Because she was different.
Everything about her was different.
Which made it new to him.
And undoubtedly he was new to her, too.
Preschool teachers did not normally socialise with billionaires. If she had reservations about that this morning—seeing no real future for this relationship—he had to allay them, because one thing was certain in his mind. He didn’t want her walking out of his life. Not at this point.
Erin was surprised and pleased that Peter had decided to drive her into the city centre himself—an unnecessary double journey since he’d be picking her up later. She happily thought he wanted to spend the time with her, though once they were on their way, she noticed he wasn’t particularly relaxed. In fact, his hands had a knuckle tight grip on the steering wheel.
Had he changed his mind about taking her to the races, introducing her to his social circle? Was he about to excuse himself—impulse shouldn’t be carried too far? Maybe he felt guilty about her spending money on dressing up for him and was about to stop it before she was out of pocket. It was okay for him to be needlessly extravagant on a whim but letting her invest in a relationship that was going nowhere…
His silence fed the churning in her mind. When he finally spoke, Erin was gearing herself up to accept the end with as much grace as she could muster.
“About last night…” He darted a sharp look of concern at her. “I don’t usually forget about protection…”
Protection!
Not rejection.
Relief billowed over her inner turmoil. She didn’t want it to end here. She really didn’t.
“It’s okay,” she swiftly assured him. “You won’t get trapped into unplanned fatherhood with me, Peter. I’m on the pill.”
Had been since she was sixteen. Her early teens had been plagued by irregular and very severe periods and she had no wish to suffer them again. The pill provided a regular monthly cycle, giving her peace of mind from being caught out in a desperately embarrassing flooding situation, not to mention the onset of almost intolerable pain.
A horrid thought occurred to her. “That’s not to say I’m madly promiscuous. In case you’re wondering, you don’t have to worry about health issues, either.” She took a deep breath and darted a sharp look of concern at him. “I hope you’re not going to confess…”
“No.” He flashed a reassuring smile. “I promise you I’m clean.”
“Good!”
It certainly was good to have that settled. She frowned over her reckless behaviour. “I should have thought of it last night.”
“No harm done,” he tossed at her, the smile still lingering even after he’d returned his attention to the traffic ahead.
Erin sighed away the load of tension he’d just lightened. Of course, he’d want such a serious issue raised and disposed of. They’d played a dangerous game last night. Luckily they hadn’t been punished for it.
“Do you want to be a mother sometime in the future?” he asked in a tone of casual interest.
Erin took heart from the question. It didn’t sound as though he was working up to bidding her goodbye just yet. “I would love to have children but I don’t really see it happening,” she said wryly.
“Why not?”
“Well, as I said last night, I think a solid marriage is the best environment for bringing up children and I’m not sure I’m cut out to be good wife material.”
He shot her a quizzical look. “Define that for me.”
“Oh, you know.” She couldn’t stop herself from mocking his need for an explanation. “Being subordinate to a husband. Having to give up part of me to get along with him. Seems to me it’s never the other way around.”
He frowned. “Sounds like you’ve had some disappointing personal experiences. How old are you, Erin?”
“I passed the big three zero almost a year ago,” she answered flippantly, refusing to let that bother her. Life was to be lived, no matter what.
“So the biological clock is ticking,” he muttered.
“Can’t stop that,” she agreed. No one had control over time. “How old are you, Peter?”
“Thirty-five.”
“Then you must have had quite a few disappointing personal experiences, too.”
“Click!” he said, throwing a wide dazzling grin at her.
Erin’s heartbeat did its own clickety-click. Peter Ramsey was an absolutely gorgeous man. She was loving this experience with him. No doubt disappointment would come sooner or later, but until it did…
“To me the ideal marriage is a true partnership,” he said. “Two people complementing each other, not competing for top billing.”