecca asked.

“What else is there? You and Josh don’t have a very good track record. I’m almost afraid to guess what you might do to each other.”

“We’ve never tried going in this direction before,” Rebecca said.

“That’s true, but—” Delaney tucked her hair behind her ears and nibbled her bottom lip “—can you see yourself marrying Josh someday? Having his children, Beck?”

Letting her gaze fall to Delaney’s newborn, Rebecca nodded. “At this point,” she said softly. “I can’t imagine having anyone else’s.”

JOSH SNATCHED UP the phone on the first ring. He hadn’t heard from Rebecca since she’d left his house nearly fifteen hours earlier and, as midnight turned to one o’clock, he was beginning to worry that making love to her had been a one-shot deal. Considering Rebecca’s unpredictable nature, it was entirely possible she’d done an about-face and would never want to see him again. Maybe he hadn’t made it clear enough that what had happened this morning was actually positive. For the first time in his life, he hadn’t felt compelled to take the woman he’d spent the night with somewhere impersonal, like the diner, for breakfast.

When he’d stopped by the salon earlier, he’d learned that Delaney was in Boise having her baby and Rebecca was involved in the big event. But he’d expected her to call him at some point. He’d certainly left enough messages at Granny Hatfield’s.

“Hello?” he said. It was Rebecca’s birthday today—now that it was past midnight—and he wanted to be the first to acknowledge that. But it wasn’t Rebecca.