The Heir Affair (Las Vegas Nights 5)

“Let’s table that for now.” Now that he’d suggested they marry, he was convinced it was the best idea. He didn’t want to be his child’s part-time father. “We’ll have dinner tonight and talk about it.”

She shifted on the cushioned chair as if it was made of hard plastic. “I can’t tonight. I’m working late. Nate has given me until the fifth of December to finish my album.”

“Good for him. You’ve been working on it on and off for a year. I know you’re a perfectionist, but at some point you have to let it go.”

And maybe then he’d be able to refocus some of her attention on their struggling relationship. He knew her music was important to her, but there had to be a way for her to be a success in her career and still have room for her personal life.

“I know, but it’s my first album and I want everything to be the best it can.”

He understood her quest for perfection. As a teenager he’d spent hours learning how to place a pitch over the center of the plate. The familiar repetition of wind up and throw allowed him to forget his troubles and focus on the here and now. Watching Melody get lost in her songwriting process, he’d recognized the same need to make something flawless and beautiful.

“And yet you won’t know how good it is,” he said, reaching for her hand, offering her both support and encouragement, “until you put it out there.”

She squeezed his fingers and gave a little laugh. “Or how much people are going to hate it.”

“Stop channeling your father. If the man knew good talent when he heard it, he wouldn’t have run his label into the ground.”

“You’re right, but it’s hard to ignore all the times he told me to stick with the violin because I didn’t have what it took to be a songwriter or a singer.”

Kyle wondered what it would take for her to believe she deserved to be successful. He’d tried to reassure her, but often felt as if she couldn’t accept his uplifting words because he didn’t have any musical cred.

“And yet you’ve proved him wrong so many times,” he reminded her. “This album is going to do great. You’ll see.”

“You’ve always supported me and I really appreciate it.”

The warmth in her eyes aroused a pang of longing so acute he almost couldn’t breathe. Damn. He missed her.

“Melody?” A blonde woman in pale blue scrubs appeared in the doorway.

Melody practically sprang to her feet and shot him a worried look. “Are you ready for this?”

Kyle gave her a reassuring smile as he tucked her hand into the crook of his arm. “Absolutely.”

* * *

Melody followed the nurse into the patient room. Kyle’s broad shoulders and strong presence filled the small space. He sat beside her in attentive silence while the nurse took her blood pressure, frowning over its elevated status, and asked routine questions. She answered automatically, trying to ignore the doubts that flickered on the edge of her awareness brought on by his shocking proposal.

What was he thinking to ask her to marry him without forethought or fanfare? Not that she needed a whole huge production made out of getting engaged, but it would’ve been nice to be proposed to in a romantic setting by a man who adored her instead of in a clinical setting by a man who just learned the day before that he was going to be a father.

I think we should get married.

His blunt declaration had been more practical suggestion than impassioned plea. Once the shock faded, her first impulse had been to hit him. How dare he presume she would agree to marry him because she was pregnant? And then tears had threatened and she’d had to grip the edge of her chair to keep from bawling her eyes out in reception.

“Your blood pressure is a little high,” the nurse said, glancing at her with a thoughtful look.

“I’m nervous about the ultrasound,” she lied. It was the conversation with Kyle that had upset her.

He might not have told her he loved her, but she knew that he was committed to her and their baby. Whether that meant they would find their way back to being happy with each other was the big question.

“That’s not unusual, but we should check it again before you leave.”

The nurse finished adding Melody’s data into the computer and then showed her the gown she needed to don for the ultrasound. Kyle’s stoic expression gave away none of his thoughts as he watched the nurse exit the room.

“Close your eyes,” Melody told him as she began to work the buttons free on her shirt. She was already feeling vulnerable enough without adding to her stress by stripping in front of him.

One corner of his lips rose in that sexy half smile that made butterflies erupt in her stomach. “I’ve seen you naked before.” His heavy-lidded gaze slid over her body, cataloging her curves with deliberate possessiveness.

Melody ignored the ache that flared between her thighs. Over these last few months, she’d deluded herself into thinking she was a practical woman who didn’t need a man. She was perfectly capable of making rational decisions about her future and sticking to them.