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Gia sighed because it sounded to her like Riker was trying to bargain his way out of this. She gave it a desperate last shot.
“Riker, I know that tons of single women raise babies alone all the time, and they do an excellent job at it, too. But that’s not the world I live in. Everything you’ve just said, I’ve thought about. A million times over. It’s not easy for a woman in my position to go to a guy like you...”
“A guy like me?” Riker interrupted and felt his whole-body tense.
So, is this where she tells me I’m not good enough for her but she’s willing to settle for the sake of the kid?
“Yeah, a guy like you.” Gia blushed. “All hard body and smoking hot with that dark, brooding, badass biker vibe you’ve got going on…”
Gia thinks I’m smoking hot…Riker’s chest puffed out and he had to stop himself from fist pumping the air. Swallowing down a wide grin, he forced himself to continue to listen to what she had to say.
“I know marrying me will be a sacrifice to your lifestyle, but I’m not asking you to give up anything. Not your friends, or your free time, or your club…or anything else. For Uncle G’s sake we’d have to show at least an outward respect for the sanctimony of marriage, but outside of that, I’d be willing to negotiate terms.”
Riker remained silent. His eyes riveted to hers.
Gia was desperately afraid she was screwing this up.
“Look, Riker, I’m about as close to begging as a woman can get and that’s not easy. I need this. As archaic as it seems, and as ridiculous as it sounds, I need this. And what I just said about appearances? You can forget that too. This isn’t a life sentence for you. Once we’re married and a reasonable time has passed, you can bail.”
Gia sat back on the pillows, humiliated and exhausted.
This was it.
Either Riker was going to go for it or he wasn’t. A sudden and powerful surge of weariness hit her. Whatever happened from this point on was out of her hands, and if the worst happened, Gia would deal with it. The most important thing was that the baby was alright, and the paralyzing nausea was being treated. Anything else she figured she could find a way to see herself through. It had been a rough few weeks and she was truly wiped out, emotionally and physically.
Riker had been watching Gia intensely and he saw the exact moment when the exhaustion hit. Without even realizing what he was doing, Riker reached out and smoothed the hair back from Gia’s face.
“Rest up, darlin’. We can talk more about this all tomorrow.”
Gia nodded sleepily and the last thing she remembered was Riker walking out the door.
When Riker left the hospital, it was pretty safe to say he had a lot on his mind.
A lot more than he was used to having, that was for sure. Riker was a pretty simple man who worked hard at living a simple, carefree life. On the rare occasion he made a commitment, he took it seriously. He was never late for a shift at work, he never missed a club meeting, and when Riker gave his word—he kept it. But that was pretty much the extent of it. The beginning and end of any obligation that he felt.
But with just a few words from Gia that had already begun to change. God, that woman could talk—Riker smiled —if she only knew how unnecessary all of that explaining and bargaining shit had been.
Riker was so into this that he knew he was being stupid. He knew by refusing a paternity test he was taking a chance of raising a kid that might not be his. Gia had told a pretty desperate tale back there in the hospital and it wouldn’t be the first time a woman used a pregnancy to lure a guy in.
But. then again, it all came back to her choices. It wasn’t like Gia was getting the deal of the century naming him as the baby’s father. That, in and of itself, led Riker to believe that he was the father—and Doc Gideon confirmed the time-line. But still, aside from a raging hard-on attraction he had going for her, Riker knew absolutely jack-shit about Gia. So why was he so eager to jump on board with this whole thing?
What the fuck was wrong with him?
Now that right there was the million-dollar question, wasn’t it? And it sure as hell was one that he didn’t have an answer for. So, Riker did what he always did when he was confused, befuddled or otherwise screwed up in the head.
He went to visit his father.
Riker knelt on his haunches and rubbed his hand along the top of the smooth granite tombstone.
His life a beautiful memory, his absence a silent grief.
Rourke McKenna Devlin
1952-2015
Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam
May his soul be at God’s right hand
