Page 31 of An Heir Made In Hawaii (Hot Winter Escapes)

She wanted to argue with him. But if she was being practical, she knew that she could not provide everything that was needed for herself and the baby off what she was making with the inn. If she accepted his help, she would be able to continue to focus her resources on repairs and getting back onto firmer financial footing.

“Fine,” she agreed reluctantly. “Thank you. But nothing over the top. I’d never want our child to feel like I was using their father for money.”

Nicholas surprised her by reaching over and grasping her hand. “I know you wouldn’t. Whatever capacity I’m involved in when it comes to our child, I’ll make sure that if that question ever comes up, they know, too.”

Touched by the gesture, she gently squeezed his fingers then pulled her hand away.

“Well, is there really anything else? Once the baby’s here, we can set up some sort of visitation schedule. Maybe based on your traveling—”

“What about us?”

“Us?” Anika repeated.

“Yes, us.”

“There is no us. We had a one-night stand. Now we have a baby.” Her chest twisted as for one brief, mad moment she let herself wonder what it could be like if they weren’t two completely different people. “That’s the end of it.”

“But that’s not the end of it. For us, and this child, it’s just the beginning. We should focus on how our relationship is going to evolve moving forward.”

“Did you not hear me?” Anika asked, frustration mounting. “There is no relationship.”

How was she going to do this?, she suddenly wondered. She had planned on doing this by herself. Now Nicholas wanted not only to contribute financially and potentially be involved in the baby’s life, but he wanted to be part of her life, too? How was she supposed to move on if he was always there, either directly in her life or haunting the fringes of it?

“There will have to be some type of relationship if we’re going to maintain a positive environment for our child. I don’t want to just get to know our baby. I want to get to know the mother of my child.”

She tensed. She was not going to allow him any further into her life than she had to. Not when doing so would just deepen the pain of what could have been but would never be.

“Where do you see this going exactly? Because we’re not a good fit. I don’t see us dating, getting married, any of that. I don’t want us to be together just for the sake of the baby.”

“I don’t want that, either,” Nicholas replied. “As I told you before, I have no interest in marriage. That doesn’t mean that I don’t think that we should still have a healthy relationship.”

“Okay,” she said, “but you’re always traveling—”

“I was already scheduled to be in Bled through early February for the last bit of construction and the grand opening. With it being the newest property, I’ll also being making trips at least once a month, if not more, for the year after that.”

Was that supposed to make her feel better? That he was steadily encroaching on her peaceful existence? She’d thought after the hotel opened he’d be gone, off to his next hotel and his next adventure.

“While I’m here,” he continued, seemingly unaware of her inner emotional turmoil, “I’d like for us to spend time together. Get to know each other a little bit better.”

She arched a brow. “Better than we already know each other?”

His smile turned devilish. “I wouldn’t say no to a repeat performance of what we experienced in Kauai. But we don’t know much about each other personally.”

Embarrassed, she looked away. She was carrying the man’s child and yet she didn’t know much beyond the small bit he’d revealed and what she’d read in the tabloids.

“Okay,” she finally said. “How do you propose we get to know each other better?”

“Let’s start with something simple. Dinner, tomorrow night. There’s a beautiful restaurant just a little way around the lake that I’ve been wanting to try. See if it will belong in our recommendations list for our guests.”

“Lunch.”

He frowned. “How is lunch different than dinner?”

Because dinner feels like a date. And I can’t think about you like that.

“It works better for me.”

She returned his stare with one of her own, willing herself not to back down. He was already throwing her carefully organized plan into chaos. She could force herself to accept his desire to be in their child’s life, even be moderately grateful for it.

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