bit down on her bottom lip. “Oh, wow. Jake.”
He frowned. “Oh, wow, what?”
Her eyes turned a little misty. “You’re already starting to sound like a dad.”
“I am?” He didn’t feel like one. All he felt was sad and scared and confused. Not knowing what else to say, he went silent, hoping she didn’t go into a full-blown cry.
Thankfully, she cleared the mistiness, blinking it away. Then she said, “I appreciate your offer. But you don’t have to buy me a house.”
“I’m in real estate. Investing in property is what I do.” So why wouldn’t he want to make an investment for her, too? “Besides, you can’t stay in the apartment. It’s too small for you and the baby.”
“Okay, but maybe you can keep the house in your name, instead of gifting it to me. I want to be my own person and taking too much from you doesn’t feel right.”
He wasn’t going to argue with her, not in her condition. He would abide by her wishes for now. “You can at least pick out the kind of place you like.”
“I don’t want it to be too big.” She glanced around at his enormous digs. “I’d prefer something a little homier, you know?”
“That’s fine.” There were plenty of bungalows in the hills, with the warmth and charm of a family dwelling, which was what he figured she was after. “We’ll find something that suits you.”
“There’s no rush. I can stay at my apartment until closer to when the baby comes.” She placed a hand on her stomach, splaying her fingers across it, making him reflect on the little life that grew there. “We still have a long time to go.”
“There’s no point in waiting until the end.” Jake considered how the tables had turned. Normally Carol insisted on getting things done ahead of time, but now he was the one trying to make early arrangements. He didn’t know what had come over him, jumping into this the way he was. Maybe it was because she seemed so lost?
“What are we going to do about my job?” she asked.
“What do you mean?”
“Am I supposed to keep working for you? And when are we going to tell the people at the office?”
“Of course you can keep working for me.” He’d already been worried about losing her before he even knew she was pregnant. He most certainly didn’t want her to leave him now. “And we can arrange a meeting at the office and tell everyone at the same time. We’ll just say it, plain and simple.”
“It makes me nervous.”
“I know.” His stomach was in knots. “But it’s better to just get it over with.” He didn’t want anyone figuring things out on their own or spreading gossip. “We’ll control it ourselves, if we can.”
“Will you handle that? I don’t think I have the strength to stand in a room in front of my peers and admit that I slept with you.”
“Yes, I’ll handle it. And don’t worry. I’m not going to go into the specifics. This is about the baby, not about what we did.”
She kept her hand on her stomach. “Kristen is going to be concerned about me. You know how she is.”
Kristen was the receptionist, a pixie-haired brunette in her early twenties who followed Carol around like a puppy. Jake had never really bonded with the girl. It was Carol she was loyal to. Kristen was filling in for Carol while she was out sick, doing what she could to assist Jake and make Carol proud. “She admires you.”
“I know. I like her, too. But I never expected to be in this position. It seems so surreal.”
“We’ll get through it,” he said, even if he didn’t have a clue how they were going to manage having a child together for the rest of their lives. “As soon as you’re ready to return to the office, I’ll call that meeting.”
“I’ll come back on Friday.”
That was two days away. “Then that’s when it’ll happen.” When Jake would announce that he and Carol were having a baby. When the news would be official. When their mixed-up future would begin.
* * *
The Friday meeting was awkward, but at least it was over. Carol wasn’t going to have to lie about why she wasn’t feeling well. Or hide her baby bump when it started to appear. Or stress about when to tell everyone at work. As of this morning, they already knew.
Jake had handled it like the boss he was, stating only the facts. He’d made it clear that he and Carol weren’t in a relationship. He explained that they would raise their child in separate households. He also pointed out that she would continue to work for him, so it would be business as usual.
Yeah, right, Carol thought. As if it was just that easy.
After the meeting ended, the other employees disbursed, silence looming in the air as they filed out of the conference room. Carol understood their discomfort. She was feeling out of sorts, too. But she suspected that Kristen was going to approach her privately, as soon as the eager receptionist was able to swing it.
Jake went to his office, and Carol headed to hers, glad to escape. She sat at her desk, trying to pull herself into work mode.
About an hour later, a light knock sounded at her open doorway. Sure enough, it was Kristen, with her trendy clothes, short, cutesy hair and big hoop earrings. Carol gestured for her to come inside.
Kristen entered the room and closed the door behind her. Then she widened her eyes and said, “Oh, my freaking God. You’re going to be Jake’s baby mama. You! The nicest, most normal woman on the planet. I can’t believe it.”
Carol could hardly believe it, either. “Things happen.”
“I’ll say.” Kristen sighed. “I always wondered if you had feelings for him, though.”
“You did?” And here Carol thought that she’d hidden her crush on Jake without anyone figuring it out.
The brunette nodded. She was a petite young woman who’d played Peter Pan in a community play. She toyed around with acting, but lots of people in LA dabbled in the arts. Kristen wasn’t overly ambitious about it. Mostly she was just a flighty girl who’d gone from one bad boyfriend to another. Carol had helped her through her last horrific relationship.
“At least Jake has lots of money,” Kristen said. “At least he can take care of the baby that way. But dang, it’s hard to envision him being an actual dad.”
Carol thought about what Jake had said about tucking the child in at night and how emotional it had made her feel. “I think he’s going to try to do his best.”
“That’s good. My parents weren’t married or anything, either. I hardly ever saw my dad when I was kid. I see him even less now.”
“I’m sorry your dad hasn’t taken a more active role in your life.” No doubt it had factored into Kristen’s terrible taste in men, too. “That wasn’t fair to you.”
“What happened to you and Jake when you were kids wasn’t fair, either. At least my parents are still alive. But it’s still so weird, with you and Jake having a baby together.”
“He offered to put me up in a house near his to make it easier for him to get involved. But this isn’t how I ever imagined raising a child.”
“I’m just glad it’s you and not one of his hoity-toity ex-girlfriends having his kid. You’re a genuine person, and you’ll be a great mom.”
“Thank you. Jake said the same thing.”
“About you being a good mom?”
“Yes. He thinks it’s in my DNA.” But regardless of what a natural mom she was going to be, Carol couldn’t bear the thought of Jake being with other women. Yet