Page 28 of Santa's Baby

She sighed. She’d thought long and hard about it. “Because I want to gain more experience first. Not just prepare wills and incorporate people. For me, the fun is going to court and proving my client is innocent or proving my client has been wronged. Eventually, I might go out on my own, but right now, I want to work for someone.”

It had been devastating when they fired her. She was the golden child and she’d never been fired before. It was like she’d flunked a class, which had never happened either.

“Why didn’t you sue the firm that fired you?”

She gave a chuckle. “Because in order to get my severance package, I had to sign a document that I would not sue them for discrimination. I was pregnant. About five months, when they realized I wasn’t just gaining weight, but rather pregnant. I was an embarrassment to the firm, so they let me go.”

When HR had called her in and told her they were letting her go, she’d been so angry, she’d wanted to take them to court. But she needed the money. She needed the insurance to have this child. But sometimes Karma was a bitch and Amelia hoped that someday she faced them in court and she beat them. That was the dream that got her through these past months.

“They’re asshats,” he said.

“Yes, indeed,” she replied. Just then the baby kicked and she saw the look on Ryan’s face.

“I think she agrees,” he said gazing at her. “I love you being here in my bed.”

Warmth filled her and she wondered what it would be like to be married to him.

“I like being here,” she replied.

“Come on,” he said. “We’ve got a busy day ahead of us.”

“Oh,” she said. “Last I looked, it was still snowing.”

“Yes,” he said. “But I want you to meet my family. Some of the town streets have been cleared and we’re going to visit them. I’ll warm up the jeep and then we’ll leave.”

Fear filled Amelia as she stared at him. “But I’m nine months pregnant with your child.”

“And they will be so happy for us. My mother knew I had met someone on the cruise. I’ll tell her we found each other.”

After her experience with the law firm, she had more or less hibernated in her apartment. She was unmarried and pregnant. And no one would ever disrespect her child; she wouldn’t tolerate it.

“If you’re certain,” she said.

“Yes,” he said. “They’re going to be so excited for us. Now come on. Let’s get ready. My mother is expecting us for lunch.”

Nerves filled her. This was Ryan’s family she was going to meet and she wanted to make as good of an impression as she could.

CHAPTER15

Ryan had called his mother ahead of time and warned her to tell everyone not to say anything about Sandy and Charlotte. He’d yet to tell Amelia and he wanted to tell her tonight when they were alone.

And he wanted no comparisons between his deceased wife and child to Amelia and their baby. This was his new start in life and he didn’t want any connections to his old life.

Yes, he’d loved his wife and child more than anything on this earth, but they were gone. It had taken him a long time to get over their deaths.

Now, hopefully, he was moving on with Amelia and their little accident that he already loved.

If he were honest with himself, he’d recognize that he was in love with Amelia as well. Watching her, taking care of her, and remembering their time together all contributed to falling so damn fast for her. He didn’t know if he could make it through the weekend without telling her he loved her.

And this was his final test. If his family loved her as much as he did, he would soon be asking her to marry him. The sooner the better. Call him old fashioned, but this child would have his last name.

He’d cleared the sidewalk, warmed up the jeep, and now Amelia was bundled up as he held onto her as she walked to the vehicle.

“No slip and falls,” he said. “Our little accident needs a couple more weeks in the oven.”

She held onto him tightly. “If I start falling, you know I’ll take you down with me.”

And he would do everything he could to make certain she fell on top of him. But that wasn’t going to happen. He would make certain she reached the Jeep safely.

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