To her surprise, he shook his head. “I have no plans to ever have children.”
Recalling how great he was with his cousins’ kids, that shocked her. Then again, had she asked him the question because she’d expected a different answer? That she’d expected him to say he planned to have an entire houseful, and that way she could have used that information as one more thing to put between them because, with her genetics, no way could she ever have children.
“You’d make a fantastic dad.”
His brow lifted and he regarded her for a few long moments before asking, “You pregnant, McKenzie?”
Her mouth fell open and she squished up her nose. “Absolutely not.”
“You sure? You’ve not had a menstrual cycle since we’ve been together. I hadn’t really thought about it until just now, but I should have.”
Her face heated at his comment. They were doctors, so it was ridiculous that she was blushing. But at this moment she was a woman and he was a man. Medicine had nothing to do with their conversation. This was personal. Too personal.
“I rarely have my cycle. My gynecologist says it’s because I run so much and don’t retain enough body fat for proper estrogen storage. It’s highly unlikely that I’d get pregnant. But even if that weren’t an issue,” she reminded him, “you’ve used a condom every single time we’ve had sex. I can’t be pregnant.”
Not once had she even considered that as a possibility. Truth was, she questioned if her body would even allow her to get pregnant if she wanted to, which she didn’t. No way would she want to bring a baby in to the world the way her parents had.
“Stranger things have happened.”
“Than my getting pregnant?” She shook her head in denial. “That would be the strangest ever. I’m not meant to have children.”
His curiosity was obviously piqued as he studied her. “Why not?”
“Bad genetics.”
“Your parents are ill?”
How was she supposed to answer that one? With the truth, probably. She took a deep breath.
“Physically, they are as healthy as can be. Mentally and emotionally, they are messed up.”
“Depression?”
“My mother suffers from depression. Maybe my dad, too, really. They both have made horrible life choices that they are now stuck living with.”
“Your dad is a lawyer?”
She nodded.
“What does your mom do?”
“Whatever the man currently in her life tells her to do.”
Lance seemed to let that sink in for a few moments. “She’s remarried?”
McKenzie shook her head. “She’s never remarried. I think she purposely stays single because my father has to pay her alimony until she remarries or dies.”
“Your father is remarried, though?”
“At the moment, but ask me again in a month and who knows what the answer will be.”
“How many times has he remarried?”
She didn’t want to answer, shouldn’t have let this conversation even start. She should have finished her charts, not opened up an emotional can of worms that led to conversations about her menstrual cycle, pregnancy and her parents. What had she been thinking?
“McKenzie?”
“He’s on his fifth marriage.”