Maid to Love (Man Maid Book 3) (2 page)

Don’t panic. Deep breaths.

Her tears picked up in intensity. Feeling as though she had no way to escape added to her turmoil.

“Shhh, hey, Beautiful, I’m sorry. I say things sometimes before I think about the consequences. That’s how I ended up getting my ass kicked by Jess. I’d rather you punch me than cry. Please stop. I feel bad enough for upsetting a pregnant woman, but now people are staring at me,” he whispered into her hair.

Empathy
. The one trait that violent sociopaths lacked was compassion for other people—for their victims. This huge man with arms that could crush her was displaying empathy toward her and concern for how others viewed his actions. His reaction was not what she would have expected from a fighter.
And did he just call her beautiful?

When her tears continued, he wrapped his arm around her and gently rubbed her back. “Let me make it up to you. I’ll clean your house or cook you and your boyfriend dinner every night so you don’t have to do…anything. I make a pretty mean stir-fry.”

He held on to her while she tried desperately to stop the tears. After a few moments she realized that instead of a panic attack that should be in full swing by now she was physically relaxing against him…a man!

When the worst of her tears passed, the waiter approached the table with their food and asked Ian quietly, “Is she okay, man?”

“Yeah, she’s just pregnant,” Ian replied by way of explanation.

Humiliation—or something equally crazy—had her burying her face in his solid chest.

After the food was on the table, Ian leaned down and whispered into hair, “He’s gone now. Maybe you should eat something. I bet the little guy is hungry. I get cranky when I’m hungry, too. Here.”

He handed her another tissue from the pack so she wiped her eyes and blew her nose. Then the reality of the situation dawned on her—she was being comforted by a man! A very nice man, but a man nonetheless. She waited for the panic to consume her and force her to fight her way out of his embrace. Amazingly, that didn’t happen. Eventually the smell of the food made her pull back from him. Glancing up, she got an all too close view of his eyes…they really were an amazing color.

Turning back to face the table, her eyes were drawn to the food—his food. She could smell bacon, cheese and potatoes. This must be one of the cravings she’d read about but not, until now, experienced for herself. Rather than moving back to his side of the booth, he reached across the table and pulled his food over with his free hand. His other hand had released her but rested along the back of the booth.

“I see you scoping out my food. You’re as bad as Jess,” he said, unrolling his utensils and dipping his fork into the most delicious-looking thing she could remember seeing in a long time. Then he offered the bite to her.

Something akin to bravery stiffened her spine. She took the fork from his grasp even though she had to touch him slightly. The warm bite was so good she actually closed her eyes to savor it. He remained quiet as she swallowed the delicious bit of potato wedge smothered in white cream sauce, cheese and bacon.

“What is
that?
” she asked breathlessly.

“Pub fries. Fantastic, aren’t they?” he asked with a laugh, taking the fork back from her and scooping up another bite.

“That is the most amazing thing I have ever tasted.”

His laughter softened his whole face, including his ice-colored eyes. When he offered her the fork again she took it. The second bite was even better than the first. After savoring that mouthful she tried to return his fork but instead he switched her meal and utensils for his. He never moved his arm from the back of the booth and he had turned his body to the side to block other people’s view of her. Eating in silence, with him sitting way too close, was the first comfortable feeling she’d experienced since the interview began.

Though she had a head start on her meal, he managed to finish eating first. He watched as she ate what he had ordered. An unrestrained smile spread across her mouth. Setting her fork aside, she picked up his fork from his empty plate, scooped up a bite and held it out to him. Without reservation, he leaned forward and closed his firm lips around the prongs and then closed his eyes as she had done. Courtney couldn’t contain the laugh that escaped.

After Ian helped her finish the last of her food, the waiter dropped off their check. Before she could move, Ian pulled his wallet out of his pocket, put some money on top of the bill and told the man to keep the change. Opening her notepad again, she asked Ian the remaining questions much more comfortably than before. When she finally indicated that she was done, he smiled at her.

“I am very sorry about earlier. What you did at your baby shower was none of my business.”

“It’s okay. I’m sorry, too. I’m kind of a mess these days. I should get going. I didn’t realize this would take so long. I have a class this evening right downtown, so I won’t need that ride home after all, but thanks anyway,” she said. “And thanks for your time today, and dinner.”

“Do you like teaching?” he asked.

“Yes, but in this case I am the student,” she replied. “This is a pregnancy and fetal-development class. It’s at the community college, so I’ll just catch the bus over there.”

“If Jess found out that I let you take the bus, she might do more than just knock me out. I’ll drive you over there and walk you to class,” he said. “I might even pick up a brochure or two so Master Sergeant Hawkins will get off my ass about furthering my education.”

“Oh yeah? What field are you looking into?” she asked, trying to delay responding to his offer. She couldn’t let him drive her anywhere…
could she?

“No idea but having brochures lying around should shut him up for a week or two. I keep trying to convince him that blockheads like me aren’t cut out for college,” he replied with a laugh.

“Don’t say that….” She laughed in reply to his silly facial expression, realizing she was actually carrying on a conversation with him…and enjoying it.

Chapter Two

Why were all the women he was interested in either gay or in a relationship and pregnant? Granted now that he knew Jess a little better, a relationship with her would never have worked, regardless of how pretty she was. They were too much alike and being her friend was much better than dating her ever would have been.

Courtney Wells was another matter. She was soft, unlikely to punch him in the balls and even prettier than Jess. Her tears earlier had caught him off guard. All Jess’s warnings about Courtney’s anxiety issues obviously hadn’t sunk in, because the first thing out of his mouth had offended her.
Stupid
…why did it matter that she’d had a male stripper at her baby shower?

If he was being honest with himself, it wasn’t that Seth had danced at Courtney’s baby shower that bothered him. It was the idea of one of his best friends showing off his body for a woman who left Ian tongue-tied. From the first time he’d met Courtney, he’d been interested.

Finding out she was pregnant had disappointed him more than he cared to admit. She was in a relationship with someone else and about to have the man’s baby. Ian shouldn’t be comforting her, or flirting with her. It wasn’t right. But each time he saw Courtney that same desire to know her persisted. After today the feeling was even stronger.

Courtney’s hair smelled like coconut and felt like silk against his skin. Jess had told him that Courtney was a real honey and off-limits to both of them long before Ian had ever met her. Sitting close to her while eating dinner had driven home just how delicious she really was. Even her obvious discomfort around him didn’t put him off. He’d relished the chance to put her at ease, even though he usually went for more self-assured and outgoing women. There was just something about her.

If he were Courtney’s boyfriend and she were carrying his child, he would put a ring on it for damn sure. Otherwise she’d end up interviewing some other man, crying on his shoulder and then sharing a meal with him in an intimate setting.

After they’d left the restaurant Ian had offered to let her sit in the backseat of his car so she could relax. Glancing back in the rearview mirror now, he knew she was avoiding looking at him. At least one of the two adults in this car was being smart about this.

“I’ll pay for parking if you want to use the garage. It’s the least I can do since you bought dinner,” she offered when he continued to stare at her in the rearview mirror. “You really don’t have to walk me to class, though. I’ll be safe if you just drop me off on campus.”

“Walking is good exercise, especially after everything I just ate,” he said.

After parking, he walked Courtney across the street, through an open courtyard, through two different buildings and into a third one. Courtney nearly collided with the instructor, who had come out to the hallway to pull the classroom door closed. The teacher ushered them in by waving her arm, and Ian soon found himself standing inside a large classroom. The middle was sunken and two-person tables circled the perimeter on three different levels.

“Mr. Wells, it’s so nice to finally meet you. I’m glad you could accompany your wife to class this evening. You’re just in time for the good parts of pregnancy,” the instructor said, holding her hand out to shake his. “I don’t suppose you two would volunteer for demonstration time, since you were nearly late for class?”

He could only smile at the look of bewilderment and amusement Courtney gave him. “Will this make up for my offensive questions at the restaurant earlier?”

She stared at the ground for several seconds as though trying to decide if she was okay with him participating in her class. Then she looked at him shyly and nodded her head yes. He was kind of glad that the time he’d spent with her this afternoon wasn’t over just yet. She was probably only allowing him to stay because she’d been put on the spot in front of the entire class, but he’d take what time he could get. He wasn’t even going to ask why her husband or boyfriend hadn’t yet come to a class with her. He would feel ashamed about pursuing a spoken-for woman later.

They followed the instructor past the rows of tables to the lowered center. Looking around the circle he saw several other couples. He stopped and stood next to Courtney, who looked up at him apologetically. Her smile settled in his stomach like a warm glass of milk before bed.

“Welcome back, everyone. For those of you joining us for the first time, I am Mrs. Campbell and today we are talking about the second trimester of pregnancy,” the woman said. “This is Mr. and Mrs. Wells, and they have graciously volunteered to help demonstrate some of the techniques we will discuss in today’s class. First off, let’s review the changes that occurred for Mom and Baby during the first trimester.”

The participants mentioned several changes, and he was shocked when one woman admitted she was still throwing up once or twice a day. Flu-like symptoms for months sounded like a
horrible
experience to him, but the woman only smiled about it. A common complaint was being tired. He glanced at Courtney, and she smiled at him as if to confirm that she, too, experienced the things the others mentioned.

When one woman described the weird combinations of food she craved, he grinned at Courtney. Where she normally wouldn’t meet his gaze, this time she did, then she blushed and laughed. The same woman went on to talk about how she felt irritable and cried a lot more than she had before becoming pregnant. Ian was relieved that perhaps Courtney’s earlier crying wasn’t completely due to his insensitive comments.

Mrs. Campbell then asked about the changes for the babies and put a slide on the screen that showed fetal development from the first week through the twelfth week of pregnancy. Ian stared at the screen in fascination. In just three months the baby went from looking like a tumor to vaguely resembling an actual infant, though much smaller.

Then Mrs. Campbell asked Courtney to hold up her index finger. “By week twelve, baby is about the size of Mrs. Wells’s finger here.”

Then Mrs. Campbell pulled out a plastic model of a fetus about the same size as Courtney’s finger and passed it around the room. When the model made it to Ian, he held it in the palm of his hand. Then he looked down at Courtney’s mostly flat stomach, amazed that a baby was actually growing in her body right this second. Leaning down, he placed the model against her, trying to imagine her baby growing in there. She tensed slightly, but relaxed when several fathers in the room laughed at what Ian was doing.

He whispered, “Do you mind if Mr. Wells asks how many weeks pregnant Mrs. Wells is?”

She actually snickered out loud and quickly covered her beautiful smile behind her fingers. “Mrs. Wells is ten weeks along.”

Amazing
. Looking at the tiny model of the fetus in his hand, he held it between his thumb and index finger flat against her stomach once more. He moved it around as though it were dancing while he hummed a song. Her small hand closed around his much larger one and she pulled the model out of his grasp. At Courtney’s slight caress, the hair on his arms stood up. He made another note to be sorry later for his reactions to the touch of an already taken woman. Damn if he didn’t like it, though…

Looking up, he realized Mrs. Campbell was no longer talking and was instead staring at him.

Courtney handed the model back to her. “Sorry.”

Thank God Mrs. Campbell was a baby instructor and not a drill instructor or he’d be running laps. He straightened and forced himself to focus on what she was saying about the changes that the mothers could expect over the next three months, including feeling the baby move and finding out the sex.

At one point, Mrs. Campbell asked him to stand behind Courtney and wrap his arms around her middle so he would have an idea of what it was like to have added girth in front of him. It was by far the highlight of his week to hold her in his arms…even if it was more for show-and-tell than for romance. Courtney had again tensed at his touch but eventually relaxed.

He was completely in awe by the end of the class. He’d asked all kinds of questions until Mrs. Campbell, in frustration at his ignorance, invited him to stay after class so she could answer the rest of his inquiries.

“Sorry, this stuff is just really cool. I’m a dude so I don’t get periods or have babies, and the only tenderness in my breasts is from lifting weights,” he said to Mrs. Campbell upon seeing her frown.

When Mrs. Campbell turned back to the rest of the class, Courtney leaned over and said, “Didn’t you take health class in high school?”

It wasn’t like admitting the truth would change anything between them. She was pregnant with another man’s baby. “I didn’t always go to school.”

She backed away and stared at him with an odd look on her face. He could only pray that she didn’t burst into tears again.

“Mr. Wells, did you have another question?” an exasperated Mrs. Campbell asked him.

“She was talking first,” he said, pointing at Courtney. It was like high school all over again, where the teacher only noticed when the big dummy talked and not when any of the other students talked.

Courtney giggled and when he looked at her, he couldn’t help but laugh, too. She was the cutest thing he’d seen in a long time. Life was cruel sometimes, what with putting someone like Courtney under his nose even though he couldn’t have her. If he couldn’t date her, perhaps he could encourage her to relax around him and he’d have another friend. When class ended, he turned to her. “I could drive you home if you want.”

“I’m sure Jess is done at the hospital by now. She’s probably waiting for me, but I can answer any more questions you have about fetuses or female body functions if you want to walk me out,” she said with a laugh.

“Yeah, you’re right. I’m sure the real Mr. Wells wouldn’t appreciate some strange man dropping off his girlfriend after pregnancy and fetal-development class.” Ian smiled as he followed her down the hallway toward the exit.

“You’re the closest thing to a Mr. Wells there ever was or ever will be,” she murmured. “Thanks for spending an hour and half learning about stuff you probably don’t care about. I’m not sure why you didn’t just admit you’re not Mr. Wells and cut out, but thanks all the same.”

He wasn’t sure what Courtney had meant. Was the baby’s father just not looking to marry her? Or did the man not have plans to be in their lives? Either way, instead of feeling glad that his thoughts about her were less depraved, her admission made Ian feel bad for her. He understood not wanting to be tied down, but ditching a kid was wrong. His own father had walked away from his mother before Ian had been old enough to remember the man. He’d never understood why his parents’ breakup had to include him, too.

“No, I liked the class. I mean not the crap about vaginal discharge and breast tenderness so much, but the labor and delivery and the actual baby stuff was cool as hell,” he replied.

She shook her head and laughed some more as they stepped outside into the humid evening air. Pulling her cell phone out of her purse she hit a number. After stopping at the bottom of the steps, she waited and then said, “Hey, Jess, it’s Courtney. Class is over and I haven’t heard from you. I’m kind of worried. Hope everything is okay. Call me when you get this message.”

Hanging up, she glanced toward the front of the college where several public transit buses were lined up. Then she looked back at Ian as though weighing which would be worse, riding with him or riding the bus. So he pulled out his own cell phone. He dialed Jess’s number, and again her voicemail picked up.

“Hey, Jess, it’s Ian. I just spent an hour and a half getting schooled in
vaginas
. I’m betting I know what to do with one now. Anyway, don’t worry about Mrs. Wells, I’m hoping she has a craving for ice cream and will let me treat her to some on the way to her house. Hope
our
mom is doing okay and is home right now lying on the sofa and ordering you around like you deserve.” He laughed and then disconnected the call.

Courtney stared at him and the fear etched on her face had him backpedaling. Minutes ago she’d been laughing at his antics in front of a room full of strangers. Now the idea of a half-hour car ride alone with him had her looking like a soldier running for cover.

“Hey, the backseat has your name on it if that works better for you, and we can skip the ice cream if you need to get home,” he offered, holding his hands out in front of him defensively.

She stared at the line of buses for several seconds before turning back to him. Her eyes scanned his face briefly until she met his gaze again with a shy smile. “Okay to the backseat, but only if we
can
stop for ice cream.”

With the sun fading quickly the parking garage was dark, and even though he wished she would walk next to him so he could protect her from cars, she insisted on walking behind him. If he slowed down to let her catch up she slowed down or stopped walking completely. He finally gave up and led the way. Upon opening the car door for her, she just stood there looking at him. Unsure why she wasn’t getting inside, and praying she didn’t break into tears, he simply left the door open, walked around and got in the driver’s seat.

After they made it to the interstate he glanced in the rearview mirror but could barely make out her face in the dark. Feeling his phone buzz, he offered it back to her. “Can you read the message to me? It might be from Jess.”

Taking the phone, she pushed the button and then snickered. “It is from Jess. She says that
her
mom was only just released because this time she was actually running a fever.”

Then Courtney laughed outright.

“What?”

“Jess says the fever might be related to her mom’s vajayjay and wants to know what the diagnosis might be then…Dr. Coochie.”

Ian laughed right along with Courtney. “Tell her it’s probably just an infection from having delivered a smart-mouthed brat twenty-eight years ago. Nothing can be done to ease the horrible discomfort. It’s a lifelong disease that
our
mom will just have to learn to live with.”