The Pregnancy Project. Victoria Pade

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      “You’re a dog lover,” she guessed.

      He shrugged as he unlocked and opened his town house door, reaching in to flip on a light, then motioning her inside. “I’ve never had a pet of any kind before this,” he said as he came in after her and closed the door behind them.

      “And you still kept Champ and did all that for her?” Ella marveled.

      “What was I going to do? Put her back in the gutter to die?”

      That snide statement was more like what Ella expected from Jacob Weber. As was the curt “I’ll only be a minute” that came next.

      But for the first time she didn’t take him or his surliness as seriously as she had before. How could she when, as he turned to go into what appeared to be the living room, he reached into his pocket and extracted the tiny dog to hold up to his face and say in a tender voice, “Okay little girl, outside to do your business and then I’ll have to put you in the crate for a while. Don’t worry, I promise it won’t be long.”

      Then he lowered the puppy to hold to his chest just as they both disappeared from her view.

      Maybe you’re not such a hard-nose after all, Ella thought.

      Of course despite his treatment of Champ, Jacob Weber had still left her standing in the entryway rather than offering her a seat in the living room. Which would have been the polite thing to do.

      But at that point Ella merely shook her head and remained where she was.

      Well, almost.

      It was just that the longer she stood there in the narrow entrance with nothing but a steep set of stairs rising up in front of her to study, she became curious about what his place actually looked like. And what it might say about him.

      She wasn’t brave enough to do any actual snooping, but she did slide a few feet to where the entry merged with the living room, leaning enough to her left to peek into that other section of his house.

      She was glad that there weren’t any signs of the doctor by then and she assumed he’d gone through the living room into the kitchen that was visible at the other end, at the rear of the town house. But given that brief opportunity, she did take stock of the living room from where she was.

      Not that there was much to take stock of.

      What little furniture decorated the space appeared expensive and tasteful but there was definitely not much of it. An elaborate oak entertainment center on one wall sported a big-screen plasma television and an impressive stereo system. Directly across from that sat an exquisite overstuffed black leather sofa with a floor lamp to one side and an oak coffee table in front. And that was it. There were no pictures on the walls, no plants to warm up the place, and no other seating. And while the sofa was large enough for more than one person, the room still seemed to be a one-man setup that didn’t welcome company.

      It made Ella wonder if that was Jacob Weber’s own goal—to keep himself removed—or if his off-putting disposition had simply forced him into the role of loner.

      The doctor had apparently gone out the back door with the dog because just then Ella heard it open, and the sound of him saying something she couldn’t make out gave her fair warning of his return.

      She hurriedly straightened up again and sidled to her original position.

      He came as far as the living room where she could again hear what he said as he informed Champ that she had her pillow, blanket, bear and monkey to keep her company, instructing her to nap while he was gone and promising treats when he got back.

      It was sweet. Maybe more sweet because it was coming from a man who otherwise appeared to be tough as nails, but sweet enough nonetheless to raise Ella’s curiosity once again, this time over what exactly lurked behind the man’s brusque exterior.

      More sounds let her know that he was putting Champ in her crate and within moments of that Jacob Weber was back in the entry with her.

      “Is Champ all tucked in for the night?” she asked, pretending she hadn’t been privy to any of the doctor’s exchange with his pet.

      “Not for the night, no. But for the time being, anyway.” He raised a big, thick wrist to check the paper-thin watch there and added, “We need to get going.”

      Ella nodded her agreement, realizing that while Champ may have somehow wormed her way into the doctor’s affections and weakened his defenses, talking about Champ didn’t soften his demeanor at all.

      Maybe nothing did, Ella thought as they left the town house.

      Well, fine. If he wanted to keep things purely professional, she’d stop trying to make it anything else and wait for him to begin her orientation.

      Which was actually what he did as they set off in the balmy early-September evening to walk down the street toward the shops that lined the next block.

      “The study begins Monday evening,” he said without preamble. “Although I won’t be there—”

      “You won’t?” Ella heard herself ask before she’d considered the wisdom—or lack of wisdom—in it. And before she’d had any idea that it would come out in a tone of voice that had a slightly disappointed ring to it. To go along with the disappointed feeling she also discovered in herself…much to her own amazement.

      “I’ll be there the rest of the time,” he was quick to assure her, obviously having caught the tone.

      Desperate for damage control, Ella said, “It’s just that… I don’t know… I guess I thought that since it’s your study and your office—”

      “It is my study and my office but in essence it will be Dr. Schwartz treating you during this initial phase. My being there at all is really just a courtesy. But I will be there. Every night after Monday night.”

      Ella thought she’d successfully made him believe she’d merely had a moment of patient insecurity, because he continued with what he’d been explaining, only now his voice had a more comforting note to it. “Even though I won’t be there Monday night, Marta will be. She’ll introduce you to everyone. And Kim Schwartz is not intimidating at all—she’s not even five feet tall, weighs about eighty pounds and is very soft-spoken. Very cordial and friendly.”

      “Good,” Ella said, trying to encourage his impression while tamping down on what was really going on with her. Whatever that was…

      They left the row of town houses and stopped at the corner. As he watched for a break in the cars coming through the intersection, Ella looked ahead at what awaited them on the other side.

      They were in an older area of Boston that had been remodeled and updated to attract new residents and businesses. It had been a success because the town houses on either side of the doctor’s were occupied and so were all of the storefronts on the next block.

      Ella could see a bakery, a bicycle repair shop, a coffee shop, a bookstore, a pizza parlor, a costume shop, and several other small establishments, including their destination at the opposite corner where a neon sign jutting out from the building announced Chicago-Style Hot Dogs.

      When they could finally cross, Jacob Weber picked up where СКАЧАТЬ