Courtney and the baby though, were everything. And he felt blessed that they’d always have this connection between them. Even if she decided she didn’t want to be with him, they’d both be with their child.
Yeah, thinking like that hurt like hell. He wanted to be with her, for Christ’s sake. But he couldn’t make her want to be with him, and he wouldn’t want to. If they were going to be together, it had to be because they both wanted it.
She had a past. One that had pain and happiness in it. It was what made her who she was. This amazingly beautiful, clever, funny woman who ran into his life when he’d least expected it. She’d made everything seem more real, more focused. It was as though he’d been waiting for her all this time and hadn’t realized it.
He pushed himself off the window, his hand leaving an outline on the glass. He’d agreed to give her space, but that didn’t mean he had to sit around doing nothing. First of all, he’d go for a run. An easy one, because his knee would never be what it used to be. And then he’d sit down and make a list.
Not because he wanted to control the outcome, but because he had things he needed to do. A business to withdraw from. A house in his hometown to find. People he needed to get to know.
And a baby to prepare for.
That wasn’t controlling anything. It was being a good father and co-parent.
She’d asked for space and he’d give it to her. But in five days he hoped like hell she’d give him some time for them to talk.
Maybe then the ache in his chest would start to fade away.
He grabbed his phone and quickly pulled up the contact he was looking for, swiping to connect the call. He lifted the phone to his ear, his heart in his mouth as he waited for her to answer.
“The I Can Make You Beautiful salon. Lainey speaking.”
“Hey, Lainey. This is Logan. I need your advice on something.”
It was unseasonably warm for January. Courtney didn’t need to wear a coat – thank goodness, because she still using her way-too-small for her bump jacket.
She needed to go shopping. Everything was too small for her now. Her belly felt round. Prominent. It made her wonder how huge she’d feel once she got to forty weeks.
She’d be exploding by then.
Pulling on an oversized cardigan, she slipped her feet into her boots and walked out to the chicken coop. Hester was the first to greet her, squawking loudly as Courtney opened the door. The hen walked out, her head proud, her eyes beady, shooting Courtney a disdainful look.
Shaking her head at Hester’s antics, Courtney lifted her basket and walked inside, placing it in the center as she slowly filled it with eggs.
As she lifted the basket back up, there was a little kick to her stomach. Not from the hens, but from the inside, as the baby reminded her he or she was here. “Hey,” Courtney murmured. “You finally woken up?” Another kick, followed by a rumble in her stomach. “I guess we’re both hungry for breakfast, huh?”
Since she’d felt the first kick on Saturday, the movements had become more regular. Every time she felt a tiny nudge against her, it made her smile.
She’d finally be able to tell Logan about the kicking the following afternoon, at her twenty-week appointment.
It had been a long few days without him. In her heart she knew they needed this time. To think. To breathe, even. Everything between them had been a whirlwind, from the moment they met in the middle of the road as she ran after the hens, to their first kiss, their first touch, then the pregnancy test that changed everything.
She felt a little tap. This time not from inside her belly, but on her leg. She looked down to see Harriet standing there.
“I’m okay,” she told the hen. “I really am.”
She was in love with Logan Hartson. She’d known it for some time. It had dripped inside her, like rain seeping through a gap in the roof. Slow, at first, but then the weight of it had pushed down, caved the roof in, and filled her until she couldn’t ignore it any longer.
But it needed more than love for them to make this work. And much more than the intense attraction that drew them together whenever their eyes met. It needed communication and compromise. That was something they’d need to work on no matter what happened to the two of them. For their child’s sake they’d need to listen, to talk, to work things through. To be aware that they both weren’t going to get their own way every time.
“How are the birds?” Ellis called out, as he walked down the lane toward her. She hadn’t even heard his car. Courtney took the last of the eggs and walked out of the coop, her lips lifting into a smile.
“Same as always. Hester’s feeling aggrieved, Harriet’s looking for attention. The rest of them are falling in line behind them.”
Ellis lifted his eyebrows. “Good thing they have you to keep them under control. How are the new ones settling in?”
“They’ve started to lay,” Courtney told him, lifting up the basket. “There’s plenty for the restaurant, and then some. I’m thinking an omelet tonight sounds good.”
“Talking of food, I have something for you.” Ellis lifted his arms. She hadn’t noticed he was carrying a white cardboard box. The kind you got at a bakery. “Mary asked me to bring them over. There are too many for her. She thought you might like them.”