Wish Upon a Star

‘I’m perfectly serious. Why not?’ He waved a hand around the house. ‘This place is far too big for me and you’d be much more comfortable here.’

‘No.’ Her voice cracked and something fierce flashed in her eyes. ‘I don’t need anyone’s help. And I don’t depend on anyone.’

She was ferociously independent and he sensed that if he didn’t handle the situation with enormous care, she’d be back in her damp flat before he had time to dispose of the empty pizza box. He leaned back in his chair, stretched his legs out and kept his voice calm and steady. ‘That’s good, because I don’t want you to depend on me. I’m just suggesting that you move into one of my spare rooms. You can pay me the same rent you’re currently paying your landlord.’

‘Absolutely not.’ But he’d seen the brief hesitation and took instant advantage.

‘Why? You’re prepared to pay rent to a total stranger in return for a room.’

‘That’s different.’

‘How is it different?’ His voice was gentle and he watched her face for her reaction. ‘Is it different because we kissed?’

She put the glass down and looked away from him. It was clear that, given the chance, she would have pretended that it hadn’t happened. ‘It wasn’t a real kiss. It was Christmas Day, we were both lonely and—’

‘Attracted to each other?’

Colour seeped into her cheeks. ‘You can’t possibly be attracted to me.’

‘No?’ The fact that she hadn’t denied her own attraction to him gave him more satisfaction than he would have believed possible. He wondered if he dared risk moving towards her but decided against it. ‘Why can’t I be attracted to you?’

‘I’m six months pregnant.’ With another man’s baby. The words hung in the air, unsaid, and he gave a patient smile.

‘And?’ His gaze didn’t shift from her face. ‘None of the books I studied said that pregnancy changes a person. You’re still you.’

‘A very fat version of me.’

The fact that she suffered from all the usual insecurities suffered by pregnant women made him want to smile. ‘You’re a midwife. You should know that most men find their wives extremely attractive during pregnancy.’

‘I’m not your wife.’

His desire to smile faded. He should have been relieved about that. Instead, he found himself thinking how amazing it would be if she was his wife. He’d have the right to snuggle up with her and kiss the frown away from her beautiful face. ‘That’s true, but—’

‘I’m not anyone’s wife and I don’t ever intend to be.’ The fire was back in her eyes. ‘I don’t want a family.’

Was this just about the man who’d lied to her or was there something more to her comment?

His eyes slid from her fierce gaze to her softly rounded abdomen. ‘I hate to tell you this, sweetheart, but you’re about to become a family, whether you like it or not.’

She placed her hand on her stomach in an instinctively defensive gesture. ‘That’s entirely different. I want this baby, but I don’t—’

‘There’s no such thing as a typical family, Miranda.’ He took a gentle nudge at her fears and prejudices. ‘Everyone creates something different. Family is a pretty generic word for people living together and trying to make it work in the best way they can.’

‘Is that right?’ There was a weary cynicism in her eyes that lit the fire of his own anger. He didn’t know what had caused the pain. He just knew that it shouldn’t be there.

He decided to shift the subject slightly. ‘Are you going to carry on giving donations to your crooked landlord or are you going to give me the money instead?’

‘You’re serious about renting me a room?’

He didn’t want to take her money at all, but he knew that there was no other way she’d even consider the possibility. ‘Very serious.’

She was silent for a moment, her head tilted to one side, her damp hair sliding out of the confines of the clip and over one shoulder. ‘All right.’ She said the words slowly, as if she wanted to see how they sounded. ‘But I’ll move out when the baby arrives.’

‘Why would you do that?’

‘Because you don’t need a screaming infant keeping you awake at night. And because I can’t lodge here for ever. I need to find somewhere permanent that I can turn into a home.’

He realised with a stab of shock that he wanted her to make her home here. With him.