and the baby at eye level. The next step was to control your emotions and behaviour. If he acted nervous and upset too, chances were good the baby would pick up on that and react accordingly. So, he needed to keep his shit together as much as possible. He flexed his hands several times at his sides to limber up his fingers then gave the kid what he hoped was a reassuring smile while her little face scrunched up even more with unhappiness and her tiny cheeks turned splotchy.
Please let this work. Don’t screw this up.
This was worse than his last round of hostage negotiations in Beirut. At least then, he’d had his SEAL teammates to fall back on in case he messed up. Now, it was just him and around ten pounds of fury and frustration here on the bed. Through the bathroom door, he heard the water shut off, then soft humming. Humming? Yeah, Serena was getting back at him for the way he’d acted earlier, and damn if he didn’t feel a little guilty about that. Maybe he had been too harsh on her, but he was doing the best he could here. She wasn’t the only one out of her element these days.
And speaking of elements, things were still stormy on the infant front. Noah rolled his neck and shoulders, loosening the tension there before widening his smile. Gracie tracked his movements, her little legs kicking and her wails dialing down a few notches.
Good. Right. Keep going.
Next step, pay attention to the emotions being expressed. Well, he didn’t speak baby, but from her tears and cries and angry fists flying, it was pretty obvious Gracie was not a happy camper. Tentatively, Noah reached out a hand toward her, his heart stumbling when she latched on to his finger, holding on tight.
“Wow, that’s quite a grip you got there, kid.” His smile this time was genuine. “Not sure what kind of sports you like, but you could be a major league pitcher with that grip.” Noah grinned and jiggled his finger, chuckling when Gracie’s crying subsided in favor of a drool-filled smile. “Do you want to be a Cubbie, huh? Your daddy is a die-hard Cubs fan. Yes, he is. And maybe someday, when you grow up, they’ll let girls play in MLB, because that would be awesome. Yes, it would. Gracie could walk onto Wrigley Field and own the place. Yes, she could.”
Gracie cooed and squeaked as if that sounded like a fabulous idea to her.
Without thinking, Noah scooped her up onto his forearm, using the football-type hold Serena had shown him earlier, and put the baby over his shoulder, still talking to her and patting her back like he’d been doing this for a million years and not just a day or two.
“How about we go see Mommy and see what she’s up to in there, yeah? See if she’s any less cranky than she was before. Cause your mommy can be a real ball-bust—” He turned the knob and shouldered his way into the bathroom, only to stop short at the sight of Serena naked and chest deep in a bubble bath. All he managed to get out was, “Uh, I, uh…”
Serena slowly opened her eyes and looked at him, her skin looking pink and dewy and infinitely touchable and Noah swallowed hard. Mind on the task, man.
“What?” was all she said, though it sounded throatier than before. Or maybe that was his imagination, falling over the cliff into erotic territory. “Looks like you got Gracie handled.”
“Huh?” he said, taking a moment to remember that he still had his daughter in his arms. The tiny thing weighed next to nothing and it seemed she’d fallen asleep again, curling up against him with her face buried in the base of his neck, her breath warming his skin. Something in his chest expanded, filling a hole inside him he never knew he had until that moment. He blinked down at Serena, doing his best to clear his head. “Yeah. She woke up when you came in here. I’m not sure I’m doing this right.”
“She looks pretty satisfied to me.” Serena gave him a look that under different circumstances—such as circumstances where he didn’t have his daughter in his arms—would’ve gotten his motor running just fine. “You do seem to have the right touch.”
And now all Noah could think about was touching and satisfaction, both things that were completely inappropriate with a baby in the room. He