Not to mention, a man to get to know, and secrets to keep.
That would be a delicate balance.
She had told Paris she needed time, but he had insisted on driving her to the appointment. No matter how Corinne felt about Paris, she couldn’t refuse him. He had every right to know what was happening to his unborn child. It was actually really comforting how invested he was in her and Peanut’s wellbeing. It made her heart do all kinds of happy little dances.
Every time Corinne thought about Paris, with his thick brown hair and hypnotic green eyes, she felt better. It was like a blanket on the incessant acidic fire in her stomach. If she didn’t know any better, she would have thought Peanut was already colluding with his or her daddy.
But that wasn’t possible, was it?
She was only two months along, after all.
Maybe it was she who needed Paris.
The thought was sobering and terrifying, all at once.
Paris had shared a lot with her, and she had needed space. She should have taken the opportunity to tell him who she was, and everything that was happening, but it had all been too much.
There was a soft knock on her bedroom door.
“Corinne, love, I’m here.” Just the sound of Paris’s voice through the door was enough to soothe her.
She shook her head and took a deep breath.
It was a good thing Johanna had plans with a friend from out of town, or Corinne was sure the eerily perceptive woman would have caught on that something was going on between Corinne and her son.
She slipped the card into her purse, and she made the decision that she would, maybe, give Paris the card. Depending on how things unfolded.
“You can come in, Paris.”
Slowly, the door eased opened. “I just wanted to make sure you were decent.”
Corinne smirked at him. “You’ve seen me buck naked, it’s not like it would matter.”
He shrugged. “You said you needed space, so I didn’t want to assume I could just walk into your room.”
“Oh, well…” Shit, that was so thoughtful. “Thanks.”
Corinne reached for the card in her purse. So much for waiting to see if she chose to give it to him.
The card.
Not anything else… Jeez, her mind had gone right to the gutter on that one.
Paris took the card and flipped it open. Corinne was a mess as she waited for him to read it. He chuckled and looked up to meet her eyes. The green in his gaze was soft and light.
“This is hilarious, love.” He took a step forward, and Corinne hoped that he kissed her, but he stopped himself.
She had asked for space, and it was clear he was going to respect that, even though it did seem to be causing him some discomfort to stay away from her.
“Thanks for this,” he held out the card. “How are you feeling today? Have you managed to keep anything down?”
Corinne cringed. “No. I haven’t even tried to eat.”
He frowned. “I get that puking is horrible, but you need to eat to keep your strength up.” He looked at his phone. “We have a bit of time before the appointment. I wanted to show you something at my place before we headed over. How about I grab you a croissant somewhere, and you eat it at my apartment?”
“What do you need to show me?” she asked, feeling her heart rate kick up.
He shook his head. “It’s a surprise, but I swear, it’s a good one. What do you say? You up for it?”
Corinne nodded. It was her theory that Peanut behaved better when Paris was around. Already, she was feeling much better. It was inconvenient as fuck that she should only feel okay enough to eat when she was around a man she needed space from. She felt very much anti-feminist for needing him so badly, but she had enough on her mind. She didn’t have the brain space to judge herself any more than she was already doing. She followed him down the hall and the staircase, and onto the long, curved driveway of the mansion.
The fancy car she had baptized with her pregnancy hormones wasn’t sitting there.
Instead, there was a minivan.
An honest to God minivan.
Corinne turned to stare at him, but she couldn’t formulate any words. Not even when Paris helped her into the passenger seat. When he took his place on the driver’s side, Corinne finally found her words.
“What did you do?”
He shrugged. “I couldn’t keep the sports car. I’m going to be a dad. There was no way I was going to drive my Peanut, or my pregnant mate, for that matter, in a sports car. This is a family car.”
The implication was there.
We’re a family, and we need a safe family car.
There was already a very fancy-looking car seat in the back.
Tears burned the back of her eyes. This was very sweet. How the hell was she supposed to keep asking for space, if he kept on doing overly lovely and thoughtful things for their kid?
How was she going to resist the sexiest man alive, if he was doing tender and sweet things at every turn? Corinne was starting to realize that she was done for.
There was no resisting Paris Warwick.
It was impossible.
She didn’t even know how she was going to keep on trying, until she figured out what she could say to him about her past. Surely, he would be okay with it? Wasn’t that what the mate thing was? Unconditional love?
Corinne was sure going to put him through some tests, when he found out the truth about her. Did she even deserve such a good man?
Probably not.
Paris drove to a bakery and parked the car on the side street to run in. He came back with a crisp white box and handed it to her as he once again took his spot behind the wheel.
“This car is going to be filled with toys, cheerios, and all other kinds of stuff soon enough, so you might as well dig in.”
She shook her head. “I’ve already ruined one car. I can wait.”
“I’d prefer it if you would try to eat, Corinne.” He squeezed her knee encouragingly.
“What if I’m sick again?”
Paris reached behind his seat and took out a small garbage bin that held a plastic bag. He smiled at her. “I’ve got you covered, love.”
Corinne laughed, because what else could she do? He had literally thought of everything. She tucked the pail at her feet before opening the box. Oddly enough, and in complete contrast to earlier, she found she was famished. She took a croissant and slowly ate it, continually stopping to see if it was sitting all right. Paris had a bottle of water for her in the center console, and she took small sips between bites.
Peanut definitely only liked to eat when Paris was around.
She would have to ask the doctor if that was normal once they got to the appointment.
Paris drove for a little while, turning into a hip neighborhood that was half businesses and half trendy apartment complexes. He parked the van in an underground parking that had the words Warwick Penthouse splashed across it.
As they made their way to the elevator, Corinne was sure she was going to feel sick all the way up on the ride, but she didn’t. She felt a bit woozy, but it was barely a twinge from the fast-moving elevator.
Once they got to the top floor, Paris took out a key and unlocked a sleek set of shiny black doors.
“Welcome to my house,” he said.
Corinne looked around.
It was nothing like the bachelor pad she had been expecting. It was really well decorated, and it immediately felt like home. It helped that it smelled like Paris. She wanted to lie down and never leave. The large sectional which was set in front of a large television was covered in all kinds of cushions. There was even a blanket thrown over the back of it. It looked like the perfect place for a nap, but her attention was stolen away by the rest of the décor. The walls were covered with paintings.