“I finally saw him for who he really is tonight. It made me realize what a close call I’d had and how incredibly lucky I am to have found you. And then you went and mentioned all those other women recognizing what a catch you are.” Blushing, she admitted, “It kind of freaked me out.”
He stared at her, his expression incredulous. “You really were jealous? Of women who don’t exist?”
“Maybe just a little,” she said. “I just knew I didn’t want you to be with those women.”
His lips quirked at that. “Really? You think I should be with you?”
“Yes, at least compared to them, if that makes any sense.”
His laugh carried over the water. “It does make a crazy kind of sense if a woman is crazy in love and just starting to figure it out. Any possibility that could be the case?”
Though she hated confessing the unexpected turn her emotions had apparently taken, she nodded. “Could be.”
Now his whoop mirrored Cora Jane’s earlier.
“You don’t have to get arrogant and smug about it,” she grumbled. “It’s still not a sure thing. I think pregnancy has used up a lot of my brain cells. I might not be thinking clearly.”
“Oh, but you are,” he said confidently. “There is no turning back now, Gabriella.”
He pulled her up and into his arms, seemingly oblivious to the very evident reminder that she had belonged to another man not that long ago. This time when he kissed her, she held back nothing. And despite the dizzying sensation that caused, she knew one thing with absolute certainty. She’d never been in safer, more loving arms.
* * *
“I’m telling you this situation has the potential to get really ugly,” Louise told Wade when he stopped by her house the day after he and Gabi had finally, inevitably declared themselves to be a couple.
“Obviously Gabi filled you in on what the baby’s father had to say when he turned up here yesterday,” Wade said, taking a sip of sweet tea.
“Yes, and it scares me to death. He’s unpredictable, Wade.”
“Don’t you think you can fight him and win?” Wade asked her, worried on Gabi’s behalf. “Can he rescind that piece of paper he signed?”
“He could certainly try and, in the right circumstances, he just might win. I’m not saying he could take custody from her, but he could definitely win visitation with his child unless there’s some overwhelming reason to declare him unfit.”
“And that’s what you told Gabi?” he said, regretting he hadn’t gone to Cora Jane’s looking for her, rather than stopping off here first. She must be freaking out.
Louise nodded. “I also told her she might be wise to grant him limited visitation, rather than trying to cut him out of the baby’s life. It would be one thing if she wanted to put the baby up for adoption and give her a clean start, free from ties to her birth parents, but now that she intends to keep the baby, it’s a whole new ball game.”
“Lou, you didn’t see this guy. He wasn’t over here throwing his weight around because he gives two hoots for that baby. Whatever his motivation, it wasn’t about love for his child. If someone told him he had to care for a child, I can almost guarantee he’d pass out cold...or hire a nanny so he never had to set eyes on the kid.”
“That doesn’t necessarily make him a bad father figure. After all, single fathers do work. So do single moms. Or even married couples who both work. They all have to make responsible arrangements for their children.”
He frowned at her. “Whose side are you on?”
“Yours, at the moment. If Gabi actually hires me, I’ll be on hers, of course.”
“I’m not the one who needs a lawyer,” he reminded her.
“No, but you do need someone looking out for your interests. You’re getting more invested in this woman and this baby by the minute.”
“No news there,” he said, seeing no reason to debate the point. “In fact, when the timing is right, I have every intention of marrying her and treating this child as if it’s my own.”
Louise’s expression turned sad. “That’s what I’m worried about. The baby isn’t yours, Wade. This little girl belongs to another man, who could claim at any moment that he wants a role in the baby’s life. It’s not like it was with Kayla where the dad was completely out of the picture.”
He scowled at her. “Do you think I’m too stupid to figure out the difference?”
“Of course not. I just know what a soft heart you have. I don’t want it broken again.”
Despite his frustration, Wade smiled at the fiercely protective note in her voice. “Aren’t you the one who once made a speech to our folks about being allowed to make your own mistakes, that it’s part of being an adult?”
She smiled ruefully. “Well, yes, but that was me. This is you. I want so badly for you to be happy and to have everything you deserve.”
“And Gabi’s the woman who can accomplish both of those things,” he assured her. “I know it, Lou. That’s not to say there won’t be bumps in the road. They’re part of life. And maybe Paul will turn out to be the biggest, pain-in-the-ass pothole of all, but it doesn’t scare me. The only thing that scares me is the thought of losing Gabi.”
Louise regarded him with surprise. Obviously she hadn’t been prepared for such an ardent declaration. “You really are in love with her, aren’t you?”
“Head over heels,” he confirmed.
She nodded slowly. Though there was still worry in her eyes, she said, “Then we’ll do whatever it takes to minimize the damage this man can do to her, the baby and to you.”
“Thank you.”
And if worse came to worst and Gabi had to share custody with Paul, he’d find some way to make that work out for all of them, too. After all, if Gabi had once had feelings for him, misguided though they
