Cattail Ridge Read Online Free PDF

front of the store to pick up the lotion and pay for the rest of his purchases. He then headed to his apartment to clean up and grab a quick bite to eat. A glance at his watch told him it was close to seven. Still plenty of daylight left.
    “I should give it to Jack to take to her,” he said, hedging. But the bunny was sitting on top of the signed card and wrapped lotion, staring at him.
    Giving in, he grabbed the presents and his keys and headed out.
    Jack had given him Emma’s address and described the neighborhood she lived in. Archer found the house with little effort. He recognized the small, red car parked in the driveway as belonging to Emma’s grandmother, Eliza. He pulled up to the curb and studied the surrounding houses while he talked himself into going up and ringing the bell.
    The neighborhood was established, quiet, with nice houses. Very nice houses. The street Emma’s house was on ran parallel to the river, with one row of homes in between. The understated wealth just served to underscore the differences between him and Emma and remind him again of exactly how far from suitable for her he was. That emotional wall in place, he got out and went up the walk.
    Eliza met him at the door with a wide smile. “Archer. How nice to see you. Come on in.”
    “Ma’am. I hope I’m not disturbing you. I wanted to bring something by.” He held the gifts out but she shook her head.
    “You give those to Emma. Come on in. She just finished feeding the baby.” She steered him into a cozy living room off the tiled foyer. Emma, hair tied back in a loose ponytail, was seated on the couch with a tiny bundle nestled into the curve of her arm.
    When she saw him, Emma’s smile seemed as pleased as Eliza’s had been. “Archer! Hello.”
    “Hey.” He spoke softly, not wanting to bother the baby. “How are you?”
    Emma patted the space beside her. “I’m good. Come sit down. Meet my daughter.” Her eyes dropped to the package and the bunny, and her eyes softened. “Oh, how adorable.”
    Cheeks hot, Archer sat and placed the gifts on the table in front of her. “They’re just a little something.”
    She touched the bunny’s ear. “He’s precious. Thank you. Here. Want to hold her?”
    Before he could warn her that he’d never held a baby before and didn’t have a clue what he was doing, she’d placed the tiny little girl in his arms. Guiding his hands so he supported the baby properly, Emma gave him a rundown on the baby’s stats. “Sydney Marie, seven pounds, ten ounces. Twenty-one inches long.”
    “She’s tiny.”
    Emma chuckled. “Not in baby terms. She’s exactly where she needs to be.”
    The baby peered up at him with an unfocused gaze, eyes sleepy. Her little mouth was working, and Emma handed him a pacifier.
    “Give her that. She’ll fall asleep easier with it.”
    A hand that was so small Archer could hardly believe it was real reached up from the blanket. The fingers spread wide, then clasped one of his fingers with a grip that was surprisingly strong.
    “Oh, wow.” His voice was a reverent whisper as the baby stretched and gave a couple of soft kicks, holding on to his finger the entire time. “Wow.”
    Emma was grinning at him, every inch the proud mama. “Pretty cool, huh?”
    “Pretty cool. Congratulations. I told you things would be fine.”
    While she opened the card and present, he eased back against the cushions with the baby. A wisp of dark hair swirled over her head, and he traced it with one finger. She smelled fresh and sweet, a mix of baby powder and milk.
    “Hard to believe we all start out like that, isn’t it?” Eliza remarked from a chair adjacent to the couch.
    “Impossible to believe,” he agreed. Seeing that Emma was tearing up, he frowned. Maybe he had misread the card and it didn’t say what he thought it had. “What’s wrong?”
    “Nothing. This card is just so sweet. And you didn’t have to get me anything, but thank you.”
    “Oh. It hardly seemed