Her Festive Baby Bombshell

“You’re not in my way.” His voice dropped to a serious tone. “Have I somehow made you feel unwelcome?”

“Well, no, but I just thought that, ah, well, there’s no point in me staying on the island. That is, unless you still need my assistance.”

“You’re right.” His voice was calm and even. “Any work from here on out can be done via phone or the internet.”

His sudden agreement stung. She knew she should be relieved, but she was conflicted. His eagerness to see her gone almost felt as though she was being dismissed—as though she hadn’t quite measured up as his PA. Was that what he was thinking? Or had he merely grown tired of her like the other men in her life had done?

“I’ll pack my bags and leave tomorrow.”

She moved swiftly from the large deck and into the cool interior of the house. The sooner she got off this island, the better. She’d forget about Finn and how every time she was around him she wanted to follow up their kiss with another and another.

A new job was just what she needed. It’d give her the time and space to get over this silly crush she had on Finn. Because that was all it was, a crush. Nothing more.

* * *

So much for Holly’s departure and having his life return to normal.

She was sick again.

Finn paced back and forth in his study.

He didn’t care what Holly said, it obviously wasn’t seasickness any longer. Her illness could be anything, including something serious. He hadn’t gotten a bit of work done all morning. At least nothing worthwhile. And now that lunch was over and Holly hadn’t shown up, he wasn’t sure what to do. He’d never been in a position of worrying about someone else.

When his brother had been sick, it had been his parents who’d done most of the worrying and the caretaking. And then there had been his great-aunt who’d taken him in after his parents’ deaths, but she was made of hearty stock or so she’d liked to tell him. She’d barely been sick a day while he’d known her. Even on the few times she’d gotten the sniffles, she carried on, doing what needed to be done until her final breath.

But he couldn’t ignore how poorly Holly looked. And her appetite at best was iffy. Then a thought came to him. He’d take a tray of food to her room. There had to be something she could eat.

When he entered the kitchen, Maria, his cook/housekeeper, glanced up from where she was pulling spices to prepare the evening dinner. “Can I get you something?”

Finn shook his head. “Don’t let me bother you. I’m just going to put together a tray to take to Miss Abrams.”

“I can do it for you.”

“I’ve got it.” There was a firm tone to his voice, more so than he’d intended. He just needed to do this on his own. “Sorry. I’m just a little worried.”

Maria nodded as in understanding before turning back to her work.

Finn raided the fridge, settling on sandwich makings. It was what he ate late at night. And then he thought of something that Holly might enjoy. It was something his aunt swore by. Tea. “Maria, do we have some tea around here?”

The older woman smiled and nodded as though at last happy to be able to do something to help.

Between the two of them, they put together an extensive tray of food plus spearmint tea. And just to be on the safe side, he added a glass of ginger ale and crackers. As an afterthought, he snagged one of the pink rosebuds from the bouquet on the dining room table, slipped it into a bud vase and added it to the full tray. Hopefully this would cheer Holly up.

He strode down the hallway, up the steps and down another hallway until he stopped in front of her door. He tapped his knuckles on the door.

“Holly, it’s me.”

Within seconds, she pulled open the door. Her hair was mussed up and there was a sleepy look on her face. Her gaze lowered to the tray. “What’s all of this?”

“It’s for you. I noticed you missed lunch. I thought this might tide you over until dinner.”

“Till dinner? I think that amount of food could last me for the next couple of days.”

He glanced down at the sandwich. “I wasn’t sure what meat and cheese you prefer so I added a little of everything. I figured you could just take off what you don’t like.”