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Becka waited for the man to leave the table before sitting back to pin Aaron with a look. “I’m surprised you didn’t decide to educate me on how unhealthy egg rolls are, being fried and all.”
He didn’t bother to hide his grin. “I figure you might dump that glass of water over my head if I did.”
“Smart man.”
“I have my moments.” He snagged the paper to look over the categories. “Plus, you’re a personal trainer. You eat better than I do most of the time. If you want egg rolls for a starter, you can have egg rolls.”
“Wow. Thanks for permission.”
Aaron growled. “Don’t make this into a fight, minx.”
“I’m not. You—” She snapped her mouth closed and looked a little sheepish. “I might be making it into a fight. Sorry. I’m a little on edge.”
Whether it was hormones or their earlier conversation made no difference. He was smart enough not to agree with her. Instead Aaron pointed at the trivia paper. “Dungeons and Dragons is one of the categories.”
“Is it?” She blinked deceptively innocent eyes at him. “Did I fail to mention this was an ultimate geek trivia night?”
“Must have slipped your mind,” he muttered. He glanced over the categories again. The tech gadget one he had a chance at. He was relatively well versed in Harry Potter just by virtue of living in current times and having both internet and cable. The rest might as well have been Greek for all he had a chance of deciphering it. “You like this stuff?”
“I’ve been known to run a campaign or two.” She caught his look and laughed. “I like playing against type. Besides, it’s fun if you have a good group.” Something like a shadow flickered over her face, and he didn’t have to ask to know that there were times when she hadn’t had a good group. Knowing what little he did of geek culture and how a portion of the population treated women, he could guess how that had fallen out. Before he could ask, Becka gave him a bright smile. “Stick with me, young padawan. I’ll show you the ropes.”
The woman running the game stood up and introduced herself, and then they were off to the races. Despite being the weak link for their duo in this realm, Aaron found himself drawn into Becka’s enthusiasm and competitive spirit. She really did know a whole hell of a lot in this subset of trivia, and they ended up taking second place in the competition.
After paying for their tab, he slung an arm around her waist and they headed out. She brandished their second-place sticker. “Next time, we’re going for gold. You just need to brush up on about ten years’ worth of knowledge in a week.”
“Consider it done.”
She laughed. “You took being upstaged rather well, all things considered. Most guys would have bitched and stomped out of there when the elves questions came up.”
“Just because I was outmatched doesn’t mean I didn’t enjoy myself.” He pressed a casual kiss to the top of her head. “Besides, you’re into it. I had fun.”
“Me, too.” She sounded almost surprised by that fact. “Aaron.”
“Yeah?”
“I like you.”
From the way she braced as if expecting a blow, the words had taken a lot of courage to say. He stepped out of foot traffic. Aaron turned her to face him and tipped her chin up so she couldn’t hide from his gaze. “I like you, too.”
She worried her bottom lip. “You’re right, you know. We have to talk about the baby.”
This change of tone should have spelled victory for him, but he found himself reluctant to push her. He kissed her forehead and then her lips. “We can talk when you’re ready—really ready.”
“What if I’m never ready?” She laughed softly. “Because at this point, I don’t know what I’m doing, and even thinking about it is enough to have me borderline panicking.”
“You’re not alone, minx. You’re not facing this by yourself. I’ll be there every step of the way. Never doubt that.”
She smiled against his mouth. “I don’t.”
He didn’t believe her for a second, but Aaron let it go. He was making progress, and that was all that mattered. A week of fragile peace couldn’t combat an entire lifetime of living a certain way. Becka might not trust him completely, but he’d do whatever it took to win both her trust and her willingness to be in his life.
If the last few days had done anything, they’d confirmed something for him.
He didn’t just want to be in the baby’s life.
He wanted to be in Becka’s.
He wanted to be with Becka.
CHAPTER TWELVE
BECKA LOOKED UP as the door opened and Aaron walked in. He missed a step but recovered almost immediately. “I didn’t realize you’d be home before me today.”
“My last appointment canceled. He’s got food poisoning.” She flipped through the channels for the twelfth time in the last hour. Nothing held her attention, and she’d already circled through the kitchen to stare blankly into the fridge four times before shutting it and returning to the couch. Becka didn’t do well with a lack of activity, and today was no exception. She had energy to burn off and she didn’t know what to do with herself. She sat up and eyed Aaron. “You in a hurry?”
