From Enemies to Expecting

One woman in particular.

He sighed. “The thing with Trinity never really started in the first place. The whole relationship was staged to generate positive publicity for our respective companies.”

He braced for censure, shock, something. Who knew what? What he’d just confessed was no doubt blasphemy of the highest order to someone who’d had a great relationship with a man for nearly forty years.

“Oh, please.” His mother gave a very unladylike snort. “It might have started out that way, but anyone can take one look at those photographs and see that you care for her.”

“Well, she doesn’t fall in that category, unfortunately.” And Trinity was the most important one in that equation. If he wasn’t so wrecked, he’d have the energy to get really pissed about it all over again. But all he could muster up was a dose of profound sadness.

“I think you’re too close to the situation. She’s got it as badly for you as the reverse is true. So why don’t you tell me what’s really going on?”

He almost smiled at that, but only because his mom sounded like Trinity, reading his mind and his moods with ease. “How do you know anything is going on? We had a fake relationship and now it’s over. What more could there be?”

Everything. And nothing. Because he’d been naive enough to think what they’d had was special. Real. Instead, it was all an illusion, and he’d walked right into it without even realizing it was vanishing around him until it was gone.

“Please. I was married to your father, wasn’t I? The day I can’t understand a man with McLaughlin DNA is the day I gladly go to meet my maker. Spill. Or I’m coming over there.”

Which was not an idle threat. She’d do it, too, and drag the whole story out of him while cooking him something full of fat and calories and love.

Suddenly that sounded so nice, his throat went tight. “I’d be okay with that.”

“Oh, sweetie. Is it that bad?”

“She’s pregnant.” Why had he blurted that out? It was too early for this kind of ambush.

“What? Give me that girl’s phone number right now!” His mother’s outrage nearly burned up Logan’s phone, his fingers and his ear. “I cannot believe that woman would try to use you to extort money—”

“Mom, she didn’t try to get money out of me.”

“She...tried to pass the baby off as yours?” Obviously that was the more delicate issue in her mind.

“No, she didn’t do that, either.”

“So. Let me get this straight. You had a fake relationship with her but you had an agreement to not see other people?” When he muttered no, she blurted, “I’m drawing a blank here, then. It’s like you gave up within sight of the finish line. What did she do that was so horrible that you can’t tell her how you feel?”

“The baby is not mine!”

“So? What does that matter?”

The phrases echoed through his head, condemning him, because suddenly, he didn’t know the answer. It felt like there should be some kind of rule that said you didn’t stay with a woman who’d gotten pregnant by another man. But Trinity had never conformed to the rules, and she’d certainly proven her ability to get him to break them often enough as well.

“I—”

“Have a temper and let it ruin your relationship?” she guessed easily. But his mom wasn’t done icing that cake. “Do you love her?”

“Of course I do.” He blinked. “I mean... I don’t know. Yeah. I thought I was moving in that direction, but it all fell apart.”

“Honey, you basically just told me that a pregnant woman had a billionaire on the hook and chose to be honest with you about what was going on. Sounds like a keeper to me. Get off your butt and go get what you want.”

Was his mother daring him to be with Trinity anyway? “It’s not that simple.”

“Then move on,” she advised. “Put this chapter behind you. There’s this really nice girl I want to introduce you to. She just joined my church. That’s why I called, actually—”

“Thanks, Mom, but no.”

He stood up as conviction roared through his chest. He didn’t want a nice woman. He wanted a shocking one who didn’t put up with his crap and dared him to take what he wanted. A woman like his mom.

Maybe he was more like his father than he’d credited.

For the first time since he’d left Trinity’s condo, his world made sense. He was in love with Trinity and he’d screwed up by walking out on her. Period. Everything else was just incidental.

Now he had to convince her that while they were busy faking it, reality had crept up and changed everything.