Bulletproof Christmas. Barb Han

was going to be a father. She’d had every intention of telling him when the time was right but that time never came and she’d eventually decided to wait until after the babies were born.

      There’d been so many times she’d wanted him to know but to what end? What did she want from him? Child support? Marriage? She almost laughed out loud at the thought of tying Rory down with commitment. He’d been all too clear that he wasn’t the type to stick around.

      When he’d first walked out of her life, she thought that if she gave him enough time, he’d come back on his own. He’d realize that the two of them should be together.

      As far as drinking the Kool-Aid went, she’d gone all-in with that fantasy.

      He’d seemed content to stay away and her heart was still trying to heal from the snub.

      So far, Ella was the only one who knew about the pregnancy and her sister had literally found out five minutes ago when she’d come in to check on Cadence.

      “Stay away from your windows, Cadence. Someone was camping on your property and you’re being targeted.” Rory wasn’t trying to scare her. His voice was steady steel.

      “Okay. Now I know,” she retorted, chiding herself for being so quick to dismiss him.

      Several more taps came.

      “I’m sorry about what happened between us.” His voice was low and gravelly. It was the same voice that had been so good at seducing her.

      And the same that had told her the two of you didn’t have a future, a little voice reminded.

      “Fine. I’ll take this seriously. Consider me warned. Now, you can leave.” He deserved to know he was a father but not like this. A cramp nearly doubled her over. She made it to her bed and sat down, gripping the mattress, trying not to make a noise.

      She’d sent for a doctor four times in her first trimester, thinking the cramps were a bad sign that something was going terribly wrong. Turned out they were normal and especially common in a first pregnancy.

      Before she could stop it, the doorknob twisted.

      “No, Rory! Go!”

      “I just wanted to tell you face-to-face—” His jaw fell slack the minute his gaze landed on her stomach.

      Defensively, she brought her hands around her large belly to cover it.

      Rory stood there, frozen, as though unable to speak.

      A few seconds ticked by before he seemed to gather his thoughts well enough to say something.

      “Do you mind telling me when you intended to share the news that you’re pregnant?” he finally asked, and there was so much betrayal in his voice.

      She was pretty sure he was decent at math but also certain he had no idea how far along she was or the timing of a pregnancy. And part of her realized he had every right to be angry.

      “I’d say it’s none of your business but that’s not exactly true since you’re the father,” she said, watching intently for his response.

      A look of complete shock darkened his features as his gaze practically bore through her. His jaw clenched and released a few times, and it looked like he was grinding his molars. His stare became a dare when he said, “Then marry me.”