Page 55 of Now That It's You
“In a way, yes. I went to the sperm bank, paid my fee, went home with the turkey baster and?—”
“Okay, I get it,” he said, not sure whether he was more annoyed or turned on by the picture she was painting.
Meg sighed. “I know we didn’t have legal contracts in place, and believe me, I regret that. But this is like the sperm donor’s family coming after the baby. Or not even the baby—more like the income the baby makes when it suddenly becomes a stockbroker and makes millions in spite of the fact that the sperm donor and his family scoffed at the baby and never believed he’d amount to anything and?—”
“Okay, Meg,” he said. “You’ve made your point.” Her words had touched a nerve, though he didn’t want to admit it. He felt something tearing him in two. Half of him wanted to prove loyalty to his brother, to make up for some of the shitty things between them over the years. But part of him knew what it felt like to be that damn baby. Or to produce a baby no one believed in or?—
Hell, he was getting lost in the damn metaphors, and maybe this whole conversation was pointless anyway. He raked his fingers through his hair, not sure where to go from here.
It was Meg who extended the olive branch first. “I’m sorry,” she said. “I wish things were different.”
“Me, too.”
“I want us to be friends again.”
Kyle felt his heart twist. “So do I.”
“How about we agree not to talk about this stuff? About the lawsuit or the cookbook or anything having to do with your family.”
“That seems like a tall order.”
She shrugged and shoved her hands in her back pockets, which gave her a softer, more approachable look. Not that Kyle should be approaching her. Not that way, at least.
“I’m willing to try,” she said.
“I’ll give it a shot.”
“Friends?”
“Friends,” he confirmed.
The silence between them stretched out for a good long while, making it clear the friendship thing was easier said than done. A clock jittered loudly in the corner, and Kyle wondered if he should just take Meg home. It was getting late, and it had been a helluva long day for both of them.
“Why did you ask me to bring the ring?”
Her voice startled him, and it took him a moment to figure out what the hell she was talking about. He’d almost forgotten, but it seemed like the perfect chance to move on to something more constructive. “I’ll show you,” he said, moving past her and into the hallway. He flipped the lights off in the gallery and heard her hustling behind him to catch up. She was only a foot or two behind, but he still gave a start when she touched his arm.
“Oops,” she murmured, clutching his shirt sleeve. “I have terrible night vision.”
“My fault—I should get lights in this hall.” He stopped walking and fished in his pocket. “Dammit, I left my phone in the studio.”
She laughed. “You’re going to call an electrician?”
“No, I was going to use it as a flashlight.”
“It’s okay, I can just hang on to you.”
She held tight to his sleeve, and Kyle looked down at the dark outline of her hand on his arm, conscious of how very close she was. It was too dark to see her face, but he could feel the heat from her body and it made his blood begin to simmer. A wisp of her hair floated on a current from the heat duct overhead, and Kyle fought the urge to tuck it behind her ear. What was it about being alone in the darkness with him that brought out the urge to do foolish things?
He heard her breathing beside him and felt the warmth of her fingers through the thin cotton of his shirt. It seemed unusually hot in the hallway, and the scent of flowers in her hair was making him dizzy enough to do something dumb.
Meg must have read his mind. “You’re thinking about that kiss in the closet, aren’t you?”
“How did you know?”
“Because so am I.” Her grip tightened on his arm.
“I haven’t stopped thinking about it all day.”
