some laughter. Her eyes contained the entire world. ‘And the baby is yours, Majed.’
THE SHOCK OF brandy hitting the back of his throat had Majed jolting back to himself. It was only then he realised Sarah had pushed him into a chair, had poured him a snifter of brandy and was urging him to drink it.
He did what she demanded because he was at a loss to know what else to do. She was having his child!
‘I know it’s a shock.’ Sarah moved to the chair opposite. ‘And I didn’t mean to blurt it out quite so baldly.’
But he’d ordered her to.
Heat scored through him, followed by a wave of ice. He stared at her. Was she okay? It didn’t matter what kind of shock he might be experiencing, it had to be far worse for her. Physically he was exactly the same as he’d been before she’d told him the news. But, regardless of what decision she made, Sarah would never be the same again. He had to focus on what she needed from him—and do his best to provide it.
She was pregnant with his child!
He opened his mouth but before he could speak she said, ‘I understand your reservations concerning the baby’s paternity.’
She thought his silence indicated that he didn’t believe her?
She’d lied about instigating the break-up with Superior Sebastian.
She wouldn’t lie about something as big as this.
‘Sarah—’
‘Please, just let me explain. It’s taken me this long to screw up my courage and now that I’ve started I’d... I’d rather just keep going.’
He gave a terse nod, hating the thought that she’d been afraid to tell him her news.
‘So, the thing is...’ She drew a loop of circles in the condensation of her glass. ‘Sebastian had mumps when he was fifteen, which means the likelihood of him being able to father children is pretty slim. But, besides that—’
She broke off to stare at her hands. He reached out and wrapped one of his hands around both of hers. She had such small hands, and every protective instinct he had surged to the fore. ‘Don’t be frightened of me, Sarah. I’m not angry. Just stunned.’ He made his voice as gentle as he could. ‘I want to help in any way I can.’
Her lips trembled. ‘That’s lovely of you.’
‘You’ve had a lot to bear on your own. I want you to know you’re not alone now.’ She was having his child! He forced himself to swallow. ‘What were you saying about Sebastian?’
‘Oh.’ Her lips twisted. ‘Before we broke up...for the two months before we broke up... Sebastian and I...’
‘Yes?’
She disengaged her hand from his to rub her nape. ‘We hadn’t been intimate.’
He’d always known the man had rocks in his head. This simply confirmed it.
‘I don’t doubt your word.’
The little moue she made informed him she didn’t entirely believe him. ‘We’ll have a paternity test done to put your mind at rest. If I decide to keep the baby.’
If. His heart clenched at the word, though he wasn’t sure why. A child was the last thing he’d expected at this point in his life. It should be the last thing he wanted.
But the ultimate decision rested with Sarah. It was her body and he’d support her whatever she decided to do.
‘Are you and the baby healthy?’
‘The doctor says so.’
‘You’ve been to see a doctor? That’s good.’
She frowned. ‘You’re taking this very calmly.’
Inside he was a mass of conflicting emotions but he refused to reveal them. ‘We’re in this together. I want you to know you’re not alone. Between us we’ll sort it out.’
Her mouth opened but no words emerged.
‘Have you eaten this evening?’
She wrinkled her nose. ‘I haven’t had much of an appetite.’
He rose and took her hand. ‘Come, I’ll make you an omelette.’
He switched off the lights to the bar and led her upstairs to the flat above.
‘You can cook?’ she asked when he’d seated her at the breakfast bar of his open-plan kitchen-dining-living room.
‘I make omelettes that are out of this world.’
She glanced around and he wondered what she made of his bachelor pad. ‘An omelette sounds kinda nice.’
It wasn’t until Majed pulled the eggs from the fridge that he remembered pregnant women were supposed to avoid certain foods. What about eggs? He swung back. ‘Will you excuse me for a moment?’
He sped into the bathroom and pulled his phone from his pocket to open his web browser. He typed in his query and then read down the list of foods that pregnant women shouldn’t eat. Right—the eggs shouldn’t be runny. Okay, he’d cook the omelette a little longer than usual... Actually, he might cook it a lot longer than usual, just to be on the safe side. Hard cheeses like cheddar were fine too. Right. He snapped his phone shut. He’d keep it simple with a plain cheese omelette. Well cooked.
* * *
Sarah tried to find some trace of Majed in his flat—in his furniture and in the décor—but... Well, it was all very comfortable and commendably tidy, but something was missing, though she couldn’t put her finger on what it was.
‘What do you think of the place?’
She glanced around from the window that overlooked the busy inner-city Melbourne street to find Majed surveying her from the doorway. And just like that her heart started to jackhammer. ‘It’s nice.’ She ignored his raised eyebrow to add, ‘I’ve always been curious to see up here.’
He stared at her for a bit longer. ‘The bathroom is just down the hall on the left.’ He pointed back behind him. ‘And the bedroom is at the end of the hall. Feel free to take a look.’
‘Oh, no, I’m all good.’ She couldn’t invade his privacy that much.
She slid onto her stool again when he started clattering pots and pans and whisking eggs. She knew they were skirting around the main topic of conversation but...dear Lord...the shock on his face when he’d finally realised what she’d been trying to tell him. It made her stomach churn just remembering it. She wanted to give him a chance to get a little more used to the idea before they launched into a discussion about what they would do.
Frankly, she had no idea what that
