Page 49 of Rematch
“You don’t need to apologize,” she said.
“Neither do you.”
They fell silent as Preston continued to hold her hand while they stared at their son together.
“Look what we made,” he whispered, grinning at her. His shock slowly started to recede, replaced by wonder and delight.
She returned his smile, though it looked forced.
“I guess we have a lot to talk about,” Chelsea said after several more minutes of simply admiring their son.
They had so much to talk about that Preston couldn’t begin to imagine where to start. Well, that wasn’t true. He knew exactly where to start. “I want to be a part of his life.”
A tear slid down Chelsea’s cheek. “I’m glad,” she said, her words not matching her emotions. “Honestly. I want you to be a part of his life, too. God,” she said, wiping her eyes with the tissue. “I don’t know why I’m crying.”
Preston squeezed her hand again. “We don’t know each other that well. We had one night together a year ago. It makes sense that might scare you.”
Her lower lip trembled. “It shouldn’t. I mean, I don’t regret that night at all, Preston. Not even now. That night with you gave me Lennon.”
“Us,” he interjected. “It gave us Lennon.”
She blinked rapidly, but it didn’t stop the tears from falling. “For so long, he’s been mine. From the moment I knew he was growing inside me, he’s been mine. Just mine.”
“I know that. But from now on, I’m asking that he be ours. I’ll be a good father to him, Chelsea.”
“Okay, yes. Of course yes. You want to spend time with him,” she said, more to herself than him.
He nodded, because that was exactly what they needed to talk about, and it was bound to be a tough conversation, especially if there was another man in the picture. Preston didn’t bring that up, waiting for her to mention it.
While they’d shared a powerful connection last year, it appeared there was someone else in her life now.
“I realize I’m asking you to share him with someone who’s little more than a stranger,” he started.
“You don’t feel like a stranger to me. You never did. It’s just…with him…” She lowered her head, her shoulders shaking slightly as she tried to pull herself together.
“I’m not going to take him away from you, Chelsea.” He sought for a way to reassure her.
“I know that. I know I’m overreacting.”
“I don’t think you are,” he said. “As I said—we don’t know each other that well.”
“He’s the most important person in my life,” she explained. “I would die for him.”
Preston looked down into Lennon’s now-sleeping face. “So would I.”
Chelsea stared at him, long and hard, and the tears slowly stopped. “You would, wouldn’t you?”
“I love him. I’ve known him all of ten minutes and I’m so in love with this baby, I can barely breathe.”
Chelsea started crying again, but this time they looked like happy tears. “That’s the most wonderful thing I’ve ever heard. I feel the same way.”
“We’ll figure this out, Chelsea. I promise. We’ll find a way to raise him together. Co-parenting.”
“I’d like that. Despite me falling apart—I’m blaming hormones—I have to admit it’s been tough. My parents help a lot, but I try not to impose on them too much.”
Preston wasn’t sure what to make of that. Where was the other man? Why wasn’t he helping her?
“I want to do everything right for him,” she continued, “but there are just so many hours in the day, and I spend the majority of them feeding him, bathing him, changing diapers, then trying to do the mundane stuff like laundry and sterilizing bottles while he’s napping. Mom helps a lot, but my dad works long hours, so I hate to ask him for help—even though he’d give it if I needed.”
