Page 26 of Craving You

“Ugh…I have a feeling my cousin is just pacing in the kitchen waiting for me. I love her and I appreciate her concern, but I’m still figuring things out.”

“We,” he corrected. “We’re still figuring things out. You’re not alone in this. And if I have to go in there and tell her to back off, then I will. I don’t want you to feel uncomfortable staying there.”

“Finding a place to live should be first on my list, then. After going home and packing up my place, quitting my job, and finding a new one.” Groaning, now it was her turn to fall back against the cushions. “How am I supposed to do all of this?”

“One step at a time, and not all by yourself. We’ve got this.”

“I wish I had your optimism.”

He didn’t comment, but he was on his feet and holding out his hand to her. “And we’re not going to figure it all out tonight. Tomorrow’s another day and we’ll sit down and make lists and take it from there.”

Slowly, Hailey got to her feet and hugged him. “Thank you.” His arms came around her and they stayed locked like that for several long moments.

“If Billie needs to lecture anyone tonight, she’ll have to settle for me,” he told her. “Now come on. You need some rest.”

“Thanks, Max.”

Together they left his apartment and walked across the driveway to the house. No one was in the kitchen when they entered, and Max gave her a soft kiss before wishing her a good night. She hated leaving him, but she was definitely tired. And like he said, tomorrow was another day.

But she also knew she was going to dream about him all night.

“Not so fast.”

Crap. He was almost at the door when he heard his brother’s voice. Turning around, he made sure he was smiling. “What’s up?”

“Seriously? What’s up? What the hell is going on?”

Max casually walked over to the kitchen island and snagged a cookie off the plate that was there. “I believe we covered that earlier.”

“Max…”

“Marcus…” he mimicked before letting out a long, loud breath. “We’re having a baby and we’re figuring things out. That’s all I’ve got right now.” Biting into the cookie, he hummed appreciatively. “Is there anything your wife can’t bake?”

The look of utter frustration on his brother’s face was almost comical, but luckily he must have realized not to push.

“So…are you okay? I mean…this had to be a shock.”

“It was. For both of us, obviously, but for now we’re just taking it one day at a time.”

“Are you going to marry her?”

“I want to,” Max answered truthfully. “But when I proposed, she ran and threw up so…”

Throwing his head back, Marcus laughed. “That’s awesome.”

“My ego didn’t think so.”

“Your ego could use a reality check.” Walking over to the kitchen table, Marcus sat. “You know you don’t have to get married, right? That whole train of thought is completely outdated. The two of you can co-parent without a ring.”

Sighing, but opting not to sit down, he nodded. “I know, and I get it, but…I can’t help how I feel. In my mind, that’s what I want. I want to marry Hailey. Most of the time I may act a bit goofy or like things don’t bother me, but I’m a traditional kind of guy.”

“Not that traditional. You slept with her after knowing her for less than a day.”

Frowning, he grabbed another cookie. “Doesn’t change how I feel.”

“Is it for convenience? Because you have nine months before she’s really going to need your help.”

“She needs help now,” he countered. “She’s going to move here, and she shouldn’t have to do that by herself. Then she’s going to need to find a place to live, a job, a doctor…she didn’t get pregnant alone, so don’t give me any of that crap like she won’t need me until the baby comes!” And yeah, his tone was a bit snappish.

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