moments ago. He walked at her side, his hands in his pockets, a troubled expression on his face. Nic twirled the rose stem nervously with her fingers. “This is the high school wing.”
“Okay.” He didn’t bother glancing around.
In the dim light of the hallway outside of the biology lab, shadows accentuated the hard angles of his face. He had a fallen-angel look about him, and his declaration on Christmas Eve flitted through her mind. I’m feeling like the damned devil himself.
Nic drew in a lungful of formaldehyde-scented air and felt a little nauseated, so she continued to lead him up the hall and into another wing of the school until he paused in front of a bulletin board decorated with colored chalk drawings of Hummingbird Lake. He studied the students’ drawings for a few moments before saying, “I took a snowmobile out yesterday. Went up into the back country and eventually ended up at a spot that overlooked Eternity Springs.”
He fell silent then, and after a long moment, Nic felt compelled to speak just to fill the void. “You had perfect weather. Bet it was gorgeous.”
He nodded. “Six months ago I wouldn’t have seen it. Shoot, six months ago I might have juked the gas and driven the snowmobile right off the edge of the cliff. Yesterday it was different. I was different. I could see the beauty in the blue sky and the sunshine and the pristine snow. Eternity Springs looked like one of those Victorian villages that department stores sell at Christmastime.”
He turned his head and his solemn, brown-eyed gaze held hers. “This town has been good for me.”
She wanted to ask, Even considering the consequences? Instead, she kept it neutral by saying, “I think Celeste is on to something about the healing energy in our valley.”
Gabe shook his head. “See, that’s the thing. Being better and being healed are two different animals. That’s basically where I’m at.”
He stuck his hands in his pockets and resumed walking. “For you to understand my position, I’m going to have to talk about myself. I really hate to do that.”
“I noticed,” she commented dryly.
His mouth quirked. “I have told you a little. You do know I have baggage. What you don’t know is that it’s enough to fill a container ship.”
Nic had to bite her tongue to keep from telling him to just get over it. A whole cruise ship full of baggage didn’t change the fact that they were having a child together. Their child’s needs had to come first—baggage be hanged.
Choosing her words judiciously, she replied, “Everyone has baggage. Personally, I have a matched set. With pink pompoms tied around the handles.”
They reached the end of the high school wing, and she turned toward the small lounge area in front of the cafeteria and school offices. Nerves were making her knees a bit shaky; she might need to sit down.
He paused in front of another bulletin board, this one decorated with third-graders’ Valentine-themed artwork. “The cold air cleared my senses, and I was able to think clearly. I was able to figure out what I can offer you, Nic. And what I can’t. You’ll have to decide if it’s enough for you. Is there somewhere we could sit down?”
Just say it already, she wanted to scream. The tension was driving her nuts.
When his gaze focused on her hands and his mouth twisted, she glanced down to see that she’d mangled the flower. Lovely. “Follow me.”
She led them to the lounge, where she took a seat in an armchair. She watched him pace the lounge and waited for him to speak. It seemed to take forever, but he finally took a seat in the chair opposite her and said, “So here’s the deal. I think we should get married.”
Nic narrowed her eyes. “Have you been talking with Celeste?”
“Um, no,” he warily replied. “Not since you dropped your bombshell. Why?”
“It doesn’t matter. Never mind.” Now Nic was the one who stood up and paced.
“Explain something to me. If you’re not willing to be a father, what good does it do for you to become a husband?”
“Because it’s the right thing to do. I’m the baby’s father whether or not I ever become his daddy. I have a responsibility to him. He’s an innocent in all of this—the only innocent, really. We have some time, Nic. Seven and a half months of pregnancy, then another chunk of months before I could cause him any real damage by bowing out.”