Sage drove home. She was tired but didn’t know if she’d be able to sleep. For one thing, Josh would be awake soon. On the way, she stopped off at a store to buy diapers and all the other things such as food and bottles she’d need for her nephew. She had a key to Macy’s house but she couldn’t bring herself to go there to pick up what she’d need just yet. Though she’d have to do it very soon. Josh would need his crib and clothes. Plus, she also had the decision as to what to do with the home.
She pulled into her two-car driveway and parked beside Grady’s expensive sedan. After getting out of her SUV, Sage headed for the front door. She unlocked it and stepped inside, placing the items she’d bought in the entranceway. The house was completely quiet. It was early enough for Josh to still be asleep. She figured Grady must be sleeping as well since he didn’t come to see her.
After taking off her coat and boots, she went to the living room. The scene that greeted her had her smiling despite what the night had turned into. Grady lay on the couch, his feet dangling over the end. Josh was on his chest, his little head tucked under Grady’s chin. The quilt from the playpen was covering the baby and the sides were tucked under Grady, holding Josh in place. Grady had his arms wrapped around her nephew. The sight of them together pulled at her heartstrings.
Sage leaned against the wall next to the entrance to the room and slowly slid down it until she sat on the floor. She couldn’t tear her gaze from them. Being sleep deprived and an emotional wreck on the inside, she crazily thought Grady would be the perfect replacement father for Josh. It was stupid to be thinking like that when she’d had one date with him that had lasted a few hours at the most, but at the moment, he was the only person in her world who she thought she could lean on.
She then noticed Josh had his little hand wrapped around Grady’s cougar head pendant just as she’d done when she and Grady had been fooling around. It was the second time her nephew had taken hold of it. He obviously liked it, and Grady mustn’t have minded.
Sage lifted her knees to her chest and rested her forehead against them. She closed her eyes. The image of her sister lying in a hospital bed, broken and bleeding, rose inside her mind. It would probably be something she’d never forget. She swallowed past the lump in her throat as she fought back her tears. She wanted to wail and scream about the injustice of it. Macy and Hank had been too young, and Josh should have been able to grow up with his parents. But she wouldn’t do any of that. There was too much to do to settle her sister’s affairs.
“Sage.”
At the sound of her whispered name, she looked up to find Grady awake and staring at her. Sage pushed to her feet and quietly walked over to where he lay. Josh was still sleeping. She kneeled on the floor in front of the couch and softly caressed her nephew’s cheek.
“Have you been home long?” Grady asked in a whisper.
“No,” she replied just as quietly.
“Did your sister…”
“She didn’t make it. Macy died about a half hour after I arrived.”
“I’m so sorry.”
“Did Josh wake up for you?”
“Yeah. He wasn’t too sure about me at first. The only way I could get him to sleep was on me like this. I tried to put him back in the playpen, but he started to cry again.”
“At least you got some rest.”
Grady ran his gaze over her face. “You need to sleep as well.”
Sage shook her head. “I can’t. Josh will be awake soon. And you’ll want to go home.”
He stared into her eyes. “You have to sleep. I’m not going to leave you alone.”
“You’ve been here all night. You’ll want to change your clothes and shower. Plus, there isn’t much to eat here. I need to go grocery shopping.”
Grady reached over and cupped the side of her face. “Then you and Josh can come to my place. We have a personal chef who makes all our meals. And you’re more than welcome to sleep in my bed. I’ll take care of the baby. My brother and his wife will be there as well to help. We all live together, along with my parents.”
Normally, Sage would have been able to manage everything on her own, but not now. Having someone take care of her, make it so she didn’t have to worry about anything, was something she couldn’t turn down.
“Okay, I’ll go to your place once Josh wakes up. I’ll have to feed him and get him dressed, then we can go.”
As if he’d heard his name, the baby squirmed against Grady and opened his eyes. Grady sat up and shifted Josh until he had him cradled in his arms and disentangled the baby’s fingers from his pendant.
“Hey there, buddy,” Grady said. “Did you have a good sleep?” The baby smiled at him.
Sage stood, then took Josh from Grady. “I’ll get him ready to go.”
She grabbed some of the things she’d bought on the way up the stairs. Once again, she was glad Grady was there. For someone who’d asked her for a simple date, he sure as hell got a lot more than he bargained for.
Grady took a quick look at Sage, who sat beside him in his car. The baby was in his infant car seat in the back. It’d taken about a half hour to get Josh fed, changed and set to go.
Sage looked about ready to drop. There were dark circles under her eyes and she seemed to be staring at nothing. Grady focused his attention back on the road. No matter what she said, he was going to get her tucked into his bed as soon as they got to his house. She needed to get some rest before she faced what she had to do that day. It wasn’t going to be easy on her, but he planned to stay with her every step of the way.
Once they arrived at his place, Grady hit the remote to open one of the doors of the four-car garage. He pulled in next to his brother Jase’s car and parked. After he shut the engine off, he closed them inside.
He carried Josh in his car seat and one of the bags Sage had brought while she grabbed the other one, then walked to the entrance to the house. Grady stepped aside for her to go in ahead of him. He motioned for her to keep walking up the short hallway.
They stepped out into the foyer. Grady was surprised to see a pile of luggage sitting near the front door. He then saw his dad coming down the stairs from the upper level. His father smiled as he came to join them.
“I thought you and Mom were going to be away for a week,” Grady said.
His dad shrugged. “Your mom decided she couldn’t afford to take an entire week away. We just arrived home about ten minutes ago.” His father looked at Sage, then the infant car seat Grady carried. “Who do we have here?”
Grady put down the bag he held and wrapped his arm around Sage’s waist. “This is Sage.” He turned the car seat around so his dad could look inside. “And this is her nephew Josh. They’re going to be spending some time here with me. Something happened last night while I was over at Sage’s place on a date and she was babysitting. Her older sister and husband, the parents to Josh, were hit by a drunk driver while they were out for dinner. They both died. Sage has been at the hospital all night while I stayed at her place to watch the baby. She’s Josh’s godmother. She also doesn’t have any family to help her.”
“I’m sorry for your loss,” his dad said solemnly. “I’m Charles, Grady’s dad.”
“Thanks,” Sage said quietly.
“And I’m sorry as well,” his mother said as she joined them from upstairs. “I heard what Grady said about your sister. And you’re more than welcome to stay here for as long as you need. You look about ready to drop.”