Page 26 of Solid Ground

“This is good coffee.”

I blink twice and give my head a little shake to wake myself out of the trance I seem to be in. “Oh. Yes. I love this place.”I’ve never been here before.

Her lips curve into a smile. It’s a lot warmer this time. “I can see why.”

My head spins. I’m not sure what just happened. And I’m not sure I like it. Isn’t this what I always wanted—to be free of any responsibility? I’ve walked away from my career, and that was the last thing left.

Zoe’s having my baby, and she’s happy for me to walk away too.

The thought of that sits heavy in my gut.

I’ve been sitting with her for maybe five minutes, and my whole world has been turned upside down, and not for the reasons I’d thought.

I need to make conversation—need her to stay talking with me so I can figure this out in my head. “So, what is it you do?”

Zoe’s eyebrows rise. “It’s a long story.”

“We can order more coffee.”

She chuckles and shakes her head. “I think I’ll just have this one, but I’m open to a juice or something afterward. I’m trying to cut back on caffeine.”

I lean forward. “Thebaby?”

Zoe nods and shrugs. “I don’t know if I can give it up completely, but I can be a bit of a coffee fiend, and that has to slow down. Thankfully, this coming year is a lot less stressful than the past few have been, so that shouldn’t be hard.”

“Why so?”

She bites her bottom lip. It’s not fair. I’ve spent the past few weeks thinking about this woman—talking myself out of contacting her—and now she’s here and making me hard all over again.

“The short version is that I work in tech. I created a dating app which I sold a couple of years ago and now I’m working out the rest of my contract with the company. The more they integrate it into their system, the less I have to do.”

I cock my head. “Really?”

Her lips curl into a bemused smile. “You seem surprised.”

Shrugging, I take a sip of coffee. “It’s just not a story I’d imagine anyone hears often. That’s brilliant.”

“Thank you. I thought at the end of the year I’d need to work out what to do with the rest of my life. Looks like the universe decided.” She lets out a sigh. “I’m not sure what’s coming, but I hope you know that the baby will be well looked after.”

My throat tightens. This is the weirdest conversation I think I’ve ever had. While this isn’t the first time I’ve dealt with the pregnancy talk, this is the first time I’m being left out of it.

I’m not sure I like it.

What the hell is happening to me?

“Zoe. I …” What do I want? Do I want to take responsibility? Do I want her? I mean, I’d take her home in a heartbeat—ifanything, seeing her dressed casually without a lick of makeup and her hair scraped back, is even better than the night we met.

She looks like … her.

Her blue eyes sparkle, and she tilts her head forward as if she’s waiting for me to continue.

“This is a lot to take in,” I finally continue. “I need a little time to process it and what it means.”

Zoe’s lips curl into a smile. “I can understand. It took me by surprise. I know we were careful.”

I nod.

She rises from the table. “Thank you for the coffee. You’ve got my number. Call me if you want to talk.”

---