Second Time Around Read Online Free PDF Page B

promised Daisy I’d be back.”
    “I’m sure Daisy will understand. She’s probably got the puppies asleep by now, anyway.”
    His pout increased. “I could wake them up.”
    “That’s some lip you’ve got there. Think I need to help you hold it?” When he nodded, she gently grasped the bow shape with her thumb and index finger, causing Zack to collapse in giggles. It was a game they had played since he was a baby, and it never failed to make him laugh.
    2She deposited him on the floor, giving him a playful swat on his tiny jeans-clad bottom to head him in the right direction. “Upstairs with you, sir.”
    “But I’m not sleepy.”
    Lanie smiled, knowing he’d be out like a light as soon as his head hit the pillow.
    “Tell you what. If you don’t want to sleep, you don’t have to, but Mr. Jingles is tired and he can’t rest without you. Why don’t you lie down with him for a few minutes and then you can get back up.”
    Mr. Jingles, a colorful harlequin made from parachute silk, was one of the first toys he’d ever had, and was still one of his favorites. When Zack had started walking, she’d only had to listen for the sound of the bells on the dolls shoes and hat to know where her son was currently located.
    Zack looked at her suspiciously. “You promise?”
    “Cross my heart.” She made an X on her chest.
    They had reached the stairs when the sound of a vehicle on the driveway drifted through the open windows at the front of the house.
    “Company!” Zack yelled with glee, making a U-turn and racing out the front door.
    Lanie sighed as she followed at a more sedate pace. She’d never get him to take that nap now. Unless it was Jared. He could get Zack to do almost anything. She hadn’t been expecting him until later tonight, but maybe he’d decided to stop in between calls.
    She heard the motor die. It didn’t really sound like Jared’s truck, she decided. For that matter, it didn’t sound like any of the vehicles she was familiar with. She quickened her pace and pushed the screen door open.
    Zack was standing uncertainly halfway between the porch and the black Jeep Cherokee, and a tingle of anxiety ran over her as she moved closer. Her son tended to be way too trusting of strangers.
    “Zack.”
    He ignored her, his gaze fixed on the Jeep as the passenger door began to open. The windows were tinted, and she could barely make out the shape of two people inside, but suddenly she knew. Even as Quinn unfolded his body from the seat and stood, her heart slammed into her throat.
    Zack. Oh, god. He wasn’t ready for this. She wasn’t ready for this. Somehow she kept her feet moving until she was standing behind her son. Shakily, she rested a hand on his shoulder, as much to comfort herself as him.
    “Quinn. I didn’t expect to see you here.”
    Quinn felt like he was drowning. Each breath was labored and he’d broken out in a sweat. One hand gripped the top of the door so tightly his knuckles turned white. He couldn’t take his eyes off the little boy in front of him. Zack. Lanie had called him Zack.
    His hungry gaze devoured every detail from the miniature boots to the thick mop of black hair. He didn’t look like either Lanie or himself, Quinn realized. Instead, he was a mixture of both. His wide gray eyes and firm chin were definitely Lanie’s, but that dark 2hair and straight nose mimicked Quinn’s own. He ached to hold him, to just touch him, but he knew instinctively it would be the wrong thing to do right now.
    Zack studied him just as intently, and Quinn fought for control. Leaning down slightly, he smiled. “Hi there, Zack. Do you know who I am?”
    The little boy nodded. “You’re my daddy. Aren’t you busy anymore?”
    “Busy?”
    “Mama said the reason you never come to see me is because you’re real busy.”
    A wave of dizziness swept over him, threatening to bring him to his knees. “No,”
    he said softly. “I’m not busy anymore. I don’t plan on being busy for a