Page 22 of The Bride's Desire

He saw that her closet was in disarray, which was unlike her, and a few drawers were opened.

“Are you looking for something?”

“Why would you say that?” she asked.

“Because you’re usually a neat freak.”

She inhaled and looked around. “I was just organizing.”

He watched the different emotions cross her face, and every one of them scared him. He could tell he was losing her, and he didn’t know how to fix it. He decided to wait until his mother came. He hoped she’d be able to get them on the right track again.

“Okay, I’m going to head out. I’ll be in for dinner,” he said.

Naomi nodded.

“If you need me, just call down to the barn.”

“I will.”

He turned and walked off, trying to keep his frustration at a calm level before he raised his voice or said something else that hurt her feelings. He didn’t want to do any more damage than he already had.

The next few hours crawled as he waited for his mother to drive up. He wanted things good between them again. Finding out that Naomi thought he didn’t want her flabbergasted him. She had to have caught him staring at her.

He relaxed when he saw the dust from a vehicle driving up to the house.

Good. His mother would help him because she wanted this to work out as much as he did, and he didn’t think she’d let the woman go without a fight.

Chapter Thirteen

Naomi watched the door close behind him and unsteadily walked to the bed and sat. She pressed her face to her hands and wept. What was she going to do? She knew she had to leave, but she didn’t want him to think she was taking his baby. First, she had to make sure she was pregnant.

She lifted her head and stared at the test on her bathroom counter. After a minute, she stood, opened the box, and read the directions. It seemed straightforward, and peeing on the stick was easy. The hard part was waiting for the results. She glanced at it to see if there was a change, even though she didn’t give it enough time. She didn’t have to wait. There were two bold lines indicating she was pregnant.

Without thinking, she dropped down on the toilet lid and took several deep breaths. Her heart was pounding in her chest, and black spots appeared in her eyes, making her dizzy. She needed to stay calm because she only had to take care of them both, and she had to be strong.

The slight hope kept creeping over her that he’d want her to stay and then be a family. They really hadn’t spent any free time together. He worked long hours and usually came in exhausted. She knew all he wanted to do was crash, but just about every night, Joe went to his office to do paperwork.

God, a thought just clicked in her head. Maybe he was pretending to do work so he didn’t have to be around her. It just kept getting worse and worse. She hated that she was making him uncomfortable and decided she’d go sooner rather than later.

She would plan to come out once a week to clean and make meals for him, so he didn’t have to worry about that. She thought about finding another housekeeper for him but decided to wait.

After the baby came, she’d wait for him to see it. She would bring it out anytime he wanted to see it. There was no way she’d ever keep his child from him.

Naomi waited a few minutes before heading downstairs and into the office. She needed to take some time to find a place close to the ranch and an OB/GYN in the area.

After an hour, her back started to ache, but she pushed herself to finish so she didn’t have to worry. There were no houses in the area but a few apartments. She could deal with that until a house came up for sale. A car dealership was close, so she wouldn’t have to depend on anyone else.

Now, to find a doctor close to town. At the moment, all she could see was a male doctor, and from what she’d read about him, he was very old and about ready to retire. The article said he planned to stay until they found someone to take his place, unless he became ill or too weak to continue.

There was a possibility she’d have to live in the largest town close to the ranch until after the baby was born before moving closer. She’d do anything to protect the child. She wanted to be the mother she’d always dreamed of having when she was younger.

Naomi heard a car pull up and looked out the window. When she saw an older woman get out and hug Joe, she knew it was his mother. A sick feeling made her stomach queasy, so she turned off the computer and walked upstairs. She was already partially packed, so she finished and trudged downstairs. She set the bags to the side and waited. She heard the two in the office, and he raised his voice.

She hated that she’d made him angry. She’d done nothing but bring turmoil to his life, but today, she would fix it. No matter how much it hurt, she loved him enough to let him go.

Chapter Fourteen

Joe followed his mother into his office and closed the door. He cringed when she turned to him with that mother’s look of disappointment he always hated.

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