Baby Lessons

She didn’t even like Vermont. Jack Cole wasn’t hers, and he never would be. Those were the simple facts.
Madison just wasn’t sure when or why they’d become so difficult to remember.
“Locking pin intact?” Wade said, glancing down at the inspection checklist on the screen of the tablet in his hand.
The question barely registered in Jack’s consciousness as he stood listening to Madison read aloud from the rocking chair on the other side of the room. She had such a lovely voice—soft and soothing. Or that was how it had seemed the night before as he lay in bed listening to her read to the girls through the wall. Who knew articles about the latest runway shows and the eternal popularity of animal prints could be so relaxing?
But that was the whole point of reading aloud to infants, wasn’t it? Reading to babies was a bonding experience. Jack knew this. The subject matter wasn’t as important as tone of voice, facial expressions and gentle touch—unless the subject matter happened to be the exact four books that Queen Bee had mentioned in her most recent letter to the editor.
“Yo,” Wade whisper-screamed at him. They were, after all, in a library. “Are we here to inspect the fire extinguishers or to spy on your night nanny?”
“The locking pin is intact, the tamper seal is unbroken and there are no signs of obvious damage, so you can check those things off your list.” Jack lifted the device from the wall so he could estimate its weight and ensure it was still full. “And I’m not spying. I had no idea she’d be here.”
“I’m telling you, it’s fate.” Wade tapped away on the tablet. “The way you two keep bumping into each other might just mean something.”
“I’m beginning to think fate might have a twisted sense of humor,” Jack said, securing the fire extinguisher back into place and scrawling his initials and the date on its tag.
“Uh-oh. I know that tragic tone in your voice. And just when you seemed to be somewhat happy for a change.” Wade frowned. “What happened?”
Jack brushed past him, headed toward the next fire extinguisher on their list—the one behind the circulation desk. “Nothing happened.”
Nothing at all.
He wished something had. There. He’d admitted it, even if only to himself. He couldn’t stop thinking about Madison.
“And nothing’s going to,” he added, not entirely sure whether that disclaimer was for his own benefit or Wade’s.
“Why not? Is it the nanny thing? Because no one cares.” Wade shrugged. “You’re hot for Mary Poppins. Admit it.”
Jack rolled his eyes. “She’s hardly Mary Poppins.”
“Are you seeing what I’m seeing?” Wade’s gaze cut toward Madison, reading the part of Baby Bear from Goldilocks and the Three Bears in a goofy, high-pitched voice that made the children sitting at her feet collapse into giggles. “Those kids are spellbound.”
Join the club.
Jack turned his back on the adorable scene and focused intently on the red fire extinguisher fixed to the wall, but he couldn’t bring himself to continue the inspection. “I think she might be Queen Bee.”
“Who?”
There was a beat of confused silence until Wade gasped so loud he started coughing. Nearly every head in the library swiveled in their direction. Jack gave Wade a firm slap on the back.
“Would you please be quiet,” he muttered.
“I’m fine!” Wade waved to the library patrons, and Madison continued reading. Then he stared hard at Jack and whispered, “I lied. I’m not fine. Are you telling me that Madison is the reporter from the newspaper who you’ve been publicly shaming for weeks?”
When put that way, his behavior sounded really bad.
Jack groaned. Who was he kidding? It was bad, no matter how he sliced it. “Yes? Maybe? I’m not sure, but I’ve got a really bad feeling it might be true.”
“Why?”
“The books she’s reading to the kids right now are the same ones Queen Bee wrote about recently in the paper.” He ground his teeth and did his best to ignore Madison’s bell-like voice. Somebody has been sitting in my chair!
The children echoed her. Somebody has been sitting in my chair!
Jack closed his eyes. Somebody had been writing asinine letters to the newspaper, and now he was going to have to pay the price.
“Wait, that sounds like Goldilocks,” Wade said. He rolled his eyes. “That’s one of the most popular kids’ books ever. It could just be coincidence.”
“What about the other three? The Dr. Seuss book, plus the pigs and the billy goats.”
“All classics. I think you’re jumping to conclusions.” Wade shot him an encouraging glance, but it wasn’t altogether convincing.
“I’m not sure mathematical odds would support that theory.” Jack turned his attention back to the fire extinguisher, lest Madison glance his way.
She couldn’t possibly be Queen Bee, could she? Why would someone with a full-time job at the Lovestruck Bee want to take on the added responsibilities of caring for twin six-month-olds at night? Granted, the night nanny job was only part-time. Very part-time, now that he thought about it. She only worked on nights he was off duty from the station and since his schedule was three nights on, one night off, it boiled down to just a couple nights per week. Definitely not enough of a salary to live on.
But she lived with her aunt, so maybe she didn’t need to work full-time in order to survive?
He felt like banging his head against the hard metal of the fire extinguisher all of a sudden. How much did he actually know about Madison Jules?
“Nope.” Wade shook his head and acted like he was scribbling something onto his checklist. “They can’t be the same person. Didn’t you say your mom met Madison at a knitting class? And look, now she’s volunteering at story circle. Your reporter wouldn’t be caught dead doing either of those things.”
True... Possibly.
The whole reason he’d started complaining about her column was its lack of practical information for parents. Whoever had been writing it didn’t seem to have any actual real-life experience with children. Queen Bee couldn’t possibly