A Baby by Christmas. Linda Warren

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      “No, we’re starting with Mr. McCain, but I have appointments set up with the other men as well.”

      “I see.”

      Ms. Woods’s gaze centered on Jake. “Are you willing to take the test?”

      He rubbed his hands together. “Yes,” he replied, knowing this was hurting Elise, but he had to do it to ease his mind.

      Ms. Woods reached over and handed him a card. “That’s the name and address of a lab here in Waco. You can have it done first thing in the morning and—” she reached into her purse “—I’ll leave my card in case you have any questions.” She laid it on the table. “I work out of the Houston office, but I’ll be here until tomorrow to finalize the paperwork.”

      He fingered the card in his hand. “How long will it take before we have the results?”

      “A week or two, maybe more. Depends how busy they are.”

      “I see,” he said, studying the card. “I’d like it done as soon as possible.”

      Ms. Woods rose to her feet. “I’ll put a rush on it. Maybe that will help. If you’re not the father, I have to keep searching.”

      “What…what does he look like?” Jake asked, suddenly needing to know. He felt Elise stiffen beside him.

      “Actually, a lot like you. He has brown eyes and hair, and a smile that’ll steal your heart. He’s a well-mannered, adorable little boy. His grandmother raised him well.”

      Elise jumped up and ran to the bedroom.

      “I’m sorry if I’ve upset her,” Ms. Woods said.

      Jake got to his feet. Upset was a mild word for what they were about to go through. He’d never expected this and he damn well didn’t plan it. They had to face it, though. He was hoping they’d face it together, but he wasn’t sure.

      “I’ll call when I get the lab results,” Ms. Woods added, and Jake showed her to the door. Earlier he’d been feeling irritated. Now he was stunned and wondering how to explain this to Elise. He’d had sex with another woman, but that was years before he’d met her. If the boy was his, though, it wasn’t going to make a difference. Their marriage, such as it was, would be over. He knew that for a fact.

      ELISE PACED BACK AND FORTH in the bedroom, her movements agitated. A child. Jake could have a child—with another woman. No, she was going to have Jake’s baby. She ran her hand over her flat stomach. It could be conceived already—growing inside her. Jake couldn’t possibly have a child. It would ruin everything they’d planned. She’d waited and waited and…

      Jake stepped into the room and she swung around to confront him. “He can’t be yours. He can’t,” she cried desperately, not even recognizing her own voice.

      He shrugged. “I’m not sure.”

      A sob left her throat.

      “It wasn’t intentional. I met Sherry years ago.”

      “She was a drug addict.” Her words sounded more accusing than she’d intended.

      His jaw tightened and he picked up his socks from the floor. “I’m going to the farm. I’ll give you some time to cool off.”

      She bit her lip. “You can’t leave. We haven’t talked.”

      “Maybe tomorrow.”

      “You’re not coming back tonight?”

      “No, I need time to think.”

      She waved a hand. “So you’re just…leaving?”

      “Yes,” he replied woodenly.

      “That won’t help.”

      He watched her for a second. “As I said, we both need some time right now. You’re upset and I’m in a state of shock. I don’t want to say anything I’ll regret later.”

      “Fine,” she snapped, astounded by how much his words hurt her.

      He nodded and walked out.

      “Jake…Jake…don’t go.” But no one heard her plea. Painful silence echoed through her and she started to cry. The future was so bright and now… She caught sight of Derek’s picture. Derek wouldn’t hurt me like this…never. With Derek’s picture in her hand, she curled up on the bed. More tears followed.

      After a while, she wiped her eyes and sat up. What was wrong with her? She was overreacting—dramatically. The boy probably wasn’t even Jake’s and she’d spoken impulsively and selfishly. Now she’d have to spend the night alone. She stared at the photo in her arms. A picture wasn’t much company in the middle of the night and she’d gotten used to having Jake in her bed.

      Please don’t let the boy be Jake’s, she prayed.

      JAKE SLEPT IN HIS OWN BED for the first time in months, but it wasn’t the same. He kept reaching for Elise. She had a habit of snuggling into him, and then he’d wrap his arms around her. He could almost smell her perfume, her feminine scent. He got out of bed and went to the kitchen for a glass of milk and a banana. He sat at the table in his underwear and took a look around the room. Everything was new and shiny. Mistakenly thinking Elise would want to live here, he’d had the farmhouse completely redone. The house had belonged to his grandfather and had a wraparound porch and lots of mullioned windows for air circulation. But Jake had installed central air and heat years ago. Still, the house retained the ambience of older days. He’d painted it inside and out, put on a new roof and given it a makeover that included new appliances, enlarging the master bedroom and adding its own private bath. There’d been only one bathroom in the house and Jake had also installed a bath in the utility room. He put as much white as he could in the house because Elise liked it, but there was a lot of natural wood, which he kept. The result was very rustic with a modern touch. He’d done everything for Elise.

      He ran both hands over his face. They’d gotten married in such a hurry and it had seemed logical to live in Elise’s house because it was close to the university, as Elise had pointed out. Her days were full with teaching, and her summer schedule had already been planned with graduate students—he saw very little of her except at night. Of course, he was occupied harvesting a corn crop and watching over his planted cotton, too. Both their lives were so busy and they’d never talked about where they would eventually live. Was he crazy to think she’d ever come here?

      He’d certainly hoped that she would, because all he could see in his future was Elise and he knew he’d fallen…His whole body jerked as the thought ran through him like an electrical shock. In love with her. Love? What the hell did he know about love? Not a thing, he answered himself. He knew that it hurt and he was feeling a lot of that, plus a few other emotions that left a hollow ache in his belly, not to mention his heart. Was this love? How did it happen? And when?

      Maybe it was that first time he looked into her blue eyes or when he’d kissed her or made love to her. Made love? Oh, God, he was making love and she was having sex. He recognized the difference. Painfully.

      Somehow his СКАЧАТЬ