Page 23 of Oops, My Professor Got Me Pregnant!

“After this conversation, I hope so.”

Céline grinned. “What are you going to wear tonight?”

“Oh, no!” Lauren sat up straight again, her eyes wide. “I didn’t even think of that. What should I wear?”

Céline chuckled. “The good news is, this was your last class of the day. You’ll have a few more hours to reach a decision before you need to meet Nico. But I think you need something elegant and flattering, to show him what he’s missing, but also casual and simple, to show you aren’t trying too hard and don’t care what he thinks.”

“That’s so much for an outfit to do.”

“I know.” Céline winked. “Go home and see what you can find. Then tomorrow at work, tell me how it goes.”

“I will.”

Lauren and Céline said their goodbyes, then Lauren gathered her things and walked back to her apartment. Now that the afternoon was fully in swing, it was warm out and the air felt fresh and summery. Lauren wished that she could just enjoy the walk, but she couldn’t stop herself from wondering what Nico would say this evening. What explanation could he possibly have that he couldn’t have already told her? And if he did have a good reason, would she be willing to forgive him and have a shot at a real relationship? Did he even want a relationship?

Questions swirled through Lauren’s mind and she almost missed the turn to her apartment. When she made it home, her worries only grew. She’d packed most of her wardrobe from Nebraska, ranging from the sundress she’d worn when she first met Nico to formal clothing that was appropriate for work, to some jeans and a flannel shirt that she used to wear for hiking. None of it seemed quite right for tonight, though. Céline had been right. Lauren needed something both elegant and casual.

After trying on and discarding a few possible outfits, Lauren gave up and decided on a white blouse and a blue skirt that ended just above her knees. She might be a little cold later in the evening, but it was the closest she had to the outfit she needed.

Left with several hours to fill, Lauren attempted to distract herself with a walk, then some yoga at home, then a novel she’d just started reading, then some music. Nothing could hold her attention, though, not when she was so full of questions about tonight.

Finally, it was time to go. She took a shower, put on a very light amount of makeup, and put on the skirt and top she’d chosen. She finished the ensemble with a pair of small silver earrings and her grandfather’s ring. Then she made her way to Nico’s house, which she was interested to discover was only a short bus ride away. It made sense, though, she decided as she disembarked several stops later. Nico needed to commute to the same college she did.

After consulting the address Nico had given her, Lauren identified his home as one of a line of brick rowhouses. There was a small garden in the front, which was slightly overgrown but still looked nice. Lauren examined the outside of the house closely, as though it might give her clues about what would happen tonight, then realized she was stalling and took a deep breath. It was time to do this.

Lauren strode across the garden and up a few steps to the front door. Then, as confidently as she could, she pressed the doorbell and waited. For a moment, nothing happened. Then the door opened. Lauren steeled herself to come face-to-face with Nico again… but Nico wasn’t there. Instead, a little boy stood in the doorway. He was perhaps seven or eight years old, with big dark eyes and short, slightly messy brown hair. He was holding a toy dinosaur in one hand.

“Pardon,” Lauren said, her French sounding a little awkward to her own ears. “J’ai le… wrong… maison.”

The little boy frowned at her. Then, in perfect, hardly accented English, he said, “You have the wrong house?”

Lauren was embarrassed that a young child spoke English better than she spoke French, but there was no point dwelling on it.

“Yes. Sorry. I’ll go.”

“Please wait.” The little boy turned and called something into the house in French. Lauren made out a few words — Dad, woman, here. Then another figure appeared behind the little boy. For the second time in the same day, Lauren was surprised to find herself looking at Nico. And then, suddenly, it all made sense. The little boy had Nico’s hair and eyes and coloring. In fact, the boy looked almost like a miniature replica of Nico.

Nico had a son. This little boy was Nico’s son. A whirl of thoughts flashed through Lauren’s mind, but none of that was important right now. She needed to be polite to this little boy. Everything else she could figure out later.

Lauren bent down and extended a hand to the boy.

“Maybe I do have the right house. My name is Lauren. What’s yours?”

“Louis.” Louis took her hand and shook it firmly. He was a surprisingly good handshaker for such a young person. “Nice to meet you. Papa said a pretty woman was coming over.”

“Did he?” Lauren glanced up at Nico, who was watching them with a slightly concerned expression. “That’s nice of him to say.” She straightened up and Nico met her gaze.

“It’s almost Louis’s bedtime,” Nico said. “After he goes to sleep, I’ll answer any questions you have.”

Lauren nodded. “Okay.” She had a good guess now of why Nico had left so quickly. What she didn’t know was whether he had invited her to dinner just to explain or because he was hoping for something more.

“Can I show you my dinosaurs?” Louis asked. He reached for Lauren’s hand.

“Sure.” Lauren let Louis pull her through a small entryway, past a flight of stairs, and into a living room. It was nice and tidy, except for a parade of multicolored plastic dinosaurs across the center of the carpet. Louis released Lauren’s hand and plopped onto the floor, where he began showing her the different dinosaurs and regaling her with some facts about each of them.

“Louis,” Nico said gently, “our guest might want a drink and a more comfortable place to sit than the floor.”

“No, it’s okay.” Lauren took a seat beside Louis. “I like dinosaurs, too.”

---