Sammi turned the page in her notebook and wrote at the top: Things I Love. Then she tapped her pen against her chin and pondered. Nothing immediately came to mind. What was wrong with her? How could she not have things she loved? Frustration and annoyance swirled about her, making clear thinking nearly impossible. Come on. There had to be something she enjoyed.
Flowers. She liked flowers. Could she do something with flowers?
She liked shopping and clothes. Doing something in the fashion world made sense, considering she’d been in the industry all her life. Sammi pondered the career shift that Oliver had gone through from model to photographer. She made a note to ask him why he’d chosen to step behind a camera and how he’d known he would be successful at it. She could also reach out to models who’d gotten out of the business. Surely their stories could spark ideas for her.
Feeling less overwhelmed, Sammi contacted her landlord and gave her thirty-day notice. Since she’d leased the apartment fully furnished, at least she wouldn’t have a lot to move. With this first step she’d unlocked the immobility that had characterized her existence for the last year. Both relief and terror swept through her. She’d set her foot on the path to her future, and there was no going back.
With the last of her energy, she sent her mother a text and explained what she’d done. Then, too spent to face her mother’s wrath, she shut off her phone and set it aside. Lying down on the bed, she rested her palms over her abdomen and closed her eyes. She would picture a future with her baby and keep her focus fixed there. In the midst of her visualization, as she held her new baby in her arms, she was surprised when Oliver’s handsome face made an appearance. The joyful satisfaction in his blue gaze made her heart jump.
Her eyes flashed open and she blinked rapidly to reorient herself in the unfamiliar room. She sat up and spent several seconds trying to catch her breath. It was so tempting to imagine him as part of her and her baby’s future. But was it realistic? She had a hard time picturing Oliver enjoying the noisy chaos that surrounded children.
The lack of a father in her own life had given her plenty of opportunity to imagine the perfect dad. He was the sort who would get down on the floor and play. Who never complained about changing diapers and adored reading bedtime stories. He would attend every school function and volunteer to coach soccer games. His child would never know harsh words or feel neglected. Their home would be filled with love and happy moments.
Little of that sounded like Oliver.
A light knock on her door brought her off the bed. She crossed the room and answered the summons. The familiar brunette standing outside her door was the same one who’d answered Oliver’s phone and confronted her on the street. Oliver’s girlfriend. Sammi’s stomach sank. In the wake of the accident she’d forgotten all about this wrinkle.
“There’s nothing going on between Oliver and me,” Sammi began, meeting the woman’s startled brown eyes as she rushed to excuse what she’d done, even as a jealous lump formed in her stomach. “He’s just helping me out for a few days. You don’t need to worry about me.”
“Okay...” The woman drew out the word uncertainly. She held a tablet clutched against her chest. “I’m Heidi. Oliver’s assistant. He told me to check and see if there was anything you need. If you have a specific dietary requirement, I can leave instructions for his housekeeper.”
“You’re his...assistant?” Sammi grew light-headed with relief. Not only hadn’t she done anything wrong when she’d slept with Oliver, but he wasn’t already taken. “Not his girlfriend?”
“Oh, no.” Heidi’s denial was so vehement that if Sammi wasn’t already reeling from everything that had happened to her these last few days, she might have laughed out loud. “Although my boyfriend complains that I’m Oliver’s work wife.”
“You have a boyfriend.” The fact that Sammi had felt possessive of Oliver for even the briefest of seconds demonstrated that she made a mistake coming here. “That’s nice.”
“Almost two years now,” Heidi continued with a broad smile. “Anyway, if there’s anything you need, just text me. Here’s my number.” She extended a business card. “Oliver told me to take good care of you. And that’s what I intend to do.”
Five
Oliver left Sammi to settle into his guest room and headed downstairs to his studio. As he did every time he needed to step away from things that were bothering him, Oliver intended to lose himself inside his creative process. Today, however, as he looked through the photos he’d taken at a shoot earlier in the week, the issues confronting him were not so easy to shake.
Had inviting Sammi to stay been a mistake? He’d never opened up his home like this to a woman he’d slept with. On the other hand, he’d never slipped up and gotten anyone pregnant before. That is, if the child was even his.
While he didn’t regret insisting that Sammi leave her mother’s toxic presence, the smart move would’ve been to put her up in a hotel and hire someone to watch over her for a few days. Instead, he’d not just inserted himself into her life, but by bringing her back to his apartment, he’d also drawn her deep into his. If the situation with her went sideways, how could he eject a pregnant woman from his home after he’d offered her his help?
He wasn’t her savior or her friend. Chances were the baby wasn’t his and she’d be gone out of his life in no time. Until then he just needed to avoid more complex, charged conversations that dug into the dark places in their psyches.
One thing had become quite clear—the benefit of all that was going on was that Sammi and
