Private Partners (Doctors in Training 2)

“She said she gets off work at nine. So she’ll be here shortly after that.”

Anne glanced at her watch. Another three and a half hours? Really? What were they supposed to do with the child until then? And how would she ever get anything done with Parker here?

“The horsie needs a rest, Park-o,” Liam said, smoothly rolling Parker off his back and onto the floor. He rose a little stiffly, scooping the toddler onto his hip at the same time. “Don’t worry, Annie, I’ll keep the kid occupied. I’m going to feed him dinner and then take him down to his place for b-e-d. Rose gave me her key. She said he’s usually out cold by eight.”

“She gave you her key?” Her young neighbor was certainly the trusting sort, to leave both her child and her key with a man she’d met only a couple of times, she thought disapprovingly.

Liam shrugged. “I’ve talked to her a few times when our paths crossed outside. Played with Parker a bit in the courtyard. I guess she figured she could trust me by now.”

She didn’t realize he’d gotten quite so friendly with the duo. She supposed he’d been lonelier than she had realized here by himself so much. “Oh. Well.”

“Play, Lee,” Parker insisted, tapping Liam’s cheek for attention.

“Okay. How about we play with the farm set you brought with you?” Liam carried Parker to the other side of the room, where a thick canvas bag was propped against the wall, next to a brightly colored red plastic barn. Distracted by the sight of Parker, Anne hadn’t noticed those things before. She watched as Liam sat cross-legged on the floor and opened the hinged barn, shaking out cartoonish plastic animals, a tractor and trailer, and a big-headed farmer. A moment later, noisy and improbable animal sounds came from that direction as Liam and Parker enthusiastically shuffled the herd into the trailer.

Liam glanced around at her with a smile. “Maybe you should study in the office,” he suggested. “If you close the door, the noise won’t be so disturbing.”

He was making it clear that he didn’t expect her to help him with the favor he’d taken on. She appreciated his consideration. Glancing at the office doorway, she thought about taking him up on his suggestion, but then she shook her head. “I’ll make dinner while you entertain Parker. What do you think he would like to eat?”

“Hmm. What do you like to eat, Park-o?”

Giggling in response to the nickname, the child answered cheerfully, “’Ghetti.”

“Spaghetti?”

He nodded eagerly. “’Ghetti.”

Thinking of the mess to come, Anne swallowed hard and turned toward the kitchen. “Okay. Three orders of ‘ghetti, coming right up.”

Liam laughed.

Somehow Anne ended up spending almost an hour on the floor with Liam and Parker after their messy, ultracasual meal. They played with the farm animals and with some plastic kitchen utensils and pots and pans from Anne’s kitchen. Parker pretended to cook for them, and they made a show of eating the imaginary food, to his delight. Anne was surprised by how much she and Liam laughed during the game; she wouldn’t have thought playing with a toddler would have been so entertaining.

When Parker began to yawn, Liam glanced at his watch. “I’ll take him down,” he said, gathering their “toys.” “Rose told me where to find everything.”

“You’re sure you don’t need help?”

“I’ve got it covered, thanks. I’m sure you’re ready to get back to your books.”

She wondered what his friends and associates back in New York would think if they heard that a young single mom had asked him to watch her toddler, having no idea who Liam really was. And that Liam had shown no more fear of being responsible for a two-year-old than he did of the wild animals he encountered on his program.

He made her feel like such a coward sometimes, she mused after he’d taken Parker down to bed. It seemed sometimes as if she was overwhelmed by everything, whereas Liam feared nothing. Just one more item to go on the list of differences between them, she thought, her smile fading.

She was buried in her studies again when Liam returned a little over an hour after carrying Parker off to bed. She glanced up and smiled faintly when he entered. Tossing the book he’d taken to read while Parker slept onto a table, he sank onto the couch with a gusty exhale.

“Did you have a hard time getting him to sleep?”

“Not really. He was worn out. I know the feeling. Toddlers are exhausting. I don’t know how Rose does it by herself.”

“She has her aunt to help her, but you’re right, for the most part she’s on her own. I know she must have been grateful for your help this evening.”

Liam grimaced. “She offered to pay me, can you believe that?”

“I’m sure she didn’t know how else to express her appreciation.”

“Sorry to have cut into your study time this evening. I didn’t know how to tell her no. I guess I could have watched him down in her apartment, but I didn’t really want to mess around in her kitchen for dinner.”

“It’s fine, really. He was on his best behavior. I enjoyed spending time with him.”