“Oh yes I can.” Rosslyn got up and took Penelope from Charlie, then turned to Sofia. “If you can sit for a bit, I’ll only be a few minutes. Once she’s all clean, she’ll be in a better mood to be held.”
Before Sofia could decline and say they were on their way to the office, Rosslyn was already on her way to the nursery, singing as she walked.
Dylan whispered, “That was close.”
Sofia turned to him and said, “I love children. I’m not afraid to hold them.”
“I’m talking about the diaper.”
“Really? You Lawson men are a force to be reckoned with in the business world, but a dirty diaper scares you?” Neither disputed it. Rolling her eyes, she said, “I guess everyone has their kryptonite.”
“I wouldn’t go that far,” Dylan said.
“I would,” Charlie added. “Trust me, you’ll understand when you have your own children.”
There seemed to be a lot of talk of children going on. Did they think there was more happening between her and Dylan than there was? Heck, she wasn’t even sure if they knew she was staying with him. And I’m not about to share that info, either.
“Who is having a baby?” Gareth said from behind them. When they all looked at him he added, “Sorry, I knocked but no one answered. So I let myself in. Did I interrupt a private conversation? Maybe something you’re not ready to share with the rest of the family?” He winked at Dylan.
“Don’t look at me like that. You’re next in line, buddy,” Dylan said.
Gareth asked, “What is that line? Oh yeah. First comes love, second comes marriage, then comes—”
“Knock it off Gareth,” Dylan warned.
“Hey, I figure since you two are living together, then it’s got to be pretty serious,” Gareth added.
“Living together? Really?” Rosslyn said with a look of joy on her face. “How come no one told me?” She shot her husband a questioning look.
“I didn’t know either,” Charlie defended. “Seems the dark circles under my brother’s eyes aren’t from you overworking him at Grayson Corp. after all.”
Sofia wished she could sneak out of the room and go back in the car. She could tell by the expression on Dylan’s face, he wasn’t enjoying this banter either. Maybe he really didn’t want people knowing about them being together. But were they? Together? Hot, passionate, mind-blowing sex didn’t mean they were in a relationship. Living together didn’t either, but it wasn’t their place, it was his. She needed to fix this before it got out of hand.
“Sorry, but you guys have it all wrong. Dylan and I are not involved. He’s just helping me out while I work in the city. That’s all. Nothing more. When the job is done, which hopefully will only be a few months, I will be on to the next one.”
Was it her imagination, or did Dylan flinch? The entire room seemed to have gotten quiet as well. The awkward silence was deafening.
“I hope we didn’t make you feel…uncomfortable with our…assumption. It’s just that…well…it appeared to be more. But I’m glad you clarified it for us,” Rosslyn said, now back in the room with a clean baby.
Sofia could feel all eyes on her except for Dylan’s. He seemed to be looking anywhere but at her. Had she spoken out of line? She was trying to help. From the look on everyone’s face, it had worked. Dylan should look relieved that the talk of them having a baby was now history.
I don’t get it. You just can’t make a man happy.
Forcing a smile, she replied, “No harm. I can see how it easily could be misconstrued to appear as more.”
Gareth blurted, “I’m not buying it. I know my brother.”
Dylan shot him a look that could kill. “You heard her. It’s nothing.” Then he turned to Rosslyn and said, “I’ll review the contract and get it sent out today. If there are any questions, or changes, I’ll let you know.”
Sofia could feel the fumes coming from him. If she noticed it, the others, who knew him even better, surely picked up on it. But she kept her composure and kept quiet. Something I should’ve done before.
The light, fun mood from before, gone. They said their goodbyes and were on their way to the office. Should she confront him now about what had just happened? Would that make it worse? She didn’t see how it could. But what did she know? Nothing about them was anything like what she’d been through before. From their initial meeting, things were…unique. But at no point had either of them classified what this was between them.
She knew she’d avoided it herself because it wasn’t what she’d planned. Did she care for him? More than she’d ever expected to. Maybe to the point that she was falling in love with him. That definitely wasn’t part of her plan. And from the looks of his bachelor pad, love wasn’t something he was looking for either. And he never said he loved me, anyway.
So, from her point of view, he should be thanking her, not giving her the silent treatment. But then again, I might not want to hear what he has to say, either.
No. She wasn’t going to ask. They were on their way to work, a place where you shouldn’t bring your personal drama. If things were still tense between them tonight, then maybe she’d ask. Or maybe I won’t have to, and he’ll just tell me what the hell I did wrong.