Undeniably Yours by Shannon Stacey Page B

folded her arms across her chest in a defensive way. “I mean, see each other like…a relationship.”
    “You mean no more sex.” That sucked. Maybe it was a hormonal thing and she’d change her mind in five minutes. A man could hope.
    “No.” She blushed and shook her head. “Well, yes, I mean no more sex. But more than that. No more dates. We’re just going to be neighbors who happen to be having a baby together.”
    He was surprised by the disappointment that resonated through him. Most guys would jump at the chance to be off the hook with a pregnant lady. “I don’t get it. I thought we had a good time. And not just the sex part.”
    “I did have a good time, but…I can’t explain it.”
    “Can you try, because I’m not really sure what I did wrong here.”
    “You didn’t do anything wrong. You’re just a little overwhelming. I know you’re trying to help, but…” She shook her head, as if struggling for the right words.
    “You’re carrying my baby, Beth, and if you thought I was going to let you go through this alone, with nothing but a lumpy old mattress in a house that smells like cat piss, you don’t know me very well.”
    “I don’t know you at all. That’s the point.”
    “I still don’t get it. I think I’ve handled this whole thing pretty damn well.”
    “You have. You really have. And now you’re trying to take care of me, but I take care of myself. I don’t really do relationships and you’re a little…suffocating.”
    “Suffocating?” What the fuck was she talking about now? “How the hell does wanting you and the baby safe make me a bad guy?”
    “You’re not a bad guy. You’re a great guy, actually.” Tears welled up in her eyes and spilled out onto her cheeks. She dashed them away with an angry swipe of her hand. “It’s just…too much and I’m so overwhelmed and I…I…”
    “Come here.” He sat on the couch next to her and pulled her into his arms. “No kinky stuff. Just a neighbors–who-happen-to-be-having-a baby-together hug. See? Not even copping a feel.”
    She laughed against his shirt with a hiccupping sound. “It’s just…you’re being so wonderful about this baby and you actually seem happy about it and you’re so together and I’m just a mess.”
    “I am happy about it. But I’m not the one carrying the baby—you are. And maybe my life’s more settled and ready for a baby than yours is.” He leaned back against the couch, taking her with him. “I’m sorry I’m coming across as pushy. It’s just the way I am—if something needs to be done, I do it. If somebody in my life needs something and I can provide it, I provide it. But I’ll try to back off…some.”
    “I think the most important thing for the baby is that we’re friends.”
    “We are. And I think a friend, at a time like this, would order take-out for another friend as a housewarming gift.”
    “Chinese?” she asked in a small voice.
    He hated Chinese food. “Sure. Unless my mother threw them out, the second drawer down in the kitchen had a bunch of take-out menus in it.”
    He let her go so he could check, and to give her a minute to wipe her face. The menus, collected by the various family members who’d crashed in the apartment, were still there and he sifted through them, looking for a nearby Chinese restaurant.
    “Kevin?” He looked up, trying to remember what the only dish he liked was called. “Thank you.”
    Standing there in jeans and a faded, well-worn sweater, with her hair messed up and her eyes a little red, she was so beautiful he just looked at her for a long moment. He didn’t want to just be friendly neighbors who happened to be having a baby together. He wanted to pull her into his arms and kiss her until neither of them could breathe.
    But he’d back off…for now. “You’re welcome.”
    ***
    During Jasper’s post-dinner crowd lull, Paulie ran up the back stairs to her apartment to grab a yogurt and a few minutes of peace. Serving up