First and Only (Callaghan Brothers #2)

Lexi sat up a little straighter and lifted her chin. “So be it.”


The doctor tented her fingers, an oddly masculine move for a woman who never wore slacks and was always coiffed to perfection. “Have you considered a compromise, Alexis?”

“A compromise?”

“Nurse your young one for six months. Begin mixing easily digestible cereals into your breast milk at four months – from what you tell me, the boy is strong and soon your milk will not be enough to sustain him adequately. Store and freeze as much as you can to extend the benefits of mother’s milk beyond that. You do pump regularly, do you not?” Lexi nodded.

“Excellent. I am quite optimistic of a new treatment plan, one that is based upon purely natural, non-chemical substances.”

Lexi looked at her skeptically, hardly daring to hope. A natural solution? No more pumping her body full of industrial-grade poison?

“Yes, Alexis. It was your own unique heritage that spawned the idea, a joining of two different but ancient and powerful cultures that may yet hold the answers we seek. It was the doctor who tended to you in Pine Ridge who developed the idea. However, I do not think it is wise to change anything at the present time for fear of disrupting the boy’s routine. From what you tell me, he is flourishing.”

Again, Lexi nodded in confirmation. “He is. His pediatrician says he is beyond where he should be.”

“That is good,” the doctor said approvingly. “A further indication of good genes, and the strength of his parents. And the timeframe, it is reasonable, is it not?”

Lexi inclined her head. “Yes, it is. But in all honesty, Doc, I don’t know if I can wait that long.” Because he’s slipping away from me a little more every day, and I feel like I’m dying inside. Not to mention that Ian’s presence called to her on such a base, primal level. Her feelings for him went way beyond anything she could logically understand. She craved him. Ian Callaghan was as necessary to her survival as food and water and air. These last few weeks – as difficult as they had been – had been like the first warm day of spring up north, when everyone opened their windows, letting the clean fresh air breathe new life into stale, closed spaces.

“I see no reason why you cannot resume a physical relationship, although I would strongly recommend that it be of a gentle nature until we can begin a viable treatment plan.”

Gentle? Lexi had lots of ideas running through her head, and gentle wasn’t on the program. The doctor paused, as if deciding whether or not to continue. “There are a lot of options for pleasuring one another that would not place you in danger. Will your man be accepting of this?”

My man. Boy, Lexi liked the sound of that. And she realized with a jolt that he really was hers, wasn’t he? The possessive instinct was nearly as strong as her mother’s instinct. But asking Ian to be gentle? Yes, I’d like the chocolate silk pie, please, but only one bite. Damn.

It would be worth it, though. One bite of Ian was better than a whole truckload of goodies with anyone else. And, if she handled this right, she should be able to convince him that she would not shatter into a thousand pieces.

The thought had the corners of her mouth curving. There were a lot of things she read about, actually, that sounded wonderful. Things she had dreamed of Ian doing to her, things she would never have the courage to ask for. But now, well now she was just desperate enough to do it.

“I think he might,” she said cautiously, but inside her core muscles were doing the wave.





Chapter Twenty-Six


By the time Lexi got back to her suite that night, she was nearly a basket case. It was the first time she’d been away from Patrick for more than a few hours, for one thing. She wasn’t worried about his safety; there was no place safer for the child than with his father.

But what if he’d reached for her and she wasn’t there? What if he needed the comfort of his mother’s arms while she was off selfishly taking care of herself instead of her baby? Or, sweet Mary, what if, in his infant mind, he believed she had abandoned him?

Yet, despite the racking guilt, the afternoon had been therapeutic and long overdue. After leaving Dr. McKenzie’s office, she sent Aidan away and visited the spa and salon. Now she was waxed, exfoliated, plucked, and moisturized. Her hair was trimmed and styled; her nails buffed, shaped, and polished. She certainly felt more womanly than she had in quite a while, and she was going to need all the help she could get if she was to pull off her plan.