Dani Wade - Son Of Scandal

It wasn’t just about responsibilities, either. He’d spent a lot of time with his sisters and nieces. He didn’t know where this was going, but those joyful thoughts of welcoming a child into the world and watching it grow were already taking hold.

Only a day, and he’d already been sucked in.

“Thank you for taking care of her,” he said, in a sincere effort to show his appreciation, despite what Ivy would have thought if she’d heard it.

The older woman’s smile was kind. “Ivy insists she’s handling it, but it is wearing her down, I believe. She doesn’t want anyone else to feel responsible, but that’s what family does.”

She leaned a little closer and lowered her voice. “I even postponed a trip with her sister Jasmine because I just don’t want her alone. And she needs her own bed right now, her own space. Not to be out at Willow’s place, away from her comfort zone.”

Paxton stared for just a moment, his brain kicking into overtime. Something started to take shape, but before he could analyze it, a soft voice drifted across the room.

“Somehow I knew you’d be back.”

Paxton was unsettled by Ivy’s resigned tone. Without thought, his chin went up and he said, “You shouldn’t doubt it. We’ll be a major part of each other’s lives from here on out.”

Inwardly he winced. Probably not the right approach at the moment. Unlike Ivy, Paxton knew he needed to keep his emotions out of this situation. He wasn’t sure how he felt about Ivy. About her being the mother of his child. He’d attempted to put every spine-tingling moment of their night together out of his mind...and had succeeded until the moment he’d returned home. But he didn’t want to think about it. Right now, he needed to focus on the child.

The one thing he refused to walk away from.

Not wanting to hover over her, Paxton crossed to the sofa, where she lay, and eased himself into the far corner. Ivy’s eyes widened before she pushed herself into a more upright position and pulled her feet closer to her. But not before he caught sight of her delicate feet with their bright pink toenails.

Once more he struggled to push back the memories.

“I’ll leave you youngins alone for a bit,” Auntie finally said, winking at Paxton. “I’m sure you have a lot to discuss.”

Indeed they did.

Paxton turned back to Ivy, then winced at her cynical expression.

“Any particular reason you’re trying to charm my aunt?”

Busted. “What are you talking about?”

“I’ve been watching you in action for a year and a half now. I’ve seen that same smile a hundred times. What are you trying to prove?”

That I’m not the bad guy here. “How are you feeling?” he asked, instead of answering her question.

She pushed the heavy fall of her hair back behind her ear. “Okay.”

He could spot the lie from a mile away, even without her grimace.

“Medicine helping any?”

She glanced down at the floor as if she was uncomfortable with the attention. “It helps me not be sick, but doesn’t take away the nausea altogether.”

She’d lost weight, he noticed again. Her high cheekbones stood out more than they had, creating a hollow beneath. There were dark shadows under her eyes, too. She was indeed having a rough time of it.

“The doctor says only about a month more...” she said, her voice weak. “Then we should start to see some improvement.”

As much of a jerk as it made him, he was about to use that little fact to his advantage. The idea that had teased him earlier now fell firmly into place.

As he looked into her cautious gaze, Paxton kept his expression serious. It would be all too easy to slip into charming-businessman mode, like he had with Auntie. That realm he could navigate easily. But Ivy would feel like she was being played.

He needed her on board. Not on edge.

“Ivy, I want to come stay with you.”

The shock that widened her eyes reverberated inside of Paxton. He couldn’t believe he was saying it out loud. But this made the most sense to him...and he hadn’t been able to come up with a better option to get the amount of information he needed.

Thankfully she didn’t mock his motives, or rage about the time they’d spent apart. Instead she seemed almost sad as she whispered, “Why?”

“We’re having a baby together.”

“Not really,” she countered. “I mean, we have created a child together. But we aren’t really together, are we?”

She had a point. Paxton stood, the need to clarify his thoughts pushing him to pace. “No,” he said. As uncomfortable as it might be, they needed to get this point out in the open. “For now, we aren’t together.” He pivoted to face her. “But we will always be tied to one another. And right now, I’d say I know as little about you outside of work as you know about me.”

She was already shaking her head. “I just can’t deal with this right now, Paxton. Maybe later—”

“That’s just it. I’ve had a lot of experience with pregnant women. You know that.” After all, she’d watched him go to appointment after appointment with his sister last year, when her husband was away on business. “Auntie says Jasmine wants her to go on a trip with them. Let me take care of you. It will be easier on you, and on—”

“How’s it going in here?” Auntie asked as she came back through the door with a tea tray. She set it on a little table near the couch. “Here’s some ginger tea, sweetheart. Sip this slowly.”

She handed a delicate teacup to Ivy, who raised it to her lips for a little sip before saying, “Thank you, Auntie.”

The older woman limped over to a recliner, then lowered herself into it gingerly. Ivy frowned as she watched, the questions obvious on her face.

“Actually, Auntie,” Paxton said, taking a chance despite the growing horror in Ivy’s expression, “I’m trying to convince Ivy to let me stay here for a while. Let me take care of her. Take the burden off you so you can go on the trip with Jasmine.”

Auntie glanced at Ivy with an almost-amused expression that he didn’t understand. “Now, young man, don’t you use me to put pressure on this young lady. She’s carrying enough guilt as it is.”

“I didn’t mean to—”

“Then you don’t know women as well as you think you do,” she said with a smile. “Most women feel guilty for something or other. Ivy has had to take a step back lately, let other people do the work while her body handles the process of creation. That’s not what she’s used to...but I do think you have a point.”

“You do?” Paxton hadn’t thought she’d come onboard without some persuasion.

“This isn’t really about me,” Auntie chided him with a soft smile. “It’s about you and Ivy. And you can’t figure out anything about you and Ivy without working it out together.” She transferred her smile to the woman looking pale and panicked on the couch. “It’s hard to do that with distance...and a chaperone.”

A stubborn expression took up residence on Ivy’s face. “So you want to let someone you don’t know live here while you’re gone?”

“But you know me, don’t you, Ivy?” Paxton prompted.

“So why did you accuse me of getting pregnant on purpose? Obviously you don’t know me.”

Paxton gave in to the renewed desire to pace. He didn’t want to get into the particulars of his doubts, his accusations. But he wasn’t seeing a way out. Especially not with Auntie’s and Ivy’s gazes trained directly on him. The pressure to explain warred with the desire to be defensive about his mistakes. “It was a long time ago.”

“Did someone try to trap you into marriage?” Ivy asked, her wide eyes a sign of surprise he didn’t believe.