Bachelor Father (4 page)

She stared intently at her friend, waiting for
some kind of reassurance from him.

“I wouldn’t expect you to handle it any other
way.”

Molly had tossed and turned all night, plagued
by nightmares. First, she’d relived the terror of being left alone
in her dark room as a small child while her mother went out for the
evening. Then, she’d dreamed she and Brett were taking Jake for a
picnic. They were smiling and laughing, having a good time like the
families in the park she used to watch enviously from her mother’s
apartment window. The dream ended with a sudden cloudburst.
Lightning cracked across the sky and Brett and Jake disappeared,
leaving her alone in the rain.

Maybe the picnic dream was a forewarning. What
she had to say to Brett today was bound to cause some thunder. An
image of Brett flashed in her mind. Brett as he looked yesterday
just before she left, anger and concern sharpening the planes of
his rugged face.

Molly shivered and rubbed her aching head,
hoping she wasn’t coming down with something. No, lack of sleep
always gave her a pounding headache. A warm shower, a couple of
Excedrin, and a hot cup of herbal tea should help.

Once she’d showered and made herself a mug of
chamomile tea, she started to feel better. She carried the mug back
to her room and slid the closet door open. Sipping her tea, she
looked over the clothes selection carefully. She pulled out one of
her favorite outfits, a soft angora sweater in muted autumn colors
and chocolate brown dress slacks, then put it back.

Molly didn’t judge people by how they looked,
what they wore, and she doubted Brett did either. Today, however,
she wanted—no needed—to look and feel both in control and
compassionate and understanding.

She took another sip of tea before choosing a
honey-colored worsted wool suit and a creamy silk camisole. Molly
slipped into the suit and studied her reflection in the mirror. The
suit’s long narrow jacket and straight skirt gave her the illusion
of being taller than barely five-foot two. The jacket’s one-button
style with its deep V showed off the camisole.

Not satisfied, she searched her accessory
drawer, pulling out first a string of pearls, then a cameo broach.
Neither did the trick. Digging through the drawer again, she saw
her Celtic cross and pulled it out. Charles had given it to her
years ago. For good luck, he’d said.

She fastened the cross’s intricately woven
chain round her neck. Studying her reflection, she lifted her hair,
turning her head from side to side. Maybe she should pin it up. No.
She let her hair drop to her shoulders and brushed it under into a
smooth pageboy. She was as ready as she was going to
get.

Brett pulled his Jeep Wrangler into a parking
space in front of Thayer House. Molly had called him earlier to
arrange a late morning meeting. Fortunately, his neighbor and
long-time friend, Tina, had been home and willing to watch Jake. He
looked at his watch. Ten fifty-five. Right on time. He swung out of
the Wrangler, squared his shoulders, and glanced in the sideview
mirror for one last check, then fixed the collar on his coat and
headed for the door. He was ready.

Molly wasn’t ready. When the receptionist
announced Brett’s arrival on the inner office phone, all she could
think was, “He’s here already?” Fumbling to get the papers on her
desk back in order, she almost upset her tea. Then, she snagged the
knee of her pantyhose on her desk as she stood to go to the
reception area to meet Brett.

“Drat,” she muttered, looking down to see the
snag run to her ankle and up her thigh.

“Ahem.”

She lifted her gaze to find Brett in the
office doorway studying the run as intently as she. Molly felt
herself blush as his thick dark lashes lifted and he moved his gaze
leisurely from her ankle to where the run disappeared under her
carefully chosen skirt. His appreciative grin made her blush grow
warmer. So much for her image of professionalism.

She took a deep breath to reestablish her
equilibrium. Remember, calm and factual. She repeated Charles’
words to herself—leave your personal feelings out of it—although
these feeling weren’t the ones Charles was talking
about.

“Brett, hi. I was on my way out to meet you.
Please come in and sit down.”

Obviously, she hadn’t been the only one who’d
dressed for their meeting. This morning, he’d traded his flannel
shirt, jeans, and work boots for a black duster, Dockers, and
chukka boots. His natural linen shirt emphasized his tan. His
stance, left foot forward, right hand in his pocket, coat pushed
back displayed the contrast between his wide shoulders and narrow
hips admirably.

Molly attributed the suddenly quicker tempo of
her heart to nervousness. He seemed to grow larger with every step
he took into the room. She straightened to her full height and
motioned him to sit in the chair beside her desk. Taking her seat
behind the desk, she watched him remove his coat and settle
casually into the chair.

“I’m glad you were able to come in this
morning. I wasn’t sure you’d be able to get someone to watch Jake
on such short notice.” She paused, waiting for him to comment. He
crossed his arms and leaned back in the chair.

“I’d like to get all of this settled as
quickly as possible,” she said.

“Me, too,” he said agreeably.

Relief flooded Molly. They were off to a good
start. She pushed her hair behind her left ear confident that she
could get Brett see her position. “Brett you have to understand
that my first responsibility is to Jake, to ensure he’s placed in
the best situation possible.” She stopped to gauge his
reaction.

Brett raised one eyebrow.
“Situation?”

“Home, family.” Molly emphasized each word her
voice rising slightly. His blank expression told her she wasn’t
making herself clear. She clasped her hands and leaned forward
trying for a more in-depth explanation. “Each of our children has
different needs. The various age groups have certain unique needs.
We try to match the child closely to the adoptive
family.”

He nodded, keeping his arms tightly crossed,
his face still expressionless.

Clasping her hands tighter, she plunged ahead.
“I can see how much you want to adopt Jake, but you have to realize
that, with international cases like yours, Thayer House doesn’t
have much discretion. I’m required to work within certain
constraints imposed by Korean Child Welfare, to follow certain
standards they’ve set for adoptive parents.”

“Bureaucracy. Um-hmm.”

He gave her an agreeable scowl. If a scowl
could be described as agreeable. Molly rubbed her cross absently,
stopping when she realized his gaze had followed her motion to her
breasts. Their eyes met, and Brett grinned.

She let the cross drop and cleared her throat.
“Then,” she reiterated, “you’re aware, that under New York State
law and our agreement with Korean Child Welfare, I’m required to
work within the context of certain regulations. That I don’t have a
lot of leeway.”

With each word, she watched his grin change by
degrees to a tight smile that emphasized the square jut of his jaw.
She was losing him again. The urgency to make herself clear, to
gain his acceptance roiled inside her.

“Sometimes, these regulations may appear
somewhat arbitrary, but on the whole they work to ensure each child
entrusted to Thayer House will have the opportunity to grow
up—”

Brett interrupted. “Arbitrary regulations? I’m
not following you.”

Bracing herself, Molly said softly, “I have to
place Jake in temporary foster care.”

Brett stood slowly and deliberately. He leaned
over her desk, hands resting on the outside edge, his face close to
hers. “Like heck you do.”

Molly’s stomach lurched. So much for getting
him to see her side. Impulsively, she reached for his shoulder,
then pulled back. What was it about this man that made her keep
wanting to touch and comfort him?

Unable to break eye contact, she
said in an appeasing tone, “Brett, I said
temporary
foster care. I didn’t say
we were taking Jake away from you permanently. We have to follow
some basic procedures if you want to complete the
adoption.”

This time she gave into the urge to touch him.
Placing her hand on his shoulder lightly, she felt the rock-hard
muscles relax as some of the tension drain from him. A wave of
relief flowed over her.

“Please sit down,” she said.

He sat rigidly, his hands gripping the chair
arms, making Molly search her mental resources for a way to explain
her position without alienating him. She didn’t want them to be
adversaries.

Deciding direct and factual might be the best
approach, she said in a calm and soothing voice, “We need to
discuss your options.”

“Options,” he exploded. “Jake isn’t some kind
of commodity to be traded back and forth on the market. He’s
family.”

Schooling herself against his anger, she
conceded, “Options may be a poor choice of words. However, we do
need to talk about what you and I have to do if you want to
complete this adoption.”

“Okay, I’ll listen,” he said folding his arms
across his chest.

“You’ve completed a new adoption application,
so you have the first step out of the way. And we fully expect
Korean Child Welfare will begin considering applications from
single individuals after the first of the year. The next step is to
complete the home study. I should be able to have that done before
the new regulations go into effect.”

She paused, letting Brett consider what she’d
said. He unfolded his arms and rested his hands on the arms of the
chair. Good. If only he’d stay receptive through the rest of what
she had to say.

Clasping her hands on the desk in front of
her, she leaned toward him and said as gently as possible,
“However, until your home study is completed and a referral
written, we’ll have to put Jake on Thayer House’s list of waiting
children.”

He tensed and gripped the chair. She watched
him battle to control his temper.

“Can you expedite my home study and referral?”
he asked.

“I can do the home study fairly quickly, but I
can’t make referrals to single individuals until the Korean Child
Welfare requirements change officially. Jake will have to be listed
as available for referral to other families until then.”

“But you don’t have to refer him to anyone
else, right? He could stay on the list for three
months?”

She nodded. “A lot of our children stay on the
Waiting Children list for much longer than three months. Many of
our prospective adoptive parents want babies under the age of one,
particularly people applying under the International
Program.”

When Brett seemed to take this information in
stride, Molly almost sighed in relief. One more hurdle to
go.

“Now,” he said, “what you started to say about
temporary foster care. Is it absolutely necessary? Couldn’t you
make an exception because of the circumstances? Kate and David were
only a few weeks from completing the adoption.”

Brett’s expression was so hopeful, almost
pleading, that Molly wanted to say yes. Telling him yes would be
easier on him and her. She had the feeling he would go along with
just about anything that would ultimately give him Jake. But part
of her agreed with Korean Child Welfare that foster care could be
in Jake’s best interest.

If for any reason, Brett’s adoption
application wasn’t approved and Jake had to be placed with another
family, he’d make the transition much more easily if he weren’t
closely bonded to Brett. Thayer House had certain foster parents
who took in only infants who would soon be placed with adoptive
parents. These couples had special training.

She took a deep breath. “I can’t see how I can
make an exception.”

Brett’s eyes narrowed. She could almost hear
his thoughts.

“You won’t make an exception,” he accused.
“You want to put Jake in foster care.”

“Temporarily. It’s in his best interest.” She
realized how callous she sounded as she watched him battle once
more to hold his temper. This time he lost.

“No, you have no idea what’s in Jake’s best
interest.” He stood and grabbed his coat from the chair.

“Brett, please,” she pleaded. “It’s not so
much what I think is in Jake’s best interest. It’s what the agency
thinks is in his best interest. Come on, sit down so we can
finish.”

“We’re finished,” he said over his shoulder on
the way out. “Quite finished.”

For a moment, Molly considered
going after him, then decided he needed time to cool off. She’d
done her best to present her position and listen to his side. As
much as Brett seemed to want Jake, she had to think of Jake first
and do what was best for him. She didn’t want to stop Brett from
adopting Jake, but she suspected Korean Child Welfare would want to
at least give Jake the opportunity to be adopted by a
real
family.

Her childhood dreams came
back.
Real
families had a mother and a father. That was one of the
reasons she worked with the International Adoption Program. Most of
the foreign agencies placed children only with married couples. But
there was something about Brett Cahill that made her want to stand
with him, behind him, or admit it, she admonished herself anywhere
near him.