After Sundown (17 page)

“
Hey,
Brandon
, what’s your problem?”

“You’re a piece of shit,
Taylor
. You know that?”
Brandon
’s arms were down by his sides and he nervously balled his hands into fists, as if fighting the impulse to slug Cole.

“Excuse me?” Cole asked, taking another step
backwards,
away from the angry man.

“What kind of a
person
walks away from his child?
You rich bastards make me sick. Just throw money at a problem and walk away.”

“What in the hell are you talking about? I’d never walk away from Megan.”

“Don’t be cute with me,”
Brandon
hissed.
Brandon
was about to give into
temptation and kick some ass when he noted Cole’s sincere look of confusion. Kit’s
younger brother
paused, and was silent for a moment.”

“Shit, she didn’t tell you, did she?”
Brandon
whispered.

“What are you talking about?” Cole
asked.

“Kit, she didn’t tell you, did she?”

“Tell me what?” Cole didn’t like
Brandon
’s expression.

“My sister’s pregnant,”
Brandon
said quietly.

“Pregnant?” Cole asked dumbly, “
B
y who?”

It was then
that
Brandon
gave into temptation and planted his fist soundly into Cole’s mouth.

Chapter Eighteen

Kit glared at the coffee
maker
. It mocked her. She missed her morning coffee. Ironically, the
scent
of fresh brewed coffee was about the only
smell
that didn’
t turn her stomach these days. She briefly considered taking the coffeemaker off the counter and storing it in the cupboard, thus freeing up some counter space. After the baby was born, she could bring it out again. She decided to leave it. Just because she couldn’t
have
coffee, didn’t mean her guests couldn’t enjoy it. Not that she did much entertaining.

With a damp dishrag, she finished wiping down the kitchen counter, and pushed the coffee maker toward the wall.
Normally, this close to Christmas
she would be baking something. Yet even the smell of cookies turned her stomach.

Susan had picked up Sarah, an hour earlier, taking her niece home to do some baking. Sarah didn’t understand why her mother wasn’t joining them, but the two women made up a white lie, telling the child
that
Kit had some work to do for her consulting job. Sarah didn’t know about the pregnancy yet.

When Kit heard the doorbell ring, she tossed the dishrag to the counter, and went to answer the door. Before opening it, she looked through the peephole and was surprised to see Cole standing on her front porch. For a brief
moment,
she considered not answer
ing
it, yet her car was parked in the driveway, and all the blinds were open, so he would probably spy her moving away from the entry. Taking a deep breath
and releasing it
, she opened the door and came face to face with Cole Taylor.

“Good morning, Cole. This is a surprise,” Kit said with a steady voice.
She noticed his lip was cut and swollen.

“Where is Sarah?” Cole asked, without giving a greeting.

“Sarah?
She’s
at
Brandon
and Susan’s, why?” Kit asked with a frown.

“Good,” Cole responded and then walked into the doorway without being asked, forcing Kit to move to the side and let him in. “I want to talk to you, and I would prefer she wasn’t around.”

“Cole,” Kit continued to stand at the doorway, her right hand on the door’s edge. “This really isn’t a good time, I’m busy.” Kit didn’t want to talk to Cole.

“Why, is someone here?” Cole asked, glancing around.

“No, but
it
just isn’t a good
time,
” Kit told him.

“That
’s
too bad. I’
m not leaving,” Cole said angrily, turning to face her. Kit just stared at him for a moment, then let out a sigh and closed the door.

“When were you planning to tell me about the baby?” Cole asked angrily. Kit flinched.

“How did you
find out
?” she asked, her voice barely a whisper.

“I ran into your brother.”

Kit
silently
curse her brother, then wondered if
Brandon
was responsible for Cole’s cut lip.

“
Cole,
this really isn’t something you need to worry about. I’m taking care of it.”

“Taking care of it?” Cole asked angrily.

“Don’t look at me like that!” Kit snapped
. H
er hands covered her belly protectively. “
It’s
not like I am getting an abortion or anything.”

“Knowing
you,
Kit, I didn’t imagine for a moment you would get an abortion. But just how
do
you expect to take care of this child, you can barely make ends meet now.”

“I don’t know what you are talking about, I am doing fine,” Kit snapped.
She felt suddenly threatened,
knowing that if Cole wanted, he could afford to fight for custody of the baby.

“Why do you assume this child is yours?” Kit asked defensively.

“I’ll
confess,
Kit, when
Brandon
first told me of your pregnancy, I didn’t automatically assume the child was mine. After all, we used condoms, and
I thought you were dating that Andrew guy.
” Kit blushed
at his words
, reminded that their night together required multiple condoms.

“
Brandon
set me straight on Andrew
. He told me he was your client. B
ut even if you had been dating the guy, I knew he wasn’t the father.”

“Why?”

“Because I know
you,
Kit
,” he told her. As he watched the mother of his
unborn child struggle to maintain her composure, he remind
ed
himself that
getting her emotionally upset was not good for her or the unborn child. Cole took a deep breath and attempted to steady his nerves.

“Kit, please let’s go sit down in the living room and talk rationally about this. I’m sorry for getting you so upset. But please,
we need to talk
.”

Kit just stared at Cole for a moment as a few tears slid down her face.
She
gave a little nod in agreement, wiped away her tears with the back of her hand
and
walked with Cole to the living room.

“How are you feeling?” Cole asked after Kit sat down on the couch. He sat next to her, yet tried to give her space
by sitting on the other end of the small sofa.

“Morning sickness is not as bad as it once was,” she said quietly, her eyes looking forward, refusing to look at Cole.

“When did you know?” he asked, watching her closely.

“I suspected over Thanksgiving and took a home pregnancy test the Monday after.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?” he asked,
his question
sounding more like a sad plea
-
a stark contrast from his earlier angry rant.

“What was the point
?
” Kit
answered. H
er voice
was
barely a whisper. She sat primly on the edge of the couch cushion, back straight, her hands neatly folded in her lap as her fingers fidgeted nervously. “The day I took the test was Megan’s first day back after your trip to the mountains. You really need to be careful what you say in front of young children, as they don’t always understand that some things should not be repeated.”

“And what did Megan tell you?” Cole asked in a calm and quiet voice.

“That I was nothing more than her babysitter. Yet she assured me that while her father no longer liked me, she still did.”
Kit looked up into Cole’s face.

Cole fairly groaned at her answer
and shook his head as if to deny Megan’s words.

“Kit, I’m sorry Megan said that, but I didn’t mean it as it sounded. It was just that she wouldn’t stop talking about you and Sarah, and asking me why you both didn’t come with us. I just wanted to spend the week with her without being reminded of you every ten minutes.”

“Well gee, that makes me feel better,” Kit said dryly, looking into Cole’s face. No longer was she on the verge of tears. Instead, she just wanted to go
lie
down, take a nap and forget all about Cole.

“You don’t understand,” Cole leaned toward Kit and put his hand out, capturing the tip of her chin under two
of his
fingers
. H
e tilted her face upward, so that she was looking directly in
his
eyes.

“After our night together, I realized I didn’t want a one night sta
nd, I wanted you as my lover. But Kit, I’m not husband material and I knew you
are
not mistress material. I didn’t see you as a woman who’d settle for a sexual relationship without a long
-
term commitment. I honestly was trying to do what I felt was best for you.”

“Then I suppose I was correct in
keeping
this from you.” Kit said evenly, pulling her head back, out of Cole’s grasp.
She looked down at her lap again, fidgeting with her hands.

“No, this pregnancy changes everything,” Cole said, standing up suddenly. He began pacing back and forth in front of the sofa. “We should probably get married as soon as possible.”

“Excuse me?” Kit jerked her head up and looked at Cole, who stopped pacing and stood before her.

“We don’t just have the baby to think about, there
is
Sarah and Megan.”

“What do you mean?” Kit frowned.

“This baby will be their sibling. How do we explain to the girls you are having my baby if we aren’t married? It isn’t the example I want to set for my daughter. Have you told Sarah
about the baby
yet?”

“No, but…” Kit frowned up at Cole, finding his odd sense of propriety a bit late in coming, since he was the one who was seducing her at every turn.

“Good, that’s good. I’d rather we get married first and then tell the girls together, later.” Cole seemed to be talking to himself, as if he was working out the situation in his mind, and he started pacing again.

“I’m not marrying you,” Kit blurted out, finding herself annoyed
with
Cole
for
plott
ing her life and that of her unborn child and Sarah
’s
.

Cole stopped pacing and just stared down at Kit, saying nothing for a moment. He remembered what Sarah had told him about her mother crying. Perhaps the tears weren’t because Kit wanted a commitment, but because she actually did regret their sexual encounter.

For weeks, he’d been telling himself he wasn’t interested in a long-term commitment, yet the moment he realized marriage was inevitable, he found the idea appealing. He
had
missed spending time with Kit.
He missed their unguarded moments when the two sat by the fireplace like an old married couple, their girls in the next room playing. It wasn’t just the sex
, it was the friendship and intimacy they shared.

Cole felt as if someone delivered a sucker punch to his gut when he realized Kit did not share his feelings and seemed opposed to the idea of marriage. H
e resented how vulnerable he suddenly felt. Cole wanted Kit to be thril
led that he was willing to marry
her. He wanted her leaping into his arms and thanking him for making everything
right
, instead of sitting on the sofa so defiantly, as if the thought of marrying him was repugnant.

“Am I really that awful?” Cole said at last, his voice flat.

“I never said you were awf
ul,” Kit whispered, looking
down at her lap.

Combing his fingers through his hair in exasperation, Cole dropped down to his knees before the couch and forced Kit to
look in his face
.
She had to marry him, he told himself.

“Kit, this really is the best solution for everyone. Megan already loves you, and you are terrific with her. You wouldn’t have to worry about money anymore, and if you really hate being married to me, I will give you a divorce
after the baby is born
and
will
continue to support you.”

“I don’t want to put the girls through a divorce,” Kit said in a quiet voice, tears filling her eyes.

“I don’t either, Kit. But I would rather we be married for this baby, and if down the line you find the situation too unbearable,
we’ll
work something out. I understand there are
many
single moms out there who have children without a father in the picture. But, Kit, I don’t think that is what you want. Do you?”

“Can I think about it?” Kit asked as she bit her upper lip, in an awkward attempt to keep from crying.

“Sure, but while you do, I think we need to take things back to where we were. Let the girls see us together, so when
…
if
…
we tell them we are getting married, it won’t be such a shock.”

“I could watch Megan again,” Kit said with a nervous smile.

“She would love
that, but
won’t it be too much for you?” Cole was still kneeling before Kit, as she sat on the edge of the couch. He reached out and gently wiped the tears from her cheeks, using the back of his right hand.

“No, it would help
to
keep Sarah occupied. I’m pretty tired these
days,
”
Kit admitted.

Cole gathered Kit into his arms and held her for a moment. She passively accepted his embrace, resting her head against his shoulder.