“It happens. I can get a newborn baby for you, Carmen - if it means that much to you.”
She shook her head. “No. You don’t understand. I don’t want to raise an only child. I want four or five children, maybe more. Do you have any idea what it would be like to adopt that many children? What if the mother changed her mind? She has a right to, you know. I couldn’t stand to love a child and lose it.”
His hands balled into fists and the knuckles turned as white as the line around his lips. The dark eyes stood out like pockets of hot chocolate in his pale face. “So what are you saying? Hit the road?”
“No,” she gasped. “I don’t know what to say. I love you, but . . .”
“But I can’t make you happy,” he ground out. He turned away from her and swore bitterly, driving his fist into the milk bucket. It shot off the counter, hitting the block wall and bouncing off to roll across the floor and stop at Carmen’s feet.
She jumped back and stared the dent in its side. It was completely destroyed. She glanced at his hand, but if it was hurting, he didn’t seem to notice. He ran fingers through his hair and stared at her through tortured eyes.
She wanted to tell him that it didn’t matter, but it did. No wonder Katie had been so concerned. Katie knew a happy marriage with Alex was impossible. She wanted to strike out at someone - anyone, but there was no one to blame for this situation. There were some things that people simply took for granted. In a country filled with people aborting unwanted babies, how did this happen? How could God do this to them when all they wanted was to love each other and nurture their own children? Why were things always working out for other people? Katie was expecting a child now - Katie, who had trouble taking care of herself.
“All right,” Alex said in a voice near a whisper. “I want you to be happy. That’s more important to me than anything else. If you have to marry Josh to get that happiness. I wish you both the best of luck.”