Page 36 of Love is a Drum Beat
“You hold yourself so separate from the rest of us in the group, but at the same time, I see you talking to the other guys and—dare I say—smiling. I always figured I was the problem, that I was too much to handle.” He wouldn’t have been the first person to say that.
Her dad.
Blake.
Most of the people on her tours.
“I’m sarcastic,” she continued. “Sometimes, I say mean things without meaning to.” She fingered the ends of her hair. “I’m a little out there. And the kicker? I’m having a baby with a detestable human being. I always understood why you didn’t talk to me. That made sense in my messed-up world. But now, I can’t understand you at all.”
He looked down at her hand, still holding his.
Jo wanted him to say something, anything. To explain why he’d let her come stay here or why he’d punched Blake.
“I…” he started, unable to finish his sentence. He cleared his throat. “You’re intimidating.”
She frowned at that. “Dax, you’re more famous than all the rest of us combined. I mean, look at this house—or the jets you hire instead of flying commercial. Your life is huge. I’m the one who lives alone in an apartment and has been hiding for months. I’m the one the world now knows got preggers on a one-night stand.”
He reached out with his free hand and grabbed her arm. Their gazes clashed, neither looking away. “Don’t be ashamed of this baby. Not ever.”
There was so much sincerity in his voice it made Jo’s eyes tear up. She blinked the emotion away. “I’m not. At least, I don’t want to be.”
“It doesn’t matter how your son was created, Jo. It doesn’t even matter that you can’t reveal Blake’s name to the press. Not really. This baby is yours, he’s a part of you. All that matters is if you love him.”
She rested a hand on her belly. “I do. I love him so much, and I haven’t even met him. I’m not used to loving people. It’s a bit terrifying, isn’t it?”
Some look she couldn’t decipher shone in his eyes. “Yes, terrifying is one word for it.”
“Can I ask you a question?”
He nodded.
“How did it feel punching Blake?”
He laughed at that before his smile faded. “He had it coming.”
“Yes, but I expected it to be Noah or even Drew.”
“I had my reasons.” He broke their eye contact. “I won’t let him hurt you anymore.”
She wanted to ask why, to know what made Dax want to be her knight in shining armor. If anyone had asked her months ago, she’d have said she didn’t need a knight, that she could take care of herself.
But with Dax sitting beside her, she realized it felt good to have someone want to be there for her, it felt good to let him.
“Do you…” She swallowed. “Do you want to feel the baby?”
His eyes widened as they shifted from her face to her stomach.
She winced as the baby kicked in agreement. Well, she assumed it was in agreement. “Come on.” She removed the peas from his knuckles and put his hand on the side of her belly.
For a long moment, nothing happened.
And then, her baby kicked a hello.
A smile curved her lips. “Do you know Morse code? Because I think he’s trying to tell me something.”
The tension on Dax’s face cracked, revealing a small smile. “He’s not kicking in Morse code, Jo.”
“How do you know?” She dropped her voice. “Don’t listen to him, alien baby.”
