“I know. I just wanted it clear this is a big one I want kept for now.”
“You have to tell him. He has a right to know. That is, if you’re keeping it.”
“Don’t even.” She rubbed her forehead. “Family is everything, and being that I have none, there’s no way I’m giving up this baby. I wanted a husband and a white picket fence along with it, but I’ll take what I can get. I’ll make it work.”
“I know you will. You always do, and Auntie Denise is here to spoil him or her.”
Kenzie chuckled. “I’ll kick your tail if you turn my baby into a screaming brat.”
Denise stuck her tongue out and made no promises, but Kenzie felt loads better. Even if their conversation hadn’t resolved the issues facing her, knowing she wouldn’t stand alone helped. She’d known she would keep the baby from the first instant, but she hadn’t been sure about telling Easton. Now she knew. He had his plan, and she would leave him to it. Plenty of women found love as single moms. She would too—well, after she stopped seeing Easton and her feelings for him faded.
When dinner ended, Kenzie hugged Denise and started for home. On the way, her cell phone buzzed, and she dug it out to see Easton’s name on the ID. Knots tangled in her stomach, and she drew in a deep breath, then blew it out. For an instant, she considered not answering, but the fact was she wanted to hear his voice and to talk to him. Hopeless case.
“Clear your day Sunday,” he commanded without a hello.
“Excuse me?”
“You will be with me all day. I will plan something for us to do. Better yet, you can spend the night with me Saturday.”
“I thought we agreed you would come to my house, and have you forgotten we have a very serious date for you next Saturday?”
“I haven’t forgotten. If I will be tying myself down, I will enjoy myself before then. So Sunday, my place, or if you insist, I will stay at your house, and we can then spend Sunday together.”
“Easton.”
His voice deepened, producing moisture between her legs. “Are you denying me, Kenzie?”
She fanned her face and glanced around, hoping no one on the street could tell just how much he unsettled her. A few curious glances came her way, but most ignored her. “Okay, but if you’re going to commandeer my day, it won’t be with me lying under you the whole time.”
He chuckled. “What do you suggest?”
“I’ll think of something. See you Saturday night.”
She ended the call before she could beg to see him now and wondered how she would get through the weekend with her secret.
Chapter Nine
Easton stood with one hand shoved in his pocket and the other holding the pamphlet with green and blue print. “Program of Events,” he read with an effort not to show his feelings about being here.
“Tickets are ten dollars each,” the woman at the booth announced, “or you can purchase a weekly pass for just sixty-five dollars.”
A muscle twitched in his jaw. “One day, please.”
Kenzie wrapped her arms around one of his and smiled up at him. “Stop looking so grumpy. You’ll have a good time at this festival. I promise.”
“Don’t make promises you can’t keep.”
She all but dragged him onto the expansive grounds. He distracted himself from the noise, the scents, and the people by looking at her. Her beauty shined brighter than the sun the way her face glowed. She’d worn blue jeans and flat boots with a deep purple top, the bit of which he caught a glimpse of beneath her jacket. As she always did, he noticed she’d matched her purse with the top, and the liner around her eyes accentuated their size.
He knew every inch of her delicious body, the curve of her hips, the length of her legs, the softness of her breasts, and he had enjoyed it all most of last night.
“They have a ventriloquist and clog dancing,” Kenzie informed him. He raised an eyebrow at her. “And there’s this one area where they make specialty foods. You haven’t lived until you’ve tried the potato pancakes. No, the curry bratwurst, and we can buy a plum cake to take with us. My mouth is watering as I talk about it.”
“You are in love with food,” he accused her, and she stuck her tongue out at him. He stared for a few minutes, but she pulled away and was off pointing out some new attraction for him to view. He followed more slowly, and while he didn’t prefer this style of entertainment, Kenzie kept his attention for most of the day.
She hurried up to a food stall. “Can I have two plates of this, please?”
When she started for her purse, he covered her hand and paid himself. Her enthusiasm didn’t end with the single plate, but she added two more, and soon they were both burdened with balancing the samplings. She found a picnic table beneath a large tent and sat down. He joined her, sitting opposite, and reached to pull a lock of hair from her face. The sweet blush pleased him, and he eyed his plate.