Emma avertedher eyes. Her cheeks burned as she followed him out into the livingroom where a lavish breakfast had been laid out on the diningtable, complete with silver cutlery. She went for the coffee first,sighing with content as the strong, hot liquid settled her stomachever so slightly.
“I’ve neverdone anything like this either.” Lachlan said, sitting across fromher and nibbling on a piece of toast.
Emma sipped hercoffee. “Sarah?”
“Well, yes, Imight have been drunk but her mother and I were in a relationshipbefore we fell pregnant.”
“Well, it’s notlike either of us is an inexperienced teenager, is it? We can chalkthis up to… to…”
“Emma.” Lachlanspoke softly and the catch in his voice sent a shiver down herspine. “What if you’re pregnant?”
She stared athim as the hammer started again in her brain, followed by asickness deep in her gut. “What?”
“Is there anychance you could become pregnant?”
No. Theyweren’t having this conversation. Emma had plans for her life. Shewasn’t even thirty yet. She’d meet a lovely, genuine man and they’dlive together for a while before getting married and start thefamily she’d always wished for. A family that wouldn’t turn aroundand disappear from her life. But as experience was teaching herthis week, plans didn’t always work out.
“Uh.” She triedto think through the pounding in her head. “I don’t think so.”Could she be? She wasn’t taking birth control—hadn’t taken it sinceher last relationship ended before her mother died. “Surely we usedprotection?”
Lachlan’s faceturned pink and he ducked his eyes. “Uh, I don’t think so. I didn’thave anything with me. Unless you did?”
Emma shook herhead. She didn’t carry condoms with her because she didn’t normallyengage in this kind of behaviour.
How could shehave been so foolish?
Lachlan rosefrom the table and disappeared into his bedroom. He reappeared witha piece of paper in his hand and held it out for Emma.
She saw thehotel’s logo on the top of the page and then scrawled below it wasLachlan’s name, a phone number and an address that revealed helived in Queensland.
“I want you toget in touch with me in three months’ time. Either way. If you arepregnant, we’ll work it out together.”
Was hekidding?
“You’ve justregained your freedom,” she said. What would it be like, raising achild with a man she barely knew, and who, from the look of it,lived in another state? She’d seen the results firsthand in herclassroom…kids who were shuffled back and forth between parents. Itwasn’t ideal. But did Lachlan really think she would burden him allover again when he was just about to start living his own life? Yetshe didn’t really want to raise a child alone, did she?
Oh, no. Thiswas so bad. What had she done?
CHAPTERELEVEN
Back in her room, Emmazipped her suitcase closed. She went into the bathroom to checkthat she’d packed everything, then gazed one last time around theroom.
The week hadn’tgone as planned, that’s for sure. She’d come to Las Vegas toreconnect with her sister and father, only to lose them both forgood.
Last night,after she’d recovered sufficiently from her hangover andvideo-called her friends, Amber and Tash had been jointly dismayedand horrified at what Emma had learned.
As Emma relayedall that had happened with Dad, no, not-Dad, Amber hadpicked up her phone and began scrolling through it.
“What are youdoing?”
“I’m booking aseat on the next flight. You can’t be alone with all of this. It’stoo much.”
“That’s sweetof you, but you can’t throw away all your savings to come here.What about Marcus and going to visit him in London? You’ve beensaving for years, Ams, and you’re so close. You can’t let himdown.”
Amber andMarcus’s five-year long-distance relationship was one for therecords and Emma wouldn’t be a party to it coming undone. Yes, shedesperately missed her friends. But she was a grown-up. Thissituation was hers to deal with. She’d be okay. She would.
Now, she tampeddown the stab of guilt at not having told her friends about herliaison with Lachlan. They wouldn’t believe it for starters. Emmajust wasn’t that type of girl.
Besides, shewanted to keep him to herself for just a bit longer. She’d tellthem when she got home, on a girl’s night over two glasses of whitewine and sad songs. When she could laugh about it.
Her fingersclosed around the handle on her suitcase, and she picked up herhandbag.
The sound ofthe telephone startled her, and she knocked over her suitcase.
“MsDonovan?”
“Yes?”
“This is Roryfrom hotel reception. I have a call for you.”
“Um, who isit?” Emma sank onto the bed as something clicked in her ear.
Then a softAmerican voice said, “This is Michelle.”
Michelle. Not the sociopath super-model but her sister.
“Oh.Hello.”
“I’m back inNew York,” Michelle said. “But Dad told me you were still at thehotel and I wanted to call. I didn’t know if you’d answer. It’sbeen a long time.”
“Two days, infact.”
Michellelaughed, a low, husky sound that Emma could imagine made men fallall over themselves. “I’d forgotten how direct you can be.”
“I haven’tforgotten anything about you.”
“Dad also saidthat Mum never told you about the affair,” Michelle sighed. “Ireally am sorry. It must have been quite a shock to hear it likethat.”
“Yeah, it was.”Understatement of the year.
“I wanted toapologise, as well. For how I reacted on Wednesday. I neverexpected to see you again.”
“Why not?”
Silence filledher ear, and Emma focused on the hum of the air conditioning.
“This is reallytoo complex a conversation to have on the phone,” Michelle said.“But I had an idea. I’m not sure if you’ll be agreeable, after howI reacted after seeing you again.”
“What’s theidea?”
“I’ve got aphotoshoot in Australia in December. We’ll be there for a week butI’m going to take extra time, that is, if you think you could meetme? Would you be able to get some more time off, do you think?”
“I’m aschoolteacher. December’s great for me.”
“Really?”Relief filled Michelle’s voice. “I’ll be in Melbourne, but I cancome to you. Wherever you live.”
Emma’s heartsqueezed. This is what she’d come all this way for. “That’d begreat. I’ll look forward to it.”
“Do you haveemail? We could
