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At least temporarily.
…
Daniel managed to scrounge up a snack for them—a bag of Goldfish from behind the absurd number of cream of mushroom cans he’d rage-purchased earlier—but he wasn’t about to let Hope out of his bed any time soon. The sex had been… Fuck, he didn’t have words for how good it had been. All he knew was that the second they left this room, they were going to have to figure some shit out, and he flat out wasn’t ready. This was a much-needed reprieve, and he was going to hold onto it for as long as he could.
On the other hand, there were things they needed to figure out sooner rather than later.
In all the chaos since Hope showed up again that first time, Daniel hadn’t seen much of either his friends or family. Truth be told, that wasn’t as abnormal as it once might have been, but he couldn’t hide her away indefinitely. A weekend, yes. Any longer and word would get out—had already gotten out that she was back in town if the half a dozen missed calls from his mother were any indication.
He needed to let people know about the baby, but telling each person individually and having to deal with the variety of reactions that would no doubt range from shocked to pissed to joyful was exhausting to even think about. It would be easier to get them all together and deliver the news at once—like ripping off a Band-Aid.
First, though, he needed to get Hope on board. He’d already fucked things up enough without springing this on her, too. But if he could do both with one fell swoop…
He stretched, half rolling over to run a hand down her side. Fuck, she’s so beautiful, it kills me. “I was thinking.”
“Always a dangerous prospect.” She opened one eye. “Go on.”
“We have to tell my family eventually—and Adam and Quinn.”
Hope sighed and rolled onto her stomach to bury her face in the pillow. “Can’t we just tell them in approximately eight months when the baby is here? It’s not like they’re going to see me much in the meantime to ask why I suddenly look like a human-shaped elephant.”
Eight months. It seemed like an eternity and not nearly long enough to get used to the idea of being a dad. And she was still planning on leaving in the morning. He forced himself to focus. “You know that’s not an option.”
“I don’t see why not.”
Daniel considered how to respond, trying to keep from steamrolling her like she kept accusing him of doing. “What do you say to getting together for a dinner and announcing it there? Let everyone know at once so there aren’t any hurt feelings that we told one person before another.”
“I suppose that would require me to make yet another trip to Devil’s Falls?”
Not if she didn’t leave in the first place. He ran a hand down her spine, splaying his fingers across the small of her back. “Or maybe you could take some vacation days and we could do it this week. Get it all out of the way at once.” The longer she was here, the better chance he had of convincing her to stay for good.
She lifted her head. “You won’t let it go, will you?”
“This is sheer self-defense.” He kept touching her, trying to soothe away the tension that had bled into her muscles. “If you’re there and so is the rest of my family, there’s the added bonus that with everyone together, we’re less likely to get new asses ripped by my parents.”
Hope made a face. “Speaking of parents, I suppose we should extend an invitation to mine, too, if we’re going forward with this insanity.”
He bit back a denial. She was agreeing to his plan, which meant he couldn’t do a damn thing to jeopardize it. He hadn’t seen the Moores since John’s funeral, but he couldn’t get the condemnation on Mrs. Moore’s face out of his head. It was one of the contributing factors that pushed him to leave Hope alone for good, though he’d never tell her that. The decision had been his, and he didn’t like the idea of causing problems with her and her parents.
That didn’t mean he was all that eager to see them again.
But he’d fake it. For Hope. He cleared his throat. “That sounds great.”
“Liar.” She laughed softly. “But if we’re going down together, it might as well be in flames.”
Daniel kept stroking her back. “We can do this, darling. I promise.” It struck him that he’d made promises to her before, a lifetime ago, and he’d failed at following through on a single one of them. Promises that he loved her, that they’d have a future together, that he’d be by her side through thick and thin.
I fucked up before. I won’t do it again.
