His mistaken Identity

Chapter 20

It was a slow process, almost like trying to convince a scared kitten down a tree top. The days dragged by as Christopher tried to draw Jane out of her quiet, lost state.

Every sharp noise made her jump out of her skin. Sometimes, he found her wide awake and watching the door in the middle of the night. Christopher had really begun to worry.

Then one morning, the sound of laughter filled the little house. It was like a lasso tied around his chest, drawing him in whether he liked it or not. Christopher followed the warm sound all the way to the second bedroom which Jane had been using for the past week since they got to the farm.

The farmhouse, unlike his home in the city, was little more than a cottage. It consisted of two small bedrooms, one bathroom, and an open plan that saw the kitchen and sitting room sharing the same space. It wasn’t much, but for two adults and a small baby, it was plenty.

He reached the threshold of her room and stopped. The sight before him made the warm feeling in his chest expand all the way to his toes and back. Jane was leaning over Tony’s little body, which was only dressed in a diaper and sprawled on a baby towel with tiny blue bears on the bed. She had his tiny feet in her hands.

In a moment, he realized what was happening. She moved Tony’s legs in a cycling motion and the little boy laughed again. The sound of the laughter seemed to brighten the entire room. Hell, it brightened the entire house. The paint on the wall and the sheets on the bed all looked much more vivid to Christopher at that moment. Tony’s laugh was so contagious, his mother laughed and before Christopher realized it, he too was laughing.

Unfortunately, the sound of his laughter drew the duo’s attention to him and halted their laughter almost instantly. Christopher missed it already.

“Oh,” she said. “I didn’t see you there.”

“I haven’t been here long.” He looked at her, then at the baby, who was still happy and smiling from the bed. “It’s so nice you hear you both laughing.”

Jane looked down and pointedly refused to comment on his statement. She moved to the side away from Tony and made herself busy. That’s when Christopher realized there was a bucket of water and the baby basin he had bought was waiting beside it. It was apparently Tony’s bath time. He wondered if he should leave, but his feet wouldn’t move.

“Do you mind closing the door? Don’t want him to get cold while he has his bath,” Jane said without looking at him.

Christopher nodded and closed the door behind him, but he didn’t leave. He certainly hoped she hadn’t meant he should close the door from the other side. When she didn’t say anything about him still standing in the room, he relaxed and watched her as she prepared Tony’s bath.

Her preparations were meticulous, like a surgeon preparing for an operation. First, she set out everything she would need, from the baby soap and face cloth, to the cotton bud and nail clippers. She then poured and mixed the water repeatedly until she was satisfied it was the right temperature, then she bent down to pick up the basin.

Christopher quickly moved to take it from her. “Please, let me.”

“Oh... Thanks.”

Their fingers brushed as he took the basin from her. The slight contact felt like a little electricity was introduced to his spine. He drew in a quick breath as quietly as possible.

Jane didn’t look up to meet his eyes, but he saw how her mouth parted slightly. Had she also felt it? He wondered. He was certain he hadn’t imagined it.

She suddenly pulled away and directed him to place the basin on the bed next to Tony. Christopher did, then he just stood there watching the little boy, who was happily waiting for his bath.

A crazy idea entered his mind, and he asked before he could think it over too much. “Could I give him his bath?”

Jane paused in what she had been doing. Her mouth fell open in surprise. She looked from him to her son, then back again. She closed her mouth, then opened it again. “He is still pretty small… It’s not easy.”

He didn’t want to think she was just making excuses. A sudden determination flooded him. He hadn’t thought it through when he asked, but now he really wanted to do it. It felt vital, like a major milestone he had to get through. “Tell me what to do.”

Doubt was written all over her face. Even her fingers twitched before she clenched them, but eventually, she agreed. Although her reluctance was almost insulting.

Christopher followed her softly spoken instructions carefully with a newfound respect for mothers with babies. She had not joked when she said it was not easy to bathe the little boy. Especially when Tony got cranky. That happened around the time he lathered the little boy all over with soap.

The room filled with the cries of an irritated little boy. Jane’s hands twitched to take over and soothe her son, but she held back. If she was honest, it was captivating to watch the man try to bathe her son.

By now, he had Tony in the basin for a quick rinse. One large hand supported her son’s neck and back since Tony couldn’t sit by himself yet, while the other hand swooped up water and poured it over Tony’s body.

It was probably very inappropriate and disturbing on her part, but Jane looked at those hands and imagined them on her own body for a totally different purpose. A hot flush rose to her cheeks. Good thing the man was so mesmerized by the task of washing her son, he didn’t notice her sudden blush.

Jane quietly cleared her throat and made herself busy, picking out what Tony would wear after his bath from the collection of clothes Christopher had purchased for him.

Busy sorting through the little pile of baby clothes, her mind wandered. She wasn’t really shocked by her thoughts anymore. All week she’d had one disturbing thought after another, even though she had still been in a tight grip of fear. And they were inspired by the most irrelevant things. It didn’t matter if she was just watching the man pick vegetables in the field, or giving Tony his bottle. Her mind would somehow manage to spring together a dirty version for her own personal pleasure. Or maybe she should have considered them torture since it left her feeling all hot and bothered.

It was the kiss they had shared. That was what she blamed all her inappropriate thoughts on. Although it hadn’t happened again, that one and only experience had already set fire to a stick of dynamite within her. She no longer even thought of Enock and how similar or different the two men were. All her thoughts, fantasies, and dreams focused on Christopher.

The sound of said man’s voice interrupted her from her thoughts. She looked at him and blinked. Christopher had asked a question, and she hadn’t heard it.

Fighting another blush. “What?” she asked. If she sounded slightly breathless, it was just the heat in the room. At least that was what she wanted him to think. Luckily, he didn’t seem to notice.

“What is he wearing?” Christopher said with a smile.

Jane looked down at the bed and realized Tony was already dried, lotioned, and diapered. Had she zoned out that long? Jane gave her head a mental shake. She quickly handed over some clothes and watched as he finished the task.

Tony wasn’t even crying anymore. He watched Christopher with large, trusting eyes. Jane’s heart squeezed in her chest. Christopher would make a brilliant father for her son.

No. This time she gave herself both a mental and physical head shake. They had already inconvenienced the man by living with him. He wasn’t Enock. It was not his responsibility to care for them or be a father to Tony. As soon as the danger passed, she had to move on with her son and make a life for them away from all reminders of Enock.

The theory, of course, was great. She told herself she wouldn’t think of Christopher inappropriately anymore and as soon as it was safe, she would leave.

Practically, the moment their gazes meshed ten minutes later, when he handed over Tony, Jane was lost. Her mind filled with images of them together: him kissing her, his lips sealing hers with the same passion he’d had in the kitchen a week ago during their first kiss. His tongue dancing against hers.

She pictured his arms around her body, holding her against the surging heat and potency of his. Jane swallowed. Her throat was suddenly parched and tight. Her breast felt heavy as her n*****s hardened and pressed against the fabric of her bra.

She could not forget how he made her feel in those few heated seconds. Jane was even more conscious of how he made her feel even then, standing tall over her and her son like a protective angel. She didn’t want to complicate things, but then she had no idea how to fight the yearning she felt deep in her bones. A yearning for his heart and very much for his sexy body.

It sparked in the air around them. Jane stood there with Tony in her arms, her eyes fixed on Christopher.