Page 67 of Mad Love

“He sure does like you,” I tease.

When he doesn’t laugh like he normally would, I look at him. He kisses Caleb’s forehead, but he looks distracted.

“What’s wrong?” I ask.

He looks at me and my heart drops. He hasn’t looked this serious since those first days in the hospital.

“Photographers were apparently snap-happy yesterday. There are pictures all over the place, some of us with Caleb and some of just you and me. My agent and publicist have been after me to make an announcement about Caleb long before now so we could control the narrative.” He sighs and kisses Caleb’s head again. “But I wanted time to get to know him myself before inviting the whole world into it.” His eyes are pained when he looks at me. “It’s important to me that I speak kindly about Sasha, and I was so angry at first, I was worried some of that might seep through. I’ve seen too many times how things turn on women, and I will do everything in my power to keep that from happening.” He gives me a pointed look. “Okay?”

I nod. “Okay.”

He lets out a relieved sigh. “Now that the news is out, I need to do damage control. Today.”

“What can I do to help?”

His eyes are still full of concern, but his smile zeroes in on me. It warms me and I smile back, hoping he gets the same warmth in return.

“Thank you for even offering to help deal with my mess.” He scoffs. “You’ve done more than that—I have a massive list of things to thank you for. I’m going to owe you forever, you know that, right?”

I laugh and his shoulders relax.

“You don’t owe me anything,” I tell him. “Get ready. I’ve got Caleb. My mom’s coming over today, so we’ll be busy.”

“Okay. The press conference won’t last long. Amy will be coming today to clean. And shit…I wanted to be here when the crib arrived. I’ll call and see if they can come when I’m back this afternoon. Let me know if you need anything while I’m out.”

“Will do.”

“I’ll go get my shower and then bolt.”

“All right.” I move to take Caleb from him, and Weston leans in closer than I expected, so our mouths are within an inch of each other.

My eyes lift to his and he’s staring at my lips. I’m not sure how long we stand there staring at each other, but my limbs feel weighed down when he takes a step away from me. He clears his throat and tousles Caleb’s hair.

“I’ll see you two in a little while,” he says.

He walks away and it’s only then that I can take a deep breath. My phone buzzes and it’s Kim.

Kim

You didn’t tell me you were dating WESTON SHAW! When did this happen?!

I’m not. Don’t believe everything you read!

Kim

Pictures are worth a thousand words and the pictures of you and Weston are worth WAY more than that.

I don’t know what to say to that so I go quiet, and after I’ve fed Caleb his bottle and laid him down for a nap, I google Weston Shaw to see what photos come up. After seeing him with a steady barrage of models and celebrities in the past, it’s unsettling to see myself next to him. I don’t look bad, but I don’t look anything like the women he dates…or hooks up with, I guess, since he doesn’t really date.

When I stop critiquing myself and study Weston’s face, I draw in a deep breath.

He looks really,reallyhappy.

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

BEAUTIFUL THINGS

WESTON

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