Once Upon A Half-Time: A Secret Baby Romance (40 page)

“Hey, Linds. Go get my idiot brother. Tell him to buy me a sandwich from the cafeteria. I haven’t eaten all day.”

Lindsey was already texting Bryce. She didn’t watch where she was going and nearly bashed into me. She waved a hand.

“I’m making him take me to the craft store for more tissue paper. We’ll bring you a sandwich when we pick up the walking wounded over here.”

I didn’t answer, and I don’t think Lindsey was listening. Rick closed the door behind her.

God, I hated that ominous click almost as much as I loathed the buzzing florescent lights. It was the first time I was with a doctor
and
a friend for this discussion, but it didn’t make it any easier.

Rick sat. He pulled off his pager and set it on the counter.

“You’re pregnant?” His voice weakened, defeated and shocked.

Just how Nate would probably sound.

I nodded. “Yeah.”

“Who…” He answered that question easily. His jaw clenched. “Son of a…how far along are you?”

“About…eleven weeks.”

“
Eleven weeks
?”

The entire ER heard. I shushed him.

“How could you…you’ve known for two months and didn’t tell anyone? Does Nate know?”

It sounded crazier when he said it aloud.

“No.”

“Why?”

I pointed at the door. “Lindsey’s wedding? My parents’ divorce? It wasn’t the time to tell them.”

“I know they’re fucking self-absorbed, but Jesus, even they’ll notice you popping out a
baby
.”

At least the blood pressure cuff came off. I’d have popped the glass on that sucker.

I took a breath to calm myself, but that didn’t seem possible. Having a male best friend wasn’t always easy. He never tried to listen or understand. Rick always wanted to
fix
things.

Well, this was one thing he couldn’t fix.

“My family doesn’t need any more drama,” I said. “I was going to tell them after the wedding…once I hit the second trimester and the pregnancy wasn’t as risky. Then Lindsey would be normal again, Mom wouldn’t be worried about the party, and they wouldn’t stroke out when they heard the news.”

Rick crossed his arms. “And Nate?”

“…He doesn’t know yet.”

“When are you going to tell him?”

“I already tried. A couple weeks ago. But then he told me about this brewery he wanted to open in California. He was already scheduling visits to the property. I panicked. I didn’t want to take that dream away from him. So I waited, and I hoped I’d find a better moment to tell him.”

“You haven’t.”

“The timing’s always off.”

“How can it be
off
? The timing is
always
right for something this big.”

“
After
the wedding. When we can actually sit down and talk and figure things out without worrying about dress fittings and dances and caterers.”

“You’re making excuses.”

“I’m thinking objectively.”

“No, you’re hiding it. Please, tell me you’ve been to a doctor.”

“Of course I have—”

“Then why? Why haven’t you told anyone?”

“Because I’m
terrified
!”

I said it too loud and covered my mouth with my hands. I blinked away tears and cradled my belly instead, something I hadn’t really done, a simple comfort I couldn’t believe I denied myself.

“I’m scared, Rick.” My voice wavered. The rest of my body trembled too. “I’m really scared. I don’t know what Nate is going to say. I don’t know how my family is going to react. I don’t know what will happen because I…I want the baby. It’s scary, and I have no clue what I’m doing, but it’s like…me and the baby are in it together. I have this little buddy who is keeping me calm because I know I can’t get upset and risk hurting her. Or him. I have to be strong, and I’m doing the best I can.”

Rick rubbed his face. He took my good hand and nodded.

“Okay. I understand. It’s only three weeks until the wedding. You really want to keep it quiet until then?”

“Yes.”

“All right. We will.” He shook his head. “But Nate can handle it. He should hear it.”

“I know.” I nibbled on my lip. “I don’t want to keep it from him anymore. We’ve been getting…closer. Very close. I feel like there’s something between us—and don’t say I’m imagining it, and don’t say it’s because I’m pregnant and
want
there to be a spark. It’s real.” I lowered my gaze. “I’m afraid I’ll screw it up if I tell him about the baby.”

“He has a right to know.”

I nodded.

Rick exhaled. “Nate’s a commitment-phobe, but he’s not a total asshole. He’ll step up.”

But I didn’t want him to
step-up
. I wanted him to be there with me, every step of the way.

But Rick was right. He deserved to know. The only way I could make anything happen between us, to even have a chance at making
something
work, was if I revealed the truth.

“Okay,” I said. “I’ll talk to him.”

“When?”

I wasn’t working on anyone’s schedule but my own…or the baby’s. That little bugger woke me up every night at three AM to go to the bathroom and had me throw up at noon on the dot.

“I’ll tell him soon,” I said. “But I need you to keep quiet. You’re the only one who knows.”

He sighed, cleaning up and donning his gloves to start my stitches.

“You better name me godfather,” he said.

“You got it.”

I offered my hand and looked away as he got close with the needle. My cell rang the instant he pricked my skin. I glanced at the screen.

“It’s Lindsey,” I said. “If I don’t take this, she’ll freak.”

He shrugged. “Put it on speakerphone. I don’t want you moving. I haven’t done a stitch in years.”

“
What
?”

“Answer your sister.”

I didn’t get a chance to say hello. Lindsey freaked out, yelling so shrilly the tiny speakers popped.

“Mandy, you are not going to believe this! Great Aunt Mildred
died!
We’re so totally screwed!”

T
he emergency wedding
meeting began the instant Mandy and Lindsey returned from the hospital at eleven at night.

They hadn’t scrubbed the blood out of the living room carpet yet…or told me
why
it looked like the set of a slasher movie.

Why the fuck were they at the
hospital
?

“So, I busted my ass to get over here…” I tried to catch up. “I had to call my bartender on his day off to cover the pub because your great aunt died, and that means the wedding is…?”

“
Ruined
!” Lindsey curled into a ball on the couch. Bryce cradled her to his chest, and her mom stroked her hand. “It’s all
ruined
.”

It was the first time Lindsey cried any legitimate tears for her wedding. She wasn’t mourning any mis-printed invitations or off-beat dance moves. This crisis actually seemed to worry her.

And the family.

And Mandy.

Mandy shuffled from the couch and tried to put on a smile. “Tell you what. I’ll go make us some coffee, and we’ll brainstorm. We’ll figure it out.”

Lindsey sobbed into Bryce’s shoulder. Even he looked distressed.

What the hell was going on?

I followed Mandy to the kitchen, but I had forgotten how damn awkward she got around me when her family was close. She bumbled making the coffee and avoided looking directly at me.

God damn it. How many times did I have to fuck this girl before she dropped her guard? I’d do it as often as it took, but I wished she just meet me halfway
once
and act…

I didn’t even know how I wanted her to act. Calmer? Relaxed? Like she wasn’t so afraid of what she might say or how quickly her legs would spread so near me.

I was used to women presenting themselves to me tits or ass first. Every word out of their mouths was something fake and flirty, and that had been fine for one fun night. Mandy wasn’t like those cheap and easy dates. I knew the real her, the one who came out when we laid in a bed, embraced on the couch, or pleasured each other under the stars.

I liked
that
girl. What did I have to do to convince her to be that girl with me?

“What happened to your hand?” I asked.

Mandy measured out the coffee grounds. She peeked inside the pot, grimaced, and rushed the entire contraption to the sink for a good rinsing.

“Well…” She dared to look at me. I loved the little peek of those almond eyes. “I tried to help Lindsey with some crafts.”

“And?”

“I lost.”

“Lost what?”

She smirked. “Rick said I was lucky I didn’t lose the use of my thumb.”

“Jesus!”

I reached for her hand to check the bandage.

I didn’t know why I did it.

I had no idea what I expected.

I cradled her hand, savored its warmth, and I didn’t let her pull it from me.

Touching her jolted me more than the god-awful coffee she brewed. Her heat sliced through me just as sharp as whatever she used to take her finger nearly off.

Mandy’s eyes widened, but she pretended her breathing hadn’t shifted when I touched her.

It had.

So had mine.

This intimacy wasn’t something that happened to me. Ever. But I liked it. I liked that she caused it. And I liked that she denied feeling it too, if only because life offered me a new challenge.

It wasn’t enough to hear her groan my name or sleep with her cuddled against my chest. Mandy kept her distance from me because she knew how dangerous it was to let me close.

And she had no reason to worry.

In that simple touch of her hand, I was changed. I hated that she was hurt, and I hated even more that I wasn’t there to help her.

It wasn’t often that I wanted to be with a woman when we were both clothed, but for this goddess? In this moment?

I didn’t want to be anywhere else.

“Are you okay?” I asked.

“No.” She held my gaze. “But I will be. At some point. I hope.”

We weren’t talking about the cut. I didn’t like her hesitance. A surge of adrenaline raged through me.

God, this woman.

What made me so possessive of her? Why did I want to protect her? She had no reason to feel anxious or uncertain if I was there.

I’d never pretended to be a good man, but that just meant I got shit done that others couldn’t. If she was worried, if the wedding was stressing her, if this latest complication was going to make her sick again, I wasn’t putting up with it.

The problems with her family could wait until after she had a decent night’s sleep.

And after I tucked her in.

Twice.

I set my jaw. “How can I help?”

“Why do you want to help me?”

“Because you need it.”

“And you’re the one to give it?” She giggled, reaching into the cabinet for the coffee cups. “Thanks, Nate. But you’ll understand if I refuse.”

“No, I won’t.”

“Come on.” She tried to pull attitude with a hand on her hip. It only accentuated the gentle swell of her thigh. “You’re gonna joke about something cute. I’m going to get flustered. Then you’ll get all deep and sexy and say things that make me…
receptive
. And we’ll just end up where we left off.”

“And where’s that?” I shrugged. “Bed? What’s wrong with that?”

“Nothing, if this was simple.”

“And it’s not anymore.”

“I think you know it’s become way complicated.”

“So?”

“I don’t want either of us to get hurt,” she said. “I really, really don’t.”

“I’m not going to hurt you.”

She bit her lip. “I wish I could say the same.”

“You’re worried about
me
now?” I grinned. “What happened to all your fears about the future and plans and fairy tales?”

She let the coffee brew and leaned against the counter. For some reason, she seemed honest, genuine, and sincere.

And that made her even more secretive.

“I don’t think you’ll ever realize how much those nights meant to me,” she said. “I know they’re just your normal, run-of- the-mill one-night stands—”

“They weren’t.” I said it too harshly but didn’t apologize. “You gotta stop assuming I’m only after another night. I told you weeks ago…I don’t chase girls. I don’t do second nights. But with you? I never want the night to fucking end.”

“Nate—”

“I wanna wake up with you, take you again, and spend the day with you so you don’t run away and leave my bed empty.”

“We...really should get the coffee out to them. Lindsey’s upset.”

I blocked her path with an outstretched arm and edged her into the corner of the counters. She trapped herself willingly, but she didn’t look at me.

“You don’t believe me?” I asked.

She shook her head. “No, I believe you.”

“Then why do you shut down when I say our nights together were special? That I want
more
. That I’m chasing you because I’m goddamned crazy about you?”

“Are you?”

“I can’t get you out of my head. All I think about every minute of every day is the next time I’ll get to see you, hold you. And don’t pretend you aren’t thinking of me either.”

Her voice softened. “I am. A lot.”

“You know where I live. You have my number. You say the word, and I’m there.”

“It’s more than sex, Nate.”

“Yeah. It’s
you
.” I leaned close, surprised when she immediately kissed me. “I’ve never wanted someone as bad as I want you. You gotta tell me why.”

Her eyes timidly met mine, so dark and expressive. They went wide with surprise and…fear?

“
Why
what?” she asked.

“Why the only thing I can think about is kissing these lips. Or taking you under the stars. Or talking with you, no secrets, nothing hidden. I want you to trust me.”

“It’s not that I don’t trust you.” She rested her hands over my arms, tightening her fingers in my shirt. “I asked you once to give me space until the wedding.”

“Do you still want space?”

“No. But I need it.”

“Why?”

“Because I’m falling for you, Nate. And the only way I’ll catch myself is if—”

“You don’t have to catch yourself. I’ll grab you. I’ll keep you safe.” I edged closer to her. “Give me the chance.”

“I can’t…” Her palms flattened on my chest. She didn’t push me away. “Things are going to get crazy.”

“Why?”

“Because now that Great Aunt Mildred died, the family has to come in for the funeral.” She shrugged. “We have two hundred and fifty on the wedding guest list, third quarters of them are
our
family. They’re
all
from out of town.”

I didn’t get it, but Mandy had a bad habit of thinking a couple steps ahead of where her feet were hitting. She glanced at me.

“They’re all coming
now
. For the funeral this weekend,” she said. “They’re not able to take time off again in three weeks to come back for the wedding. We’ve lost over a hundred people from the guest list already.”

Shit.
Now
I understood. No wonder Lindsey was bawling in the other room.

“I mean, we have Bryce’s family.” She shrugged. “But God, I don’t want to know what happens if we put Mom in a room with Mr. Washington. And I know—you and Dad said not to worry, but…”

She wanted to edge away. I didn’t let her. Her hands warmed my chest so perfectly. How was this woman so soft and gentle in everything she did?

Mandy frowned. “I need space. I can’t manage my family and figure this out at the same time.”

“Why not? Let me help.”

Her voice wavered. She looked at me, her eyes a beautiful honey sweetness that glistened as she gnawed her kissable lip.

“We need to talk.
Really
talk, about a lot of things.”

I wasn’t going anywhere. “Then let’s talk.”

“Not here.”

“Yes, here.” I bumped my forehead against hers. “I’m serious, Mandy. If you think you’re walking out of this kitchen without agreeing to come home with me tonight…”

“Nate, what I have to say is important. And it’s not something we can just…it’s going to change everything. Especially how you feel about me.”

If she feared I’d bolt because she said she had feelings for me, she was wrong.

I never expected I’d find someone who tempted me to stick around, to talk, to get involved. I’d figured every other man who trapped himself was following convention, damned to a life of responsibilities and emotional servitude to a woman who’d control his life.

Jesus, I was wrong.

Mandy wasn’t a trap. If anything, I bound my own hands and handed her the rope.

“Nate, when I slept with you that first time…when we were together?” Mandy’s words trembled. “Something happened. And I really wish…no. That’s not it. I’m happy that it did, but I don’t know if you’ll…damn it. This is so hard.”

Fuck it. We’d talk later.

In that moment, I realized how I could solve all our problems.

I grabbed her, tugging her close for a victorious kiss. She melted into me, and the heat of her body pulsed right to my cock.

But I wasn’t fucking her tonight. We wouldn’t have the time.

I had an idea, and it would save the fucking day.

The wedding was in trouble, and Mandy was too preoccupied trying to fix it that she didn’t have time to sort through what she felt for me. That ended now.

I dragged her to the living room. Lindsey hadn’t stopped crying, Bryce rubbed his temples, and Sandra argued on the phone with another family member cancelling their rsvp.

They quieted when I faced them.

“Your family is going to be in town this weekend?” I asked.

Lindsey sniffled and nodded.

“And Bryce, your family is local?”

He nodded. “Yep.”

“Fine. Have the wedding this weekend.”

Mandy collapsed against the couch. “
What
?”

“We’ll do it this weekend. Everyone will be in the area. It’s supposed to be good weather. You can get married at my dad’s church, and we’ll have the reception outside in the pavilion. Everyone can be there, and we’ll get it done right.”

I expected Lindsey to freak. So did Mandy. No one was more surprised than her when Lindsey bounded to her feet, leapt before me, and wrapped me in a hug.

“Nate, you are a
genius!
”

Mandy squeaked. “No, he’s not!”

“We’ll have the wedding this weekend! The dresses are ready. The tuxes are altered. We can order tables and chairs and make more decorations. Christmas lights and candles!” She turned to Mandy. “Remember wedding scenario D? Outdoor Fairy Haven? It’s back on.”

Mandy collapsed in the easy chair. “Back on?”

“Call Dad. Tell him you need the rest of the week off.” Lindsey grinned at Bryce. “We’re going to get married
now
!”

Problem solved. I arched an eyebrow at Mandy.

There. It should’ve impressed her. She asked for help. I delivered.

That didn’t explain why she groaned and bolted to the bathroom. She really didn’t handle stress well, but it wouldn’t matter once the wedding was over.

I never felt this way about a woman before, and I wasn’t going to waste the opportunity. Nothing was going to change my feelings for Mandy.

Nothing.