Page 58 of Hunt You Down

“How are you darlin’?” she asked me, lifting the little pink bundle from the car seat. “I heard you were pretty sick there for a while.”

“I’m fine, you really don’t have to worry about me. I’m just really sorry that you got swept up in⁠—”

“Honey, you don’t owe me an explanation. I have a clean bill of health, and Charlotte was born on my grandmother’s birthday. I think it was a blessing in disguise.”

I looked at the swaddled blanket in her arms. Charlotte was fast asleep. A rosy-cheeked face poked out of the blanket, dark lashes sweeping her cheekbones. Something tugged at my chest.

“You want to hold her?”

I couldn’t respond before Amanda handed the baby over. Noting that I wasn’t her parent, Charlotte’s deep, ocean blue eyes crept open. I bounced her slightly, and she settled once more. Sensing eyes on me, I glanced up to find André watching us with a glimmer in his eye.

I’d never thought about wanting kids. I always thought there would be time to think about it later. Then later came, and I ended up with Regan. There was no way I was going to bring a child into that environment, so I gave up on the idea. But now?

I banished that thought as quickly as it came. André might not want kids.

I still tired easily and my full stomach made me really uncomfortable. I tried to signal to André that I was ready to go home, but he kept finding things to talk about, so I held the baby until she got fussy. Amanda fastened her back into her car seat and finally, André and I began the walk home.

Chapter Twenty-Four

André held my hand, but watched his feet as he walked, clearly thinking about something. We paused at a crosswalk, and I tugged him into me. “What’s on your mind?”

He hesitated a bit before asking, “Do you want kids?”

“It was never an option with Regan.” I shrugged. “I haven’t had much time to think about it since. You?”

André shook his head. “I didn’t think I did, but then I saw you holding that baby.”

The light changed, and I nudged André to walk, taking his hand once more. “We’ve got a long time to decide about kids. We don’t have to have a long emotional talk about it right now.”

André gave me a grateful smile, tugging me in for a kiss on my cheek.

Back at the apartment, I sat on the couch to prepare for our weekly Golden Girls marathon. “Are you sure you’re ready for me to go back to work full time?” André asked. “I could always stick to video conferences.”

Was I ready? Ha. Not in the slightest. But if I truly loved this man, I couldn’t keep him glued to my side forever. “You have to, if for no other reason than yourself. I know you say it wouldn’t bother you to stay home, but I can’t let you do that. You have to go in and close this deal—in person. Shaking hands is much more satisfying than hanging up a Skype call.”

André took the seat next to me. “I’ll call you every chance I get. And I can always come home for lunch. The office isn’t that far away.”

He then reached for the remote, and my brows furrowed as he turned the TV off.

“There’s a reason I had to keep you out at lunch today,” he confessed.

“What are you talking about?”

André stood and extended a hand to me. “Come with me.”

Respecting my request to see him at all times, André didn’t ask me to close my eyes. Instead, he led me down the hall to the spare bedroom.

I was glad I’d unpacked that case.

“I hope it’s okay, Penn and Mitchell had to rush to finish it while Amanda and I had you distracted.”

André pushed the door open and led me inside. The original furniture was gone, and the walls had been painted a pristine white. A blank canvas sat on an easel in the corner, with blank ones propped against the wall. The wardrobe had been replaced with a bookshelf, filled to the brim with hundreds of paints and rows upon rows of brushes.

Strolling over to the brushes, I ran my fingers across the bristles. I’d never felt ones so soft. Tubes of acrylic and cases of oil paints in every color imaginable sat on the shelves.

“I wasn’t sure what you’d want, so I got a little of everything,” André said from his position leaning against the doorframe.

I gasped. “I think you bought Joann’s out of business.”