she told him, trying to maneuver around him toward the door and failing to make any headway.
“You’re quitting this job,” he told her, looking intently into her eyes for a moment. “Doctor’s orders.”
This was crazy. It was all very well to tell her not to work too hard, to get plenty of rest and keep her feet up and so forth. But the fact remained that she had to make a living somehow. Lifting her chin, she glared at him defiantly.
“Doctors can throw their weight around all they want, but patients have still got to eat.”
She turned toward the door but he moved to block her progress and she looked up, a little startled by how big he was, how wide his shoulders seemed. And how knowing his gaze seemed to be. Did this man ever have any doubts about anything?
“You’ll eat,” he said. “I’ve got another job for you. One that won’t keep you on your feet all day.”
She wondered why he so casually assumed she would trust him enough to hand over life’s little decisions to him.
“And that would be…?”
“Office work. My office assistant abandoned me. She’s gone back East to help her fiancé pass the New York state bar exam. I need someone to fill in until she gets back.”
Office work. Air-conditioning. A soft, plush seat. Regular hours. It sounded heavenly. But it never paid as much as waiting tables and getting tips.
“How long will that be?” she asked anyway, tempted against her better judgment.
“At least three months.” His grin had become endearingly crooked. “That fiancé of hers needs a lot of work and she’s the determined type.”
She looked at him curiously. “What makes you think I’d be good at doing the sort of office work you need done?”
He shrugged. “I’ve seen you working here with Millie over the last few weeks. Competence just radiates from you. Don’t you know that?”
It was a nice compliment, but she hesitated, then shook her head.
“I can’t quit here,” she said, putting a hand on her rounded belly. “I’m totally dependent on what I make and I need to save for my recovery period after the baby comes.”
His blue eyes darkened. “No husband handy?”
He asked it quietly, no moral judgment implied, and she felt a small twinge of gratitude for that. She’d spent too much emotional energy lately in resenting the looks and comments made by people once they realized her situation. No one could be more contemptuous of her idiocy in landing in this fix than she was. She didn’t need to hear it from others. Lifting her head, she met his gaze with a steady look.
“No. I’m not married.”
If anything, his gaze grew warmer. “No family of any sort?”
She shook her head. “My mother died about a year ago.”
“And your father?”
“I don’t have one.”
He frowned. “Everyone has a father.”
“Only in the biological sense,” she said.
She could tell he didn’t like that answer, but he let it go.
“How much do you make?”
She told him. It wasn’t like it was a secret. Everyone knew how much this job took in. She didn’t add the amount she made at her second job, but he didn’t need to know that.
“You’ll do better working for me.” He told her a figure that got her attention. “And you’ll get benefits, too. You’ll need that for when you have the baby.”
She shook her head. “My delivery fees will be covered.” She hesitated only a second or two, then went on. “I’m considering giving my baby up for adoption. The lawyer will take care of everything.”
The very air seemed to go still. And at the same time, something flashed across his face. He looked as though her statement had stunned him. His face was like stone but his eyes were blazing.
“What?” he said softly.
She licked her dry lips. She had expected surprise, maybe bemusement, but nothing like this.
“I think you heard me. Why the shock and amazement? I’m not married.”
She hated having to explain. The pain of having to make this decision bled freshly every time. She threw up her hands, half a gesture of exasperation, half a plea for understanding.
“I want what’s best for my baby. Adoption can be a wonderful thing. A nice couple who can’t have a child of their own would be a lot better for this child than anything I can promise.”
She hated that she sounded defensive, but there it was.
The muscle at his jaw worked for a moment as his gaze seemed to cut through to her bones. Was it the fact that she was considering putting her baby up for adoption that was bothering him so much? She didn’t know what else it could be. Something was sure going on inside him. Some emotional chord had been yanked with a vengeance. She watched curiously, wondering what he was thinking as his gaze dropped to study her rounded belly. But his eyes were cool and impenetrable and his face was giving nothing away.
“Let’s go,” he said shortly, putting a hand in the center of her back to help lead her out the door.
She balked. That hand felt too good—and too controlling at the same time. “Wait a minute. I’m feeling a bit bulldozed here.”
He nodded. “You want some time to think it over?”
“Yes. That would be helpful.”
His smile was humorless. “You’ll have plenty of time in the car on the way to the clinic.”
“But—”
“Am I going to have to pick you up and carry you again?”
She drew in her breath sharply. “No.” Biting her lip, she let him lead her. After all, what choice did she have?
Chapter Two
“I hope you don’t think I’m taking any clothes off.”
The first thing Annie noticed when she and Matt arrived at the clinic was that the place was empty. It was getting late. Obviously, the staff had all gone home for the night. Still, it made her feel a bit awkward. Not to mention suspicious.
That was actually somewhat new for her, but she was learning. Don’t trust anyone, especially studly-looking men with flattering words and a roving eye. She tugged her light sweater tightly around her shoulders and glared at Matt as though he were the archetypal representative of that very group.
“Because any test that needs me naked isn’t going to happen,” she added, just for emphasis.
