She opened her mouth and closed it again. Then opened it. But nothing came out.
Patrick gave a faint smile. ‘You’re doing it again. Staying silent when I need to know what you’re thinking. I never thought I’d have to say this to you, but could you please start talking?’
‘Patrick…’ Words failed her and he sighed.
‘That night in Chicago was incredible. I couldn’t stop thinking about it. I couldn’t stop thinking about you. I even contemplated ge
tting in touch with you but I had no idea what I’d say. I’d decided that it wasn’t fair to drag the children to the States, and I couldn’t ask you to come here. And when I opened my door on Christmas Eve and you were standing there…’
‘You thought I was pregnant,’ Hayley whispered. ‘And you were shocked.’
‘Yes,’ he said honestly. ‘I’d made that mistake before and I wasn’t going to make it again. But then I got to know you.’
‘It’s only been a couple of weeks—’
‘Yes. And those weeks have been incredible. You transformed our lives with your sunny personality, your goodness and your non-stop chatter. You made us happy. And I thought you were happy, too.’
Her eyes stinging, Hayley smiled. ‘I was happy. Very happy.’
‘Then why are you leaving?’
‘Because I’m pregnant and that changes everything.’
‘I asked you to marry me because I love you. Not because you’re having my baby. And I’m asking you again now, for the same reason.’ His hands shifted from her arms to her face and he gazed down at her. ‘I love you. I want to be with you. Will you marry me?’
‘Say yes, love,’ Jack yelled from the taxi, and Hayley gave a gasp of horror and buried her face in Patrick’s coat.
‘He can hear us?’
‘Every word,’ Patrick said calmly, ‘and I really couldn’t care less. It’s your answer I want, not his.’
‘Patrick—’
‘Answer me one question.’ He lifted her chin with his fingers and for once his voice wasn’t completely steady. ‘Do you love me?’
She gazed into his blue eyes, suddenly shy. ‘Yes, of course I do. You know that.’
‘How much?’
‘As much as it’s possible to love someone. I’m crazy about you. Do you really have to ask? I gave up everything to come here, Patrick. I gave up my job, my flat—I made a complete fool of myself over you. I followed my dream.’
With a groan he lowered his head to hers, his kiss unusually tender. ‘Now answer me another question.’ He murmured the words against her mouth, his eyes holding hers. ‘Do you love my children?’
‘I adore your children!’
‘Then what’s the problem?’
Distracted by the kiss, it took Hayley a moment to answer. ‘Pregnancy isn’t a good reason to get married.’
‘We’ve just established that I proposed before I knew you were pregnant.’
Unable to argue with that, she pulled away slightly. ‘It isn’t just you, Patrick,’ she confessed softly. ‘It’s me, too. I mean, I was brought up in a stepfamily and frankly it was awful. Dysfunctional just doesn’t begin to describe it. All right, we love each other—but that might not be enough! It isn’t just about us, is it? It’s about Alfie and Posy and how they might feel about the baby. What if they resent it?’
‘We won’t resent it!’ Alfie was standing in the doorway, shivering in his dressing gown, Posy in his arms. ‘We can’t wait for you to marry Daddy and give us a baby brother or sister, can we, Pose? Well, Posy doesn’t really know, of course, because she’s still little and only interested in her blanket, but also because she hasn’t had a sister yet, and I have. It’s great.’ He frowned. ‘Well, maybe not the nappy part, that’s pretty gross actually, but the rest of it is cool.’
Hayley gave a cry of concern. ‘How long have you been standing there? Alfie, you must be freezing.’
‘We’ve been here long enough to hear everything. We’re a family, Hayley. Team Buchannan. You should join our team.’ Alfie shifted Posy awkwardly. ‘Dad is a pretty good catch. All the women around here want him.’