Page 80 of Once Upon a Holidate
She grimaced. “You figured that out?”
“Once I knew your history, it wasn’t hard. Don’t give me any credit for being insightful. You believed you’d done a bad thing, so you stayed away from relationships—at least the guy-girl kind. Without that, it’s tough to get pregnant.”
He was right. She hadn’t thought she was worthy. She’d carefully chased away anyone who had tried to get close. Something she was fairly sure she was over, which made her relationship with Garrick intriguing. She wondered how he felt about having more kids—not that she was going to ask. They hadn’t even slept together. Asking about children would send him screaming into the night.
“Hunter’s upset,” she said, returning to the original subject. “He was quiet all afternoon. I know it’s a lot to take in.”
“He’ll work through it and next fall he can apply again.”
“I hope he does. I think the program would be good for him. Rules and discipline as he enters high school. It’s a mother’s dream.” She looked at him again and smiled. “And in your world?”
“I went to my first birthing class.”
She laughed. “How was it?”
“Horrifying. I’m not sure how I’m going to get through the videos. The whole process is insane and unnatural.”
“It’s actually very natural.”
“For you.” He shuddered. “The cliché is true. If it were up to men to have babies, the human race would be dead in a generation. Can we talk about something else?”
“Is this where I point out you were the one who brought up the birthing class?”
“Sure, but I take it back. I was wrong.”
“Ah, theWword. That’s exciting to hear. All right—a new topic. We’re having the meeting about Holly’s wedding tomorrow. I’m really excited to see what Renee’s pulled together. With what we’ve all pitched in, Holly and Rex are going to have a great wedding.”
“Something they can remember always,” he said.
“That’s what a wedding should be. Especially because they’re still young.”
“And you’re old?” His voice was teasing.
“No, but I’m less idealistic than I was.” She sighed. “I had to cancel Hunter’s sleepover.”
“I figured.”
“So we won’t have the house to ourselves.”
He put his hand under her chin, pressing gently until she looked at him.
“I want nothing more than to make love with you,” he said gently. “But our lives are complicated. I’m not going anywhere,Wynn. When the time is right, we’ll take that step, but until then, it’s okay.”
Which was exactly the right thing to say, she thought happily. “That’s what I think, too.”
“Good.”
“Why aren’t you married?”
He chuckled. “There’s a question.”
“What’s the answer?”
“I was married and it didn’t work out.”
“So you won’t do that again?”
“No.” He paused. “After Sandy and I split up, there was the whole Colombia thing. That messed with my head. When I got home, I was restless. I heard about the job here and moved back. Since then, I’ve been busy settling.”
