Page 52 of Burden to Bear

“Positive.”

I gave him a nod, turned, and made my way up the stairs toward the baby’s room. Surprisingly, Brock was right on my heels. Maybe I’d made a bigger deal out of this being difficult or an inconvenience to him than it was. Even if I wasn’t pregnant, I’d never have been able to carry the box up the steps with as much ease as he had.

We made it to the room I intended to set up as the nursery, where Brock ultimately set the box down carefully in the center of the room for me.

“Thank you so much for doing this for me tonight,” I said.

“You’re welcome.”

His words were kind and exactly what I expected, but his tone wasn’t what I’d grown accustomed to hearing from him. “Brock?” I called when he looked away from me.

“Yeah?”

“Are we… is everything okay?”

He nodded. “Yes.”

“I can’t help but feel like you’re upset about something.”

He shrugged and sighed. “I don’t know. I guess I should be asking you the same question. I don’t understand what happened tonight. I thought I made it clear I’d be more than willing to help you out whenever you need, and you wound up going to ask Russ for help instead.”

Was this jealousy?

Why would Brock feel jealous over anyone, namely Russ, who was a married man?

I looked away, hating that I’d made him feel this way. “I… I… I just didn’t want you to think I was trying to take advantage of you.”

His brows pulled together. “Why would I think that about you? Have we not become something more than just neighbors over this last month and a half or so? God, Mia, we walk together after work several days a week, having conversations about our days at work or simply getting to know each other. You’ve met my niece and even joined us for lunch on two separate occasions. You and I have had dinner together three times in that time. How is it possible that you thought you needed to go to Russ to help you carry this crib in when I was the guy who was standing beside you the first time you felt that baby move in your belly? What makes you think I wouldn’t want to be the guy to do this for you?”

What was I supposed to say to that?

He was right to question me, to be upset.

While I had moments when I considered how different things would be if Brock and I were in a relationship, I hadn’t believed it was even a remote possibility that he’d want the same.

And because I’d been struggling with how much I liked him as more than just my neighbor, I did what I’d done today.

But Brock was right. We had moved beyond just being neighbors. He was, if nothing else, a genuine friend, had proved himself to be just that, and he deserved more than what I’d given him.

Feeling like I had a boulder lodged in my throat, tears welling in my eyes, I croaked, “I’m so sorry, Brock.”

In an instant, the hardness of his features vanished. He stepped close and wrapped his arms around me. I held on to him, my hands gripping the material of his shirt at his sides. “It’s okay,” he assured me.

Shaking my head, I argued, “It’s not. I probably would have been just as upset as you if you’d done something similar.”

His hands stroked up and down my back, comforting me. “It’s done now. We can’t go back and change it. I just want you to know that I’ve meant every word I’ve ever said to you, Mia. If you need my help with anything, all you’ve got to do is ask.”

Easier said than done. I was mere months away from becoming a single mom. Sure, I knew my family would step up to help whenever they could, but they didn’t live close. Maybe I’d have their help in the beginning, but the reality was I needed to learn to do things on my own. And I wasn’t a stranger to it—I’d saved up for and purchased my home on my own. I knew I could do this, too.

“It’s one thing to ask to borrow eggs I can replace, and it’s something else for me to ask for help with something like this,” I explained. “I don’t think I’m very good at it, because I don’t want to place expectations on anyone and wind up disappointed.”

Understanding seemed to dawn in his expression, and a moment later, he offered a smile. “Then I guess I should just come right out and ask what’s on my mind now, shouldn’t I?”

My brows furrowed. “What’s on your mind?”

“Are you planning to build this crib yourself tomorrow?”

My eyes went to the box and back to Brock. “That was my hope.”

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