Twins Under His Tree by Karen Rose Smith Read Free Book Online Page A

can come up—”
    â€œNo.” If Lily came upstairs, she would definitely be a distraction. “I brought along a toolbox and everything I might need. You drink a glass of milk and crochet or something.”
    â€œDrink a glass of milk?” She was smiling and her question was filled with amusement.
    That smile of hers packed a wallop. It turned up the corners of her very pretty mouth. It seemed to make thefew freckles across her cheeks more evident, her face actually glow.
    Had he been attracted to Lily before Troy’s death? If he was honest with himself, he had to say he had been. But attraction was one thing, acting on it was another. He’d shut it down when he’d learned she and Troy were to be married. He and Troy had become good friends and he’d congratulated them both at their wedding, always keeping his distance from Lily.
    Being colleagues at their practice had been difficult at times. But not impossible. He kept their dealings strictly professional. They’d been cohorts, interacting on an intellectual level. He and Troy had been close. He and Lily? They’d just existed in the same universe.
    Until…after Troy had died. When Mitch had hugged Lily that day after her ultrasound, he’d experienced desire and felt like an SOB because of it. That day, Mitch had realized that if he was going to keep his promise to Troy, he couldn’t deny his attraction any longer. At least to himself. She didn’t have to know about it.
    But now—
    Now nothing had changed. He had baggage. She had a world of grief and loss and new responsibility to deal with.
    Turning away from her smile, which could affect him more than he wanted to admit, he muttered, “Milk’s good for you and the babies. You’ve got to keep your vitamin D level up, along with your calcium. I’ll go get what I need from the SUV and be right back.”
    Sometimes retreat was the best part of valor. Remembering that might save them both from an awkward or embarrassing situation.
    Â 
    Lily was emptying the dishwasher when Mitch called her into the living room. She’d been aware of his footfalls upstairs, the old floors creaking as he moved about. She’d been even more attuned to his presence when he’d come downstairs and she’d heard him cross the living room. She’d stayed in the kitchen. Somehow that had just seemed safer…easier…less fraught with vibrations she didn’t want to come to terms with.
    Hearing her name on Mitch’s lips was unsettling now, and she told herself she was just being silly. Yet, seconds later when she stepped into the living room and found him taking up space in his long-sleeved hoodie and jeans, she almost backed into the kitchen again.
    Making herself move forward, shifting her eyes away from his, she spotted the twenty-inch monitor on a side table. One moment she glimpsed one white crib with pink trim and green bedding. The next he’d pressed a button and she spotted the other crib with its pink-and-yellow designs. She could watch both babies by changing the channel.
    â€œThe wonders of technology.” A smile shone in his voice.
    She knew Mitch was good with electronics and especially computers. He was the first at the office to understand a new system, to fix glitches, to teach someone else the intricacies of a program.
    â€œAre systems like this a side hobby for you?”
    â€œAlways have been. I’m self-taught. The skills come in handy now and then.”
    As long as she’d known Mitch, he’d downplayed what he did and who he helped. “You’re a good man, Mitch.”
    He looked surprised for a moment.
    She added, “If you can do something for someone else, you do.”
    â€œLily, don’t make so much of setting up a monitoring system.”
    Telling herself she should stay right where she was, she didn’t listen to her better judgment. She advanced closer to Mitch and this time