Page 20 of Our Little Wedding

She nodded. “I sent through the reports from Max,” she said, picking up a sliver of paper off the floor. “Did you get them?”

I nodded. “I did. I’ll be going over them shortly. When do you have your next visit with the doctor?”

“My family doctor booked me in with an OB/GYN. I’m just waiting for the appointment date.” She walked over to me and placed her hand on my chest and looked me in the eye. “Please, Spencer, I’m okay. I’ll order you some lunch. What would you like?”

“Just order from the same place you are ordering from for yourself.” She didn’t respond. She just walked over and looked out the window again. “Ainsley, did you hear me?”

“No, I’m sorry.”

“I told you to order me whatever you were having. Now I know you heard me.” I frowned.

“Oh, sorry, I’m not eating today. I’m not really all that hungry,” she muttered.

As it was, Ainsley ate like a bird. Her family doctor had told her she needed to make sure she was getting enough at the very first appointment when they’d gone over her diet. There was no way she wasn’t eating. She’d barely touched dinner last night,and I was sure she’d thrown her breakfast in the garbage this morning, after I’d told her I may need to make a trip to Denver.

I cleared my throat. “Don’t order me anything. We are going out for lunch,” I said, putting an end to what I feared would become an argument. “Be ready for one, right after my meeting.” I glanced at my calendar, making sure I had nothing booked until at least three.

“Fine,” Ainsley huffed. She made her way to the door and stepped out into the hallway, pulling the door closed behind her.

My meeting made my head ache. I’d gone over all the documents with Max over the phone again and to say they did not impress me was an understatement. I was glad I’d decided to take Ainsley for lunch; I needed to get out of this office to clear my head.

I glanced at my watch and grabbed my suit jacket off the back of my chair. I stepped out into the hallway and saw that Ainsley had stepped away from her desk. I was about to text her when she came walking around the corner, holding her stomach.

“You feeling okay?”

“Yep, of course. Just a little upset stomach is all.”

“It’s because you haven’t eaten. Let’s go.”

“I’ve eaten, Spencer,” Ainsley bit back.

It was out of character for her to snap back at me. I ignored it. “Ainsley, half an egg does not count as eating.” I walked over and grabbed her coat from the rack in the corner and helped her into it, and then I grabbed her hand and guided her to the elevator where we both stood in silence, waiting.

Once at the restaurant, Ainsley sat with the menu open in front of her, trying to decide what it was she wanted to eat. I’d decided ten minutes earlier, and I glanced at my watch as she continued to go back and forth between the three dishes.

“Okay, I think I’ve got it,” she said, closing the menu.

Immediately, I signaled for the server. Once we’d ordered, I sat back in my chair and looked at Ainsley.

“How did the meeting with Max go?” she questioned.

I knew she was trying to avoid me asking her anything, which was fine for now.

I cleared my throat. “Well, I am not pleased. I am going to need to make a trip out there for a few days. Max has never overseen something this large before, and to save a disaster, I’d rather take control and set things right at the beginning, as opposed to waiting.”

Ainsley nodded her head and muttered, “That’s understandable,” then looked away from me. “I know how hard you’ve worked to get Denver up and running.”

“Would you be willing to stay with Nikki at the house for a few days while I go?”

When she didn’t immediately respond, I leaned forward. “Ainsley? What is it? Talk to me, please.”

Her chest heaved as she took in a full breath. Avoiding my eyes, she shrugged. “Are you sure you’re not running away from things here… from me?” Her voice cracked as she choked out the last two words.

“From you? Why would I be running from you?”

“Oh, I don’t know, because of everything that has been going on in our lives as of late. I am sure you’re growing tired of everything with my dad, the wedding, Brittany, the new baby, the new house, and probably a million other things I forgot to add to that list. I don’t doubt that you’d be looking for space,” she said as she counted items on her fingers. “Oh, and don’t forget the baby shower invites.”

I frowned. “No, Ainsley, this isn’t about needing space. This is about business. While all of those things are going on, and yes, it can be stressful, you need to keep yourself focused on the end goal. That goal is us and our family.”

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