Her Best Friend's Baby

He gave her a tolerant smile. “Some people go without dessert altogether.”

“And those people have no idea how to enjoy life.” She started digging in her purse for her wallet. “There’s not much in this world that can’t be fixed with a decent hot fudge sundae. I’ve seen it a million times in my line of work.” She opened her wallet and noticed that she needed to go to the bank, but she should be able to cover the groceries.

“Mary Jane, I don’t—”

“You might not believe me, but it’s true.” She searched through the receipts and coupons she’d stuffed in her bill section and managed to locate two twenties. “Somebody comes in down in the dumps, and I make them a sundae, swirl the whipped cream up real perky, load on lots of nuts and pop that happy little cherry on top. You can’t be down in the dumps when something like that is set in front of you.” She glanced at him. “Right?”

His gaze was gentle. “Right. Now put your money away.”

“What?”

“I’m buying these groceries. And paying you back for breakfast.”

“Oh, no, you’re not buying these groceries. We can talk about breakfast if you want, but not the groceries.” She tried to work her way past him. “Miss, I’m paying for these. Don’t let him give you his money. These are mine, all mine.”

“No, Mary Jane, now stop it.” He blocked her way. “I’m buying these. There’s my toothbrush and razor in there, for one thing.”

“Oh, like I can’t afford to buy you a toothbrush and razor.”

“That’s not the point. You shouldn’t be paying for anything. I never could understand why you haven’t taken more financial help for this.”

“Because.” She gritted her teeth. “Let me past so I can pay for the groceries.”

“Because why?”

“That’ll be thirty-six forty-nine,” the clerk said.

She took a deep breath. “Because if you started paying for things besides my medical bills, then I wouldn’t be doing you a favor. I’d be sort of like your employee, that’s why.”

His jaw dropped. “Employee? Since when did you get a ridiculous idea like that?”

“Thirty-six forty-nine,” the clerk repeated.

“Some people hire women to have their baby,” Mary Jane said. “It’s a business arrangement. It’s like a job for them. But it’s my pleasure to have your baby.” She didn’t realize that what she’d said might be embarrassing until he began to blush. But she could use that embarrassment to her advantage. “Now let me by so I can pay.”

He did.

“Personally I think you should let him pay,” the clerk said as she took the money Mary Jane held out. “I mean, the guy didn’t even have enough foresight to bring a toothbrush and razor, for God’s sake.”

Mary Jane winked at her. “What he gives me is lots better than money,” she said. Then she took her change and waltzed out of the store, leaving a red-faced Morgan to come sputtering along behind, pushing the cart full of veggies.

“You’re impossible, you know that?” he said as he drew alongside her.

She glanced at him and smiled. “Maybe next time you’ll let me have my cake and eat it, too.”

CHAPTER FOUR

MARY JANE DID the best she could by the steamed vegetables Morgan so endearingly insisted on fixing for their lunch. She wasn’t very hungry, but she didn’t think he was, either, and yet he ate the veggies with such determination that she had to follow suit.

She used the time to find out a little more about his background and discovered that he had a younger brother named Scott who was traveling through Europe with his girlfriend and wouldn’t be home for several months, although he called home every couple of weeks. Morgan’s parents had said they wouldn’t tell Scott about the accident until he returned home so his trip wouldn’t be spoiled.

“But wouldn’t he want to know?” Mary Jane thought his parents’ attitude was a little callous and hated to think they were cutting off another source of emotional support for their eldest son.

“Maybe not.” Morgan sighed and ran his fingers through his hair. “Scott tends to avoid unpleasant things, too. It was the way we were raised. Besides, I wouldn’t want him to race home just to hold my hand. That would be pretty selfish. He’s spent a long time saving for this trip.”

And his only brother has suffered a devastating loss, she thought. She couldn’t say that, though, because it wasn’t her place to butt into their family dynamics. So she changed the subject, and they talked about what it had been like for him growing up in snowy New York compared with her childhood in sunny Texas.

But as they cleaned up the lunch dishes, her thoughts returned to Morgan’s family members and how their remote behavior had left him so alone at this critical time in his life. She was beginning to feel very protective of him.

No wonder he’d come to Austin. No wonder he didn’t want to leave. Not that she wanted him to, at least not right away. Once he was gone she could turn to Lana, Beth and Ellie, of course, and they’d help her get through the grieving.

But—and this was tough to admit—they’d never been crazy about Arielle. In fact, when Mary Jane had first told them she was planning to carry Arielle’s baby, they’d wondered how Arielle could ask such a thing of her. She’d tried to explain that she wanted to do this for Arielle, but they’d made it clear they thought Arielle was not thinking of Mary Jane’s best interests, considering she was only twenty-two and had never had a baby before.

Once the pregnancy had become a reality, though, her friends had come through like champs. She was positive they’d come through this time, too, and help her deal with her grief. But the fact that they hadn’t been totally pro Arielle would make their sympathy less comforting than Morgan’s.

Lana. Mary Jane remembered that Lana had expected her to call back. She needed to make that call, although she probably wouldn’t tell Lana about Arielle over the phone. Lana would be over here in a shot, and Mary Jane wanted to protect Morgan’s privacy a little longer. Or keep him to myself? Maybe that, too.

She finished wiping the kitchen counter and draped the dishrag over the faucet. “Thanks for fixing lunch.”

“I take it you don’t eat like that very often.”

She smiled at him. “Would you believe never?”

He winced. “I’m afraid to ask what you usually eat.”

“Diner food, if you’re talking about lunch. I’d probably do burgers and fries most of the time, but you’ll be happy to know that Shelby usually pushes a helping of green beans or a salad at me. Come to think of it, our cook Sara’s been on me about my diet, too. So if you want to give me a lecture, you’ll have to get in line.”

“At least it’s not fast food.”

“Oh, I’ve been known to take a swing by those places on occasion. But the diner’s kind of spoiled me for fast food.” She reached for the vitamins she kept on the counter and got a glass of water. “And I’m very good about taking these. Don’t I get points for that?”

“Sure. You get a million points just for agreeing to carry this baby.” He sighed heavily. “But in case you hadn’t noticed, I have a slight tendency to try and control things.”

“No, really?” She gazed at him with some fondness. It was perfectly natural for him to want to control things after a freak accident had taken away the person he loved most. If it made him feel better to force veggies on her for a few days, it was no big deal. He’d be going home soon.

She closed the vitamins and put them on the counter. “I need to make a quick phone call,” she said. “A friend left a message on my machine yesterday.” It seemed impossible it had only been yesterday. She felt as if five years had gone by since then.

His warm brown eyes clouded with uncertainty. “A guy?”

“No, a woman. Lana Lord. She’s an old friend.”

“Oh.” He looked relieved.

She wondered at his reaction. He’d acted as if he’d been afraid she was about to tell him she had a boyfriend. Could he possibly imagine she would have allowed last night to happen if she did have a man in her life? “I decided not to date for the duration,” she said. “To simplify things.”

He studied her for a long time. “I don’t think I had a clue how this pregnancy would turn your life upside down. This is the time when you should be dating, going to parties. You’re only twenty-two, for God’s sake.”

She grimaced. “I do know that, and if I had any doubt, you’ve reminded me about a hundred times in the past twelve hours.”