Her Christmas Pregnancy Surprise

“The bakery?” Was he getting anxious for her to move out?

He nodded. “I was curious how things were going. But no one was there.”

“I was there earlier. They’re waiting on the city inspector. He should be there tomorrow morning. I intend to be there when he arrives.”

Simon’s gaze met hers. “Are you sure you’re up for everything you have going on?”

Her chin jutted out just slightly, as she didn’t like the thought of being judged differently because she was carrying a little human inside her. “I’m managing just fine—at least until the baby arrives.”

“Okay then. I will leave it to you to handle. But if you need anything—anything at all—tell me.” He bent down to greet Daisy.

“I will.” There was something more she’d been meaning to tell him. “Thank you.”

“You don’t need to thank me—”

“I do. You helped me through one of the most difficult times in my life.” She took a deep breath. This admission wasn’t easy for her. “My life has a lot of difficult twists and turns. I felt as though I’d finally got my footing and then the fire happened.” She blinked back the sudden rush of tears. “But you helped me through it. I don’t know what I’d have done without you.”

“You didn’t need me. You are amazingly strong—stronger than you give yourself credit.” His eyes reflected his sincerity. “But I’m glad you think I was able to help you in some manner.”

“They say the bakery will be up and running by the end of January. But I don’t know. There’s so much damage.”

“If it takes more men, I’ll make sure you have them.”

He really was in a rush to get rid of her. She lowered her gaze to Daisy, who was sitting next to her. Pepper had definitely overstayed her welcome. But he was too much of a gentleman to tell her that he was tired of having her here in his space. Now that the situation with the insurance had been cleared up, there were funds for temporary housing.

“Hey,” he said, “stop looking so worried. I was going to say that my selfish reason is because I miss your coffee and cherry turnovers.”

“Really?” When he nodded, she took her first easy breath. “I was worried that you were tired of having me around.”

He frowned at her. “It never crossed my mind. Besides, when you leave, I’ll probably go back to takeout instead of the home-cooked healthy options you make.”

She couldn’t help but notice how he said “when,” not “if.” Her heart sank.

“Are you up for a little more business this evening?” he asked.

She shoved aside her worries about the future. “Sure. What do you need?”

“I have the contract for your recipes for the gourmet bakeries. Can we go over them?”

She nodded.

And so for the next hour or so, she read the contract. They discussed various points. And he took notes of her idea for the bakeries. The fact that he took her and her ideas seriously touched her.

Ting. Ting. Ting.

Pepper turned to the darkened windows. “Do you hear that?”

Simon nodded. “Sounds like an ice storm. Don’t worry. It’ll blow over quickly.”

She somehow doubted that a winter storm would blow over quickly. For some reason, winter storms seemed to linger, unlike summer storms that would roll in and out in a very short amount of time. Or maybe it was the short days in the winter that made the bad weather feel like it lingered.

The lights flickered.

“That’s definitely not a good sign.” Her gaze moved to him.

“I’m sure it’s nothing big.”

Pepper’s gaze again moved to the window. Deciding that Simon was right and there was no point worrying about it, she asked, “Have you eaten yet?”