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"Yeah, which room have you set aside for the baby?" He asked starting down the hallway.
"Well," she jumped ahead of him, trying to dissuade him would be futile from the determined look on his face. She'd have to pick a different angle with him. "I hadn't gotten that far yet. But…I suppose the middle room, the one closest to mine."
He nodded and went directly to it, as though he'd lived there all his life. "The middle room. Yes, that's a good choice; it's close to your bedroom, and smaller. Good choice. See," he said pausing to tip her chin up to him, Kelsey held her breath for a second, sure he was going to kiss her, but he didn't. Disappointment speared through her. Instead he scrutinized her with a slow burning smile and said, "I never believed that old saying that pregnant women had a glow, 'till now." He cleared his throat and moved away. "We're making progress."
A glow? She had a glow? Somehow she had to stop Nick from going any further. He was purposely distracting her from getting rid of him. "I think it's wonderful that you're taking an active interest, really, but don't you think it's a little presumptuous? I mean we agreed not to have contact, and here you are-"
He shrugged indifferently, not giving her the advantage by looking straight at her. "I know, I've thought about that. And I've decided if you're going to pay me an outrageous sum of money for what I did, then I think I should do something to earn it. And it is my kid, too, Kelsey, bare with me a little. Besides, I want to set the kid up right," he began, his eyes scanning the room thoroughly before he looked at her puzzled face again.
"Set the kid up right?" She questioned barely able to control her mounting frustration.
"There's more to having a kid than sex, Kelsey. Much more. Now we're going to have to make a trip to the paint store. Naturally, I'll do all the painting, since you're in no condition. It isn't a good idea for you to be exposed to paint fumes. It's your apartment, so you can pay for it. Besides, we can't expect Dorothy, or Jackson to do this kind of thing, now can we? And I think doing it together is a good idea. Stop fretting, everything is going to be fine. That's why I'm here; I'm going to help you get things set up right. I knew you hadn't even thought about this."
"Nick I don't—"
"Okay, now, what color do you like?" He ignored her puny attempts to stay him.
"I could hire a contractor." Kelsey frowned at him.
"Now why would you want to, in the first place? No use wasting money, they charge a lot for something that's easily taken care of. I'm a good painter, you'll see. Besides, I want to contribute something to little Flora."
"Excuse me—little—Flora?" Kelsey's nose wrinkled in the cutest fashion.
"Nice, huh." He didn't wait to see her reaction, but moved about quickly, ignoring her facial expressions. "She was the Roman goddess of flowers, pretty isn't it? Perfect for our little girl. I did a lot of looking, in those books at the library for just the right name. Her name should stand for something, don't you think?"
"Nick, you're going way too fast, here. I think we should talk." He had to listen to reason. The man was insufferable. Didn't he know he couldn't become involved? Hadn't she explained that often enough? Hadn't he read the contract he signed?
"Oh, I know, this is all too much for you." He guided her to a comfortable chair. "Why don't you sit down? Stop fretting. You're a lot like Mama, always fretting. I've got to measure the room anyway, and figure how much paint we'll need. Would you like a border at the top of the walls? Or maybe some stick up's on the wall. I think that would be nice. Gives it a dressed up look. I discussed it with Mama and she said borders give it a custom look. What do you think?"
"Nick, I…" she couldn't believe this was happening. Couldn't believe he had spoken with his mother about the baby. Who else had he told? And why? "You've told your mother?" He was taking over, and she couldn't stop him. Why had he told his mother? She never contemplated others knowing about it.
"Naturally, she has a right to know she's going to have a grandchild, don't you think. She's so excited. Now, you haven't said which color you like best?"
She started to contemplate his question, and then realized he was winning this game too easily. How dare he barge in like this? But the innocent look on his face kept her temper at bay. "I thought about a pale mauve and blue. But Nick, we had an agreement. You signed a contract."
Nick deliberately ignored the last jab and moved away again. "Too sophisticated. Too basic. Our kid needs better than that. Something bright, something cute. Yeah, I know what you're thinking, pink and blue, but I think yellow. Yellow is bright and sunny, gives the baby a much brighter point of view, they say. I read that in the library too. What's the matter you don't think I can read?"
Kelsey stammered for an explanation for her confused thoughts but she never dreamed Nick would react this way. Never dreamed Nick would go to the trouble of researching anything about babies.
"Granted, the library isn't my favorite hangout, but when I need to know something, that's where I usually go. Don't you?"
r /> His question sounded so sincere, but there was a teasing glint to his Italian eyes. Eyes that melted her last reserve.
"I haven't read so much in my life. This baby is definitely a good influence on me. Mama is so excited."
"Who says yellow is bright and sunny?"
"They, the experts. Yes, yellow would be great. That way if we're wrong, and it's a boy, it won't matter."
"All right, yellow." She agreed with a frown. How had she lost this argument? And how had she let him gain control over this?
"Great, now why don't you go slip into some comfortable shoes and we'll go get the paint and border at the paint store. Go on, so I can get started." He insisted, pushing her from the room.
"But—."
"Go on, I'll only be a minute."
Kelsey went to her bedroom and obediently slipped into a pair of loafers. Then she kicked them off and pulled on a soft pair of faded jeans and T-shirt. She needed to find a way to brush Nick off, but it wouldn't be easy. He was so insistent. How could she tell him this would never work?
