The Pairing (The Proposition #3)(32)

Surprisingly, Pesh didn’t get up nor did he offer to walk her back. Instead, she saw an acceptance on his face that told her he was letting her go so there would be no suspicion raised about the two of them. “Thank you for dinner,” she said.

“You’re welcome,” he replied, with a smile.

His smiles were starting to do something to her that she didn’t like. They were no longer igniting her panties on fire; instead, they were making her long to spend time with him. She quickly slung her purse over her shoulder and strode out of the cafeteria. With the chaos surrounding her, she thankfully put Pesh out of her mind for the rest of the evening.

Chapter Ten

After two exhausting weeks in her clinicals, Megan was ready for a little R&R. So she was thrilled when Emma called her asking if she wanted to join her for a girl’s day. She was even more stoked when Emma said that Aidan was willing to keep Mason, so he and Noah could play together. Even though she was sure her parents would have watched him, she hated imposing on them so much.

An hour after the call, she was pulling into Aidan and Emma’s driveway. When she opened the backseat to get Mason out, he was already bopping up and down in his car seat with excitement. He loved Aidan and Emma’s house, and he especially loved playing with Noah, even though they were eleven months apart.

She grabbed him and his diaper bag and then made her way up the front walk. Emma answered the door with Noah on her hip. “Hey, I’m so excited you could make it.”

Megan grinned. “You should know by now I have no life except for Mason and work.”

“I feel the same way sometimes,” Emma replied, as Megan stepped through the doorway. As she walked through the foyer and down the hall to the kitchen, Mason squirmed to get down. Once she set him on his feet, he ran into the living room.

That’s where Aidan was lounging on the couch with Beau on the floor next to him. “Beau!” Mason cried. He leaned in to hug the massive Lab. Megan never had to worry about Beau and Mason; he was truly a gentle giant when it came to infants and kids. Beau thumped his tail heartily at the attention.

Aidan glanced up from the TV and smiled. “Hey, how are you?”

She grinned as she reached down to kiss his cheek. “Good thanks. And you?”

“Great. Looking forward to having a man’s day with the boys.”

Megan laughed. “Yeah, with two kids under two, let’s see how much fun you’ll have.”

Aidan shrugged. “It’s good practice for me when the new baby gets here.”

“Baby or babies?” she teased.

With his eyes widening, he quickly replied, “Baby singular. That was confirmed, thank God.”

Cocking her head, she teasingly asked, “And when is the ultrasound to confirm the youngest Fitzgerald granddaughter is on her way?”

Aidan huffed exasperatedly. “Not for a few more months, smart-ass.”

She brought her hand to her chest in mock outrage. “It was just a question.”

“Yeah and considering you’ve had a kid yourself, I’m sure you know all too well at what month the gender ultrasound is.”

Megan grinned. “I just think it’s cool that I’ll be the oldest granddaughter, and she’ll be the youngest.”

With a pained expression, Aidan groaned, “Whatever.”

She ruffled his still unkempt bed hair playfully. “Relax, Ankle. You’re going to be an amazing father to that little girl. She’ll undoubtedly have you wrapped around her finger before she’s even out of the womb.”

“A man like me, or I guess I should say, a man like I used to be, does not want to bring forth daughters into the world.”

“Payback is a bitch,” she mused.

“Don’t I know it,” he grumbled.

Emma came into the living room then. She handed Noah to Aidan along with a bottle. “You sure you’ll be all right today?”

“I’ll be fine—we’ll be fine. Won’t we Mason?”

Mason glanced up from lumbering around the room on Beau’s back. “Yeah!”

“See. Stop worrying.” He gave Emma a very pointed look before adding, “A promise is a promise after all.”

She flushed a little at his words, but then gave him a shy smile. When he winked playfully at her, Megan couldn’t help feeling her chest tighten at the exchange. Seeing her once man-whore uncle now a loving, devoted husband and father was always surprisingly unnerving. But deep down, it was how much she truly wanted what Aidan and Emma had. Love, companionship, and devotion within marriage while having someone else to parent with you.

If you weren’t so stubborn you could probably have something just like Aidan and Emma have with Pesh! But no, you have to keep believing that you’re too young to get married. You’re probably throwing away happiness with both hands just because you’re afraid.

Emma brought her out of her self-deprecating tirade. “So what should we do first?” she asked, as they walked into the garage.

“Nails and toes?” Megan suggested.

“Mmm, that sounds good.”

They both slid into Emma’s SUV. As Megan buckled up, Emma turned to her. “I hope you don’t mind that Casey is meeting us for lunch?”

“Of course not. The more the merrier. Besides, Casey is a hoot.”