“I love your new clothes,” Aurora said. “I can’t wait to lose the baby weight and be able to get nice clothes that fit.” Aurora patted Leah on the back until the infant gave a burp that would make any of their brothers proud. Aurora laughed. “She’s a pro at that.”
Chloe grinned. “Give her to me.” She gently accepted the baby, cuddling her in her arms and breathing in the delicious scent of her shampoo. “Mmm. You’re a sweet girl,” she cooed into the infant’s ear.
“That’s because she’s not keeping you up all night screaming,” Aurora said wryly. She pulled her long blond hair into a ponytail and yawned.
“Do you want to take a nap in my room? I can watch her for a little while,” Chloe offered.
Aurora shook her head. “I’ll nap when I get back home. Your mom said she’d take her for a little while this afternoon.”
Her mother was a saint, taking a pregnant Aurora into her house and giving her a home and family. A saint because Aurora was her husband’s illegitimate child.
“Mom loves Leah,” Chloe murmured. Melly, her mother, treated Leah like she was her first grandchild and Aurora as if she were her daughter.
Everyone in the family wanted to give them a soft place to fall because Aurora’s life had been hard. She’d just turned nineteen last week, and Chloe didn’t know how Aurora had managed to get by prior to Linc finding out about her and traveling to Florida to meet and bring her home.
“Why won’t you come back to the house?” Aurora asked. “Your mother wants you to stay there, and I’d love to have you around.”
“You’d love an extra set of hands for the baby, you mean?” Chloe laughed.
Aurora rolled her eyes. “It would help but that’s not what I meant.”
“I know and I appreciate you wanting me there.” Getting to know Aurora had been wonderful these past months.
Aurora shifted in her seat. “Linc isn’t happy you’re here.” She swept her arm around, indicating Beck’s apartment. “He says it’s because you don’t know Beck at all and you belong with family.”
Chloe sighed. “Please tell Linc I’m staying with Beck because he’s not family, and he won’t try and strong-arm me into decisions I’m not ready to make. I know he loves me but I’m fine here. I have time and space to think about what I want to do with my life … without anyone pressuring me.”
“I will. But what do you mean you need to think about what you want to do with your life?” Aurora wrinkled her nose in confusion. “You already have a job. You just need a place to live.”
“I guess this sudden change has shaken me out of my comfort zone. I’m not getting married, and it’s forcing me to reevaluate what I need to make me happy. Can we leave it at that?”
Chloe bit down on the inside of her cheek. Lying didn’t come naturally to her, but she didn’t want to put Aurora in an uncomfortable position by telling her she was unhappy in her job with Linc, nor did she want anyone to know about the contest she’d entered and the possibility of a new career if she won. Whatever changes Chloe decided to ultimately make, she had to face her brother on her own.
“Sure. I can understand that.”
The sound of the door opening was followed by footsteps as Beck strode into the room where they were sitting. “I see we have company.”
His gruff voice sent tremors of awareness rushing through Chloe’s veins. Baby in her arms, Chloe rose to her feet. “Beck, this is my sister, Aurora. Aurora, meet Beck Daniels, the guy who graciously took me in.”
At the sight of him, Aurora’s eyes opened wide, and Chloe couldn’t blame her. The man was always an exceptional example of the male species.
Today, though, he appeared distracted and disheveled. His long hair looked like he’d been running his fingers through the strands, and though dressed for work in a pair of black jeans that hugged his firm thighs and a dress shirt rolled at the sleeves and unbuttoned, showing his tanned chest, his entire appearance was off. She hadn’t known him for long, but the look in his eyes also spoke volumes, making her wonder what was bothering him.
Aurora stood and extended her hand, shaking Beck’s. “It’s nice to meet you. And I can see now why Chloe would rather stay here. With you.” Glancing at Chloe, Aurora grinned.
Chloe closed her eyes and groaned. She’d forgotten how easily thoughts slipped from Aurora’s brain straight out of her mouth. Somehow she’d been living with the man and had pushed their kiss to the back of her mind. Otherwise she’d be shifting between being eternally mortified and always aroused at the thought of when they slept together. Because he’d made it clear the time would come.
But she didn’t need Aurora stoking a banked flame. She shot her sister a warning glare, but Aurora merely shrugged. “What? I’m just calling it like I see it.”
Beck let out a laugh, and even that reverberation from deep in his chest was sexy.
“It’s nice to meet you, Aurora. I needed a good laugh this morning, so thank you,” Beck said.
Aurora treated Chloe to a pleased smile. “I think it’s time to take Leah home. Now that she’s fed, she’ll sleep the whole car ride and be wide awake when we get back. Just in time for your mother to take over.”
“You make sure you get some sleep while Mom’s got her,” Chloe said, handing Leah back to her mother.
Aurora packed up her baby bag and let the driver know she was ready to leave. Because Aurora hadn’t yet learned to drive, Linc had insisted she have a driver at her disposal so the baby would be safe in a car seat as opposed to using a ride share app.
Chloe shook her head, wondering how the younger girl was really handling all these life changes. She’d have pushed for answers, but who was she to question when she didn’t want to answer things for herself?
Aurora said her goodbyes and headed out to the elevator.
Chloe waited until the door closed and walked back into the apartment, finding Beck still in the family room.
He stood by the window, hands in his pockets, staring out at the view. She strode up and joined him, looking out in silence. If he had something to say or share, she hoped he’d trust her enough to do it.
Just when she’d almost given up, he forced out a heavy groan. “My father has a procedure this morning. A colonoscopy and I’m waiting to hear how he made out. I couldn’t focus on work, so I came home.”
Hmm. “Isn’t that normally a routine test?” she asked, hoping that’s all it was for Beck’s dad.
He shifted on his feet and turned to face her. “Yeah. But he looks like he’s lost weight, and my parents were avoiding the subject until they had no choice but to tell us.” When he dipped his head, she could almost feel the weight on his shoulders.
“When are you supposed to hear something?” she asked.
He glanced at his gold Rolex. “Soon.” His shoulders were stiff, and she had the sense there was much more to the story than what he was telling her.
“How about I make some coffee and we can wait together?”
He met her gaze, gratitude in his green eyes. “I’d like that.”
A few minutes later, they were settled in the kitchen, sitting on the barstools at the counter, coffee mugs in hand.