Fake Marriage Box Set

“That we do,” I agreed. “Let's go. Then, we can have an early lunch someplace downtown, and when we're done with that, maybe we can go home and have a nice cuddle on the couch and watch a movie before it's time to pick Emma up from school.”

“We don't need to pick her up today; Carly's mother will get her, and then we'll get the kids tomorrow,” Lexi reminded me.

“Of course,” I said, nodding. “All the more reason to have a nice cuddle session on the couch. We'll have nothing to worry about for the rest of the day.”

“That does sound nice,” Lexi agreed.

“I'll even give you a nice foot massage,” I promised.

“How did I get so lucky?” Lexi sighed, grinning over at me. She stared out the window as we drove along, and I knew she was looking at every little baby out there, wondering if maybe that kid was going to grow up to be friends with our new baby. I was thinking the same thing.

“Which do you want it to be?” I finally asked. “A boy or a girl?”

Lexi frowned. “I'll be happy with either, of course,” she said.

“Of course,” I agreed.

“I kind of hope that it's a girl. Having two little girls would be so cute. Emma would be great with a little sister. They could share clothes and do each other's hair and nails. I mean, there might be too big of an age gap between them at this point.”

“Are you saying that we should have had a second kid years ago?” I teased.

Lexi laughed. “Maybe,” she said. “Just think, though. When Emma's graduating high school, this little one is going to be a pre-teen still!”

“I'm still stuck on the thought of Emma graduating high school!” I said, shaking my head. “Katherine and I are four years apart, and that worked out fine for us.”

“But you and Katherine were different,” Lexi said. “You had something to unite against. There was a reason for you to love one another. But Emma's so good at making friends, she doesn't really need a younger sibling. Not the way that you did.”

“True,” I agreed, frowning. “I think they'll be friends.” I paused. “Don't you like the idea of her having a little brother, though?”

“He'd have to grow up pretty competitive to keep up with her,” Lexi said, laughing. “I like that idea, though. A matching set, one boy and one girl. Of course, we'll mess it up if we ever do have another kid, but I guess then we hope for another boy and another girl.”

I snorted. “Is that the way it works?”

“Plus, if we had a boy, you could teach him football and how to fix cars and computers and whatever else it is that boys are supposed to do.”

“Emma and I already toss around the football, although she prefers to play Frisbee with Spot,” I pointed out, rolling my eyes. “And I don't know the first thing about fixing a car or fixing a computer, so I guess the kids, boys or girls, are shit out of luck there.”

Lexi laughed. “Shit out of luck, only they have a billionaire for their father,” she said.

“True,” I said, smiling. I frowned, cocking my head to the side. “I'm a little nervous about having a boy,” I finally admitted. It was something that had been in the back of my mind since we'd started wondering about the gender of the new baby.

All right, it was something that had been in the back of my mind since Lexi told me she was pregnant, if not before that.

“I didn't have the best relationship with my father,” I told her, slowly tapping my fingers against the edge of the steering wheel. “And I can't help but worry, what if we have a son and I do the exact same thing to him?”

Lexi was silent for a moment. “Emma is fiendishly smart,” she finally said. “And I know that you aren't the playboy that you once were. You'd be perfectly happy letting Emma take over Orinoco, wouldn't you be?”

“Of course,” I said. “If that's what she was interested in. She'd be brilliant in business. I can already tell. The way that she makes friends, the way that her mind works. She's definitely going to grow up and be someone.”

“And have you tried to pressure her one way or the other?” Lexi asked.

I raised an eyebrow at her. “Can you imagine trying to pressure Emma to do something that she didn't want to do?” I asked. “People talk about herding cats. That would be like herding cats to go out into the rain or something. It would be futile.”

“Exactly,” Lexi said. When I gave her a confused look, she elaborated. “You know that Emma would be the perfect child to mold into your image and to prepare to take over the company. And she's your firstborn. You could be doing to her exactly what your father did to you. But you don't. I have no reason to believe that you're going to push our second child to do anything that he or she doesn't want to do either.”

I frowned at her. “You may be right,” I said slowly.

“Anyway, if you do start to put too much pressure on the baby, at least Emma will be there to be friends with the kid,” Lexi finished. “Just like you had Katherine.” She paused. “Remember, my own relationship with my father wasn't very great either. But I don't think you're that kind of guy. From everything that I've seen with you and Emma over the years, you're a perfect dad. A little forgetful sometimes, maybe, and I'll never let you dress our kids again if I have my way, but you're a great dad. I don't think that you have to worry.”