The skin around Roxy’s eyes crinkled as she laughed. “Did they end up together in the end?”
It had been many years since I’d seen the movie, so I couldn’t remember, but as dumb as it sounded, I hoped so. Even far more bizarre, as we got up to leave, I kept thinking about what Katie had said more than once. That I would break Nick’s heart.
I scoffed at the notion, because seriously, but nevertheless, an odd sense of unease settled in the pit of my stomach. Once in the car, I pulled out my cell and typed out a text to Nick that I wasn’t sure he would be that thrilled about.
I told Roxy and Katie.
“You’re going to think it’s the most boring thing ever,” Nick said, after I asked him what he studied in college. “It actually is probably the most boring thing ever. Accounting.”
A startled laugh left me as I watched him. He was cooking me dinner.
That had been his response after I told him that I’d dropped the bomb on Roxy and Katie. He’d pretty much said, “Hey, I’m making you dinner tonight. Hope you like roasted chicken.”
I liked food in general, so I was excited.
I also liked Nick . . . in general, so this also excited me.
“That is boring,” I replied. “I never would’ve guessed it.”
“I’ve always had a knack for numbers. Seemed like the logical thing to do. I have a bachelor’s degree. Was thinking of taking online classes for an MBA— Wait,” Nick said as he paused, a serial-killer-sized knife in his hand. On the counter was a head of lettuce, a tomato, and a cucumber. “What are you doing?”
I was standing by the counter with my forearms pressed against my breasts. Apparently I’d forgotten I wasn’t alone. Slowly, I lowered my arms. “My . . . my breasts are tingly. Like really tingly. It’s kind of distracting.”
He placed the knife on the counter as his lashes dropped. “Yeah, it’s distracting.”
“Sorry?”
One side of his lips quirked up. “Do you need help with them? Because I volunteer if you need them inspected or rubbed or petted.”
“You are so helpful.” I grinned as I tucked a strand of hair back behind my ear.
He tilted his head to the side. “That’s me. Mr. Helpful. Willing to take one for the team, even if it means I have to touch them.”
“Real hardship for you.”
“You have no idea.” Nick went back to chopping away at the veggies. “Is that normal?”
“According to this one Web site I found, where it breaks down what to expect week by week. They’ve been sore, but today they just tingle.” I paused, leaning against the counter. “The baby is the size of a tadpole right now.”
He glanced up from what he was doing, his eyes bright. “That’s . . . tiny.”
“It’ll almost double in size by next week,” I told him, inhaling the yummy aroma of chicken and herbs. “I also have to pee a lot. Like I’m a nonstop waterfall.”
His brows lowered. “Thanks for letting me know about that.”
I folded my arms as I watched him shuffle the lettuce into a bowl. “I thought this was caring and sharing time.”
“Speaking of sharing time, I’ve gotten about five million texts from Reece and Jax.” He picked up the tomato and placed it on the carving board. “I’m pretty sure the moment you left Roxy this morning she got on the phone with Reece, who then called Jax.”
I cringed. “Um, sorry? I didn’t think about the fact she would tell Reece, which is a duh moment. I should’ve guessed that.”
“No need to apologize.” He carved up the tomato perfectly. “I’m actually glad you did say something. I don’t like keeping my friends in the dark. They’re pretty cool about it. Happy for me—for us.”
My breath did a funny thing, hitching in my throat. I remembered Roxy and Katie’s immediate reaction and I shoved those thoughts aside. Watching Nick finish the salad, I pressed my lips together. The knot was back, lodged in my chest. “I’m lucky,” I said, my voice barely above a whisper.
“Of course you are.” The tomato slices were scooped up and dumped in with the lettuce. “You were the honorary recipient of my very active sperm.”
I laughed as I turned sideways, blinking back the sudden wetness that had gathered in my eyes. Damn hormones. “Well, besides that, Nick.”
“Explain.” He started slicing the skin of the cucumber with expert ease, unlike me, who always ended up losing half the cucumber during this process.
Drawing in a shallow breath, I unfolded my arms. “You’re handling all of this so well. I’m lucky, because some guys . . . they would’ve been real assholes about it.”
“Well, some guys don’t need to be engaging in behaviors that can end in reproducing,” he commented dryly. “I’m not one of those guys.”
“True.” I watched him chop for a moment. “But I didn’t really know if you were going to be like that or not. No offense, but you’ve been so . . . so wonderful about everything—about me being pregnant, me telling Roxy and Katie, and dealing with your friends. So, I’m lucky.”
Sliding the diced cucumbers into the bowl, he walked around me, carrying the board and knife. He placed them in the sink and then turned around. Taking one step with those long legs of his, he was right in front of me. He lifted his arms, and his hands curved around my cheeks, tilting my head back so that our gaze met.
“I’m the lucky one,” he said, his eyes searching mine. “You didn’t make a decision about this baby without involving me. You didn’t take that choice away from me. And this is something I know you don’t know, but I never thought I’d have a child. Not because I didn’t want one, but because I just . . . I just never thought it would happen. I wasn’t screwing around when I said I didn’t do relationships, but with you—with this—this is different. Yeah, it was a big damn surprise.” His thumbs smoothed along the line of my jaw. “But there’s not a single part of me that doesn’t realize how lucky I am.”
I lowered my gaze, willing the stupid wetness to go away. “There you go again, being all great about this.”
“It really isn’t that hard to be this awesome,” he teased.
My lips curved up, and when I raised my gaze, I figured it was time to really figure out what we were doing, what both of us expected from this. “Can I ask you something?”
His gaze dropped to my mouth, and the tense, hungry look that settled into his features was hard to ignore. “You can do whatever you want.”
Reaching up, I wrapped my hands around his wrists. “Is it true that you haven’t hooked up with anyone since you met me?”
Those heated green eyes flew to mine. “I’m going to go out on a limb here and say Roxy’s been very chatty lately.”
“Actually, it was really Katie.”
“Girls,” he murmured, and then he laughed softly. “They’re right. I haven’t been with anyone since I’ve met you.”
The relief from earlier resurfaced. “Why?”
“Why?” His brows rose. “I don’t know.”
“You really don’t?”