Page 108 of Stone

His eyes met mine, and I could almost see the cogs turning behind them. “We should get married.”

The mere thought was laughable. There was no damned way I was marrying anybody except for John Stone, which meant I’d never marry. “No, Robert.”

“Why not?” he insisted.

My head reared back slightly. “For one, we’re not in love with each other. Second, we both love other people. Third,” my eyes welled with tears, “the thought of anybody but John ever touching me makes me want to die.”

Robert leaned over the table and took my hand in his. “That’s not what I meant. It wouldn’t be that kind of marriage because—well—I feel the same way about…” his voice trailed off. “What I mean is, it would be two friends getting together to raisetheir children in a safe environment. We wouldn’t even share a bedroom.”

Resting my elbows on the table, I rubbed at my temples. “I don’t understand. How would it even work?”

Robert's eyes shone as his brain ticked over. “Nobody knows you’re pregnant. We could go away, say, for six months until the babies are born. In the meantime, we’d get married, say in Vegas or something. Nobody needs to know the details. They’ll just think we grew closer in our grief and got together. We used to date. It’s not outside the realms of possibility.”

“But what about John?” I asked quietly, letting the ‘used to date’ comment slide. “People will think I don’t love him.”

“No,” he said reassuringly. “Everybody knows how much you loved each other. They’ll think you’ve moved on, like John would want.” His eyes softened. “You’re young and beautiful. You’re allowed a life and to raise John’s daughter, his legacy. It would solve all our problems, don’t you see?”

“I don’t know,” I breathed, head swimming with questions. “What if you fall in love? Meet someone else? You’ll be trapped.”

“We’ll get an annulment,” he replied. “We won’t even need to divorce, seeing as we won’t consummate the marriage. You’ll be looked after, and so will your daughter. I can make sure your mom’s cared for, too. None of you will want for anything. Don’t you see? It’s the perfect solution. I love you—as a friend—and I can’t think of anyone better to help me raise my son, and in my own way, I’ll keep my promise to John to look out for you.”

“It’s crazy, Robert,” I protested.

“It’ll be crazier not to.” He leaned forward, looking me dead in the eye. “You will be a fantastic mother to both children. I’ll help raise and guide your daughter, and you’ll do the same with my boy. We can instill the values they need to be good people, and they won’t be stigmatized by the town. We’ll be protecting them, Elise. There’s nothing I wouldn’t do for my boy. And if Iknow you at all, there’s no doubt you feel the same way. John sacrificed everything for his country; surely we can sacrifice a little for our children. We can honor John best through his daughter.”

His words resonated deep inside.

My ol’ man had given the ultimate sacrifice, his life, and honestly, my life had been wiped out in the blink of an eye. I didn’t blame John; he couldn’t have known. If anything, I was proud of his courage and the way he lived life according to his own rules, even if it did contribute to our lives being blown apart.

There was no question I’d love anyone again. How could anyone else measure up? I couldn’t give somebody a broken heart or a soul that belonged to somebody else.

And anyway, they weren’t mine to give.

They were John’s and always would be.

I looked down at my daughter and ran my fingertips over my stomach.What do I do, baby? What do you want me to do?

That was when I felt a little jolt from deep inside.

My head flew up. “She kicked. I just felt her kick.”

Robert was out of his seat in seconds and on his knees beside me. “Can I?” he implored.

Taking his hand, I placed it on my stomach, eyes meeting Robert’s expectantly. My skin jerked, and Robert's eyes widened. “It’s beautiful,” he croaked. “I think I love her already.” He stood, smiling down at me, returning to his chair. “If that’s not a sign, I don’t know what is.”

The waiter came over with our food, checked everything was okay, and left us again.

Robert jerked his chin toward my plate. “Eat,” he ordered good-naturedly. “We need to get your strength up,” his eyes met mine, “for John.”

I picked up my knife and fork and looked down at my plate, my stomach churning at the thought of eating. Then, another little kick jerked inside, spurring me on.

Carefully, I cut a tiny piece of steak, chewed, and swallowed. My eyes went to Robert, who was eating with gusto with a small smile playing around his mouth. “Can I think about it?” I asked.

He chewed and swallowed. “Yeah.”

I looked down at my plate and sighed. Robert was right. I had to start looking after my health more. John would be angry if he knew I wasn’t taking care of myself.

It was hard, though. Robert’s proposition was swirling in my head. He made a lot of sense, but even so, the thought of a man who wasn’t John sliding a ring onto my finger made me feel sick.

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