A Baby Between Them. C.J. Carmichael

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      “I suspected I was pregnant soon after the move.” Her breasts had been so tender and she’d been atypically tired; a drugstore kit had confirmed the news, all too easily.

      “And you never considered…termination?”

      “Why? Is that what you wish I’d done?”

      A light shifted in his eyes and he made a noise of reconciliation. “Sorry, I forgot. You were raised Catholic.”

      She’d told him so much about herself on that one night together. Far too much. They’d talked for hours, in between their lovemaking sessions. She’d felt as if she’d found her soul mate. He’d been so easy to confide in.

      Later, she’d been mortified to realize that she had been the one doing most of the talking. She’d wondered if he’d even been listening.

      Apparently he had. At least to some of her ramblings.

      He was right about the Catholic upbringing, at any rate. She rarely went to church anymore and her mother had been dead for years, but still those childhood teachings rang in Rae’s ears.

      So, no, abortion hadn’t been the right choice for her.

      “Has it been tough, Rae? Were you sick at the beginning?”

      “Yes, and I still get sick now, even though all the books say the nauseous stage is supposed to end after the first few months.” She turned her back to the railing and leaned against it. The wind in her hair was refreshing. What had possessed her to try baking a loaf of bread in this heat?

      “It’s no fun looking like a house, either,” she continued. “Or having to drink all that milk, which I hate, by the way. Lately, I’ve had the worst heartburn. And just this week my feet have become so swollen I can only squeeze them into one pair of sandals.”

      She saw him look down at her bare feet. In the past, she’d kept her toenails painted all the time—no matter what the season. But now they looked terrible. Even clipping them was difficult.

      “Basically, being pregnant is rough. Anyone who says they like it must be crazy.”

      Aidan listened to all her complaints without saying a word and she wondered what he was thinking. Was he judging her—and finding her lacking? There had to be something wrong with a woman who didn’t like being pregnant and didn’t even want to keep her own baby. Maybe he’d sensed this deficiency in her all along. Perhaps that was why he’d exiled her to Pittsburgh.

      “Do Justine and Harrison know you’re pregnant?”

      His question surprised her, but she nodded. “Sure.” Harrison had made a trip to the Pittsburgh office a month ago and Justine and Autumn had come with him. It was shortly after that visit that Justine had called her with the offer to use this house for the month of August.

      Aidan rubbed his chin, thoughtfully. “So we were set up.”

      “What are you talking about?”

      “You told me Justine invited you to use this house, right?”

      “Yes.”

      “Well, Harrison extended the same invitation to me.”

      “He did?” She thought of the duffel bag Aidan had brought inside. It was big. Obviously, he wasn’t here for a weekend jaunt. “So…what are we going to do?”

      “Under the circumstances, we can’t stay under the same roof. Since you were here first, I’ll find lodgings elsewhere.”

      She stared at him, wondering why his oh-so-rational plan didn’t sound at all appealing to her. It must be the hormones scrambling her thinking.

      “I’ll be out of here as soon as possible, Rae.”

      “Good. The sooner, the better.”

      She tried to deliver her parting line with as much scorn as she could summon. Then she hurried inside, because damned if she didn’t feel as if she was about to cry.

      CHAPTER THREE

      AIDAN WATCHED RAE’S rushed exit from the patio. She was clearly upset and he knew he should follow her and try to calm her down.

      But he wasn’t in any shape to help anyone right now. He held up his right hand. Sure enough, it was trembling.

      Rae Cordell was pregnant with his baby.

      He could not believe it.

      His life plans had never involved getting married or having a child. Woman were too distracting. He’d learned that lesson at age sixteen, watching his friends make fools of themselves over Simone.

      He’d wanted none of it for himself. Women were great, as long as you kept the upper hand. If you found that power slipping away, the smart thing to do was to back away immediately and find someone safer.

      As he had backed away from Rae. Just one night together had been too much. He’d woken in a panic, knowing he’d made a terrible mistake. It wasn’t just that they worked together. He recognized something in Rae that he’d seen in Simone, too.

      Like Simone, Rae had a natural ability to command attention. Call it confidence or charisma, or whatever the hell you wanted. Rae wasn’t a performer like Simone, but she still had star quality.

      He’d wanted her the first time he’d met her. That on its own had signaled trouble, and so he’d tried to convince Harrison that the company didn’t need Rae Cordell. But Harrison was concerned about Aidan’s workload. He’d insisted they hang on to Rae, and so Aidan had been trapped. He’d done his best to keep one-on-one encounters with her to a minimum.

      But the Triumph merger had undone all his best intentions. Late nights, last-minute negotiations and an out-of-town meeting had all added up to an impossible situation. One he hadn’t been strong enough to resist.

      The morning after, he’d panicked. He’d slipped out of the hotel room without showering and caught an early flight to Seattle. Once back at the office, he’d immediately started working on damage control.

      All the while, he’d berated himself. Why had he slept with her in the first place? He’d gone against all his principles. And presuming Rae had the contraceptives covered had to be one of the dumbest moves he’d ever made. Next to the night his mother died…

      No. Don’t go there now.

      Aidan rubbed the back of his neck, wincing at the thought of what Rae must have gone through these past months. She’d already shared some of the physical indignities of pregnancy…but what about the emotional burden?

      Was she as blasé as she sounded about giving up the baby?

      And what about the situation at work? He’d bet she hadn’t told anyone who the father of the baby was. But he guessed someone had figured it out. Which meant the entire company knew by now.

      Everyone but him.

      How was it that he hadn’t heard СКАЧАТЬ