by Kira Archer
He snorted. “No kidding. I wonder if we can take it to a car wash and drive through with the windows open. They’ll probably think we killed someone back there.”
She laughed. “Come on, let’s get it cleaned up. I can’t imagine it’ll get easier the longer it sits.”
Jared groaned. “True. And I’m not driving it anywhere looking like that.”
Jenny looked around and nodded at the convenience store across the street. “Maybe we can at least get some paper towels or wet wipes or something.”
“Not a bad idea.” He grabbed her hand. “Let’s go.”
They were able to find both, along with trash bags. And rubber gloves. Jared offered to start cleaning while she held the bag, an offer that surprised her to no end. He seemed uncharacteristically contemplative.
“While we’ve got a few moments to ourselves, you and I have a few things to talk about,” he said.
Jenny shook her head, already knowing where he was going with that. “There’s nothing to talk about yet.”
He stood and threw another handful of wipes into the bag. “You don’t know that. Chances are pretty good that we have a lot to talk about.”
“I know. But I don’t want to deal with it tonight. Please,” she said when he looked like he would press the issue. “I just saw my niece born. I helped deliver her. I want to enjoy that for right now. Not think about how that might be me in nine months. I know we need to talk about it. But…not right now, okay?”
He reached out to rub his hands up and down her arms. Finally he sighed and kissed her forehead. “All right. Not tonight. But soon.”
She nodded. “I know. Soon. When we know if we even have something to talk about.”
He pulled her in for a quick hug. “Let’s go visit your new niece.”
Chapter Fourteen
Jared watched as Jenny leaned over the hospital bed and took the swaddled little bundle from Gina. The look of awe on her face was so touching he whipped out his phone and took a picture. Rick glanced at him in surprise and looked like he was going to say something. Until Jenny distracted him with his daughter.
“What’s her name?” she asked.
Rick and Gina looked at each other and smiled, and Gina answered. “We had three names we loved. We couldn’t decide. So we’re going with all of them. Meet Lindsey Alexandra Grace Boyd.”
“Ah, guys, that’s beautiful.” Jenny drew a finger down the baby’s cheek, smiling when her little mouth opened and she turned her head a bit, unconsciously seeking sustenance. “So how did you come up with the names? Are they family names on your side?” she asked Gina.
This time Rick’s and Gina’s smiles were ear to ear. They glanced at each other with that secret language that couples seemed to have.
Rick answered. “Lindsey is the combination of our moms’ names. Lind for Linda, and Sey for Susie. Grace is the first name of Mrs. Bogetti, the old woman who called the cops on Gina for being a Peeping Tom outside her window.”
“Without her, we’d never have met,” Gina said, smiling fondly at her husband.
“I don’t know about that,” he said. “I’m pretty sure someone would have called the cops on you sooner or later.”
“Oh, shut up,” she said, turning a smile on him that was full of love and laughter.
“And the Alexandra?” Jared asked.
Rick and Gina did the couple glance again. Rick answered, “After an old friend, Alejandro.”
Gina laughed.
Jared glanced at Jenny, who shrugged her shoulders and went back to admiring her new niece. A nurse came in to check on Gina, and Jenny moved off to the side to give them room. Jared moved to stand by her.
“She looks a lot better all cleaned up,” he said, sticking his finger under the baby’s hand until she grasped it in her little fist.
Jenny mock gasped and held the baby tighter. “Don’t listen to him, Lindsey. You were absolutely gorgeous when you were born. A little on the slimy side, maybe. But gorgeous nonetheless.”
“Yeah,” Jared agreed, “you’re a cute little thing.”
“Do you want to hold her?” Jenny asked, holding her arms out so he could take the baby.
A flash of fear jolted through him and he held his hands up. “Naw, that’s okay.”
“Oh, come on. She’s not going to hurt you.”
“I know but…she’s so tiny.”
Jenny laughed a little. “Probably a good thing considering how she got here.”
He gave her an exasperated look. “You know what I mean.”
“Yes, I do. And I still think you should hold her. Might be a handy skill to have.” His gaze shot to hers as the realization sank home.
He nodded, and she put the baby in his arms. “Support her head in the crook of your arm,” she said, helping him adjust a bit so the baby was safe and secure. Her weight was almost nothing. Well, six pounds eleven ounces and nineteen inches long, according to her proud parents. And the card taped to the clear plastic bassinet in the room. Still. The warm weight of her was so light. Fragile.
He’d known, obviously, that their broken condom could lead to a baby. That’s why they’d been worried for a week. But actually holding a living, breathing child in his arms suddenly made the possibility a lot more real. And terrifying. And… He looked up at Jenny.
Maybe wonderful.
…
Jenny watched Jared cradling the tiny baby with so many emotions roiling through her she could barely separate them. She sat beside Gina on the bed.
“For a guy who’s probably never held a baby before, he’s doing surprisingly well,” Gina said, nodding at where he stood in the corner of the room gazing down at the sleeping newborn.
Jenny smiled. “He is. What is it about a big strong man holding a baby that is so damned adorable?”
The baby fussed a bit and he crooned down to her, tucking her in closer to his body.
“Damn,” Jenny said. “I think my ovaries just exploded.”
Gina laughed. “Mine probably would, too, if they weren’t on hiatus for the moment.”
The smile immediately fell from Jenny’s face as the realization struck her that her own ovaries might be in the same condition. Luckily, Gina was so blissed out in an exhausted haze of new mother euphoria that she didn’t notice.
Seeing Jared hold an actual live baby made the situation so much more real. But as terrifying as it was, she couldn’t stop staring at him. His strong arms cradling Lindsey’s tiny body. His hands softly cupping her head. His body, capable of such strength, gently cuddling such a delicate little creature. It was quite possibly the sexiest and most beautiful thing she’d ever seen.
Jared glanced up at that moment. A faint smile traced his lips, growing when the baby stretched and made a tiny sound. He carried her back to her parents and handed her to Rick, who immediately cuddled his daughter close to his chest, his face so full of love and joy it almost hurt to look at.
Jared dropped a kiss on the top of Gina’s head. “She’s beautiful, Gene. Just like her mama.”
Gina smiled up at him. “Thank you. She is pretty perfect, isn’t she?” she said, looking at her daughter.
“Yes, she is,” he said, though he was looking back at Jenny.
He came toward her, his gaze never leaving hers. Her heart pounded harder the nearer he came, like it was a caged animal trying to escape a predator. Or a pet trying to return to its master.
When he reached her, he held out his hand. “Let’s walk.”
Jenny took a deep breath. Walking meant talking. They definitely needed to talk. But it wasn’t a talk she wanted to have. Or needed to have. They didn’t know anything yet, and chances were slim she was actually pregnant. Why go through a whole messy conversation if they didn’t need to?
Judging by the soft look on his face, holding the baby had made it real for him, too. She’d never seen him look so serious. And it was encouraging that he didn’t look spooked or angry or wary in any way. He seemed calm. Collected. Good
thing one of them was.
She took his hand and let him lead her out of the room, glancing back to catch a curious but not-so-surprised look from Gina. Rick opened his mouth to say something, but Gina put a hand on her husband’s arm. “Let it go, Rick.”
Jenny turned back to follow Jared with a small smile. She’d leave her brother to Gina. At least he couldn’t freak out too badly while he was holding his newborn.
They walked in silence through the hospital, her hand tucked tightly into Jared’s. Jenny had to laugh when they passed the gift shop and saw her parents and Gina’s mom busy buying every pink-hued gift in the place. Lindsey was only a few hours old and she was already well on her way to being a perfectly spoiled princess. As it should be for such a gorgeous little thing. Jenny couldn’t wait to go shopping and do a little spoiling of her own.
Jared found a little sitting area out of the way of everything and sat in the chair opposite her.
“So, we’ll know soon. If we need to start preparing for one of those little things,” he said, nodding his head in the general direction of the elevators that led to Gina’s room.
Jenny nodded. “Two more days. The test I bought says you can take it six days before your period is supposed to start.”
He leaned forward, propping his elbows on his knees. “And if you are pregnant…”
She shrugged. “I don’t know. I really don’t. I wasn’t sure I ever wanted to have kids. And I know for sure I don’t want one right now. But if I am…” She thought about that sweet little bundle of squirming adorableness in the room they’d left. “I guess it wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world. I’d manage.”
Jared nodded and reached over to take her hands. “You wouldn’t be doing it alone. I want to be there, to help take care of the two of you.”
Jenny weighed her words carefully. She didn’t want to hurt him, but…
“I love that you want to be there, and of course I want you to be involved if…if I am…” She couldn’t even say the word. “But…”
Jared frowned and sat back a little, letting go of her hands. “But what?”
She sighed. “You don’t even have your own place. You still live at Eric’s. With a steady stream of women flowing in and out the door. And your job…”
“All right, wait,” he said, holding up his hand. “By your own admission, you are as bad as me in the relationship department.”
“Yeah, but that’s not going to be much of an issue anymore for me, will it? Not many guys out there are going to want to date me when I’ve got a huge old belly. And once the baby is here, I’ll be a single mom. Again, not at the top of the dating food chain. And I won’t have a whole lot of time to be dating, anyway. So, like I said, not something that’s going to be an issue on my end.”
“And it won’t be on mine, either, Jen. Despite what you may think, I am capable of some self-control.”
“I know,” she said, guilt surging through her at the unfair accusation. Well, not unfair maybe, but a low blow nonetheless.
“And as for my living situation…you know, it’s not like I’m bunking in a studio apartment with a bunch of deadbeat college guys. I live on the top floor of a gorgeous town house that I share with my best friend and his wife.”
“Who will be having a baby of their own in six months. How long are you going to live with them? Maybe if you had a steadier job…”
“What is this fixation on my job? Yes, being freelance means my income fluctuates a bit, but I’ve always made plenty for what I need.”
“Yeah, but it won’t be about your needs anymore, will it? If I’m pregnant, there will be a baby to take care of, all the time, for at least eighteen years of its life. That’s going to need more than a fluctuating income and a room at your friend’s house.”
He sat back, totally withdrawing from her, and all she wanted to do was crawl on his lap, wrap her arms around him, and make it all better. She didn’t want to deal with any of this drama. She wanted things back the way they were. But even if she wasn’t pregnant, something had subtly shifted in her. That wildness in her was still there, but no longer the driving force of her life. The possibility that she might soon be responsible for another human being—a tiny, helpless baby who would depend on her for its survival—had rearranged her priorities. Going out for a good time every night no longer had the same appeal.
Jared sat back, watching her with his jaw clenched. She rubbed her hands over her burning eyes.
“Look, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to insult every aspect of your life,” she said with a small smile.
He snorted and then sighed. “You aren’t wrong. Well, you’re not totally wrong. Though you’re also assuming I’m not open to changing a few things. I like where I live, but one of the beauties of living there is I don’t have a lease. I can move if I need to. It does have a few perks, though. The fact that it’s a nice place I’m getting for a great deal without any legal ties isn’t the only reason I live there.” He smiled.
“And that’s all you’re going to tell me? You’re a tease, you know that?”
He winked. “Gotta stick to my strengths. I’ll show you tomorrow. For tonight, let’s go get some sleep. I don’t know about you, but I’m about to crash right here. There’s no reason to get too riled up about all this yet, anyway. Until we know for sure.”
“Agreed. And yes, sleep sounds phenomenal.”
He stood up and pulled her to her feet. “Your place or mine?” he asked, his customary smirk back in place.
She laughed. “Take me to yours. If Rick comes home and finds you in bed with me, not even becoming a new father would stop him from inflicting some serious damage.”
“Excellent point. My place it is.”
She wrapped her arms around his waist and laid her head on his chest, snuggling into him with a sigh. She didn’t want to think about anything else at the moment. She just wanted to be held.
He pulled her close, wrapping his arms around her and laying his cheek on her head.
She stayed there for a minute, savoring it. Wrapped in his arms, all was right with the world. She was warm, safe. Happy. And she hated to end the moment. But she was going to fall asleep where she stood if they stayed there too long.
“Okay, let’s go.”
He seemed as reluctant as her to pull away from the embrace. But everything had to end at some point. And maybe sooner would be better than later.
But she’d deal with that tomorrow.
Chapter Fifteen
Jared led her to the top floor of the town house where his room was. She’d seen that part. But they’d been too busy to take a tour of the rest of the house. He hadn’t had a chance to show her the best part of his living arrangement. And the reason he still hadn’t found his own place. His studio.
“It’s a mess in here,” Jared said, pushing a box out of the way as he opened the door and stood aside so Jenny could enter.
She looked around, lifting her face to the skylight and closing her eyes against the sun with a smile. Then she opened them and looked around again.
Jared tried to stand unobtrusively amid his paintings while he watched her take it all in. He had easel after easel set up, with paintings in various states of progress. More stacks of canvases on the floor. And every available inch of wall space was occupied by either artwork, sketches, color swatches, or some other tidbit he’d found somewhere and decided it sparked some inspiration.
“You did all of these?” she asked.
He couldn’t help but glow a bit with pride at the awe in her voice. “Yes.”
“Gina’s known you for years. She never mentioned any of this.”
“She’s never seen it.” Jenny turned to him in surprise, and he shrugged. “No one has.”
“Not even Eric? Or your grandma?”
“No. Eric knows what I’ve got up here, of course. But I’ve never asked him to look, and he’s never pried.”
He came to stand beside her as she looked at a portrait he’d done of
a live model. She sat with her back to the viewer, her head slightly turned so you could only see some of her profile, a hint of a smile on her face.
“She’s beautiful,” Jenny said, her voice soft, almost reverent. She looked up at him. “Old girlfriend?”
“Not really. Nothing serious.” He glanced back at the picture. “I once thought she was the most beautiful woman in the world.”
“You don’t anymore?”
He turned his attention back at her. “No.”
“What changed your mind?”
“You.”
Jenny raised startled eyes to his, and he smiled at her, loving the blush that spread across her cheeks. She stared at him for a moment, obviously at a loss for words, but unlike most people, she kept silent. Not stammering for something to say. Just…quiet. Contemplating him, like he was a Rubik’s Cube she’d nearly solved except for one stray tile that refused to behave.
That was him, all right. The misfit tile. The one that didn’t behave as it should. Didn’t get his own place. Didn’t get a better job. He’d been there, done that, and it had blown up in his face. Didn’t even attempt to have a long, meaningful relationship with someone because he knew it would get screwed up, anyway. And it worked. His life worked. So why change anything now?
She slowly smiled at him and his chest filled with warmth and he knew the answer to that. His life had already changed, because of her. And might be changing even more. A fact that sparked something bordering on terror, but also an emotion he’d never have expected. Excitement. Hope. Minute, maybe. But it was there, hovering in the back of his brain. Having a baby had never been something he’d been remotely interested in. But having a baby with her…didn’t seem so bad.
He took her hand and drew her to the far corner of the room. “This is what I wanted to show you.”
She turned to look at the easel he pointed at, and her mouth dropped open with a delighted sigh that filled him with pride.
“Oh, Jared, that’s beautiful!”
She moved closer to the canvas painting he’d done. The owl sat in its tree, its body turned slightly away while its head looked forward. The park sprawled out behind it in the background.