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Still she didn't say anything.
He removed his hand from her chin and leaned back slightly. "I've been thinking about us," he said quietly.
Grace looked at him, curious about what he was about to say. Did he know how much she had been thinking about him? How much she had puzzled over his apparent coolness toward her? How much she had been trying to understand what had happened between them?
"Maybe we were too hasty," he added after a long pause.
Grace squinted at Qazim. "Hasty?"
He nodded. "Ending everything the way we did."
Grace tilted her head. "I seem to remember it was me who did the quitting," she declared.
Qazim nodded, shrugging slightly. "I suppose you did."
"But you didn't seem to want to do much to change my mind during these last few weeks, did you," Grace accused.
Qazim shook his head. The gesture surprised and annoyed Grace in equal measure. "You seemed to know what you wanted," he said casually. "As always."
She ignored that last remark. "I think we both knew things were getting too complicated," Grace said.
Then Qazim surprised Grace by twisting around and facing her directly, peering at her with absolute intensity. "And now?" he asked bluntly. "Haven't things changed?"
Grace froze. She peered at Qazim. Words were stuck in her throat.
"Aren't things even more complicated?" Qazim asked evenly. His voice contained a fresh certainty.
Grace felt a twist of concern in her middle. Her breathing was suddenly tight. He knew, she told herself sharply. Or at least he'd guessed, and her reactions had merely confirmed those suspicions.
Was he just testing her?
Maybe the time for dancing around the truth was over.
Grace paused a few long moments. Moments that seemed to stretch forever.
Then she turned to Qazim and peered into his dark, expectant eyes. "I'm going to have your baby," she declared.
Grace watched for a reaction, waited to see the effect of her words. At first, there was no reaction from Qazim. Was he shocked? Had she actually mistaken the reasons for his being here in the first place? Grace froze for a moment, wondering what he'd do next.
Then Qazim smiled.
He smiled straight at Grace.
His eyes widened and he gasped. His mouth opened slightly and, for a moment he seemed genuinely lost for words.
Then he leaned forward suddenly and wrapped his arms around Grace, hugging her close to him. Grace allowed herself to settle temporarily into his embrace. She inhaled his scent, familiar and inevitably arousing. She felt the strength of his body as he embraced her.
Grace felt Qazim kiss the side of her face and then he was looking at her, gazing deep into her eyes in that way he'd done so many times before.
An eternity ago.
Grace felt her heart warm as he looked at her. There was sheer joy in his gaze, an unambiguous pleasure at the news she had just given him.
"Is it true?" he breathed.
Grace could only nod. Words had deserted her mind, yet again. All she could think of was how happy Qazim looked.
Was this what she'd expected?
