‘The oven in my flat isn’t working and the power isn’t on in the flats downstairs. Do you mind if I use yours?’
‘You want to use my oven?’
‘I missed lunch.’ He lifted the grocery bag in his hand. ‘I’m keen for an early dinner.’
‘You’re going to cook?’
‘Yeah.’
She was too tired to argue, just opened the door wide and shuffled back to flop on the sofa. He shut the door and gave her a keen look. She closed her eyes.
‘You haven’t had any coffee, have you?’ he said.
None all day. She had the headache to prove it. She didn’t think caffeine was all that good for the baby. But the first-day withdrawal? It was as if she’d just come down with narcolepsy. ‘I just need a rest for a minute.’
He could do what he liked in the kitchen. For a while she listened to the sounds as he did. For a while she tried not to fixate. Impossible. And the dreams were nice—why block them? Why shouldn’t she let her mind think on that beautiful body and that beautiful smile, just for a few minutes?
‘Kelsi.’
She opened her eyes—stared straight into Jack’s. His bronzed, charming face hovered inches from hers—just like in her dreams.
‘I have enough to share if you’re interested,’ he said, all warm, easy encouragement.
If she was interested? Oh, she was so interested—what was he offering, exactly? She gazed at him—the slightly unruly hair that hung over his forehead, the angular jaw that had faint, late afternoon stubble, the creases at the corners of his eyes as he smiled. But then the smile faded.
‘Kelsi.’ Firmer that time, almost brusque.
She blinked. Slowly the fog in her mind cleared and the rest of her senses switched on. Her mouth watered. ‘Something smells good.’ She inhaled deep and sat up. ‘Something smells really good.’
‘Come and see.’
She shook the swimming sensation from her head and followed him to the dining table where the cutlery was set and two plates already in position.
She stared at their contents.
A beautifully cooked prime cut of steak. New potatoes on the side, and in the centre of the table, a bowl of fresh salad with all those extra yummy bits like toasted pine nuts and sliced avocado.
‘It’s nothing fancy,’ he said, sitting down.
It was a lot more fancy than the packet of instant pasta she usually went for. ‘You didn’t have to do this.’
‘I don’t like to starve and making enough for you is the least I can do given I just made a mess of your kitchen.’
She glanced through the doorway and he laughed.
‘Already tidied it. Figured you wouldn’t let me back if I didn’t.’
She sat down next to him, tried to steer herself back in the right direction—the independent one. ‘But you’ll get the oven in your own flat fixed, right?’
‘Mmm.’ His forking some food in muffled his answer.
She didn’t bother with talking either after she took her first bite. This was too good to leave to waste. She’d had no idea she was so hungry. She’d had no idea Jack could cook like this.
‘Lots of good stuff here.’ He finally broke the silence, nodding towards their three-quarter-empty plates. ‘But you should see a doctor. You need to be taking some vitamins. Folic acid and stuff.’
‘I didn’t know you were a walking baby and birth encyclopaedia.’ She took a sip of the glass of orange juice, trying to cool her rising temper.
‘I did some research. This is the only child I’ll ever have, I thought I’d better get clued up.’
‘I’m the one having this child, Jack.’
‘But we’ve already established that I’ll be there for it.’ He grinned, refusing to let her have the last word. ‘Starting now.’
She gripped her knife a bit tighter. ‘Well, you don’t need to worry. I went to the doctor this morning. I have the vitamins and all the information I need.’
‘Who’s the doctor? A specialist, right?’
Kelsi looked at him, surprised by the insistence in his tone. ‘Just my normal doctor. I’ll arrange a midwife in a few weeks.’
‘And a specialist. You should have a specialist.’
A midwife wasn’t a specialist? What did he want—a whole team of ob-gyns and technicians? Kelsi swallowed hard on the last
bit of steak that had decided to wedge in the back of her throat. She wasn’t going to start a fight—not tonight. Not until she had the sleep she so desperately needed. ‘I’ll make arrangements.’
‘You don’t think you need to ease back on your workload?’
‘No.’ The urge to argue was harder to suppress now. ‘I’m pregnant, Jack. Not sick.’
He sliced his steak with vicious jabs of his knife.
‘You don’t have to do this with the house.’ OK, she couldn’t not pick a fight now.
‘Yes, I do. You need a home and you like it here. But it’s not like you could have bought it yourself.’
No, but in a few years she could have bought a little place somewhere.
‘You’re never going to have to worry about money, Kelsi, please understand that.’
She put her cutlery down—suddenly feeling as if her stomach was over-full.
‘You can trust me.’ He practically ground the words out. ‘You know what? I trust you. I trust you to take care of yourself and our baby.’
‘I have no choice but to do that.’
‘I know. And I have no choice but to try to help you as best I can. I will ensure you and the baby are secure.’
But she didn’t want to be reliant on him. She didn’t want to become too dependant on him only for that support to be whipped away—and it would be. It always was.
‘I’m sorry if accepting my help dents your pride.’ He didn’t sound sorry at all.
Besides, it wasn’t her pride getting the battering. It was that thing thumping in her chest. She had to protect it better and knowing more about him might help—like more about his incompatible lifestyle. ‘How come you don’t have your own apartment to live in?’
Jack stabbed the last bit of his steak. ‘I’m never in one place for that long.’
He didn’t taste the meat as he forked it in. He just wanted to eat and get out of there. Doing the domestic thing wasn’t helping him any. Being this near to her strung his nerves tighter across the wires of want—and he was so close to giving in to it. But he’d known she wouldn’t be up to cooking anything—she looked even paler than usual. Tired. Beautiful.