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Then again, maybe they would both like it and end up having sex right here in his office.
No. Neither was a good direction to go in at this time.
“What do we tell Ciara?” she asked. “About…us?”
He rubbed a hand over his face. “I’ve never done anything like this before and feel like such a fool.”
“You have never been in a fight to keep your daughter before.”
“I hate the thought of lying to Ciara. And if I told her we were engaged it would be a big deal to her. She is crazy about you, so having you as a stepmother would send her to the moon and back.”
Blake smiled. “I feel the same way about her. And I hope you will forgive me if I sometimes let my heart pretend she is mine. I would never say it to anyone or—”
“You don’t have to explain.” He touched her arm, wishing he knew the right thing to say. He could only guess how hard it might be for Blake to work as a nanny to a child when she couldn’t give birth to one of her own. “I’m grateful that you care so much for her.”
“But I can see how it would be so hurtful to fulfill a wish like that, to give that to Ciara—only to later take it away.”
He nodded, a part of him wishing he could make it real, but knowing he was getting way ahead of himself. “I agree. Best to keep things exactly as they are for Ciara. But what we need to do is figure out a way to make sure no one can ask her about it and find out the truth. If our landline phone rang and she picked it up, it could be Trent, or social services, or Fawn—and they could possibly mention you in this context.”
Blake bit her bottom lip, her brow scrunching up. “That is a tough one.”
“I already checked with my sister about sending Ciara there for the weekend. I’ve promised both Ciara and Aileen that she would visit regularly. So that will give me a couple more days to come up with an answer.”
He rested his gaze on Blake, and the look in her face reached his heart. She was so loving to Ciara and yet so sexy too. And intelligent. And such a giving person. And he’d better stop his runaway thoughts or before he knew it, he would have her in his arms, his mouth on hers.
“Are you sure you don’t mind going out with me when you were supposed to have this weekend off? Did you have plans?” he asked her.
“It’s fine, Morgan. I didn’t have any plans.”
“Do you want to sleep on this whole fiancée thing tonight? Let me know in the morning?”
She frowned. “No. I am not going to leave you hanging like that.”
“I know I am asking a lot from you.”
“You and Ciara have also given me a lot. You’ve opened up parts of me that I’d forgotten were there. I can’t remember the last time I’ve been this happy.”
Her response left him speechless. Morgan stared at her in wonder.
Blake flushed under his gaze. “What?”
“Just that…you are the most perfect woman I’ve ever met.”
She burst into laughter at that, crossing her eyes and making a goofy face—which only made crazy a thought come into his mind—that he could fall in love with this woman.
8
Blake had changed her outfit three times and she was still not certain if this one was right. Her bedroom was a mess now. Various pieces of clothing and shoes were strewn about. Jewelry and makeup littering her dresser. Growing up, she’d had two older sisters at hand, always ready with an opinion. With one in Vermont and another in Florida with their mom, Blake had considered texting them photos for advice, but that was just too pathetic.
Funny how taking care of Ciara had challenged Blake’s “baby of the family” tendencies. And never wanting to show that weak side of herself to Morgan, Blake had somehow grown a little bit of spine in the last couple months.
Morgan’s expectations of her and his genuine respect for her independence and knowledge as a capable adult made her realize how little of that she had gotten in her marriage. Kendall had preferred to be the one making all the decisions and—now that she looked at it in retrospect—she could see he liked just plain bossing her around. Although the hurt he had caused her during the last year of her marriage had killed any love she might have had left for Kendall, for the first time in the three years since their breakup she actually saw their divorce as a good thing. Now she was relieved and grateful that the marriage had ended.
A knock on her door. Eeek. “Yes?”
“How are ya doing?”
“Okay…I, uh…”
