Santa Soldier Bear - Meg Ripley Page 0,13

pants, she slipped them on as well. “I’m going to check on Lucas first.”

“I’ll go with you.” He was at her back as soon as she had her hand on the doorknob.

She had it covered and was more than capable of peeking in the baby’s room, but Melody didn’t argue. Something had changed in the air, and she could sense it just as she’d been able to sense Roman was at her side without seeing him. Was she simply becoming more perceptive now that her body had tapped into knowing what it was like to have a mate? There was no time to think about it.

Racing down the carpeted hallway, Melody knew before she even opened the door that it wasn’t Lucas. It wasn’t his cry. But who else would be making that noise? She looked in the nursery just to be safe. He was in his crib, just as he should have been. His dark hair was tousled from sleep, but his lashes lay peacefully on his cheeks. His breathing was even, and he most certainly wasn’t crying. Fortunately, he hadn’t been woken up by whoever was.

Melody shut the door quietly. “This is very strange,” she murmured as she began moving through the house.

“No other kids live here, do they?” Roman asked.

“No, just Lucas.” She headed down the stairs, realizing she was following an innate sense more than she was trusting her hearing, though she could certainly hear better than most humans. Her body moved with the litheness of her inner cat as she swept down the stairs and into the living room. The Christmas lights that had looked so welcoming the night before now only looked like clutter as she tried to figure out what was happening. “It’s coming from outside.”

“Hold on, I’ll look.” Roman reached for the door handle.

But Melody had it first. She had to see what was there. A child was crying, screaming practically, and it needed someone. It needed her. Pounding her code into the electronic lock, she flung open the front door.

The volume of the baby’s wailing increased exponentially, filling the air. Melody hardly heard it as she looked down, seeing a car seat on the front porch. The handle was still up, and a yellow blanket covered the top of it. She immediately knelt and pulled the edge of it back to find the red, pinched face of a baby, screaming so hard, its tiny tongue was vibrating.

“You poor sweet thing!” Scooping up the entire carrier, Melody turned and brought the child inside.

“I didn’t see anyone else out there,” Roman said as he closed the door behind her.

Melody’s heart swelled with sadness. “Who could leave you like that?” she gently cooed to the screaming baby. It blew her mind that something like that could still happen in this day and age, yet there the little girl was. With expert fingers, Melody deftly pulled the blanket out the rest of the way and unfastened the buckles. “She’s hungry, and her diaper is more than full,” she said as she lifted the squirming bundle free. Melody turned to Roman. He looked completely lost, standing there with his pajama pants on backward and his hair a rumpled mess. His eyes were wide, and he moved his hands as though he were ready to take some sort of action, but he didn’t know what it was.

“Do me a favor and wake up Emersyn. There’s no telling how long this poor little thing was on the porch, and she’ll need to be looked over. I’m taking her into Lucas’s room to get her cleaned up, then I’ll be back down here to make her a bottle.” Melody pulled the little girl close and headed for the stairs.

“Sure.” Roman raced up ahead of her, clearly glad to have something to do.

Melody smiled as she slowly headed upstairs, pushing the tip of her finger into the baby’s palm. The little girl gripped it tightly, her tiny knuckles turning white. “That’s right. You go ahead and be angry. You have every right to be. How could anyone do such a terrible thing?” Turning down the hall, Melody opened the door to Lucas’s room. The screaming baby might very well wake him, but they’d just have to deal with it. This child had to be taken care of.

“Here you go, sweetling,” Melody cooed as she laid her out on the changing table. “I’m so sorry. I know these diapers aren’t quite the right size, but they’re better than nothing for now.