She began to cry in earnest. “I don’t deserve you or your friendship.”
He couldn’t take her crying, not like this. “ What can I do? Tell me what you need and I’ll take care of it.” Both of their prideful natures be damned.
“Can I move in with you, just for a little while? After I get a job, I’ll pay you, then after the baby’s born…” Her lower lip trembled and she buried her face in her hands. “Oh God, who’s going to hire a pregnant woman?”
“Me,” he blurted. Oh hell, he was totally going to regret this. It was hard enough to keep his distance now, but to see her at his office everyday…He was taking the next client’s request, no matter how small.
“Really?” She lifted her head. “But what would I do?”
“Ah, remind me what you went to university for.”
“Interior design,” she said with a little sniff. “I refused to major in political science, like every other Billingsworth who went to Carolina. I refused go to Carolina, too.”
He ruffled her hair. “Rebel.”
“It’s okay. I’m pretty sure an Investigation firm doesn’t need someone to mix patterns or pick out window treatments.” She stood, letting his blanket fall to the couch. “Sorry to have bothered you. I’ll go back to my place now. The Governor has given me thirty-six hours to vacate the property.”
“Your dad’s a bastard, if you don’t mind me saying.” Finn joined her, taking her small hand in his.
Their fingers curled around each other. For long moments, they did nothing but stand there, holding on to each other. She seemed no more inclined to let go than he did. So he stayed, rubbing his thumb along her skin and said nothing.
Time seemed to slow as her gaze met his, beautifully blue and vulnerable as he’d ever seen. Her grip tightened and he took a step closer to her, bringing their joined hands to his mouth. He kissed her knuckles, then simply held hand against his mouth and closed his eyes.
Right then, it hit him. He had to say it. He opened his eyes and smiled. “I love you.”
April tried snatching her hand out of his grip, but it was like vise. “No you don’t. You just feel sorry for me and want to make me feel better.”
He gave her an incredulous look. “By saying I love you? Of all the reasons a man will say I love you, that isn’t one.”
Oh God. She was totally screwing this up. The only thing that could make the whole situation worse was if she had said thank you to his confession. “So you mean it?”
This time he let go of her hand and ran his fingers through his already messy-from-sleep hair. “It’s not a phrase I throw around, willy-nilly. Why do you think I bought this house, changed my entire life, my routine…everything?”
“For the baby.”
“And you. Package deal, remember?”
Yeah, she remembered. Still a shred of doubt remained. “What if you don’t love me after the baby is born?”
“I’ll love you after every baby is born,” he said, his words so firm and confident that she began to believe him. That she allowed the new walls she’d built around her heart to keep him from getting in again to crumble. “I’ll love you when we have lots of grandchildren and hardly any teeth.”
A giggle escaped her, then a sob, until she was doing both. She had to tell him, had to get it out there before she destroyed her second chance at happiness, even if it scared her to death. “And I’ll love you when you’re fat and bald and can’t get it up anymore.”
Grinning, he pulled her to him, let go of her hand and wrapped his arms around her. “Never fear, my darling. Viagra has made it so I can always get it up for you.”
“You say the most romantic things, Finn Kennedy,” she said, her arms slipping around his neck. Rising on her tip-toes, she gently pressed her lips against his. He growled low in his throat and deepened the kiss, then swept her off her feet.
“Stay the night with me,” he said and a thrill of excitement ran through her.
She kissed all the parts of him she could reach as he moved to his bedroom and placed her in the middle of his bed. “I missed this.”
“Me, too.” Dipping his head, he placed a kiss on the swell of her belly. “Hello, in there. This is your dad and I’d like to marry your mother, if it’s all right with you.”
A fresh round of tears welled. “Stop making me cry. I am not a pretty crier.”
Smiling, he shushed her and turned his head, placing his ear against her baby bump. “Oh, you‘d like that, would you? Mommy, the baby says to say yes.”
“Bossy baby.”
“Just like its mother,” he said, then frowned. “A pony? I’m not so sure…okay, you win.” She ran her fingers in Finn’s hair as he continued talking to their baby, her eyes growing heavy. The last thing she remembered Finn saying to her bump was, “You do have the best mommy ever. She’s a real corker.”
April was in the middle of packing when the Governor walked through her door. Of course he would show up on the last day, when she was almost done and sorting through her odds and ends.
“Stubborn as ever I see.” His dress shoes were shiny, his suit immaculate and his hair perfect. He reminded her of a snake-oil salesman.
Carefully wrapping up her great-great grandmother’s candy dish, she placed it in a box. “You know how those Billingsworth’s are.”
“I bet you’re wondering why I’m here.”
“You’d lose that bet.” She smiled, then picked up a pair of candlesticks. “Now who did these belong to?”
“Your great-grandfather on my side. They’re priceless and should be in the Capitol’s history museum, not displayed in some Chippendale knockoff.”
“Here.” She held them out to him and let them drop from her hands before he could take the brass fixtures. “Whoops, my bad.”
Her father’s jaw worked. “Childish, April.”
Placing a hand on her belly, she turned and smirked at the look on his face. Yeah, that’s right, everyone with eyes in their head can see that I’m knocked up. “Pregnancy hormones tend to make me temperamental.”
“Let’s not do this, sugar. I’ve come here to apologize.”
Her mouth dropped open. She couldn’t help it. Her dad never apologized, except to his constituents and it was always the I’m sorry if you were offended B.S.. “You’ve got to be joking.”
“I’m serious. I was wrong about the baby… my future grandchild.” April rolled her eyes. So now it was his grandchild. “And that young man of yours, well, I was wrong about him, too.”
Something about Chad’s speech didn’t pass her smell test. He was lying or knew something that would be to his benefit. “Then you’ll be thrilled to know we’re getting married. After the baby is born, because I am not walking down the aisle like this.” Not that she minded how she looked right now. Finn sure as heck liked how she looked. The man couldn’t keep his hands off of her.
Heat rose to her cheeks. That was not something she should be thinking about right now. Finn walked in and she had to look away. His sudden appearance wasn’t helping at all.
“You okay, babe?” Finn asked, coming to stand beside her. He placed his arm along her shoulder, very casually, but she could feel the tension that radiated off of him.
“Just the man I wanted to see,” Chad said, one of those all white, big teeth grins that he saved for campaigning appearing.
Her stomach roiled. “Why would you want to see Finn?”
Chad gave her a look. “The question is: Why wouldn’t I want to see my soon to be son-in-law Finn Kennedy? President and CEO of Kennedy Investigations. You, young man, are hard to pin down for an appointment.”
“I’m booked, sir. Won’t be having any openings for a long, long time.”
She glanced at Finn. “Don’t turn his money down because of me. Business is business.” But in her heart she didn’t mean it. Choose me, she screamed inside her head, Choose me and our baby, then tell my dad to take his money and shove it.
“I’m not here for his business,” Chad said, shocking April and from the looks of it, Finn as well.
“Then why are you here?” she asked.
“Want you two to come on the campaign trail. I’ve decided to start putting feelers out for a possible run for President.”
“Of America?” she croaked, but no one was listening to her.
“Now that you’ve made the right decision by getting back together with Finn, like your daddy told you to do from the start—“ Chad winked at Finn and tsked at April.—“our families, the Kennedys and the Billingsworths, can come together, join forces and continue to make this country great.”
“So unpack those boxes, fill up the fridge and make a table for three. I plan on dining here tonight, with Margo, of course. Can’t discuss strategy without her.”
“No, no, no,” April chanted, her whole world crashing in on her.
“Please leave,” Finn said.
Chad tilted his head to one side. “I thought you were on board. Our last phone call—”
“Was a mistake. One I won’t be repeating.”
“You knew about this?” Trust him, April told herself. Trust him and give him a chance to explain. She knew how her dad operated.
Finn sliced his gaze to her. “Can we talk about this later, in private?”
Before she could agree, her dad spoke up. “Oh come on, sugar, you’re still not mad at me because your ex wouldn’t take you back and didn’t want anything to do with the baby. It’s been…what, a month now?”
Great. Now he was attacking them both, trying to pit them against each other. It wouldn’t work, not with her or Finn. She crossed her arms over her chest. Finn’s arm fell away, but a quick glance told her that he had done the same.
Her confidence in their relationship soared. They were in this together. Not even her slimeball of a dad could ruin it.
“Please leave,” she said, echoing Finn’s words. “Don’t come back ever again. I don’t want your money, this house, the minivan…nothing. It’s yours, take it.”
“Easy to say when the man you’re marrying’s loaded. “ Chad shook his head. “Have to hand it to you, sugar. You always did know how to land on your feet, just like your momma.”
She ignored the dig about her mother and looked at Finn. “You know he’s lying, right?”
Finn’s jaw clenched. “I’ll be happy to discuss this with you later, in private.” He directed his attention to her dad. “You heard your daughter. She doesn’t want you here and neither do I.”
“So much like your mother.” Chad laughed and she bit the inside of her cheek. She was nothing like her mother or him. “Guess I’ll be going now. Don’t bothering contacting me, either of you.” He glanced at his watch. “Tick-tock, children. House cleaners will be here in a couple of hours.”
She watched her dad walk away, from her house, her life, and his grandchild. A sense of relief came over her. She felt lighter, freer and happier than she had in years. Laughter bubbled up, she couldn’t help it.
“He’s gone, Finn.” She uncrossed her arms and wrapped them around Finn. “And I’m free!” Only he wasn’t hugging her back or laughing. In fact he looked grim and stoic, his arms firmly crossed and in her way.
“We need to talk.”
Oh God. He hadn’t believe her. She gulped. “Okay.”
“Do you love me?” Finn asked, a frown firmly fixed on his face.
“You know I do.”
“Then why in the hell would you want to argue with me in front of that dirty bastard? We’re a team. There’s no need to pretend to be solidified in front of him. We are solidified.”
“What?”
Finally, finally, he uncrossed his arms, sat on the edge of the dining table and drew her between his legs. “I don’t give a flying fuck what Billingsworth has to say, about anything and especially about you.”
“You don’t?”
“Hell, no. I voted for the other guy.”
April didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. “I voted for the other guy too, but just to spite my dad. He does have some really good policies and I think, when he was younger, he truly thought he could change the world, make it better. But politics changed him.”
He stroked her cheek. “You’re a good daughter to think so, but power tends to bring out the qualities that are already hidden inside of us, be they good or bad.”
“Quite the philosopher, Mr. Kennedy.”
“You mean quite the reader of superhero comic books,” he corrected, then ran a hand through his hair. “That phone call he mentioned…I haven’t spoken to Billingsworth since the day he found us together. I swear I haven’t.”
“I believe you,” she said. She really did. “So…you and me, we’re still together and in love until our teeth fall out?”
“Longer than that, babe, longer than that.”
She kissed him, then leaned back. “You know, I love it when you call me ‘babe’.”
“That I do, babe.” He dipped his head, claiming her mouth in a kiss that made her forget all about packing and moving and politics and everything else that wasn’t Finn.
But she couldn’t forget how happy she was in this moment. “I love you.”