Page 31 of Accidentally in Love

“Oh, no! I’m so tired, Nol.”

“It’s okay, you gotta rest for Peanut.”

I stood up and offered her my hand to help her up. She took it, and I walked her back into her bedroom. I watched her get into the bed, and she glanced up at me with hopeful eyes. “Nolan?”

“Yeah, Avs?”

She bit her lip, and there was a downcast sadness in them I hadn’t noticed before. “Will you stay here tonight?”

“You want me to?” I asked. I was more than surprised by her request.

She nodded and laid her head against her pillow. I stripped down to my boxers and slid into the other side of her bed.

“Nolan?” she asked. She turned to look at me with those bright blue eyes of hers.

“What do you need?”

She shook her head. “I’m glad it was you.”

“What do you mean?”

She yawned. “You’re gonna be a wonderful daddy. I can’t wait to see you hold Peanut in your arms.”

I felt the corner of my lips upturn into a smile, and I rested my hand on her stomach. “I can’t wait to meet Peanut.”

She nodded and closed her eyes again. I pressed a kiss to her forehead, and we fell asleep together.

In the morning, I left without saying goodbye. She wouldn’t have remembered her moment of weakness when she asked me to stay over. It had been nice holding her in my arms as we slept, but I couldn’t entertain the fantasy. Avery didn’t want me that way, but I would take whatever morsel of attention I got from her. Even if it pained me later.

Chapter Nine

AVERY

After weeks of enduring morning sickness, I finally felt much better. I had a couple more days before I officially hit the second trimester. Nolan was the most supportive non-partner I could have asked for. We hadn’t spoken again about the morning he asked me to marry him. Or about how he stayed over last weekend because I wanted the comfort of his big body beside me in my bed. When he was gone the next morning without so much as a ‘goodbye,’ I had to admit it stung.

Sometimes I caught him staring at me, and I didn’t recognize the look in his brown eyes. It looked a lot like love, but I was pretty sure that was for the baby. I may love the man who would give me my first child, but I knew he didn’t want to settle down.

Outside of our siblings, I hadn’t told anyone else I was pregnant yet. My dad still didn’t know, despite that my sister kept nagging me to tell him already. I was thirty-five and pregnant, and I was too scared to tell my dad.

“Seriously, did you do something different to your hair?” Helen, one of the other English teachers, asked me after the faculty meeting. She pushed her waist-length box braids over her shoulder. A suspicious look came across her dark complexion as she peered at me.

I unconsciously rested a hand on my stomach as I thought about my answer.

Helen’s dark eyes widened as she noticed my hand on my stomach. I had been wearing flowy dresses and blouses lately to hide the pregnancy, but it was harder to conceal. One of the older male teachers had asked me if I was pregnant the other day. Even though that was really rude, I couldn’t hide it much longer. Especially since come Monday, I would officially hit the second trimester.

“Oh my god! Are you pregnant?” Helen shrieked.

I nodded.

“I didn’t know you were seeing anyone. Wait, did you do one of those sperm donor things?”

It didn’t surprise me she asked that. When I bemoaned all the terrible dates I had gone on and how much I wanted a family, she told me I didn’t need a man to do that anymore. Props to women who did the single mom thing, but I always wanted the devoted husband to go with the family I dreamed of.

I shook my head with a laugh as we walked out of the school building and down the street. “No. Just forgot to wrap it up. The father’s a good friend.”

“Really?”

“Yeah.”