The Boy Toy - Nicola Marsh Page 0,72
bit down on her bottom lip. “Considering the brevity of our relationship, I should’ve expected it. We barely know each other, we live on different continents, I guess it’s only natural.”
She was letting him off lightly, and they both knew it. “Shall we go have lunch and talk about our baby?”
Her eyes sparked when he said “our baby,” and he smiled. “I may have been an idiot when I first heard the news, but I’d like to make amends if you’ll let me.”
“Let’s go,” she said, slipping her hand into his. But as she fell into step beside him, he saw her cast a longing glance down the corridor toward Pia’s office.
That was one problem he couldn’t fix, but he hoped these two amazing women resolved their differences soon.
* * *
* * *
It didn’t surprise him that neither of them were hungry and ordered coffees instead.
They had a lot to talk about.
“I’ve got something for you.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out the rattle, which he’d polished to gleaming. “It used to be mine.”
He placed it on the table between them, where it shone in the café’s muted downlights. “It’s an apology of sorts, because I’m not proud of the way I reacted when I first heard the news.” He nudged it toward her. “I don’t know the history behind the rattle, but it looks ancient, and it’ll be nice for the baby to have something of mine.”
He wondered if she’d understand the questions he was hedging around: Would she return to Melbourne permanently? Would he have a chance to parent his child?
Her eyes sparked with understanding. Smart woman. “I haven’t made any decisions regarding where I’ll live after the baby is born.”
She picked up the rattle and shook it, eliciting a soft tinkle. “And this is beautiful. Thank you.” Heat suffused her cheeks. “It means a lot to have your support.”
“Not that I’ll be any good for the next few weeks. I’m on location in north Queensland, scouting things out for when filming commences.”
“That’s fine. I don’t have any tests or anything scheduled, just my first appointment with an ob-gyn.” She hesitated, and he glimpsed uncertainty in her eyes. “Exactly how involved do you want to be? Do you want to come to appointments like that? To ultrasounds? And because of my age I’ll probably need to have an amnio. Then there’s pre-natal classes . . .”
She huffed out a breath. “I’m exhausted already.”
He chuckled and reached out to snag her hand. “I’ll be as involved as you want me to be. No pressure. Whatever you want.”
She nodded, her lips curved in gratitude. “Let’s just play it by ear, okay?”
Whatever that meant. The enormity of the situation, that he’d be helping support a child with little money and no clue, meant he should be glad she wasn’t pressuring him. But he’d always liked clear-cut guidelines: for refining his speech, for dealing with his father, for everything.
So he blurted what he’d been contemplating the last few hours before their meeting.
“We should get married.”
Her eyebrows rose above wide eyes before she laughed. “Well, that’s just about the most romantic proposal I’ve ever heard.”
Rueful, he swiped a hand over his face. “We should. It’s the right thing to do for the baby.”
She leaned over and tapped the side of his head with her finger. “Hey, you in there. This isn’t the fifties. It’s no big deal to have a baby without the parents being married.”
He grinned and swatted away her finger. “I know, but I grew up without a mom. Wouldn’t it be nice for our kid to have us together?”
The amusement in her eyes faded, and she slid her hand out from his. “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have made light of your proposal. That must’ve been hard growing up without her.”
She didn’t know the half of it. But now wasn’t the time to tell her about his dysfunctional upbringing.
“It was, but that’s not the only reason I proposed.”
“Yeah?”
He nodded. “I like you. We’re good together. Our kid will be lucky to have parents like us.”
The corners of her mouth curved into the smile that kicked him in the chest every time. “Again, not the most romantic proposal.”
When he opened his mouth to respond, she held up her hand. “You’re a great guy, but I’ve already got one marriage under my belt. I’m not going to enter into another for the wrong reasons.”
It made sense, and relief filtered through him. He didn’t want to get hitched, not really. But among