His-And-Hers Twins (13 page)

“Hi, I brought lasagna, I hope that's okay,” she said in a nasally voice.

“Sounds great,” Zeke said.

“And this is Timmy.” She urged her frowning dark-haired son inside. He grunted when Zeke spoke to him, his face twisting with disgust when he noticed the cartoons. “Don't you have a Nintendo video system?”

“Sorry,” Zeke said. “But we don't.”

“Unbelievable.” Joey blew out a breath, momentarily lifting his long bangs off his eyes, then curled his upper lip and gave Zeke a once-over. “Man, I've never seen anyone wear a purple shirt with green pants.”

“What?” The girls had mixed up his clothes again! They were going to turn his hair completely gray before he was thirty-five. No wonder Vicky had looked at him so strangely. “Sorry, I'm color-blind. Sometimes I mismatch my clothes.”

Vicky giggled, her pointed chin jutting out, as if she was grateful he had an excuse for his poor taste.

“Let's eat.” Suddenly eager to hurry the evening along, Zeke called the girls. They groaned and dragged their feet. Timmy stepped on one of August's ponies and the sound of plastic cracking ripped through the room.

“He broke it on purpose,” August bellowed, pointing her finger in his face.

“Did not,” Timmy snarled.

“Did, too!” To his horror, August slammed her fist into Timmy's stomach.

Timmy coughed, doubling over as if he'd been mortally wounded, and Vicky threw her arms around her son.

Zeke pulled August away. “Honey, please don't hit. It's not ladylike. He's our guest.”

“But he's not ladylike.” Summer fisted her small hands on her hips, glaring mutinously at the boy.

“I'm not a lady!” Timmy barked.

“He's a meanie,” August snapped. “He broked my toy.”

“She's a stupid girl,” Timmy countered.

Zeke pointed to the table, ushering them into their chairs. “Look, there's no need to start calling names. You two got off on the wrong foot, so why don't we all start over.”

Vicki waved a long fingernail toward the casserole dish. “Come on and eat, girls. I think you'll like the lasagna.”

The twins took their seats, their faces skeptical while Vicky dished up the main course, adding salad and bread. Zeke poured milk and tea and opened the wine, then offered Vicky a glass. He sure needed one.

“What's that green stuff?” Summer asked, picking at the food.

“It's spinach, very nutritious,” Vicky said cheerfully. “We're vegetarians.”

“Yuk!” August cringed.

“Double yuk!” Summer covered her mouth with her hand and ran from the table, spitting the food into the trash can with dramatically exaggerated noises. The loud commotion woke up the mama cat, who promptly leapt onto the table with a screech that jarred his eardrums.

Vicki swiped a hand at the cat. “Get down, you…you beast.”

“Don't yell at Kitty!” August shouted.

Zeke reached for the cat, but she darted across the table. Vicky's face paled as the calico whipped her soft tail around, swiping the lasagna with the furry tip.

Zeke removed the animal, scolding it gently while Vicky jumped up and gathered her things. “I've never in my life seen such rude children.”

Summer and August stared at Zeke, wide-eyed and innocent, then disappeared to their rooms in a streak of red T-shirts.

“I'm sorry, Vicky,” Zeke said, mortified. “I don't know what's wrong with them tonight.” He ordered the girls back to the table, his temper on the verge of exploding. “Come here and apologize.”

The girls inched their way in, their faces contrite. Thank heavens, maybe they could salvage the evening.

“We're sorry,” August said in a small voice.

“Yeah. We are.” Summer held her hands up in front of her. “Since you're company, we want you to hold Juney.”

“Who's Juney? One of your dollies?” Vicky slid long nails through the ends of her wispy hair, her voice suspicious.

Zeke frowned, wondering what mischief the girls were planning now. He'd never seen this mysterious Juney.

“He's our new frog we found in the backyard.” Summer dropped the croaking animal in Vicky's lap with a proud grin.

Vicky screamed and jumped backward, bumping the table so hard her wineglass toppled over. It rolled across the tablecloth and bounced onto the floor with a splintering crash. Henrietta howled at the sound of the noise and the cat darted under the table, mewling like an injured panther.

“Girls!” Zeke's temper threatened to boil over when Summer and August raced out of the room again, giggling and whispering.

Vicky stood, her face grim. “Timmy, come on. Let's go. This man obviously has no control over his children.”

Her hostile tone set Zeke's teeth on edge, but still, she hadn't deserved such bad treatment from his daughters. “Listen, Vicky, I'm sorry. The girls don't normally behave so badly.” But he uttered the apology to the wall. Vicky and her son had disappeared, lasagna and all.

Minutes later, after he'd cleaned up the kitchen and broken glass, he strode to the twins' room, determined to discover the reason for their disruptive behavior. They must still be upset about Renee's delayed visit.

He found them sitting on the bed, their small legs dangling over the sides, their faces drawn. He sat down and folded his arms. “Girls, I need you two to explain why you misbehaved tonight.”

Summer shrugged, staring at the tips of her sneakers. August simply chewed her fingernail, ignoring him, her gaze fixed on the ceiling.

He made a clicking sound with his teeth. “Come on,
out with it. Why did you intentionally ruin tonight? I thought you wanted me to find you a new mother.”

“We do but we didn't like her,” August said.

“You didn't give her a chance,” Zeke said, totally baffled.

Summer poked out her lips. “'Cause we don't want her. Or that stupid boy of hers.”

“We want Paige,” August said. “Not some dumb brother.”

“Yeah. Since our real mommy's not coming, we want Paige for a mommy.” Summer glared at him. “Not Icky Vicky.”

Zeke's fingers dug into the pink comforter. “We've already talked about this. Paige is a friend, but she wants a career, not a family.”

“She can have her job and us, too,” August said, her lower lip trembling.

“Yeah, you gots a job and us. And Toby's mommy cuts hair and Beth Ann's mommy sells drugs.”

Zeke's heart stopped. “She does what?”

“To hospitals,” August clarified.

His heart started beating again, but tears slipped from Summer's eyes and his chest clenched, the way it did every time he saw the girls suffering. He knelt beside the twins and wrapped his arms around them. “It's okay, girls.”

“No, it's not!” August yelled.

“Paige said if you wants somefin bad enuf you can figure out how to get it.”

Zeke sighed.
How he wished that was true.
But you couldn't force someone to be a mother if she didn't want to. “I know you're upset about your mom not coming home this month, girls. And I realize you like Paige, but
we'll find someone else we like, too, someone who has time to spend with all of us, who won't leave—”

“Like Mommy did?” Summer mumbled.

Zeke swallowed, forcing a calm into his voice. “Yes, sweetheart.” He removed his handkerchief and gently dried tears from Summer's eyes, his heart aching as he hugged both girls. “I promise I won't ever choose any one you don't like, okay?”

The girls nodded against his shoulder. He closed his eyes and rocked them both back and forth, just as he had when they were babies. The first time he'd held them in his arms, an overwhelming sense of protectiveness had hit him. He'd believed he and Renee could make it work, that he could spare his daughters from ever being hurt, but he hadn't been able to protect them from the one person who was supposed to love them the most, their own mother. His head throbbed. He wanted to make his kids happy. And he was more determined than ever not to lead them on about Paige, to find someone else who would love the girls and him.

Still, as the girls fell asleep in his arms, despair settled over him, because Paige's face was the only one that filled his dreams. And he knew he had to forget her.

Paige finished stitching the lacy bodice of Amelia's wedding gown, rubbed her hand over her tired eyes and hung the dress over the back of the dining room door. She stepped back, admiring it, envisioning herself in the gown, with a handsome groom waiting at the end of the aisle for her. Zeke's dark eyes automatically popped into her head, and she shook herself, mentally forcing the image from her mind. Time for marriage and family later.

Disgusted with herself, she readied for bed, dragging on a new pale blue nightshirt she'd bought at the boutique. She'd just curled up in her bed with a book when she heard a noise from downstairs. Probably Henrietta again, sleeping in her kitchen. Or maybe it was the vandals.

Slipping on matching bedroom shoes and a robe, she grabbed the portable phone and a can of hair spray for protection, tiptoed down the steps warily, her heart pounding. Stifling a gasp when she spotted a shadow, she squinted to make out the form, her breath catching in her throat. Then the shadow moved and footsteps padded across the carpet, the sound of whispering voices echoing through the tense silence. She quickly heaved a sigh of
relief when she recognized two small bodies scampering through her den heading toward the stairs.

“Summer, August?”

The twins froze, their small faces silhouetted in the moonlight shimmering through the front window. Their eyes widened in fright, then they recognized her and ran into her arms, promptly bursting into tears. Paige cuddled them close while they sobbed against her.

“What's wrong, girls?” Paige gently stroked their hair, her chest tightening as their small bodies heaved for air.

“We missed you,” August whimpered. “But Daddy said you was too busy for us…just like Mama is.”

“We won't be trouble.” Tears streaked Summer's red cheeks. “Promise. Don't forget about us. We likes you.”

“Oh, girls, I like you, too,” Paige's voice broke as her own eyes filled with tears. She blinked back the moisture, a dull ache pressing against her chest as she ushered the girls to the sofa. She hugged them close, wishing desperately she could make all their problems disappear. Maybe when their mother returned she'd decide she couldn't leave them again and the twins would have their mom back. “Shh, shh, don't cry now. It's going to be okay,” she crooned softly. “I haven't forgotten you, and I'm sure your mom hasn't either.”

“She's not coming like she promised,” Summer said in a tiny voice.

Paige stroked Summer's arms, the desolate expression in the little girl's eyes tearing at her. “Is that what your mother said?”

August nodded. “She told Daddy she won't be here till our birthday.”

“But Daddy says he's gonna do eberthing he can to make her stay when she does come.”

Paige's heart squeezed. She couldn't blame Zeke but still the realization hurt.

Summer rubbed her knuckles over her eyes. “Don't you wants to see us anymore either, Paige?”

“Of course I do, you're two of my favorite neighbors,” Paige answered softly.

“Daddy says you don't wants to marry us.”

Paige swallowed, wondering what exactly Zeke had told the girls. Either the twins had a very fertile imagination or they had misconstrued something Zeke had said. “Your dad's right, we aren't getting married, but we're friends. I love your visits.”

“Then how come Daddy says not to come over here?” August asked, starting to hiccup from her sobs.

Paige swallowed. “Well, it's kind of complicated, sweetie. I am busy, but it doesn't mean I don't like you, 'cause I do, very much.” She sighed and hugged them. “You could always call me and see if it's a good time to visit.”

“We're busy, too,” August said, sniffling.

“Yeah, we goes to day care.”

“And to Grammy's.”

“I know, honey. But you girls wanted a mommy and I guess your dad's looking around for the best one, someone who doesn't work and can stay home and take care of you all the time.”
Besides, your real mom is coming back and your dad's going to try to convince her to stay. Then you can all be together again, just like you want.

She hugged them again, wishing things were different for all of them, reassuring them that she truly cared.

“We didn't like Icky Vicky,” August added.

“Timmy's a big fat meanie.”

“I gots mad,” August said.

“And I wanted to cry,” Summer admitted.

“Icky Vicky screamed when I gave her my frog.”

“Then Daddy gots rreeeeel mad.”

Paige smiled as bits and pieces of their conversation gelled. “Who's Icky Vicky?”

“The girl that come over and brought yucky green 'sagna,” August said.

“She gots boy's hair,” Summer added.

“Oh.” Vicky's car must have been the strange vehicle she'd seen in the driveway yesterday. “You know, I have something that might make you feel better. You two stay right here.” She hurried to the kitchen and brought back two dolls, then squeezed between the girls on the sofa again, propping the folk dolls in her lap. “These were two of my favorite dolls when I was little.”

“You gots lots of pretty dolls, don't you?” Summer asked.

“Yes,” Paige said with a small laugh. “My dad used to give them to me every Christmas and birthday. We started collecting them when I was about your age.” She swallowed against the lump in her throat. “Angel, the pretty one on the settee over there is my favorite. My dad brought her to me from Germany. He gave her to me right before he died.”

“Do you miss your daddy?” Summer asked.

Paige ran her fingers lovingly over the little girl's cheek. “Of course I do. That's why I keep my dolls. They remind me of all the good times we had.” She pressed her hand over her heart. “And I always keep him right here in my heart.”

“I can keep Mommy right here,” Summer said, pressing her own little fist on her chest.

August nodded. “I member the fun times with our Mommy.”

Paige nodded. “I know you do. And when you feel
sad or miss her, you have to think about those good memories.”

“She's beautiful.” August rubbed her fingers over one of the doll's brown ponytails.

“I named her Mad Molly,” Paige explained. “When I was little and felt angry, I'd tell her my mad feelings. Then she'd hug me and make it all better.” She handed the doll to August, smiling when August hugged it to her chest.

“And who's this one?” Summer reached for the doll with the yellow string hair.

“Sad Sue.” Paige gently stroked the yellow braids. “Whenever I felt sad, I told her and she'd hug me and make me feel better.” Summer pressed the soft cloth face to her cheek and kissed the yarn hair.

August and Summer cuddled closer to Paige and she snuggled one on each side of her, tugging a worn afghan over them. She needed to call Zeke and tell him where the girls were, but first she wanted to reassure them she cared about them. “I'll have a talk with your dad and work out some way we can all be friends.”
Even if it kills me.

“'Kay,” both girls whispered.

August traced her finger over Molly's denim jumper. “Will you sing us a night-night song?”

“Sure.” Paige thought for a long minute, remembering Joey's favorite song, then began singing the soft lullaby. Before she'd finished the first chorus, both girls drifted asleep, the dolls pressed tightly to their chests. She studied their precious innocent faces and her heart melted. She loved the little stinkers, but their mother would be coming soon, and they'd naturally want her with them.

And according to the girls, so did Zeke.

 

W
HERE WERE THE
twins? Zeke searched the house, his heart racing out of control. It was dark outside and the house was empty. Dammit, he was going to have a heart attack if they kept disappearing on him.

He ran out the back door to see if they'd sneaked out with Henrietta and noticed the gate swinging back and forth. Remembering their earlier argument, he knew exactly where they would be. At Paige's.

He should have known they'd pull something like this. Taking long strides, he crossed the backyard, pausing at Paige's back door, wondering what he would do if they weren't there. Call the police?

Panic seized him. He raised his hand and knocked, the long seconds that followed stealing the air from his aching lungs. Once again he'd screwed up this parenting thing. All kinds of scenarios bombarded him. The girls had wandered into the street, had gotten lost, had been picked up by some stranger… He shuddered and banged on the door again, not caring it was after midnight or that he might disturb the entire neighborhood. Finally Paige swung open the door, her robe rumpled, her green eyes heavy as if she'd been asleep.

He opened his mouth to speak but he was so frightened, his voice squeaked, “The twins, are they here?”

Paige nodded and placed her finger to his lips, leading him to the couch where the girls lay huddled underneath a bright afghan. Zeke expelled a shaky sigh of relief. She took his hand and coaxed him out front to the porch swing, gently shutting the door behind them. “Come on, Zeke, we need to talk.”

 

T
HE FRUSTRATION AND
fear in Zeke's eyes tore at Paige but she had to caution herself against comforting him.
Zeke dropped his face into his hands and groaned. “God, I'm messing up,” Zeke said in a hoarse voice.

“No, you're doing fine, Zeke. The girls are okay. Really.” Paige gently tugged his hands away from his face and cupped his jaw, forcing him to look at her. “You're a wonderful, loving father and the girls are lucky to have you.” Her own voice sounded thick with emotion but she didn't care. She was worried about Summer and August and Zeke. She couldn't stand not touching him another second.

She wrapped her arms around him and hugged him, aware Zeke had tensed. But slowly he relaxed against her and placed his arms around her waist, then dropped his forehead against the top of her head. She held him, letting him cling to her for support for several long minutes. His breathing was labored, his heart beating erratically beneath her ear, his big body trembling slightly. He'd truly been frightened, and she wanted to kick herself for not calling him the moment the girls had shown up.

“You don't understand,” Zeke said in a rough voice. “I can't do it all, they need their mother.”

“I know,” Paige whispered, remembering the girls' comment. She rubbed her hands up and down his broad back, trying not to think about how wonderful his powerful muscles felt beneath her touch.

He shook his head and started to protest, but she stroked his cheek with her finger. He paused, his eyes filled with turmoil. “They ran away from me. They were both so upset. I don't know what to do to make it right.”

“Just keep loving them,” Paige said softly, moisture filling her eyes in spite of her determination to prevent it. “They're confused, Zeke. About us. But mostly about their mom and why she's left them. You can't do anything but be there for them.”

Zeke's hands shook as he reached up and caught her hands in his. “But what if I'm not doing enough? What if…”

“You do the best you can. You love them and listen to them, watch them make mistakes, comfort them when they're hurting, and pray they'll turn out all right.”

His breath heaved out in a sigh. “Yeah, but Renee called and she's not coming like she promised.”

“I know.” His gaze flew to hers in surprise. “The girls told me, and I know they're disappointed, Zeke. But it's not your fault.”

He nodded, resignation lining his features. “But I have to deal with the fallout, every time she disappoints them, I have to pick them up and try and act like it's okay.” His voice cracked. “But things aren't okay. They need her.”

“I know,” Paige whispered sympathetically. She brushed a curly lock of his dark hair away from his forehead. “It's not fair, Zeke. Maybe when she comes for their birthday, you can convince her to stay and you all can be a family.”

“I hope so,” Zeke said in a voice filled with emotions.

Paige smiled gently, ignoring the sharp pain his words brought, more certain than ever that if Zeke's ex-wife returned, he'd do anything to get her to stay there with him and the girls.

He angled his head, looking up at her warily. “What else did they tell you?”

“They told me a little about what happened tonight with…um, Vicky,” she said, hesitating awkwardly.

“Icky Vicky.” Zeke grimaced, his hands loosening at her waist. “What a disaster.”

“I'm sorry the evening didn't work out the way you wanted.”

Zeke shrugged, his hands lingering on her hips, and she suddenly realized the intimate position they were in. His hard body pressed against hers, his feet parted slightly so she fit into the crook between his legs, his arousal nudging her stomach.

“What else did they tell you?”

She swallowed, his warm breath brushing her cheek in an erotic whisper. She had to distract herself. “That Icky Vicky doesn't like frogs.”

Zeke chuckled, a low rumbling sound that resonated through the night air and made heat coil in her belly. “That's putting it mildly.”

Paige laughed softly at his mischievous grin, but her worries over Summer and August quickly returned. “They also wanted to know why they couldn't come over and see me, Zeke.”

The tension in his shoulders returned, the brown irises of his eyes turning black in the dimness of night. Paige traced her finger along his knuckles. “I promised the girls you and I would work things out so we could all be friends.”

The breath Zeke exhaled radiated with tension, then relief. He leaned back and looked into her eyes, winding a strand of hair around his finger. “Yeah?”

“Yeah. We have to bridge this gap for the girls' sake.” She resisted the temptation to rest her head against his shoulder and add that she wanted to work things out so they could be together—for
her
sake.