Dream a Little Dream (Chicago Stars, #4)(233)

She jerked away from his touch. “I don’t need your help!”

He ignored her and turned to Jake. “You be careful with her. I want her locked up, but I don’t want anybody playing fast and loose. You got me?”

“I’ll keep my eye on her,” Odell said.

Cal began to move away.

Edward! What was going to happen to him? Kristy was gone and the sitter wasn’t even sixteen.

“Cal!” Once again she had to swallow her pride because of her son. She drew a shaky breath and tried to speak calmly. “Edward is at Kristy’s condo. He’s with a sitter, but she’s too young to take care of him for long, and Kristy’s gone.” Something inside her gave way, and her eyes brimmed with tears. “Please . . . He’s going to be so scared.”

He stared at her for a long moment, and then gave a brusque nod. “Jane and I’ll take care of him.”

Jake slammed the door and settled in the front seat next to Odell. As the squad car moved forward, she tried to absorb the fact that she was on her way to jail.





It was starting to get dark, so Cal tucked Chip under his arm and hauled him like a sack of potatoes up the steps onto the deck. “You’re getting too good with that football, buddy. You wore me out.”


Chip giggled as Cal gave him a couple of extra bounces. Cal had hoped playing with the boy would take his own mind off what had happened a few hours earlier with his mother, but it wasn’t working.

He looked up and saw Jane standing inside the French doors with Rosie in her arms, and he felt a jolt right in the middle of his chest. Sometimes it hit him that way—hard—the sight of these two females he loved more than anything in the world. There had been a time in his life when he hadn’t wanted either one of them, and he never let himself forget that. The memory kept him humble.

Rosie was clutching that god-awful stuffed rabbit, and she started to kick and squeal as she caught sight of Chip. As soon as they were inside the French doors, Cal let the boy down, brushed Jane’s lips with a quick kiss, and took Rosie from her.

The baby gave him a big grin, then blew a noisy raspberry, her newest trick. He smiled and wiped his face on her already damp T-shirt. Only then did he notice that Jane looked harried.

He lifted an inquisitive eyebrow. “I haven’t been outside more than fifteen minutes.”

She sighed. “Wait till you see our bathroom.”

“The toilet paper again?”

“And the toothpaste. You didn’t put the cap back on, and I wasn’t fast enough.”

As if she knew they were talking about her, Rosie gave him another drooly grin and clapped her hands in delight. For the first time he noticed that she smelled like Crest Tartar Control.

“Rosie’s got a lot of mischief,” Chip said with all the solemnity of an adult. “She’s a handful.”

Cal and Jane exchanged amused glances.

Rosie kicked again and held her arms out toward Chip, dropping the rabbit in the process. Cal set her on the floor, and she immediately threw herself at the boy’s legs. He crouched and tickled her tummy, then looked up at Cal, his forehead puckered with worry.

“When’s my mommy coming to get me?”

Cal stuck his hand in the pocket of his slacks and jingled the change. “Tell you what, buddy. How’d you like to have a sleepover right here?”

Jane looked at him with surprise, but he avoided her eyes.

“Is it okay with my mommy?”

“Sure it is. You can sleep in the room right next to Rosie’s. Would you like that?”

“I guess.” The worry marks didn’t disappear from his forehead. “If Mommy says I can.”

“It’s fine with her.”

Cal still hadn’t figured out how he was going to break the news to the boy that his mother was in jail. He’d planned on having Ethan’s help, but when he called the hotel in Knoxville where his brother was supposed to be staying, the desk said he wasn’t registered. He’d asked for Kristy and heard the same thing, so they must have changed their plans. He’d ended up putting a message on his brother’s home answering machine and hoping he’d check it.

He still needed to explain things to Jane, who was giving him one of those looks that said she knew something was going on, and he’d better come up with a few answers, especially since he’d led her to believe he was just bringing Chip by for a quick visit before they put Rosie to bed.

Cal leaned down to ruffle the boy’s hair. “Keep an eye on Rosie for a few minutes, will you, buddy?”

“Sure.”

The family room was gated off and childproofed, but they still couldn’t leave her for long, and he didn’t steer Jane any farther than the kitchen. He procrastinated by pulling her into his arms and nibbling her neck. She snuggled closer. It wouldn’t take much to distract her, but he’d only be postponing the inevitable.

“Chip’s spending the night with us,” he said.

“I heard. What’s going on?”

“Now don’t get upset, but . . . We need to watch him for a while because Rachel’s in jail.”

“In jail!” Her head shot up, conking him in the chin. “My God, Cal, we have to do something.” She tore herself out of his arms and raced for her purse. “I’m going to her right now. I can’t believe—”