Page 14 of Just One More Affair
Inside, her stomach twisted but she nodded. “I’ll think about it.”
He placed a hand on her shoulder, and she felt his heated touch through the fabric of her top. Their gazes locked and awareness settled between them. In fact, she actually felt like the air crackled with static electricity, the sparks between them were so potent.
He stepped closer and tilted his head down, his intent clear, and she panicked.
“Don’t!” she exclaimed, unable to let him kiss her before he knew the truth.
Confusion wrinkled his brows. “What’s wrong?”
“I’m pregnant,” she blurted out, watching as his eyes opened wide and the implications of her statement dawned.
He stepped back, grasping onto the back of the nearest chair. “And it’s—”
“Yours.”
He sucked in a startled breath. A few seconds passed in silence as he processed what she’d said. He glanced at her still flat stomach in disbelief and tried to swallow though his throat had gone dry. “Holy shit.”
At least he hadn’t asked if she was certain he was the father. She didn’t think she could have handled that humiliation.
“I need to sit down,” he said, and she gestured to the sofa.
He lowered himself to the seat and she kept quiet, giving him the space she assumed he needed. With butterflies in her stomach, she waited for his reaction.
Chapter Six
Just when Jaredthought his life couldn’t get more complicated.He was going to be a father. He stared at nothing, trying to sort out his feelings. Was he startled? Yes. Worried about how his life was going to change? No doubt about it. Concerned about making time when work was so all-consuming? That, too.
But at his core he was a pragmatist. How else could he be living and breathing business, other than the basic reason? His family needed him to step up and he’d had no choice. But he was going to have to look deeper now because he wasn’t letting Charlotte go through this alone. He might be stunned but he knew the kind of man he was. He’d step up.
But whywerethey going through this to begin with? She’d said she had an IUD and she didn’t strike him as the type to lie. “So… I have to ask. How?”
She twisted her hands in front of her, not meeting his gaze. “Apparently my IUD failed because it was due to be changed. I thought I was covered. I honestly did. I mean, who does this… twice?” She gestured to her still flat stomach.
“Hey. Come sit.” He patted the cushion beside him.
She lowered herself onto the sofa, holding herself stiff and apart.
“Relax. I’m not angry. Surprised and in shock? Yeah. But you can breathe.” Reaching out, he rubbed her back in comforting circles and she expelled a long stream of air.
She finally met his gaze and in her eyes he saw warmth and gratitude. “How did I get this lucky… twice? Noah was a gentleman about it, and now you?” She shook her head in disbelief.
“Whatdidhappen with Noah?” He’d never thought to ask, and now that he had? He realized he was actually jealous of his brother-in-law because he’d been with Charlotte first.
“Well, we were both in Toronto, me at a conference, and we met in the airport while waiting for our flight home. A massive snowstorm came through and the airline put us up at a hotel. One thing led to another… We used a condom but… I won’t say we were unlucky because I love my girls.”
He really disliked hearing about her night with Noah, but he’d asked, so he set his jaw and continued to listen.
“It was just one of those things that happened. Once in a lifetime, at least that’s what I assumed at the time.” Her lips twisted in a wry smile. “But here we are.”
“Here we are. I hope you don’t mind me asking but were you and Noah ever… involved?”
Her light laughter filled the room. “No. We were tipsy, there was a brief attraction but we agreed from the beginning all either of us wanted to do was co-parent.”
He couldn’t deny being relieved. Then again, considering his sister and Noah’s relationship, and how much Fallon liked Charlotte, he’d never considered her an issue for either of them. He put those thoughts out of his head and focused on the present.
“Have you known you were pregnant for a while?” Because he’d known for five minutes and he was reeling.
She shook her head. “Not really. I took a test before I left the dig site and I planned on telling you when we were alone. I just had to find the right way to do it.”
