"And tired. Haven't slept in twenty-four hours." He tugged off his glasses and closed his eyes. "Just wanted to tell you. The good news."

Paige wanted to say something. She tried to think of what it was. But the sight of Noah Perrine naked had swept every other thought from mind, and then it was too late. While she stared in astonishment his features slackened, his breathing slowed, and he fell into a deep sleep.

For a minute she didn't know what to do. He couldn't stay long, having a naked man in her bed was the worst kind of example to set for Jill, and she wasn't sure whether Sami should be seeing him either, though the little girl seemed no worse for the experience. She was drinking her milk happily, making the same sweet sucking sounds, now mixed with the slow sough of Noah's breathing.

Kitty rose from her ball, stretched herself shoulders to rump, and hopped over the lumps in the bed until she reached Noah's face. She explored it with her nose. He didn't move. She caught sight of a corner of the sheet extending beyond his shoulder and bounded toward it. He didn't move then or when she began to play.

It struck Paige that for someone who had spent years enjoying a wide expanse of bed in solitude, she had quite a crowd in it now.

Assuring herself that it was a temporary condition, she felt an odd pang low in her stomach. But the pang wasn't unfamiliar. She let Sami finish her bottle and burped her, then sat her in the playpen and retreated into the bathroom.

A short time later, she emerged freshly showered. Noah hadn't moved an inch. His damp hair looked darker than usual, all the more so against the white of her pillow, and his limbs seemed to stretch forever under the covers. He had the solid build of a casual runner, not skinny as a fanatic would be, but well toned. Even as she told herself that he had no business being in her bed, she couldn't deny that he did wonderful things to the shape of her sheets.

Sami was still sittingthe skill had come quickly, as Paige had known it wouldand was gravely studying a small stuffed dog while kitty struggled to climb the mesh walls of the playpen and join her. The tiny animal made it halfway up before losing her footing and tumbling back down, but on the next try she crested the top and scrambled inside. Sami looked at her, made a soft sound of greeting, and reached out.

Something was agreeing with her here, Paige thought with more than a little pride.

Granted, someone else would be taking over her care before long, but Mara would be pleased with what Paige had done. Not that it had been hard. Sami was an incredibly easy baby. She ate and she slept. She took her shots with barely a peep and put up with the exercises Paige did morning and night. The amoeba infection she had come with had cleared itself up, and if there had been emotional problems, they were responding to love.

Wrapped in a large towel, Paige bent over the playpen. She reached in and stroked Sami's head. "That's kitty. Can you say it? Kit-ty.

Look at her play.... Oooops, she has your ball. Let's get it." Paige reached for the knobbed toy. She squeezed it into a squeak, then held it out for Sami to grab.

Sami stared at Paige.

"Here," Paige said. She rubbed the ball against Sami's hand. Sami looked down, studied the ball, cautiously put her hands on either side of it. "That's right," Paige encouraged.

"That's my girl."

She straightened and looked at Noah, who remained dead to the world.

So she dressed and dried her hair, then scooped Sami from the playpen.

Ths] eilence from the second floor told her that Jill was still asleep, which was nothing new. She was a typical teenager. Paige didn't have the heart to wake her until it was absolutely necessary.

Holding Sami on her hip, a shield against temptation, she came down on a knee on the bed and called a soft, "Noah? Wake up, Noah."

He breathed deeply in, deeply out.

"You can't sleep here," she sang. "I have impressionable children in this house."

Actually, Sami didn't seem impressed at all.

She was studying Noah the same way she had her stuffed dog, curiously but unattached.

"Noah?" Paige called more loudly, then gave a staccato, "Noah."

He drew in a breath and turned over.

She sighed, straightened, and said in a full voice, "Okay. Just until Sami and I have breakfast. Then you have to leave."

She shut the door tight with kitty inside and told Sami, "Let her pounce on him for a while.

He'll wake up."

But he didn't. Twenty minutes later he was sleeping as soundly as before. This time Paige shook his shoulder. "Noah?" She shook it again. "Wake up, Noah."

He made a disgruntled sound.

"Noah."

One eye came open. Paige saw no sign of recognition in it.

"You have to get up, Noah. You can't sleep here. Jill will be waking up soon, and a representative 226 l from the adoption agency is coming by. The last thing I need is for either of them to see you."

He stared at her for another minute. "Paige?"

She rolled her eyes.

He looked around in confusion, until understanding slowly came. Then he made a tired sound.

"Look," she said, and one part of her wasn't lying, "I'd like to let you sleep here, but this is a really bad time. The rain has let up.

You can run on back to Mount Court."

He had both eyes open now, focused on her in a muzzy way. "How long have you been up?" he asked.

"A while now."

"You look great."

She didn't want his compliments. They were too potent at a time when she had other things on her mind. "You have to leave, Noah."

"Did I tell you about the trip?" he asked without raising his head from the pillow.

She nodded. "I'm glad it worked out well, given that half of my team missed practice yesterday. So now who's the stickler for discipline?"

ill was taking your advice and being flexible." He shifted under the covers. "Your bed feels great."

"You shouldn't be here."

"Did you get your period?"

She nodded.

"Thanks for telling me."

"It happened just this morning."