Gabi rolled her eyes. “You did not.”
“Well, I have to admit I hoped there was.”
“No dull, staid corporate type for you?”
He held her gaze then and leaned cross the console to cup a hand behind her neck, drawing her close. When their lips met, there was nothing dull or staid about the kiss that followed.
He leaned back, smiling. “No worries on that front. I suspect you’ll always be able to keep my heart racing and me guessing.”
Gabi studied him with wonder. “How can you see me that way, when nobody else does?”
“Maybe no one else has taken the time to look beneath the surface,” he suggested, then added pointedly, “Not even you.”
Gabi thought about that and realized it was entirely possible he was exactly right. She’d made up her mind at an early age that she had to impress her father to get his attention. When it hadn’t worked, she’d tried even harder, never taking her eye off that single elusive goal. During the years when other teens changed course a half dozen times, she’d stayed on the straight and narrow. Whatever whims might have passed fleetingly through her heart had been determinedly ignored in favor of higher achievements.
“I feel as if I’ve picked the worst possible time to take off on some journey of self-discovery,” she said.
“Because of the baby?”
“Of course because of the baby. Do you remember hearing about the flower children of the sixties? My impression was they were self-indulgent and irresponsible. Is that what I’m turning into?”
“I suppose it remains to be seen,” he responded candidly, eyes twinkling. “But I seriously doubt all those old responsible habits of yours can be kicked that readily. You’ll try this, and if it doesn’t work out, you’ll move on to something that does.”
“You seem to have a lot of faith in me.”
“Yes, I do,” he said without hesitation.
His immediate belief in her was a revelation. How different her life might have been if she’d had even an iota of that from her father.
“I think you might be very good for me, Wade Johnson,” she told him quietly.
The admission, coming as it did on top of so many other recent and unanticipated changes in her life, scared her to death. And, of course, there still remained the very big question of whether she could possibly be any good for him or whether he was trying desperately to recapture a time in his past when he’d had everything he wanted. Deep in her gut, she couldn’t help remembering how tragically that had ended.
* * *
When Gabi finally got back to Cora Jane’s, she was surprised to find her grandmother waiting up for her.
“Is everything okay?” Gabi asked at once. “You’re never up this late.”
“I thought we should talk,” Cora Jane said. “Samantha told me a little about what went on today. Sounds as if you’re looking to make some mighty big changes.”
“And you disapprove?” Gabi asked worriedly. She’d been expecting her grandmother’s blessing. Not having it would be an emotional setback.
“Of course not,” Cora Jane said readily. “I’ll always support you in whatever you want to do.” She studied Gabi intently. “I have to admit to being surprised, though. Is this Wade’s influence?”
“Maybe just a little,” Gabi said, “but the decision was all mine. I don’t want to go back to my old life, not any of it. In fact, I think tomorrow I’ll speak to a Realtor about putting the town house on the market.”
Astonishment lit her grandmother’s eyes. “Really? What then?”
“I’d like to stay here with you, at least until the baby comes.” She regarded Cora Jane hopefully. “Would that be okay?”
A smile spread across her grandmother’s face. “You know it would be,” Cora Jane said at once. “And to be honest, I wouldn’t mind having a baby under my roof again, if you want to stay on for as long as it suits you.”
Gabi smiled at the gentle nudge. “One step at a time, okay?” She studied her grandmother’s pleased expression. “Grandmother, do you think there’s a plan for us? You know, a bigger one?”
“From God?”
Gabi nodded, knowing that her grandmother’s faith ran deep, even though she missed church more Sundays than not because of Castle’s.
“Oh, I think He probably has a few ideas,” Cora Jane told her. “But the way I understand it, He’s left it to us to figure things out on our own. That would explain how so many folks manage to make a mess of things.”
“I don’t want to make a mess of this,” Gabi said. “I don’t mean the whole wind-chime thing. I’m talking about this baby. What if keeping it is all wrong? Would I be totally selfish if I decided to try to raise it on my own?”
“Honey bun, if you’re asking if I think you’ll be a good mother, the answer is yes. Just the fact that you’re asking these kind of questions of yourself tells me that. I trust you completely to put the best interests of that baby first.”
“I want to. I’ve thought all along it would be best if it were in a home with two loving parents. I certainly didn’t want it to become a pawn in some never-ending battle between Paul and me.”
“There’s definitely a lot to be said for a child being with two parents who’ve been longing for a baby,” Cora Jane agreed. “But it could be that you’ll be able to give that sort of home to this child yourself.”
It said a lot about what had been going on recently that she wasn’t taken aback by the suggestion. “You’re talking about Wade,” Gabi said.
“The man is crazy about you,” Cora Jane reminded her.
“But it’s way too soon to even think about something serious like that developing between us,” Gabi protested. “We’re close, but it wouldn’t be fair to make a decision for my child based on Wade being in my life to help.”
“He’d be a wonderful father,” Cora Jane said.
“I know that,” Gabi said in frustration. “I’ve seen him with his
