Page 33 of An Heir Made In Hawaii (Hot Winter Escapes)

The tension that had seized his body loosened a fraction.

“I’m double-checking with my doctor, but the initial appointment I had said that unless you were a carrier of that gene, it’s unlikely that our baby would be at risk.”

Nicholas nodded. “This is all new to me.”

“It’s new to me, too,” Anika said with a gentle smile.

“Let’s talk about something positive. You seem to have fond memories of where you lived back in the States.”

“I do. We lived in a small town outside of Kansas City just north of the river. The town was along the banks. Not mountains like this, but rolling hills covered in trees. We lived next to a large farm, but we also had a few animals—a cow, a couple of goats, chickens.”

“Hence your knowledge of roosters.”

“Yes.” Anika grinned, the smile transforming her face. “My mother was a nurse, so we only kept a few animals. But it had always been her dream to have a farm. Well, hers and my father’s.” She glanced down at her plate. “I’m grateful for what I’ve had. But it seems like as the years go by, my family gets taken away from me bit by bit. I missed having a father, especially when I would come across something of his that told me a little bit about who he used to be. Who he could have been if he had been able to stay with us.”

In that moment, Nicholas made a vow. To Anika, to their unborn child and to himself. He might not be the kind of father Anika had pictured when she’d envisioned a family of her own. But he would do what he could to give her as much of himself as possible.

Her eyes glimmered as she looked out over the water. He wanted to reach over to comfort her, to pull her into his arms. A move a boyfriend or lover might do normally. Not an appropriate gesture for a couple exploring nothing more than a co-parenting relationship.

He’d moved through his relationships, the occasional fling, with ease, confident in his every action. But right now, seated across from Anika, he wasn’t sure what to do.

“It’s the first time in my life I’ve been alone. After my father passed, I had my mother. After my mother passed, I had Marija. They were always there for me.”

“I only met her the few times, but she was an incredible woman. She told me a little bit about your family’s history here.”

“Yes. It’s been in our family since just after the first World War. My great-great grandfather bought it for almost nothing off of an American who modeled it after his house back in Virginia, but then missed his home too much to stay. The house was a great source of pride for Marija.”

“But not your mother?”

“My mother always told me that she enjoyed growing up here, that it was a beautiful place to live as a child, but that she wanted more. She wanted to travel, see more of the world. That’s how she met my father. She was a traveling nurse, but she eventually settled in Kansas City when she got pregnant with me. At that point she’d been traveling nearly a decade and decided that it was time to grow some roots.”

Nicholas cocked his head to one side.

“Do you ever get the feeling of wanderlust that she did?”

Anika shifted in her seat, as if his questions were making her uncomfortable.

“Occasionally. But not really.”

She was lying. To him, certainly, but perhaps to herself, too. One day he would push her. But not today.

She changed the subject to his recent trip to the Czech Republic. They talked about his hotels, about the places they had visited. Lunch came to a close on a succulent dessert topped off with powdered sugar and cherries.

“This was nice,” Anika said quietly as they were walking toward her tiny car.

“You sound surprised.”

“I am,” she admitted. “I wasn’t expecting to enjoy my time so much.” She smiled up at him, a shy smile that hit him right in the gut. “But I’m really glad we did this. Thank you.”

“You’re welcome. It was nice getting to know a little bit more about you.”

“Maybe next time I can learn a little bit more about you.”

“What do you mean?”

“You got to hear quite a bit about my past. How I ended up here, my parents. We talked about your hotels and your travels, but I didn’t really get to know much about you.”

He shrugged.

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