His Very Own Baby. Rebecca Winters

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СКАЧАТЬ me know who I am.”

      His withering look sent her to the door.

      So far she hadn’t broken down, but if she remained another few seconds, the tears would gush and there wouldn’t be any way to stop them.

      “What you do with the information is up to you, Alik. I’m staying at the Bluebird Inn in Warwick until checkout time at eleven tomorrow morning. I—If you want to see your little boy,” she stammered, “I’ll wait for you that long.”

      After shutting the door quietly, she dashed to her rental car, but couldn’t escape a good soaking by the rain. She didn’t expect Alik to come after her, but some habits died hard as she watched for him through the rearview mirror until the trailer disappeared from her sight.

      Fear had warred with excitement over seeing him again. The tension had made her body so twitchy, her foot wouldn’t stay on the pedal. She took a deep breath and willed herself to calm down.

      You did it, Blaire. You told him the truth. No matter if you were taking an enormous risk, it was the honorable thing to do. Now it’s done.

      By the time she reached the outskirts of Warwick, the rain had turned to drizzle. She lowered the speed of the windshield wipers. At least she could see better than before.

      Yesterday she’d left San Diego under sunny skies. Only a mission as vital as this could have forced her to fly a second time to New York where she’d experienced the greatest pain of her life.

      She hated it here, and couldn’t wait to get back to California with her darling baby. As soon as she reached the hotel, she would confirm her reservation for the return trip home tomorrow afternoon.

      Finally the Bluebird Inn came into view. Anxious to hold Nicky and make sure he was all right, she pulled around the back and entered through a door located close to her hotel room on the second floor.

      It hadn’t been easy to leave him with a complete stranger, but the manager of the Inn had assured her the baby-sitter was a retired registered nurse with impeccable credentials. There’d never been one complaint about her in the three years she’d worked for them.

      Though it had frightened her, Blaire had been forced to trust the older woman with her most priceless possession. The visit to the site had only required that Blaire be gone two hours at the most, but it had still been a hard thing to do when she’d never been separated from Nicky before.

      For several reasons, she realized it wouldn’t have been fair to spring the baby on Alik from out of the blue.

      Certainly she hadn’t wanted to arouse any suspicion in the students and staff at the site. But more importantly, Alik needed time to absorb the earth-shaking news that he had fathered a son. Only time would tell if his hatred of her overshadowed the desire to see the child of his own flesh.

      Alik was a man of strong passions and convictions. He was also one of the most honorable men she’d ever known. No matter how bitter his feelings toward her, he wouldn’t have received the news she’d just given him lightly.

      But they hadn’t been together in almost a year. Since she’d broken their engagement, there would have been many changes in the interim. For one thing, he wasn’t on the university guest lecture circuit.

      At this point in time she knew nothing about the nature of his present project, let alone his state of mind.

      Unbearable as she found the idea, he might be in a serious relationship with another woman. Even married, a tiny voice whispered.

      If he had a wife, Blaire couldn’t begin to imagine how news of a baby from a former relationship would affect him or his marriage.

      The more she went over the imponderables in her heart, the more she knew she’d done the right thing by preparing him first.

      And if he didn’t come to see his son?

      Her hand went to her throat.

      If he didn’t come, then it meant that after weighing everything very carefully, he’d decided that never setting eyes on his tiny offspring was for the best. If that were the case, she’d already made up her mind never to question that decision.

      The most important thing was, she’d given him the opportunity to know of Nicky’s existence, and could leave with a clear conscience. Tomorrow she would board the plane with her baby, having said a final farewell to the past.

      Nicky was the love of her life now, her future. He would be the constant reminder of Alik and the great love they’d once shared. She would devote every waking moment to being the best mother a child could ever have.

      She tapped on the hotel room door before unlocking it so as not to alarm the sitter. To her relief, she found the woman sitting in a chair holding the baby against her shoulder.

      “Mrs. Wood? How’s Nicky? Has he cried for his bottle?”

      The older woman smiled. “He barely woke up and has been a perfect little gentleman. Such a sweet nature for a big boy. I was hoping you would be gone longer. There’s nothing like a newborn, especially this one. With his dark curly hair and beautiful olive skin, his father must be as handsome as blazes.”

      Blaire cleared her throat. “He is.”

      “Makes me baby hungry for more grandchildren.”

      “I can’t thank you enough.”

      “Say no more. I know exactly how you feel. When it’s your first child, you’re almost afraid to breathe, let alone be out of its sight.”

      “Am I that transparent?”

      She chuckled as she handed the baby to Blaire. “A new mother with her baby is a wonderful thing to behold. I’m glad I could be of help.”

      “So am I.”

      Blaire took fifty dollars from her purse and pressed it in the woman’s hand.

      “Oh, no, my dear. That’s twenty too much.”

      “If it hadn’t been absolutely necessary, I would never have left my baby at all. To know you were watching after him settled my mind a great deal. Please keep it with my heartfelt thanks.”

      “Thank you.” She patted Blaire’s arm, then gave the baby a kiss on the top of his head before leaving the room.

      After locking the door, Blaire rocked Nicky in her arms. “Oh, you feel good. Have you missed me as much as I missed you?” She covered his face with kisses.

      “I bet by the time I order an early lunch and it’s delivered to the room, you’ll be hungry for your bottle. Come with mommy.”

      She walked over to the phone at the bedside table and called for a meal to be sent up. Since boarding the plane yesterday she’d had no appetite. But now that the miracle had happened and she’d found Alik, talked to him, she was hungry.

      While she waited for the food to arrive, she gave Nicky a sponge bath and dressed him in his blue stretchy suit with feet. By now he was making sounds that he was hungry for his next feeding.

      Thank heaven for prepared formula she could СКАЧАТЬ