That’s what they’d agreed on.
It had seemed like the easy means of giving Darcy whatever emotional space she needed so she’d still be comfortable sharing physical space with him. So she wouldn’t feel trapped or hemmed in. Now that he better understood her past, he was more cognizant than ever of that need to tread carefully.
Only sometime over the past few months, that clear plan with the easy exit strategy had stopped working for him and a new one had begun to take shape. A plan that involved more than blurring the lines.
Leaning down at the edge of the bed, Jeff dropped a light kiss at Darcy’s protruding belly and then moved up to do the same at her crown. “Have a good day, gorgeous.”
He was going to erase those lines all together. He knew he could. He’d make a success of this unconventional arrangement the way he did with everything else he wanted. Because now that he’d had a taste of what it could be like between them, no way was he going to give that up.
* * *
“I thought you said we were going to your mother’s?”
Darcy adjusted the pillow at the small of her back watching as Jeff navigated the roads of Bel Air, the look of supreme satisfaction on his face suggesting he was about to burst over something.
They were only about a mile from Jeff’s mother’s house, two from the “little” place Jeff had bought for her and the baby, and headed in the opposite direction. The mystery surrounding their destination making her wonder if he or, more likely, Gail had orchestrated a shower for her despite her protests.
She hoped not, but if that’s what it was, she’d be grateful and appreciative because she knew their hearts were in the right place.
“What’s this?” she asked when they pulled up to a security gate at a private drive.
Jeff rolled the window down. “Morning, Phil.”
The guard offered a quick wave activating the gate, which rolled silently open.
Darcy’s eyes landed on the for sale sign posted out front and then looked back at Jeff, nerves kicking up hard in the belly she’d been slowly rubbing.
“Jeff?”
“Wait and see.” He flashed her a dazzling grin and her heart started to pound.
A moment later they were parked in front of a breathtaking Spanish Colonial. Jeff hopped out of the car and circled around, that grin going full tilt as he helped her maneuver out of the front seat. Holding her hand, he led her to the open front door.
He didn’t knock.
Didn’t call a greeting of any sort, just walked a few steps ahead of her, pointing out the soaring ceilings, the wrought iron detail, the oversize formal dining room, the sprawling family room and the top of the line kitchen.
“Did you make an offer on this place?” she asked, afraid to hear the answer. Afraid to find out what they were doing there and why. Afraid to trust the heart that had begun to race dangerously ahead of her mind.
Jeff cocked a brow at her so full of mischief that even in her anxious state, she couldn’t help but answer with a laugh.
“Jeff, it’s beautiful. Incredible.” Enormous. “Are you thinking of making it an investment property?”