AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Chase sipped on his beer, studying him. “So what’s the plan?”
Of course Chase assumed he had one since Chase always had a plan for every eventuality and he was not tolerant of those who didn’t. Plus he had strong views on taking responsibility for one’s actions.
Luckily, it was something Finn agreed with him on.
“The plan is that she’s either going to move in with me or I’ll move in with her for the duration of the pregnancy. She’s got a lot of fatigue and the morning sickness is kicking in, and I want to be able to keep an eye on her.”
“How does she feel about all of this?”
Finn thought about Beth’s pale face and the dark circles beneath her eyes as she’d told him about her postnatal depression. About the glimmer of fear in the green depths of those eyes.
She’d said she wanted to handle this herself and had put a lot of effort into pushing him away, but he could tell that she needed reassurance. She also needed support, especially if she had another bout of depression.
She hadn’t wanted to tell him about it, he was sure of that, and he got it. Mental health was a thorny issue for some people. But not for him. He didn’t care what issues she had. She was pregnant with his baby which meant he was going to stick by her whatever happened.
“She’s been knocked on her ass, quite frankly,” he said, which wasn’t revealing her secrets. It was merely letting Chase know that for all her attempts at putting on a brave face, she wasn’t feeling great about it. “Which is why I want to be around for her.”
“Yeah, solid plan.” Chase eyed him. “And you? How do you feel about it? Is it something you want?”
Finn didn’t flinch. “Yes, I do, though it doesn’t matter what I want. She’s having my baby and I’m not going to leave her in the lurch. I’m not going to be an absent father like Dad was either. I’ll be here for the child and for her too.”
This was clearly not a surprise for Chase, who only nodded. “Is Beth okay with you doing that?”
Finn looked down at the beer bottle in his hands, smoothing down one edge of the label that had started to peel away from the glass. “That is the issue. I don’t think she’s entirely pleased with the idea, no.”
“Ah,” Chase murmured. “So she’s not going to be entirely pleased when you insist on marriage either.”
Finn went very still, staring unseeing at the label.
Marriage. Shit, was that something he was actually contemplating? Chase clearly thought it was, but Chase was a traditionalist about stuff like that.
The baby needs a father. And a family. Like you had once and then lost.
It had been a long time since his mother had died. So long he barely remembered what it had been like when the Kellys had been a family all together. Back before his father had drowned his grief in a pint glass.
When Sheri had died, Finn had been very conscious of not wanting to end up like that—a grieving widower chasing forgetfulness and pain relief at the pub. And now that he was going to be a father, he was even more certain he didn’t want to end up like his dad.
He couldn’t bear the thought of any child of his being alone the way he and Chase had been alone, most nights trying to cook themselves dinner because their dad was out. Having to get themselves to school because he was still sleeping off the effects of the night before.
Their father hadn’t cared what they were doing, not one bit.
Yeah, he wasn’t going to be that kind of father. He wouldn’t. He wanted to be in his child’s life every day. He wanted to be around for them after school and take them fishing, take them hiking. Take them riding. Show them the glory of nature around them and let them grow up safe in the love and support of the people who lived here.
He wanted his child to have his name.
Shit. He was getting all Neanderthal about this even more, wasn’t he?
“I hadn’t got that far,” he said, finally lifting the beer bottle and taking another sip.
“It’s crossed your mind though, right?”
“Maybe. For the kid’s sake. But Beth won’t like it.” That would be an understatement. “In fact, I’m pretty sure she’ll refuse point-blank if I offer.”
“Well, if she won’t marry you, there’s not much you can do about it.” Chase was silent for a moment. “Is that something you’d want though? To get married again?”
Finn stared at the bottle in his hands, trying to sort through the complicated tangle of emotions sitting in his gut. “I wouldn’t have chosen it, no. But if Beth’s pregnant…”
“You don’t have to marry her,” Chase said quietly. “Brightwater Valley might be a bit behind the times, but we’ve moved on a little since the turn of the century. I’m talking about the turn of the nineteenth century here.”
