AJ’s breath stilled. This was...unbelievable. Amazing.
“So you’re saying yes,” she said out loud. “We’re really going to do this.”
Matt nodded. “We are.”
He’d said yes. He’d actually said yes. Reality struck so hard and with such force that her throat closed up and she had to work to regain control of her overwhelming emotions.
One step. This was just one step.
Yet the yearning, the desperate desire, flickered to life, flaring into hope.
A baby. Her baby. A chubby, squirmy, drooly child who would know every day he was loved and wanted. A child who would never go hungry or thirsty. A child who would always come first. A child she’d hold and cuddle and never abandon to the foster system.
She quickly suppressed those bitter memories, locking them away so they wouldn’t taint the moment. “Thank you, Matt,” she choked out, her hand going to his arm. “Honestly, I cannot thank you enough. This means...” She blinked like crazy and took a breath as the skeins of control began to unwind. Don’t cry. Don’t you dare cry!
“Do you want me to draw up a formal agreement?”
She stilled as reality jolted her back to awareness. “Can you do that?” At his nod she said, “Oh, okay, then. Sure.”
Of course, having something down in writing made total sense. She withdrew her hand and glanced at her watch. “So I guess...well, I’m free right now. When do you want to...uh...”
His cough of surprise made her glance up. “AJ.”
“Yes?”
“Let’s not get ahead of ourselves. Let’s see what Dr. Adams says on Thursday.”
She could feel the warmth heat her cheeks.
“And anyway,” he added casually, “we’re going out first.”
“Going out? What, on a date?”
“Yes. Tonight. You, me, dinner. Dessert.”
AJ hesitated. “Although I appreciate the effort, you really don’t have to do that, you know.” She smiled, tempering her refusal. “At this stage, it’s safe to say I’m a sure thing.”
“But I want to. Big difference.”
She met his eyes, holding firm under his loaded gaze. So he was determined to wine and dine her before bedding her? AJ shrugged. “Fine,” she said in her best blasé voice. “Dinner.”
“Where are you staying?” Matt asked after a brief pause.
“I don’t know. I’ll have to make a call first.” She’d handed Zac’s apartment keys over to the building super. She’d have to call him, see if she could stay longer until she could work out something that didn’t involve taking advantage of her brother-in-law’s charity.
“You can always stay with me.”
“No!” she blurted out, then added more calmly, “No, that’s not necessary. I can find a cheap hotel someplace.”
“In Sydney?” He raised a skeptical eyebrow. “I have a perfectly good apartment in Paddington you can use.”
She frowned. Surrounded by Matt’s things from his normal life? Bad idea.
“Or...” he added slowly. “There’s always my house at Pretty Beach.”
Oh, no. She shook her head. She needed her own space to keep up some emotional distance. His apartment would be bad enough, but being smack in the middle of the place where they’d made love and he’d scarred her vulnerable heart ten years ago?
Not going to happen.
“The apartment sounds fine. It’d only be for one night,” she added. “I’ve been staying at Zac’s place in Potts Point.”
He nodded. “You’ll need it for a few months, minimum.”
“A few months?”
“How long did you expect this to take, AJ?”
“Well, apparently the Reynolds women are breeders,” she muttered, recalling her mother’s irritating, oft-declared statement, which was always followed by a cackle and a wheeze.
With a bemused expression, he said, “We’re working with reality here, not a cute homily. Thirty percent is low but not impossible.” They stopped at the traffic light and he studied her intently, gauging her reaction. “We’ll need to take every single opportunity to ensure you get pregnant.”
That meant every possible moment having sex with Matt.
Was it bad that she was incredibly turned on right now? That she wanted nothing more than to lean across the seat, grab his tie and plant a kiss on those sensuous lips?
And just like all the times before, he read her intent as clearly as if she’d scrawled it across her face. His eyes darkened, a slow smile teasing the corner of his mouth. Then he deliberately dropped his gaze to her mouth, resting there for agonizing seconds before dragging it up to meet her eyes once more.
The interior of the car heated up by ten degrees.
The light changed and he abruptly turned back to the road. “I’ll drop you off at my place now.”
Hurry. “Okay.”
Twenty minutes later, when he parked in front of his apartment, gathered her bags and led the way into the lobby, her anticipation took a nosedive.
He placed the bags on the slate floor, pressed the elevator button and held out a key. “I’m on the fifteenth floor. I’ll see you at seven-thirty.”
Confused, she took the key, barely registering the brief contact their hands made. “But aren’t you...?”
“I have to get back to work.”
“Oh. Of course.” She bit back her disappointment and readjusted the strap on her shoulder. This is who he is, remember? The guy consumed with work. A perfect arrangement for you.
“AJ?”
“Yes?” She glanced up, and with a swift movement, Matt looped one finger in the top of her jeans and tugged her forward.
The kiss was brief, a mere millisecond of lips on lips. AJ registered the warmth, the seductive smell of his skin and the slight hitch in his breath. A haunting reminder of what they’d once had. And a promise of more to come.
Then it was over and Matt released her, stepping back with a grin as the elevator doors pinged open. “I’ll see you tonight. Wear a dress and heels.”
She could only nod numbly as she watched him stride through the lobby, all male efficiency and confidence. In stark contrast, emotion churned wildly in her gut, an annoying response to his kiss.
Get a grip, AJ. Put on your big girl panties and deal with this. With a nod, she yanked her suitcase handle and strode into the elevator, Matt’s apartment key firm in her clenched hand.
She would not expect anything more than what it was—a physical union to produce a baby. She’d enjoyed men before without the emotional commitment—she could do the same with Matthew Cooper.
AJ submerged herself in the huge spa bath so that only her mouth remained above the surface. The warm water lapped around her cheeks and over her eyelids, making her breath echo in her ears.
Matthew Cooper had said yes and she couldn’t quite believe it.
The doubt that had plagued her for the past half hour welled up again. This wouldn’t be a donation from a stranger—it was