Page 28 of His to Love
Chapter Thirteen
Patton
“I know you’re nervous, Alexa.” I reached over to take the hand she’d been twisting in her lap as we sat in the examination room, waiting for the obstetrician to come in. “It’s to be expected. This is your first real exam.”
“Are you sure you want to be here for this?” She gulped as she looked at me with wide eyes.
“I’ll stay right here by your side. Don’t worry, the doctor will drape you before checking your…” I struggled to find a word—other than vagina.
“Yeah, I know.” Her cheeks flooded with color. “I just mean that you don’t have to do anything you don’t want to do, Patton. I’m already asking for too much from you as it is. Going to all the boring doctor’s appointments is going above and beyond even that.”
“I want to be here with you.” I meant every word of that.
Having a fake marriage was turning out to be harder than I’d expected. It was extremely difficult for me to convey my feelings to her. I’d been able to hide my attraction to her during the day because work separated us most of the time. When we were home, there was dinner to cook and clean up and then we’d go our separate ways to our own bedrooms. But the attraction was still there, nonetheless.
“You’re a good man.” Her breasts rose and fell with a sigh.
“And you are a good woman.”
“Not really.” Her head dropped. “What I did was irresponsible.”
“The one irresponsible thing you’ve ever done,” I reminded her.
She chuckled, but it wasn’t a happy sound. “And I had to go and make it one of the worst things a person can be irresponsible about!” It was clear to see that she’d been beating herself up over getting pregnant.
So, I thought I would try to lighten her up a bit. “Well, I’m excited about becoming a father. Once we have the news from the doctor, we can tell your parents, and then we can start working on the nursery. I’ve got tons of ideas that I want to work with you on.”
Her eyes lit up. “You mean, you and I will work together on the nursery?”
How can she think that I’d leave her out of that?“Of course. We’ll work together on everything that has to do with our child.”
Nodding, she looked back down as her feet dangled above the step she’d used to get up onto the examination table. “Are you thinking about using animals in the theme or shapes? Or what about trees and flowers?”
“Actually, none of those things.” But I was glad she was bringing up some ideas. “You know me and my flair for interior design—classic, bold, with a splash of Texas in everything.”
“I like teddy bears.” She smiled. “Do you like them?”
I smiled. “We can incorporate them into the design.” It occurred to me that we hadn’t done much talking since we’d gotten back from Vegas. We’d been married a month already, and the time had gone by with us not communicating much at all.
I knew I needed to change that. “You know, you and I need to start acting like a family if we want our kid to have a good home life. I think we need to do more than eat dinner together at night then go our separate ways.”
A smile curved her full lips as she looked at me. “That would be nice, Patton. I enjoy spending time with you, I truly do.”
And I enjoyed spending time with her too. It was the physical attraction that worried me. “I like spending time with you too, Alexa.”
A quick knock came on the door then the doctor opened it and walked in, a small laptop computer open in her hand. “Just got the results of the pregnancy test back and looks like you twoaregoing to be parents.” She placed the computer on the counter then looked at us, obviously gauging our reactions to the news.
“That’s awesome news,” I said as I pulled Alexa’s hand up, kissing it. “Hear that, babe? We’re going to be parents.”
Tears slipped down her cheeks. “I heard that.” I let her hand go so she could wipe away the tears.
“Well, congratulations, you two.” The doctor approached her to start the exam then, listening to her heart, checking inside her ears and mouth. Then she turned away and went to get something out of one of the drawers. “Go ahead and lay back, Mrs. Nash. It’s time to do the pelvic exam.”
Alexa’s eyes closed as she lay back. I ran my hand over her head, knowing she was nervous about this part of the visit. “It’s going to be okay. I’m right here for you, babe. Do you want to hold my hand?”
She held up her hand and I took it. “Thank you, mi amor.”
The doctor looked at me as she turned back around with a big silver thing in her hand that looked like it could cause some pain. “Aww, that’s so sweet. I like that.” She moved Alexa’s feet into the stirrups on either side of the table then tossed a blue sheet over her bent knees to cover her from view.
