Whatever it was, when it was given out, Jaci decided she must not have been paying attention.
She’d been talking, most likely.
* * *
“NINE WEEKS MAY BE A bit soon, but maybe we’ll call in a little Christmas magic.” Dr. Tally held out the fetal Doppler device to Chance. “Would Dad like to do the honors?”
Chance nodded and took the microphone in one shaky hand and the speaker in the other. “Mine’s beating hard enough to hear without this thing.”
Kyndal lay on the table with her shirt pulled up to expose her belly, which was still almost flat with barely any indication of a bump.
Dr. Tally’s hands gripped his and guided them slowly across Kyndal’s midsection. They were all silent, listening for the sound that the doctor had explained would be a representation of their baby’s heartbeat, not the beat itself.
Chance held his breath, straining to hear something that made sense amidst the cacophony. He saw the anticipation in Kyndal’s eyes edged with fear, and he winked at her in assurance.
Her returning smile was hesitant as she chewed her lower lip. Then his attention was jerked back to his hands by an almost imperceptible tightening of Dr. Tally’s.
At first, the sound was indistinguishable from its background, but soon the regularity pulled it out.
His eyes flew to Kyndal’s and locked, sharing this moment of wonder. He carefully laid the speaker on the table and took her hand, pressing a kiss to her palm. She caressed his cheek in a gesture so tender it stopped his breath.
“That’s what we like to hear. Strong and sassy.” Dr. Tally’s exuberance broke the spell, but the magic lingered.
The rest of the appointment went by in a blur of cursory questions and mundane instructions—nothing that could remotely compete with that sound of the living, beating heart he and Kyndal had created together.
As he walked her to her car, he still vibrated with excitement. “I thought I was prepared for that, but…wow.”
“Chance Brennan speechless?” Kyndal elbowed him playfully. “That’s a first.”
He intended to throw his arm around her shoulder and give her a squeeze, but once he got his arm around her, it didn’t feel like enough. He pulled her against him and captured her mouth in a kiss.
* * *
CHANCE’S LIPS SEARED every nerve in her body and pushed every thought from her brain.
She didn’t care that they were standing in the middle of a downtown parking lot with gawking eyes all around.
The only thing that mattered was that the lips on hers belonged to the only man she’d ever loved. And for that moment he belonged to her.
She gave in and responded with all the passion her hormone-flooded system could produce.
The kiss lasted much too long to be proper—and ended much too soon.
Chance gave her a lopsided grin. “I thought I was prepared for that, but…wow.”
Kyndal laughed, trying to quell both the rising desire and the rising panic vying for domination within her small frame. Oh, good Lord! One taste of this man had set off a craving the likes of which no pregnancy had ever known! She stuffed her hands in her coat pockets to keep from reaching for him again and stepped up her pace. He stayed right beside her all the way to her car and opened the door for her.
She slid into the seat and buckled the seat belt. “I’ve got to run, Counselor. Wouldn’t want to piss off Santa with only three more days of work. I need them all.”
A shadow crossed Chance’s face and his expression sobered. “Kyn, I have a charity event Wednesday night. Would you like to go with me? I know it’s short notice, and that’s the night before Christmas Eve, but you’ve been working so hard. A party might be a nice change.”
Kyndal’s brain dissolved into a congealed mass of flubber. A date? It would be a mistake to go, but she couldn’t come up with a plausible reason not to, so she stalled. “Um…I’m not sure if I’m up to it.”
“I’ll get you home early.”
She started the engine. “Can I let you know later? After I get home?”
He nodded. “Sure.”
“Okay, then. I’ll call you tonight.”
She pulled away, disgusted with her inconsistent reaction when it came to Chance.
The memory of his kiss had surely inspired that response.
Her brain certainly had nothing to do with it.
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
THE EXCITEMENT OF CHANCE’S kiss stayed with Kyndal, giving her a rosy attitude throughout the exhausting afternoon. She’d never imagined so many people would want photos