Her words, and the image they conjured up, nearly brought him to his knees.
A little girl. Or boy.
His daughter or son.
“When?” he asked in a voice that was still too harsh.
“I think I’m somewhere between twelve to fourteen weeks, so…fall.”
Jake had never marked time by anything other than business trips and vacations...and beatings when he was a kid. “Have you seen a doctor yet?” Again, the words were rough as he couldn't manage to temper the primitive instinct to claim her and the baby as his. Now.
Forever.
She looked surprised by his question. “I have an appointment for tomorrow.”
“Good,” he said, needing to get closer to her, her glow pulling him in the way it always had. Only he couldn’t remember how to fight it anymore. “I’m coming with you.”
“Wait.” She shook her head, took a step back from him, widening the gap he’d just been closing. “I didn’t just come here to tell you I’m pregnant. I also came to tell you that I don’t want anything from you. And that no one needs to know you’re the father.”
“Like hell.”
She looked shocked by his reaction. But despite her shock, she didn’t budge an inch, even as he continued to close the distance between them.
“Why are you saying that?” she asked. “I thought you’d be happy to hear that I don’t want anything from you. That way you can keep your free lifestyle.”
The word free twisted on her lips until it sounded like a curse.
“I’m not going to let you walk away, Sophie. And I’m not going to let you tell your family, your friends, that some random guy did this to you.” He pointed his index finger at his chest. “It was me.”
Sixty seconds ago, he’d been trying to get her to admit it wasn’t. But now the truth came out: He was desperate to claim this kid as his.
And her, too, a mocking voice in his head told him. Finally you can have everything you’ve ever wanted. Even though you don’t deserve any of it.
“I know you’ve probably forgotten what happened that night, but I haven’t.” Sophie’s frustration had morphed into full-on anger. It was another side to her that he’d never known existed. “You were gone as soon as you could sneak away, probably wishing for an escape hatch long before you actually left. We both know you have absolutely zero interest whatsoever in being with me. The fact that I’m pregnant doesn’t change any of that. For so long, I wanted you to notice me. To see me. And you did, for one night. But then I realized that even though I got what I thought I wanted, it didn’t mean anything.” She shook her head. “It was great sex, but I want more than lust. I want undying love. I want that look that Chase gave Chloe when he promised to be hers forever.”
He hated the way she was looking at him, with none of the hero worship, none of the undisguised admiration she used to have for him.
Jake had never felt like a hero. But in one person’s eyes, at least, he hadn’t been complete scum.
Until now.
Hurt spilled from every word she’d said. But he couldn’t deal with that now, not when there were more important things to settle. He’d never had a mother and would probably have been far better off if he hadn’t had a father, either. Kids weren’t supposed to have ever been in the cards for him, but since he was just starting to realize that he wasn’t in control of nearly as much as he liked to think he was, one thing was for sure.
He wasn’t going to let his kid miss out on having a mother and a father.
“Now that you’re having my kid, we’re getting married.”
Her mouth fell open. “Didn’t you hear anything I just said?”
Yes, he’d heard her. Every brave, courageous word intended to push him out of her life.
“We can be in Vegas in a couple of hours, just get it done.”
“I’m not going to marry you, Jake,” she said, and then with a confused shake of her head, “Of all the people in the world, I wouldn’t have expected this from you.”
How could she not understand that his upbringing was exactly why being a part of his child’s life would be so important to him? Just because she was pregnant with a kid he hadn’t planned on ever having didn’t change the fact that he wasn’t going to let that child grow up without knowing his father.
“You’re pregnant with my kid.” He reached for her, putting his hands on her shoulders before she could get any farther from him. This was his chance to finally claim everything he’d ever wanted. Not just Sophie, but a family. “My kid, Sophie. You can’t keep it from me.”
“No,” she said, tense beneath his grip, “I wouldn’t do that to you.”
“It’s exactly what you’re threatening.”
She shook her head, but she didn’t try to pull out of his arms. “I’m not. I swear I’m not. I’m just trying to let you off the hook.”
“Fuck being let off the hook.”
She flinched at his foul language and Jake nearly cursed again as the thought of losing Sophie already tore his guts to shreds. But losing his child too?
Not a chance.
Jake’s desperation to keep them both took precedence over everything else.
“One week.”
“What?”
“I want one week to convince you to marry me.”
“You seriously think you can convince me to marry you in seven days? You must be the most arrogant, self-absorbed—” She stopped mid-insult, clearly trying to regain control. She took a deep breath. “Look, if you want to be a part of your child’s life, I’m not going to keep him or her from you. But you and I both know we don’t have to get married to be involved parents. I don’t understand why you’re acting like this...or how you could possibly think I'm going to agree to your demands.”