"You know I don't mean it that way," he said. "Look, this situation surprised me. You can't expect me to get down on one knee and give you a big, fancy speech. I know this isn't the kind of proposal that a woman dreams of—"
"No, I'm sure that this is the proposal every woman wants," she said drily.
"But at least it's better than none at all."
She didn't like the way Sebastian made it sound like he was being forced to marry her. She knew that she was pregnant with his child, but she hadn't even thought about getting engaged. Maybe she wanted him to take responsibility and be a part of the child's life, but marrying him would be like marrying a stranger. She'd probably have to move, clean his house, cook his meals, and share his bed…No, wait, sharing his bed didn't sound all that bad. She could imagine their legs intertwining as his fingers buried in her hair. Already she could taste his mouth on hers, urging her on as she longed for more. Maybe he'd run his fingers up her inner thighs and then she'd—
Crap, she was turning into a raging pervert. Why was she thinking like this? She was in the room with Sebastian for a half an hour and all of the suddenly she was imagining him fondling her girly bits. Well, no siree, she was going to rid those thoughts from her mind.
"Emmy?" Sebastian touched her wrist. "You haven't answered me yet. Will you marry me?"
She snapped to attention. "I, I don't know."
"You don't know?" He looked so incredulous she wanted to poke him in the eye.
"Well, forgive me," she grumbled. "It's not like I came over here thinking, 'He's going to ask me to marry him, and we'll be together forever and ever and ever.' Marrying you will change everything."
"And having a baby won't?"
"Of course it will." She wrinkled her nose. "But that doesn't mean I'm going to marry you at the drop of the hat. You know I could do all of this without you."
He clapped his hand to his chest. "Ouch."
"I didn't mean to be insulting." She sighed, wishing she'd be a little more careful about what came out of her mouth. "It's just that I don't need a man to take care of me or this baby. You know that, right?"
"Of course I know that," he said. "It's one of the reasons why I like you."
"And if I were to marry you, I wouldn't be one of those women who cooks, cleans, and does all of the housework." She gave him a stern look. "We'd have an equal division of labor."
"I never expected you to be my housemaid, Emmy." He looked pointedly around the room. "Does it look like I need anybody else to clean this place for me?"
"Hmmm." Well, he had a point there. He was cleaner than she was. "And I don't intend to stop working either. I'll run my bakery until the day I die."
Sebastian's eyes widened. "Cripes, did I ever tell you not to work? You can do whatever you want."
"This is what I mean," she said. "I don't know what to expect from you. You could be a man who stows dead women in his closet."
Without saying a word, Sebastian stood up and headed toward a door to the right of the TV. He opened it, revealing a closet filled with cleaning supplies.
"No bodies," he said.
She rolled her eyes. "You know I didn't mean that literally."
"I'm not a rapist or drug dealer either," he said.
Now he was just being ridiculous
"Good to know." She had to stifle a groan. "Now what's your blood type? Do you have any diseases in your family?"
"Do I have to answer all of that before you'll agree to marry me?" He shook his head in exasperation.
"Your family's health is that bad, huh?"
Wincing at her insinuation, he walked back over to the couch. "I'm blood type AB. My family also has excellent health. Happy now?"
She had a whole new list of questions for him. "Well…"
"Oh no." The man groaned and sunk down onto the couch next to her. "Look, Emmy…"
"Uh-huh?"
Sebastian seized her hands. "I'm a good guy, and I like you. Maybe we don't know each other that well yet, but I think that it'll be better for you in the long run if we get married. Still, if you need more time to think about it, then I can wait."
"Thank you." Her shoulders slumped in relief. She still wasn't sure what answer to give him.
"But until then, I think we need to make an effort to get to know each other." His grip on her hands tightened. "That way, when you decide to say yes—"
"If," she interrupted.
"If," he agreed. "Well, if you decide to say yes, then you'll know what you're getting yourself into."