“Yes.”She wished she didn’t need to be so wary of him, but she had no choice.Whatever happened between them, Sophie needed her father and Aria wasn’t about to do anything to screw up that relationship.
He didn’t seem angry.Or even upset.On the one hand that made her happy but on the other she couldn’t figure him out.He ran his knuckles over her cheek.“Will you do something for me?”
“Depends on what it is.”
“Keep an open mind about you and me.”
“That’s it?”
“Yeah.That’s it.”
“I’ll try.”
He leaned down and kissed her.She kissed him back, wishing being here like this with him and Sophie didn’t feel so right.
But it did.Oh, it did.
“She’s asleep.”Aria got up and took the baby to the crib, laying her on her back.Leaning on the rails, she gazed at Sophie.“She’s so beautiful.”
Ryan came to stand beside her.He put his arm around her and hugged her.“She’s perfect.”
Aria leaned her head against his shoulder.“She really is.”
They stood that way for a long time, content to watch their baby sleep.
*
Ryan knew betterthan to push Aria.He wanted to, though.But he held back as much as he could with her being in his bed every night she spent at his apartment.Aria and Sophie would be going home soon, though.The floors must be close to being finished and then they’d return to their house.
Without him.
He figured he’d be spending some nights with them anyway.Now that he and Aria had finally made love again, he wasn’t about to give it up.He didn’t believe Aria was either.So he’d essentially be living in two places.His place when he was working and hers the rest of the time.
Unless she changed her mind.
He didn’t see why she would.They got along great.The baby loved him.Not as much as she loved her mom, but he knew that was common at this age.Aria hadn’t told him she loved him, and honestly, he wasn’t sure she did.Did that bother him?Yes, but what could he do about it beyond showing her she could depend on him?
A few women—mostly from the hospital—didn’t realize he was in a committed relationship, but he always told them when they asked.And it didn’t happen nearly as often as it had in the past, before Aria and Sophie moved to Marietta.Before long it should be all over town and the hospital that he and Aria and Sophie were a unit.
He tried to be patient but it was hard.He’d really done a number on Aria when he left Denver.Obviously, he hadn’t known or even suspected about the baby, but he’d left her and never tried to keep in touch.Not once in all that time.
Which was the dumbest thing he’d ever done.What in the hell else had he needed to help him believe that Aria was the one for him?He hadn’t wanted to date anyone else, much less have sex with anyone.He’d gone on some dates, sure.But they’d been at best pleasant, and not something he cared about repeating.So why hadn’t he called her?Did he think those feelings were just going to go away?
Yeah.Like that had happened.
He’d screwed up.But he hoped not irreparably.
Chapter Sixteen
Ryan had broughta DNA test home from the hospital and taken swabs from Aria and Steven.The lab told him it should only take a couple of days for the results to come back.Maybe even just one day, unless the lab was really busy.Which, of course, they were when he took the test back.
Aria had done everything she could to pretend she didn’t care about the results, but Ryan knew better.What he didn’t know was whether she wanted Steven to be her father or not.
Two days after he sent the lab the test, he got the call that the test was back.Since it wasn’t his, he took the envelope back to Aria’s after work.He pulled the envelope out of his pocket.When Aria saw it she asked, “Is that what I think it is?”
“It is.Did you want to call Steven or wait until you’ve seen the results?”
“I’ll wait.But I have a feeling it’s true.You don’t know?”
