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After a moment, an image appeared, and Dr. Lane pointed to the outline of the little tadpole in Daisy’s belly. “There’s your baby,” she said, seemingly happy with what she was seeing. “Here’s the head, the spine, and you can see the baby’s arms and legs, too.”
Holy shit. Yes, Aiden could see it all, and a huge lump of emotion formed in his throat at the thought of this tiny thing in Daisy’s stomach growing into a little human. Daisy reached out and grabbed his hand, as if she was overwhelmed herself, and he gave her fingers an affectionate squeeze.
“Let’s take a listen to the heartbeat,” Dr. Lane said, and flipped a switch on the unit that immediately filled the room with the soft, rhythmic whoosh, whoosh, whoosh sounds of a steady pulse.
Aiden was in awe, barely able to breathe, and that lump in his throat . . . he had to forcibly swallow it back. And even then, there was no denying that tears were threatening the backs of his eyes. He was completely and utterly astonished by the miracle thriving and developing in Daisy’s stomach—a baby he’d never imagined he’d ever have in his life. And the woman he was having it with . . . well, he’d never believed he’d be that lucky to find someone who he wanted to share a family with, either.
But as he watched the tiny movements on the screen, then looked down at Daisy and saw the pure joy on her face that told him she was equally captivated by their first glimpse and the first sounds of their baby, Aiden was pretty sure that he fell unequivocally in love right then and there. Not just with the son or daughter they’d created during one passionate night together but with Daisy herself.
The realization wasn’t overly shocking, not when it felt more right than anything else in his life ever had. This was the woman he wanted to spend his future with.
“Everything looks and sounds pretty good,” Dr. Lane said as she pressed a button, which produced a black-and-white photo of the image on the screen—their little tadpole. “It’s too early to be able to tell the sex of the baby, but I usually do another ultrasound around the five-month mark, and you can find out the gender then if you’d like.”
Aiden watched Daisy swallow back her own emotions. “The only thing I care about is that the baby is healthy.”
“So far, so good.” Dr. Lane assured her as she handed the photo to Aiden, then wiped the gel off of Daisy’s stomach with a paper towel.
Half an hour later they were back in Aiden’s car, and he was pulling out of the parking lot. “So, do you think it would be weird if I framed the ultrasound picture and put it on my desk at work?”
She laughed, the sound light and happy. “Yes, it’s weird. I don’t think anyone else is going to be as fascinated with the photo as we are. I’ll put it on my refrigerator and you can see it any time you want.”
“Fair enough,” he said, liking the sound of that. At least until he convinced her to come and live with him, because that was his grand plan. She’d already told him that she’d have to find a bigger place when her lease was up in two months, and he was hoping over the next few weeks she’d realize and come to believe that all he wanted was to take care of her and the baby . . . and love them both. Which was much easier for him to do if they were all living under the same roof.
But until then, he was going to be patient and use the time to his advantage to make Daisy fall in love with him, too.
He glanced at the clock on the dash of his car, which read ten after five. “Are you hungry?”
She thought for a moment, her gaze going from the photo of their baby to him. “Actually, I am.”
“Let’s pick up something and take it back to your place,” he said, since he had to drop her off anyway. “What sounds good?”
He glanced at Daisy in time to see her bite her bottom lip impishly. “I’ve really been craving a Greek salad. Especially those Kalamata olives.”
He arched a brow as he stopped at red light. “So, Kalamata olives and peanut butter cups,” he said of her two cravings. “Together or separate?” he teased.
The corner of her luscious mouth that he ached to kiss again quirked up in an adorable grin. “Hmm. Actually, now that you mention it, the two things sound kind of good together. Like sweet chocolate, savory peanut butter, and the sour marinade that the olives soak in.”
He grimaced at the thought. “I was totally kidding, but if that’s what my baby wants, then I’ll get you anything you ask for.”
She leaned her head back against the leather seat and put a hand over her stomach. “Ahhh, you’re taking such good care of us.”
“Always,” he said, meaning it.
* * *
When Daisy had told him that her studio apartment was small, she’d exaggerated the size, because as Aiden walked into the tiny space, he almost felt claustrophobic, and he’d never had an issue with confined areas before. But the fact that so much was crammed into such a miniscule box-shaped room was enough to make it seem like the walls were closing in on him.
Jesus, he had no idea how she’d lived like this the past three years. As soon as you entered the apartment, to the left was one long counter and a half-sized refrigerator that constituted the kitchenette. There was no separation into the living room/bedroom area, where a Murphy bed was currently pulled down and filled almost the entire room. At least the bathroom had a door, but from what he could see, it was the size of a broom closet, with a toilet, sink, and walk-in shower barely fitting into the space. An armoire against the wall served as her closet . . . and for such a tiny apartment, it was well kept and organized, probably because she’d kept her personal belongings to a minimum.
He set the plastic bag with their food onto the counter. “Jesus, Daisy, this entire place is probably smaller than my master bedroom.”
She laughed. “And smaller than your kitchen, too,” she added, reminding him of the comment she’d made that night she’d come to his place for dinner. “I’ve gotten used to it, but it’s definitely not going to accommodate a baby.”
He agreed but didn’t respond to that remark, because there was no sense mentioning his idea before she was in the right frame of mind to hear it.
“We can sit here to eat,” she said, pointing to a small square table that was only slightly larger than a TV tray, with two fold-out chairs.
He set their food on the tiny table while she retrieved two bottled waters from her mini fridge. They sat down, and he had to chuckle at how awkward it was to eat at a table that was so small they could barely share it, with no room for their legs so they had to sit sideways.
