Page 11 of Mitch

Chapter Five

Autumn lookedat the clock as she paced the living room of her apartment, Maggie over her shoulder as she rubbed her little girl’s back trying to comfort her. She hated to see her baby like this. Today had been her last set of baby jabs until she turned one. Normally she’d have had them by now, but with the move, Autumn was late getting them done.

Rocking her back and forth as she walked the floorboards, her lips pressed to her baby’s slightly warm cheek. The teething didn’t help, but Autumn had expected a slight fever and crankiness. Maggie had been the same after the first two sets of vaccinations. This time she had teething to contend with too.

“Oh, Roo, I know it hurts. Silly jabs and teeth. I wish I could take the pain away quicker. Mummy will give you some more medicine soon.” Autumn glanced at the clock on the microwave and saw it was a little after two in the morning. Maggie could have some more Calpol at two-thirty—thank god.

Maggie continued to cry as if her heart would break, and Autumn felt the tears prick her own eyes with helplessness. She hated this. Typically, being alone with Maggie was fine, she kind of liked that it was her and Maggie against the world, but times like this she really missed having a second set of arms to hold her. Maggie was a relatively good baby, but when she was cranky and keeping her up all night, there was nobody to share that with.

Resentment hit her as she thought of Maggie’s father. He should be here but he’d been a fool, and now his ass was dead. The man she’d loved had betrayed them, leaving her in hiding with a new baby. Not even living long enough to know she was pregnant, he’d chosen money over love, and she’d never forgive that.

Autumn stopped dead as she heard a knock at her door. Turning, she listened for a noise, her heart beating faster. Who could possibly be knocking on her door in the dead of night? Caution had her stepping closer to try and hear as the knock came again.

“Autumn, it’s Mitch.”

Relief washed through her at the sound of his deep voice, and she moved to the door, un-flipping the extra locks she’d had installed and pulling the door open. Autumn’s gaze moved over Mitch, from his gorgeous lopsided grin to his bizarrely bare feet. He wore low slung grey sweats and a white tee and looked mighty fine in her opinion.

“Just wanted to check everything was okay. I heard Maggie crying and wanted to check on you.”

She stepped back as he moved through the door and past her into the living space, which was lit by a small table lamp. Autumn followed as Maggie let out another cry. Mitch looked at Maggie with concern before his eyes went back to hers.

“I’m so sorry if we woke you.”

Mitch stepped closer, his face peering at Maggie as he laid his large hand over her baby’s tiny back with a gentleness she hadn’t expected. “You didn’t wake me. I was up working.”

He glanced up, and his dark brown eyes were filled with concern. He was a man who fixed things; she knew that about him already.

“Maggie had her vaccinations today, top that with teething and she’s not feeling too good.” Autumn yawned and quickly moved to cover her mouth. “Sorry,” she mumbled.

“Here sit down before you fall down.”

Mitch eased her onto the couch before he sat beside her. Autumn felt the brush of fabric from his sweats on her bare legs. Not expecting company, she was only wearing tiny sleep shorts and a jersey camisole top. Awareness slammed through her at the muscles pressed so close to her body. Mitch was a sexy distraction, but one she couldn’t afford.

His brow furrowed, and he looked physically pained to hear her baby cry. “Is there anything you can give her?”

Absurdly it was that shared experience that made her feel less alone. How sad was she that the comfort from her landlord was the only thing holding her together right now?

“She’s due some Calpol in fifteen minutes.” Exhaustion made her feel weepy, and she swallowed past the damned lump in her throat his words brought as she answered him.

“How about I hold her, and you go get it ready?” Mitch held out his arms and Autumn paused for a split second before leaning forward and gently handing off her daughter to Mitch, his knuckles grazing her breast and causing a shiver to cascade down her body to her pussy.

This man made her feel raw in so many areas, from her reawakened libido to the vulnerability she seemed to let show when he was around.

“Sorry.”

Mitch’s sheepish smile told her he knew what he’d done, the twinkle in his eyes saying he was not that sorry. Autumn raised an eyebrow but said nothing, not trusting her own voice right then.

Moving to the bathroom, she grabbed the Calpol and filled the baby dormal with the medicine. The baby dummy that administered medication had been a godsend and meant she got most of the medicine in her baby not all down her top. On her way back from the bathroom, she stopped as she heard Mitch talking to Maggie.

“Sound like you’ve had a rough day, darlin’. How about we get you some of the good stuff, then you have a good sleep so your mum can get some rest? Those beautiful eyes of hers look ready to close standing up.”

Autumn held a hand to her chest to stop the ache where her heart constricted. It had never dawned on her that Maggie might be missing out but hearing him speak, listening to the one-sided nonsense conversation, opened her eyes to the fact that a child needed a father.

Sagging against the wall, she closed her heavy eyes. A child could live without two parents, they could live without any but they didn’t thrive the same in her opinion. She loved her father and knew his calm protectiveness had guided her to make good decisions that perhaps her mother’s more nurturing softness wouldn’t have. Doubt in her ability to do this alone was like lead on her shoulders, and for just one night, she wanted to share that load with someone.

Knowing it was a fool’s dream to crave a man you shouldn’t want, Autumn pushed away from the wall and moved down the hall towards a silent Maggie and Mitch. Her life had changed beyond compare the night she saw her husband murdered. Now she had to fight to stay ahead of the man who would kill her in a heartbeat, leaving her baby without a mother if he got the chance.

“Hey, I’m all set.”