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  By Tami Veldura

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  A Gift of Family

  By Tami Veldura

  Scott Burke has always desired a big family, but as a divorced single dad, all he has is his young daughter, Lexi. He pours himself into raising her, half-convinced he’ll never find what he’s looking for. When Brennan Price strolls into Scott’s life, he’d better have enough patience for both Lexi and Scott if he intends to stick around.

  Brennan has a huge family and a successful career, but no one to call his own. Wooing Scott and his daughter is right up his ally, though, and he steps up to the challenge to prove he’s enough for both of them. His attraction to Scott is immediate, but he recognizes a family man when he sees one and hatches a plan to win Lexi over. Her handsome father is sure to follow….

  SCOTT BURKE watched his young daughter lever herself up onto her bare feet and balance awkwardly on the blanket he’d set out over the lawn. It was a bit lumpy, but she toddled to the edge with confidence and considered the grass. Scott folded another sausage and cheese slice into his mouth. They’d been at the park for nearly an hour already. Between the sun and dozens of other playing families, Scott hoped to wear Lexi out for her afternoon nap. She showed no signs of flagging, though, as she pitched her hands onto the grass and sat heavily on the edge of the blanket. Lexi held up a pudgy handful of green strands and thrust them toward Scott with a demanding, “Ahh!”

  Scott held his hand out for the grass. Lexi opened her fingers, then shook her hand and huffed impatiently when a few blades stuck to her palm. Winning a smile off Scot, Lexi fisted and relaxed her hand until the pieces fell away. Scott caught most of them so Lexi pushed his fingers closed until Scott took the grass and added it to the substantial pile of blades she’d already given him. After a satisfied nod, Lexi wiped her hand on her blue dress. Well, it was more of an uncoordinated slap, but it did the job: clearing it of dirt and lingering strands. “Eeen?” She faced her palm at Scott.

  “Clean, that’s right,” he said. Then he tapped her other hand, clenched tightly around a small carrot. “Eat your carrot.”

  She looked at her fist like she’d forgotten it was there, then shoved it at Scott. “Et arro.”

  “I should eat the carrot?” Scott pinched the top and gave it a gentle tug.

  Lexi yanked her hand to her chest. “No!”

  Scott chuckled. No had been Lexi’s first word, and she used it liberally. He pointed at her, “You should eat the carrot.”

  “Arrot.” She spat the t sound and held her snack up high.

  “Carrot,” Scott agreed.

  She blew a raspberry and stood again. A string of drool flicked from her lips to the front of her dress. Scott grabbed the small towel beside him and wiped it up while she found her balance. She blew another raspberry and licked her lips in response.

  Scott sat back on his hands as she turned around and found something else to occupy her attention. Her ping-pong interests occasionally left him scrambling to catch up, but he wouldn’t trade even a minute of it for the world. Lexi was everything to him and more. She brought him laughter, and he’d never thought he could love someone so intensely. He swore his heart grew every time she smiled at him. And the way her eyes lit up his soul, God, it scared him sometimes. From the first moment he’d held her in his arms, Scott understood why men would go to war for their kids. He’d never taken a self-defense course in his life, but he would end anyone who tried to harm his baby girl.

  Her mother, Danielle, had been terrified that morning when the test came back positive. Scott understood; he’d been scared too. He wasn’t ready for a kid, their relationship was rough, but he’d also been overjoyed with the possibility. He had always desperately wanted a family, the tight-knit group of loyalty that he’d never had growing up. So it had come a little early. Scott was already working from home most days as a tech consultant, and he found the idea of a child unfolding before him. It was glorious. But Danielle had fallen into a deep depression that only seemed to worsen as the pregnancy went on. Scott helped her from doctor to doctor, but they all said the same thing: abort the child or manage the symptoms. There wasn’t much they could do otherwise.

  Scott had gone cold at the thought of losing his baby. She was already his dream come true, and they hadn’t even picked out a name. But the toll on Danielle’s health couldn’t be denied, and he had to respect her decision, whatever it was. Thankfully, she felt the same. Aborting wasn’t an option. Yet deep in the middle of the night, after he held her through another session of heavy tears, she confided in him. She couldn’t keep this child. She was already looking into adoption paperwork.

  Their relationship had fractured after that. Scott couldn’t agree to giving up his child, not after the months of caring for her and her mother. It became clear as delivery day approached that Scott couldn’t reconcile his love for Danielle with his desire for a child. After nine months he also wasn’t capable of managing Danielle’s mental health, and only hours before the doctors induced labor, he and Danielle agreed it was time for a divorce. So while he held his newborn in his arms, Scott also signed custody papers.

  Danielle tried to tell him a few months later that the breakup wasn’t his fault, but Scott couldn’t help wondering if he hadn’t been so adamant about keeping Lexi, perhaps they could have salvaged themselves. He wouldn’t go back and change a thing, but he carried a pocket of guilt with him nevertheless. He kept in touch with Danielle, following her therapy progress and encouraging her decision to go back to school for a second degree. He saw her improve from a distance, over Facebook mostly. But they had become one of those ex-couples that hardly talked. They were barely even acquaintances almost a year later.

  As much turmoil as her arrival caused, Lexi was a constant source of light for Scott. He had no regrets. She was growing up before his very eyes, guided by his own hands, and there was nothing he wanted more.

  Except maybe someone to share her with. He still longed for a family big enough to flesh out an entire tree.

  Lexi pointed behind Scott with her carrot and said, “Woof!”

  Scott turned around. A man walked the park with his dog, a big mastiff-type breed. It had a pair of felt antlers on its head to celebrate the season. “That’s right. That’s a dog.”

  “Og,” she said. “Woof!”

  “Dogs say woof.”

  She threw her hands in the air and bounced a little, bending her knees. “Woof, woof!”

  Scott chuckled. “Are you a dog too?”

  A deep voice said kindly, “You make a good dog.”

  Scott startled. The man with the mastiff had walked in their direction and stood a few feet away. The morning sun lit him up, and Scott was struck for a moment. He was tall. That could have been Scott’s perspective on the ground, but the stranger had square shoulders and a big palm on his dog’s lead that said otherwise. Light brown hair was just long enough to touch eyes that flicked from Lexi to Scott and crinkled a bit at the corners when he grinned. Crap, he was impressive. Scott swallowed hard, looking for his voice and failing to find it. Then Lexi stumbled toward the dog, arms outstretched, and Scott jumped to grab her.

  “Uh, is the dog friendly?”

  “Oh, yeah, she’s a teddy bear.” The man crouched on the grass and told his dog, “Down.” She went down easily.

  Scott let Lexi go, but he shifted to his knees just in case. The dog looked passive enough, but if Lexi grabbed an ear or stepped on a toe, he was ready to intervene. She toddled forward and crouched in front of the dog’s face. “Woof!” she said. Lexi bopped the dog in the nose with her carro
t.

  “Hey, be gentle,” Scott corrected her, even though the dog didn’t seem to care.

  Lexi whispered, “Woof.” This time she touched the carrot to the dog’s nose. The dog huffed and sniffed at Lexi’s fingers, then a big wet tongue licked her from elbow to palm. “Eea!” Lexi opened her hand , dropping the carrot, and the dog lapped it up and crunched. As her carrot disappeared, Lexi stood up suddenly and pointed. “No! Woof et arrot. No.”

  The stranger laughed, a deep and hearty sound that struck Scott right in the chest. That was the laugh of a man familiar with kids and their bonkers logic. A laugh that Scott could wrap around himself and stay warm. The surprise of it almost took his breath away. The stranger patted his dog on the shoulder gently. “Did Jazz eat your carrot?”

  Lexi gazed up at the stranger for a moment, then back to the dog. “Arrot?” She turned toward Scott, her face scrunched with uncertainty.

  He held his hand out to her in case she wanted to take it. “You have more carrots,” he reassured her. She was generally fearless when it came to new experiences, but he never wanted her to feel like he didn’t have her back.

  She frowned. Then Jazz reached up to lick her hand again, and Lexi squealed in surprise. She spread shiny fingers coated in dog slime, then held her hand out to Scott and said, “Eew.”

  Scott wiped her off with his towel. “You’re okay. She just licked you.”

  Before he could finish, Lexi pulled away and toddled back to the dog. She leaned on Jazz’s shoulder, stuck her tongue out, and licked.

  “Oh, Lex, really?” Scott shaded his eyes with one hand and shook his head.

  The stranger chuckled, and Lexi blew a raspberry. “I bet that didn’t taste good,” he said. “Eew.”

  Scott just sighed. The dog turned her head and lapped at Lexi’s elbow. Lexi squealed and poked at the big wet tongue, screaming “Eew!” then laughing infectiously.

  The stranger shared a broad smile with Scott, who felt himself blushing. Lexi was a handful, but this man and his dog had her enraptured, which in turn delighted Scott. He held out his hand. “Scott Burke,” he said. “And this is Lexi.” He tipped his head toward his daughter. “It’s just the two of us.” Now why had he added that? It wasn’t like some stranger in the park was here to pick up single men. He fought another blush. Was Scott looking to pick up a single man? He hadn’t pursued anything since taking Lexi home that fateful day—she was more than enough to keep him busy—but the idea suddenly tightened his gut and filled it with butterflies. That was as clear a sign as any; Scott was ready to find someone serious.

  The stranger’s smile crinkled his eyes. “Pleasure. I’m Brennan Price.” Brennan’s shake was firm and confident, and his thumb traced gently over Scott’s knuckles in an obvious caress. He didn’t overdo it, though. In a heartbeat his hand was gone again and his attention flicked to Lexi, leaving Scott unexpectedly yearning. Brennan placed his palm against Jazz’s side where Lexi’s pokes were becoming harder smacks and said to her, “Gentle. She’s an old gal.”

  His deep voice made Lexi look up at him seriously. “Gentow.”

  “Gentle,” he repeated. Then he took her small hand in his and guided it to stroke Jazz from shoulder to haunch.

  Lexi focused hard, a deep crease forming in her brow as she repeated the motion on her own.

  “Good.”

  She smiled at his praise and did it again, then looked up for a response. Brennan provided. The feedback loop sped up until Lexi’s pets hardened into smacks again. Scott reached over to still her hand before she could get too excited. “Gentle,” he said.

  Her petting softened again. Then Jazz tried to lick her elbow, and Lexi shied away with a whine. Her steps took her toward Brennan, who caught her shoulder softly and redirected Jazz’s muzzle. “Tell her no.”

  Scott snorted quietly. “She’s good at that.”

  Lexi pointed at Jazz, “No.”

  Jazz plopped her head back down on her big paws.

  “See? She listens to you.”

  Lexi looked up at Brennan with wide eyes. Suddenly she turned and toddled right into Scott’s arms, apparently done with the new interaction. Scott hugged her tightly, and when she whined again, he recognized the sound. It was finally time for a nap. She wrapped her hands around his neck and snuggled in close. Scott rubbed her back. He met Brennan’s eyes over Lexi’s shoulder, and they traded soft smiles. “Have kids yourself? You’re good with her.”

  Brennan shook his head and sat, leaning back. “Nah.” He looked up to address the sky. “Cousins. And I’m an uncle three times.”

  Scott’s attention crawled up Brennan’s casually toned body and arrested at the peek of collarbone rising out of his shirt. There were three buttons at the throat and two of them were open like an artfully draped fashion model for the latest cologne. He could easily see Brennan stretched over two pages of the centerfold, his sharp eyes doing their sultry best to distract. Scott wanted to know what Brennan’s skin smelled like. Woodsy and deep like a lumberjack? Or spiced and tantalizing? There was something to be said for a man attentive to his aromatics.

  “But no,” Brennan continued, “Jazz is my only one.” His head came back up, shadowing the attractive bit of his collarbone again, and he ruffled his dog’s neck, shaking the reindeer antlers side to side. “I love ’em, though. Like little drunk people sometimes. And smarter than a lot of people realize.”

  Wasn’t that the truth? Scott rubbed Lexi’s back when she shifted. “I sometimes catch her imitating me with her toys. She got a hold of my phone yesterday and babbled into it upside down for a good five minutes.” Lexi shifted again, then pushed hard against Scott’s chest so he’d release her. She grumbled. “Do you want to lay on the blanket?” Lexi turned in a little circle, looking first where Scott pointed, then rediscovering Jazz at the edge of the picnic. She waddled up to the dog’s side, draped her short arms over Jazz’s back, and let her legs collapse into a squat. She sighed deeply.

  “That can’t be comfortable,” Brennan said softly.

  Scott reached for her. “I’m sorry—”

  “No, no.” Brennan grabbed his hands before Scott could pick Lexi up. “It’s fine, Jazz and I can sit for a while. Let her get to sleep. I know that can be tough sometimes.” He smiled gently, and his warm fingers touched Scott’s. “Besides, it gives me a minute to talk to her handsome father.”

  “Flatterer,” Scott admonished. “Go on.”

  “Well, you see”—Brennan’s tone became conspiratorial—“I came to this park a few days ago to take Jazz for a walk, and I spotted this striking man across the park with slim hips and a sexy, worn pair of jeans that showed off his thighs. He had tousled hair like he’d just come from a photoshoot for shampoo.”

  Scott dipped his head and chuckled quietly, knowing Brennan spoke about him. He’d just rolled out of bed and thrown on the first things he found in his closet. Hardly photoshoot worthy, but he wasn’t about to ruin the beautiful image Brennan was painting.

  “And I thought to myself, now there is a man I should talk to. Someone who likes walking in the park like me. So I circled around, only to discover that this man was entertaining a little girl in a bumblebee dress.” Brennan’s hand stroked Scott’s finger where he used to wear his ring. The space felt more empty now that he drew attention to it. “And I thought, isn’t that just my luck. All the good ones are already taken. So I finished walking Jazz and went home.”

  Scott looked up again, meeting Brennan’s kind eyes easily. “That’s not the end of the story, though.”

  “Not at all.” Brennan grinned. “You see, once I was home, I concocted a plot like the evil mastermind that I am. I decided to steal this man away, his daughter too, and keep them all for myself.”

  “An evil plot, huh?”

  “The evilest. I put reindeer antlers on Jazz. Kids love reindeers.”

  “Oh, I see.” Scott shook his finger mockingly at Brennan. “You were going to win my daughter’s affections with yo
ur reindeer dog, and I, being the loving father, would have no choice but to take you as my partner in order to ensure her happiness.”

  They both smirked at each other. Then Brennan tilted his head and winked, releasing Scott’s hands. “So is it working?”

  Scott eyed Lexi who had slumped farther onto Jazz and now slept soundly, her mouth open a bit and drooling onto the dog’s thick fur. “Maybe,” he hedged, throwing playfulness into his tone. “Lexi might forget all about you tomorrow.”

  “Oh, no doubt, that’s why I brought Jazz. She’s the ace up my sleeve.”

  “Ahh, but that’s cheating.”

  “Of course.” Brennan covered his heart. “Evil mastermind, remember?” He dropped his hand, and his tone became more serious. “I do want to see you again, Scott.”

  The butterflies in Scott’s stomach did flips. “I’d like that.”

  Brennan smiled broadly. “There’s a Christmas festival in the city center tomorrow.” He nodded toward Lexi. “Good for kids.”

  His consideration warmed Scott’s heart; that he would think of an activity to accommodate Lexi, rather than assume Scott would find a sitter, made his decision easy. “That sounds great. After noon?”

  “Two o’clock?”

  “Perfect.”

  “There’s a giant tree by the fountain on the south side—”

  “By the theater.” Scott nodded, he knew the one. “We’ll meet you there.”

  With tomorrow’s date planned, Brennan helped Scott wrap up his picnic and blanket. Scott lifted a boneless Lexi off Jazz and tucked her into his chest, then Brennan handed him the bag and gave them both a parting wave. Walking two blocks home had never been so short or so long. With a wide grin across his face and somersaulting butterflies in his gut, the tantalizing tingle of new connection shivered all over his body, and he couldn’t help but imagine Brennan without his three-button shirt. He was funny, knew a lot about kids, and he was hot. It was almost too good to be true. Scott couldn’t wait for tomorrow.