Page 60 of Flawless

But I couldn’t tell her that. Maybe someday she’d be open to hearing those words from me again, but not today.

“It is a blessing,” she said, placing her hands over her flat stomach. “I mean, I never imagined getting pregnant now, but since I am, I’ve kind of fallen in love with this baby.” She bit her lip, looking uncertain. “Is that crazy?”

I grinned. “If you’re crazy, then I’m even crazier, because I fell in love with our little one the second I found out you were pregnant.”

She looked hopeful when she asked, “Really?”

I took a risk, and reached for her. When she didn’t withdraw, I kissed each of her hands before looking her in the eye. “You know how much I’ve wanted to be a dad. You’ve given me an incredible gift. Thank you.”

A tear glided down her cheek and she sniffled, half laughing, when she said, “You’re welcome.” Pinching her lips together, she said, “I’m scared though. I’m not sure how all this is going to work. I mean, my career means a lot to me, but⁠—”

“We’ll figure out the logistics, don’t worry.”

It might mean up-ending my life, but I didn’t care. If my baby was in Nashville, I wanted to be in Nashville as much as possible. Being a part-time dad didn’t sit well with me, but I was determined to respect Rylee’s wishes and not try to steamroll her.

“I’ve been worrying a lot,” she admitted, squeezing my hands. “About how you would react. How I would handle the demands of a career and motherhood, whether I would be a good mama or⁠—”

“You’ll be great.” I’d bet my last dime on that. “You’ll give our baby the love you never got growing up, and as long as you do that, they’ll have all they need to thrive.”

She stepped closer, wrapping her arms around my waist as she laid her head on my chest. “You have no idea how much I needed to hear that. You have this way of calming me. I have a feeling I’m going to be calling on you a lot over the next months.”

I kissed the top of her head, breathing in her scent, as I closed my eyes. “Anytime you need me, I’m here.”

She tipped her head back, looking up at me. “I’m glad I’m doing this with you.”

I smiled, fighting the urge to kiss her. “I am too, sweetheart.”

I couldn’t imagine doing it with anyone else.

Stepping out of my arms with a sigh, she said, “The elephant in the room is what happened between us, Cam.”

“We don’t have to talk about that now.”

But I did want to talk about it eventually. I didn’t want there to be any bitterness between us by the time our baby was born. Just love, friendship, and mutual respect. And if she saw fit to let me back into her bed, and her life, I’d be the happiest bastard alive. If not, I’d still be grateful for all she’d given me.

“I’ve been thinking about it a lot,” she admitted. “My friend Easton thinks I was a little unfair⁠—”

“I really need to buy Easton a beer.” I grinned when she smiled. “That guy doesn’t even know me, but he’s got my back.”

The world knew Easton Hart, the multi-award-winning country singer, but after everything Rylee had told me about her friend, I wanted to know the man behind the persona. He sounded like someone I’d like to have on my side.

“I’ve been confiding in him,” she admitted. “About us. My pregnancy. All of it. And he’s been through stuff too, with his wife and family, so he gives good advice. But the best advice he gave me may have been to go easy on you, not to have unrealistic expectations of perfection because you’re only human, just like me.”

“I appreciate that.” I didn’t expect a free pass for the mistake I’d made, but it was good to know she might be able to forgive me, for the sake of our baby.

“Listen, it’s late.” I captured her face in my hands, and looked into her eyes before kissing her forehead. “I’m going to let you get some sleep. But I’ll be here until Sunday morning. Maybe we could go out for lunch tomorrow, talk a little more, about how we move forward from here… with respect to the baby.”

She nodded, curling her hands around my wrists. “Yeah, I’d like that. Text me in the morning and we’ll make plans.”

“Will do.” I didn’t know how much sleep I’d get tonight, but just knowing I’d be seeing her again tomorrow made me more hopeful than I’d been in weeks.

Chapter Twenty-Two

Rylee

I smiled when my phone pinged and I rolled over in bed to see a text from Eden.

Do you hate me?