by Cat Schield
She thought of the black, velvet-lined box in her purse. “Why bother when there is no engagement?”
Despite her tart tone, he grinned at her. “Can I see it?”
Was she really that transparent? Heaving a sigh, she fished out the ring box and dropped it into his outstretched hand. He popped it into his pocket without opening it. Emma’s heart thundered and vertigo struck her again. She must have wavered because Nathan stopped and turned her to face him.
“Are you all right?” He cupped her cheek, thumb stroking her skin in a soothing rhythm. The concern shadowing his eyes made her long to rest her head against the powerful expanse of his chest.
Instead, she grabbed his hand and pulled it away from her cheek. “I’m fine. Just a little dizzy from not eating breakfast this morning.”
“We should have stopped for lunch first.”
“Biella’s is right there.” She pointed to the store. “This will only take a second.”
As they waited for a sales clerk to get the manager, Nathan surveyed her jewelry. “There’s not much here.”
Thinking that he didn’t recognize her older designs, Emma peered into the case. Delight seized her as she counted. Another five pieces had sold.
Thomas McMann appeared across the case from them, smiling. “Ms. Montgomery, how nice that you came by. As you can see, your designs are in high demand.” He handed her an envelope containing her check. “I hope you brought us some more of your work.”
“I have these.” Emma pulled from her bag the newest pieces she’d created.
“And there’s this.” Nathan placed the ring box on the counter.
Before Emma could stop him, Thomas McMann snatched the box and opened it. He smiled with delight. “This is lovely. Do you have more engagement designs? I do a lot of wedding business. White gold or platinum?”
“Platinum. But it’s not for sale.” She shot Nathan a sour look.
He responded with a shrug. “I don’t see why not. You’re not going to wear it. You might as well sell it and make some money.”
Emma met the challenge in Nathan’s gaze and grappled for something to say.
“Unless, of course, you’ve changed your mind about marrying me.”
“Why would I do that?” She sounded breathless and as uncertain as she felt.
She’d come to his office today, knowing he wouldn’t want his child growing up without a father, and willing to marry him for that reason. But in the elevator, she’d started to think that maybe he’d fallen in love with her a little. In fact, in the space of a few heartbeats, she’d pinned all her hopes and dreams on it. She searched his expression for some sign that she’d been right.
“I thought maybe something had changed.”
All at once it hit her. Sparkling lights appeared before her eyes. She flushed hot from head to toe. “You know.”
“Know what?”
She didn’t buy his innocent act for a second. He knew she was pregnant. That’s why he wanted to marry her. Not because he was starting to love her.
Awash in dismay, Emma gripped the counter, mortified to realize that Thomas McCann watched their exchange with obvious curiosity. She blinked, mustered a polite smile and scooped up her engagement ring.
“I’ll bring by some wedding sets next week. I think you’ll love the designs. Have a nice day.”
With that, she shot Nathan a hard look, pivoted on her heel and marched out of the store. Annoyance fueled her pace, and she reached the sidewalk before he caught up with her.
What a fool she was.
“Slow down.” Nathan touched her arm, but she shook him off. “Where are you going?”
Where was she heading? For a moment Emma couldn’t recall where she’d parked her car. Frustration made her grind her teeth. How could she shake Nathan and go lick her wounds in private if she couldn’t find her car? A lump blocked her throat. She swallowed, but it wouldn’t go away.
“Emma, please talk to me.”
She shook her head.
“Let’s go have lunch.”
She shook her head again.
“You have to eat. It’s important to keep up your strength.”
She stopped dead in her tracks. “You know I’m pregnant.” Emma pointed at him in warning as he opened his mouth to dance around her statement again. “Don’t you dare deny it. Who told you?”
Nathan gave a resigned sigh. “Cody came by this morning.”
Disappointment stabbed through her. “And the deal with my father?”
Nathan’s expression became a neutral mask. “It doesn’t matter.” He caught her arm when she spun away, stopping her flight. “You are pregnant with my child. And you will marry me.”
Since Valentine’s Day, she’d been beating herself up for letting him walk out of her life, wondering if by proposing with a diamond instead of a ring, he did realize how important her jewelry-designing was to her. That maybe he understood her at last.
Sure, he’d downplayed the emotional side of their arrangement, but considering how much he mistrusted love, she’d hoped that with time he’d come around. She’d gone to his office to tell him about the baby, eager to see if he’d missed her half as much as she’d missed him only to find out he had and that he still wanted to marry her.
Now, after learning that he’d only wanted to marry her because of the baby, she was heartbroken all over again.
“Nothing has changed, Nathan,” she said. “I want a real marriage.”
“Everything has changed. I’m not going to let my child grow up illegitimate.” Nathan pulled her close. “And I’m not going to let another man raise my son or daughter.”
The power of his conviction made Emma’s knees wobble. Why couldn’t he love her half as much as she loved him? It would make everything so simple. Even a hint of love would be enough for her to fling herself into marriage with him.
“I can’t marry you knowing you don’t love me.”
“You can’t raise this child on your own, Emma.”
His lack of faith in her cut as deep as his inability to love her. She twisted free. “I’ll be better off without you or my father telling me how I can’t take care of myself. I’ll continue to grow my jewelry business. Maybe I’ll even open a shop.”
“You don’t need to work that hard.” He set his hands on his hips and glowered down at her. “Marry me. I’ll take care of you and the baby.”
Emma stared at him for a long moment, her entire body aching to be held in his arms. It would be so easy to forget all her worries about money and raising a child on her own and accept his marriage proposal.
But she wasn’t a practical person. And a marriage for practical reasons would break her heart.
She shook her head. “I’ll take care of me. And the baby.”
Twelve
We’ll be just fine.
Emma’s words reverberated through Nathan’s head as he watched her disappear into the lunch-hour crowd. He didn’t doubt for one second that she would be just fine as a single mother. She’d thrive the same way his mother had. They were both strong, capable women.
But what about him?
He wasn’t going to be fine without her. Not one bit. For the first time in twenty years he needed someone more than he needed to breathe. Emma had become the center of his universe. For the last two weeks, he’d dwelled in a black hole of misery, deprived of her ready smiles, her sizzling looks and even her frowns. Instead of cradling her naked, soft, sweetly scented body in his arms, he spent his nights wide awake and wondering how everything had gone so terribly wrong.
Nathan took off after Emma, but it was too late. She’d vanished. Retrieving his car, he headed to her loft. But when he arrived, she wasn’t there. Nor was she answering her cell phone.
He slammed his hand against the steering wheel. Dammit. Why did the woman have to be so stubborn? He could give her a wonderful life. They would be happy if only she’d stop holding out for something he couldn’t give her.
After a fr
uitless visit to Addison, he called Cody and left a message. Out of options, Nathan headed home rather than returning to work. Knowing she was pregnant. Knowing he’d screwed up with her again. There was no way he could concentrate until he’d made things right with her.
He paced his empty condo for hours, watching the sun set, then rise. At seven, he seized his cell phone to try Cody a second time when it came alive in his hand. He answered the call without checking the number.
“Emma?”
“Not even close,” his best friend said, sounding giddy and half out of his mind. “I got your message. Sorry I didn’t get back to you sooner, but I’ve been a little busy watching my son being born.”
Cody’s words hit Nathan like a baseball bat. A son.
Was Emma carrying a boy, too? His lungs constricted as he considered all the things he’d miss if he couldn’t convince her to marry him. He wouldn’t be around when she felt the baby’s first kicks. He wouldn’t be there to fetch her all sorts of edibles in the wee hours of the morning as cravings hit her. And what if she didn’t let him participate at the birth?
“Congratulations,” he garbled into the phone, reeling at the unexpected punch of reality.
Misery tied his midsection in knots. I love you. Her words drilled into his head. A wake-up call he couldn’t ignore.
She loved him. And he’d done nothing to deserve it.
She loved him. And all he’d offered her was a marriage based on logic and reason.
She loved him. And he’d not once admitted that he felt the same way. And he did. He loved her. Very much.
What a fool he’d been not to realize it before this. She’d enthralled his body and captured his heart, and he’d been too caught up in business schemes and ancient family history to see what was really important.
“Have you heard from Emma?” Nathan asked.
“She drove up last night.”
Then Nathan was heading for Dallas as well. “What hospital are you in?”
He jotted down the address and threw some things in an overnight bag.
Four hours later, he left the car in the hospital parking lot and took a deep breath before heading up to the maternity ward. Finding Jaime’s room, Nathan hesitated on the threshold and surveyed the tableau before him.
Cody sat on the edge of the bed, his back to the door, his attention split between the tired but radiant woman propped up by pillows and the bundle of blue cloth in a rolling bassinet. The pastel walls vibrated with the couple’s happiness and jealousy rocked Nathan hard.
Emma was not in the room, and he was about to see if he could go find her, when Jaime spotted him and nudged her husband. Grinning like a lunatic, Cody left his wife’s side to greet Nathan with a crushing handshake.
“How are you coping with fatherhood?” Nathan flexed his hand and scanned his friend’s appearance, noting the dark circles beneath his eyes, the spot of throw-up on his shoulder.
“I’ve got the diaper-changing thing mastered.”
“He’s sleep-deprived,” Jaime said, tossing her husband a fond smile.
Cody might be exhausted, but he looked happier than Nathan had ever seen him. Which said a lot. Cody embraced life with more enthusiasm than pragmatism.
“Nathan, I’d like you to meet Evan Michael Montgomery.” Cody scooped his son out of the bassinet, handling him with the same confidence he’d once handled a football. “Here, why don’t you hold him?” With a sly grin, Cody deposited the fragile bundle into Nathan’s hands. “Get in a little practice.”
Nathan’s stomach dropped to his toes at Cody’s reminder of his own impending fatherhood. He stared at the newborn, marveling over his tiny fingers and toes. Would his son or daughter be this perfect? With Emma for a mother, why not?
Cody wrapped his arm around his wife. The look Jaime bestowed on her husband was equal parts pride, contentment and desire. Love. Nathan recognized the expression. But more than love. Completeness. As if together, the two were stronger than either could be on their own.
Would Emma ever look at him that way? Or had he blown his shot at deserving her love a dozen times or more already? Caught up in protecting himself from hurt, he hadn’t wanted to admit that he needed her. He’d never let himself trust her the way Cody trusted Jaime.
From the beginning, he’d been the one to reject love and rely on more practical reasons to get married. But what Cody shared with Jaime wasn’t just passionate love or friendship. It was deeper, more elemental. Permanent and unshakable.
“You’re a natural,” Jaime said. “You’ll make a great father.”
Yes, he would. And he’d make a great husband as well.
“So, what do you think of my son?” Cody asked, smiling down at the sleeping infant.
Nathan had a lump in his throat as he observed his happy friend. “I think you’re the luckiest man alive.”
Emma stopped the car in front of her father’s house and braced herself for battle. The four-hour drive from Houston to the hospital in Dallas had given her plenty of time to sort through her jumbled emotions. She knew what to do about Nathan.
But first, she wanted to settle things with her father. She’d left the hospital after the briefest of congratulations because she wanted this confrontation behind her.
As she crossed the driveway to the front door, another car drove up. Nathan. What was he doing here? She waited for him at the foot of the steps, her heart bucking wildly as he advanced toward her.
“I don’t want to fight with you,” he said, drawing close enough to touch her.
She took a half step back, afraid if he took her in his arms, she would dissolve. “I don’t want to fight with you, either.” Side by side they climbed to the front door. “What are you doing here?”
Nathan opened the door so she could enter. “I know your father didn’t give you back your trust fund.”
“Cody.” She shook her head as they crossed the grand hall, their footsteps echoing in the cavernous space. “Just once I wish my family would let me take care of things my way.”
“Like telling me about the baby as soon as you knew you were pregnant?”
Grinding her teeth had become an all-too-frequent habit since Nathan had come back into her life. “Okay, I should have come to you sooner.”
“You’re damn right.”
She cocked her head and regarded his stern expression and the uncompromising glint in his gray eyes. “But I had things I needed to think over.”
“Such as reconsidering your refusal to marry me?”
“Can we have this discussion after I’ve gotten my father to agree to give me back my trust fund?”
“Let me help you with that.”
“I can take care of it myself.” They neared the hallway outside her father’s study. She whirled on Nathan and put her hand on his chest. “You stay here. This is between my father and me. I need to do it alone.” She emphasized the last word and hoped Nathan would stay put.
He captured her fingers and brought them to his lips for a quick kiss. Releasing her, he leaned his back against the wall and crossed his arms. “I’ll be right here if you need me.”
Heart tripping unsteadily, Emma gave a satisfied nod and walked on. The speech she’d prepared for her father vanished from her mind as she neared his study. The door stood open so she stepped in.
“Hello, Daddy.”
Her father looked up from the papers on his desk. “Hello, Emma.” He came to her, took her hands, and kissed her cheek. “How are you?”
“I’m fine.” The words slipped out automatically. “I was at the hospital visiting your first grandchild. He’s beautiful.”
“I’m heading over in a few minutes,” her father said, surveying her with a slight frown. “Are you sure you’re all right?”
“I’m fine.”
“Cody told me about the baby.”
She was going to kill her brother.
“I hope you’re here to tell me you’re going to marry Nathan.”
�
��I came by today to talk to you about our wager. I won. I want my trust fund back.”
Silas frowned. “I don’t want my grandchild growing up illegitimate.”
“That’s for Nathan and me to decide, not you.” She met her father’s gaze, letting him see her determination. “I had the money by the deadline.”
“But it wasn’t in your account. So you forfeit. Now, what have you and Nathan decided about getting married?”
“That it’s none of your business.”
“But it is my business. I’m your father and I say you need someone to take care of you and the baby.”
Emma kept her voice level. “I don’t. I am perfectly capable of taking care of myself but you’re too stubborn to see that.”
“You think so? And how do you think you’re going to do that without money?”
“I have money.”
“Bah. The hundred thousand I gave you? How long do you think that’s going to last?”
Emma shook her head. Stubborn old man. “Quite a long time, I imagine, since I’m not planning to live off it.”
“No? Then how do you plan to support yourself?”
Emma braced herself against a wave of frustration and pulled the newspaper article about the Baton Rouge show out of her purse. She slapped it on the desk in front of him.
“This is about my jewelry. The article calls me ‘brilliant’ and describes my work as some of the finest around. I’ve worked hard for this recognition, and you’ve never given me any credit.” She ran out of breath. With her heart pounding fiercely, she inhaled and spoke with deliberate force. “I’m good.”
“You can’t seriously expect to live on what you make from it.”
Resentment injected steel into her voice. “I can. And I’m going to.” She clenched her hands into fists so he wouldn’t see how hard she was shaking. “You can keep my money. I don’t need it. I’m going to make a go of my jewelry business. I’m going to take care of myself and my baby.”
“Our baby.” Nathan spoke the words softly from the doorway behind her, but there was no denying the determination in his tone. “The baby is as much mine as it is yours, and you are going to marry me and let me take care of both of you.”