Page 45 of Mr. Kelly

“What happened?” I inquire as I point at the offensive sight marring my man's body.

He looks down absently, unbothered by the sight of it.

“I got Delaney her phone call,” he informs me with a smirk.

“What's amusing about your best friend abusing you?”

Teddy chuckles softly. “It's hardly abuse. I've done worse to him. I had to bring up a triggering point to get the call. He didn't hit me just because I asked.”

“So you hurt his feelings and he hit you?”

He shrugs. “Pretty much.” He winks at me when I roll my eyes. “Call them,” he repeats, circling back to the original subject.

My stomach lurches because I don't know how to broach the subject. Instead, I wave him off.

“Don't worry about it. You don't have to meet my parents yet.”

He gives me the stern look he's known for while folding his arms. Giving in, I pick up my phone and put the smile back on his face. He grabs his t-shirt, to my disappointment, and covers his body.

My mood perks up when he joins me on the floor, cradling me between his thighs. His chest warms my back, and I lean into the warmth, turning him into my recliner. Teddy kisses my temple and rests his hands protectively over my belly. I'm in total bliss until the video chat connects.

Tension rises in my shoulders, but Teddy doesn’t let me go. My parents greet me with polite smiles, but their eyes are on Theodore.

“Hi, Mom and Dad, this is Theodore.”

“Hello,” they say in unison, but my mom takes over.

`“Are you father to our grandson?”

Teddy’s face breaks into a brilliant smile that answers my mom before his words. “Yes, ma’am, I am.”

My mom squints her eyes because recognition is starting to set in. “Wait, you’re her boss.”

“Was,” he confirms.

Her deep brown skin wrinkles when she frowns. I may have gotten my dad’s creole coloring, but everything else is my mom.I know she’s trying to guess his age, but she isn’t one to try to guess something she can ask.

“How old are you, Theodore?”

“Mom,” I start, but he stops me.

“It’s okay, River. That’s why we’re doing this.” His warm, soothing hand rubs my belly as he responds. “I’ll be forty-two in two weeks.”

My mom nods, but to her credit, she doesn’t flinch at the twelve-year age difference. My dad, however, asks the question I think most dads ask.

“Are you two planning to get married?”

If my dad’s question bothered Teddy, I couldn’t catch any sign of it. His shoulders are relaxed, his smile never drops, and I don't feel any tension in his body.

“Honestly, I don’t have that answer for you right now. I won’t leave River or our child hanging in any capacity. He will have my last name, and I’ll take care of them.”

I don’t expect him to take care of me, but now isn’t the time to hash that out. I fight the urge to laugh when my dad studies my face like he’s expecting me to send an S.O.S when Teddy is not paying attention. I know things like that happen so that part of it isn’t funny. It’s funny because it’s nowhere near how Theodore is with me.

“Why is it hard to answer?” my dad presses. “Are you against marriage?”

“Not at all, sir. River and I had a regular boss-and-employee relationship. None of this was our plan or intention, but I was in the middle of dealing with a separation and finalizing a messy divorce and she had her own issues. We bonded over bad breakups. My ex-wife ran off River with a lie. I didn’t know about the lie or the baby until she came back.”

I don’t know if my parents look dizzy, or if I feel dizzy, but even the abbreviated version sounds crazy.

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