“Fine. When you get one, I’ll try to recognize it.” I digest his words and scan his face to assess his sincerity. “So, we’re doing this? Raising a kid together?”
“We only live two hours away from each other. Co-parenting will give a child the best of both worlds. A little city life and time under these wide open skies I love so much. We can write it all down, all the legal terms and schedules you seem to love so much, make it a business agreement, make me a co-CEO if you want.”
Even though the rules were my idea, I’m having a hard time believing this could work. But…maybe. If we layer in enough plans and contingencies, it could be an iron-clad arrangement.
“I do like the idea of a kid running free on a ranch part of the time,” I admit, letting the image flourish in my mind.
“Damn straight. It’s one thing my dad did right, maybe the only thing. The rest I’m gonna do differently, starting with acting like the grownup in the mix.”
I nod, feeling like he’s convincing himself as well as me. I want to know more about his relationship with his dad, but this isn’t the time for it. For now, it relieves me to know he’s taking the responsibility so seriously.
On my entire drive up here today, I’d been waffling, worried about my own parenting abilities, but the idea of having a supportive partner makes it seem possible. I can’t decide yet if it’s a problem that John Fitzgerald’s mere presence makes my pulse speed up a notch.
Damn cowboy.
“So…ground rules…” I perch on the edge of the bed, pulling out my phone to take notes.
“Seriously? You’re writing this down?”
“Of course I am. We need boundaries. Rules. Stipulations. Expectations.” I can’t help my guilty smile at how much I love having a plan.
He circles a finger in my direction, but all I see is his smoldering look. “If you think this is seduction by spreadsheet, I oughtta tell you it’s not working.”
I shake my head. “No! See, this is exactly why we need rules. First one, no lingering looks, no hot cowboy smirks.”
“I wasn’t doing either.” Maybe he doesn’t intend to, but he’s giving me both. The heat of his gaze sets every nerve ending in my body on fire. I want to climb him like a tree.
“Maybe not intentionally,” I mutter.
He laughs, deep and raspy. His eyes crinkle. Another wave of flames over my skin. A zing between my legs that isn’t helping matters. If only my body would stop betraying my brain.
“Fitz, stop it.”
He holds his hands up in innocence? “Stop what?”
I shake my head, refusing to encourage him.Wanting to encourage him…
“We need to have boundaries. Come on, we can both be adults here, can’t we? Let’s just agree on some basic terms. Whether you’ll come to doctor visits. What major expenses we need to consider.”
He lets out a low whistle. “Okay, if you say so.” And just like that, the flirtation stops. He crosses his arms and starts rattling off a list of things he’d like to be involved in and telling me the constraints of his schedule.
A part of me wants to take back all the things I said about us being just friends and co-parents. That part of me that wants more, the part that still wishes for the prince. The rest of me nudges in with saner thoughts. The right thoughts.
We’re good this way. We’ll be friends. We’ll get to know each other better over the coming months. We’ll be the best possible parents. And besides, Fitz doesn’t do relationships. He couldn’t have made that more clear, and I’m still determined to make partner in LA. So friends are all we’ll ever be.
I just hope that somewhere along the way, my body stops reacting to him. A woman can hope.
CHAPTER 17
Fitz
One WeekLater
I've spentway too much time this week not working and not thinking about what to do about the other issue with my property, which is that I'm very short-staffed. So many of my day laborers have been afraid to come to work for fear of getting hauled off by immigration officials who keep doing regular sweeps around town, looking for people who are working in California illegally.
These are some of the hardest-working people I've ever met. Most of them do have their papers, but many have a cousin or two here without a green card, so they're nervous.
I get it, so I've told them to stay home until it's safe.
