The Family Plan (The McClouds of Mississippi 1)

He was probably wondering what the heck had gotten into her. She wondered about that herself. It had only been a friendly kiss on the cheek, after all.

It had to be the very long, stressful week getting to her, she figured, gripping the steering wheel so tightly her knuckles ached. That, combined with the shock of discovering that her partner had suddenly become a single dad, had made her jumpier than usual. Prone to overreaction.

Maybe she had fantasized a few times in the past nine months about what it might be like to kiss her sexy partner, but that had nothing to do with her reaction tonight.

At least, that was what she told herself as she drove a bit too quickly away from his house.

“Purple’s my favorite color, Nate. Can I have a

purple bedspread?”

“Poppet, you can have any color bedspread your little heart desires, but if you don’t hurry and finish your oatmeal, you won’t be ready when Miss Caitlin comes to pick you up.”

Isabelle dutifully spooned another bite of oatmeal into her mouth. “Why can’t you go shopping with us?” she asked as soon as she had swallowed.

“I told you, there’s something I have to do this morning. I’ll help you fix up your room this afternoon with all the pretty things you and Miss Caitlin buy, okay?”

She squirmed on her stack of law books. “Okay.”

Nathan added “booster seat” to the list he had been writing out while Isabelle ate her breakfast. He was fully aware of the magnitude of the favor Caitlin was doing for him today. He made a mental vow that not only would he never impose on her like this again, he would find some way to repay her.

He wanted to get their relationship back on an even footing. Only then could they evaluate what might develop between them in the future—whether it would ever be more than a business partnership or a casual friendship. Obviously, his own circumstances had changed dramatically.

The catalyst of all that change pushed her oatmeal bowl away and squirmed again on the books. “I’m full now.”

He set his pen on the pad. “I guess you’d better get dressed, then.”

“I didn’t get my bath last night ’cause I was so sleepy. Do I take it now?”

Bath? Nathan cleared his throat. “Uh, can you do that yourself?”

Isabelle looked indignant. “I’m almost four,” she reminded him. “I can take a bath.”

“I’m glad to hear that.”

“But I can’t wash my hair.”

Oh, man. Reminding himself that he’d known what he was getting himself into when he’d asked Alan Curtis to help him get guardianship of his sister, Nathan nodded. “Okay, you take your bath, then I’ll help you wash your hair. We’d better hurry, though. Caitlin will be here in an hour.”

“Miss Caitlin,” she corrected him as she climbed down from her chair.

He chuckled. “Miss Caitlin.”

Isabelle wasn’t ready when Caitlin arrived. Her hair was still damp and she was dressed only in panties and a purple terry cloth robe.

The bath had taken longer than Nathan expected, and he needed a bit more practice at hair washing before he considered himself proficient at the task. He’d had trouble getting the shampoo out of Isabelle’s hair without getting it in her eyes. Since then he had been trying to detangle and dry her fine blond hair.

He groaned when the doorbell chimed.

“That’s dry enough,” he decided, setting the blow dryer aside. “Run get dressed while I let Miss Caitlin in. And try to hurry, okay?”

“Okay. I’ll hurry.” She ran full speed toward her bedroom. They had already selected an outfit for the day. It was lying on the bed, ready for her to pull on. Nathan figured she could dress without his assistance.

“I was beginning to wonder if you were going to open the door,” Caitlin said when he finally made it to the living room.

Moving aside to let her in, he smiled wryly. “It may take a few days to develop a morning routine here. Isabelle’s almost ready.”

“Problems?”