“So you just bought it,” Samira said an hour or so later, as Baptiste turned right past the stone wall and into the semicircular drive, where they pulled up behind a nice black Jaguar. “You saw the house at the Halloween bonfire, you liked it, and you were like, ‘Hey. Why not just buy this crazy hundred-year-old half-renovated house?’ Is that what you’re telling me?”

“Pretty much.” He killed the engine. “Well, I waited until Monday. I can be very decisive when I know what I want. Perhaps you’ve noticed?”

The pointed once-over he gave her made her face go up in flames. “I had detected that tendency, now that you mention it.”

He leaned in. Gave her a nipping little kiss that made her breath stall and her skin shiver.

“Baptiste…”

He pulled back to stare at her with those glittering eyes. “You have to promise to always melt when I touch you. Just like this.”

“You can rest easy,” she assured him on a shaky laugh. “I’ve got that covered.”

He nodded with grim satisfaction. “Good. I did see the house before I bought it. For your information.”

“And seeing all the work that needed to be done didn’t make you run screaming in the other direction? Because you know this has been the joke house around town for years. They say it needs new plumbing, electric and HVAC.”

He frowned. “HVAC?”

“Heating and air.”

His expression cleared. “That’s all true. Oh, and one half of the pool has caved in. It’s a mess. So it’s a good thing we’ve watched so many home makeover shows.”

She grimaced. “And you just up and bought this money trap. You probably paid full price for it, too, didn’t you? If your house-shopping skills are anything like your caramel apple-buying skills…I can’t even think about it.”

“Have a little faith.” He flashed his roguish grin. “I of course drove a hard bargain and got twenty percent off the listing price. Because I paid cash and because it’s been on the market for so long.”

“Oh, my God.” Laughing, she smacked her forehead. “What have I gotten myself into with you?”

“You have gotten a man who is determined to make sure your eyes sparkle every day. Who will take excellent care of you and the baby.” He considered that for a moment. “And who likes to laugh with you, have a lot of sex with you and gets fangry—”

“Hangry.”

“—when he doesn’t eat on time.” He shrugged. “That’s all there is to me. I’m very simple. Shall we go see our new house?”

“We shall,” she said, reaching for the door.

“I’ll get it for you—”

The rest of Baptiste’s sentence—and a mild curse—were lost to the sound of Samira slamming her door shut. He met her on her side of the car, muttering darkly.

“I will get the car door for you,” he said as she slung her new Chanel over her shoulder. “Let’s add that to my list. I’m a man who likes to get the door.”

“I can’t sit around and wait for you to get the door,” she said, rolling her eyes. “That’s like being trapped in the car. And what if where we’re going is on your side of the car? Are you going to come to my side, let me out and then walk back around? That’s incredibly inefficient.”

He glowered. “And you’re incredibly stubborn.”

“You’ll make your peace with it.”

“I already have,” he said grimly.

They laughed together, then held hands as they went up the walk to the front door.

“Oh, my God,” Samira said softly. “It’s gorgeous.”

“That’s why I was so decisive about it.”

A huge white clapboard with dark shutters on its many windows, the house was ablaze with welcoming light in the chilly fall air. High atop the hill, it was surrounded with mature trees and the utter silence of a house that sat at the end of its own lane.

Until the huge front door swung open and Raymond appeared with Bobsy on his leash.

“Welcome home!” he cried, sweeping his arms wide. “Although I’m technically not speaking to you two, because you lied to my face. Told me you weren’t a couple.”

“That was not my doing,” Baptiste said, pointing to Samira. “I’m throwing her under the train for that one.”

“Bus,” said Samira and Raymond.

“Sorry about that,” Samira said, greeting Raymond with a kiss and quick hug. “This is all pretty new. And Baptiste didn’t even tell me about the house until now.”

“It’s fine,” Raymond said, flapping a hand. “I’d have done the same thing if I were—Bobsy, stop chewing on your leash. Honestly, this canine acts like he’s human. Like it’s beneath his dignity to walk on a leash.”

Samira had to laugh at Bobsy. The bow tie-wearing Jack Russell terrier had a mouthful of his red leash and was pulling back on it, as though he and Raymond were playing tug of war.

“Anyway, here are the keys,” Raymond continued.

“Thanks for meeting us here on such short notice,” Baptiste said.

“Oh, no worries. I’ve turned on all the lights and the heat, so you don’t freeze to death. Try not to fall into the pool crater. Enjoy yourselves. Bobsy, let’s go, you bad dog. Fisher will be wondering what happened to us.”

“Bye, Raymond! Thanks!”

Raymond waved good-bye as they went inside the house, shutting the door behind them.

The house had huge, high-ceilinged and echoing rooms. A masterpiece of depressingly dark paneling, hardwood floors, crown molding and intricately carved fireplaces and doorframes, it overlooked the park and river.

“Does it have a good view?” Samira asked hopefully, peering blindly out the windows as they passed through the formal living room and into the solarium.

“It has a great view. As though you could open a window and fall into the river. If you don’t fall into the pool first.”

“And how many bedrooms?”

“Six. Plenty of space whenever your parents and sister want to come visit.”

“I love it,” she said happily. “It’s got so much potential.”

“Like us.”

“Yeah. Like us.”

They smiled at each other in a moment of beautiful understanding. And then, naturally, her fears showed up to the party. Her smile wavered.

“Here we go,” he said, rolling his eyes.

“What?”

“You’re thinking…” He crossed his arms and tapped a forefinger against his lips, studying her carefully. “Yes, I have it. You’re thinking that this is a big house with a lot to do. And we already have a baby and a new relationship. You’re worried. You want to be happy, but you also don’t want to get your hopes up too high in case I wake up one day and decide I should take off. Am I close?”

“Absolutely not,” she snapped, a little shaken by this assessment. “I was thinking about an article I read that said that you shouldn’t have too many life changes at one time because they’re so stressful. Like, say, ending a relationship, starting a relationship, moving, remodeling, unplanned pregnancy…things like that. So you’re obviously way off base, monsieur.”

“Obviously,” he said, the edges of his mouth curling.

She put her hands on her hips, disgruntled to be read so easily.

He reached out a hand. “Come here.”

She grudgingly took it and stepped closer.

He pressed her hand to his chest, letting her feel the steady thump of his heartbeat.

“You’re not getting rid of me, Samira. I already know the worst.”

“What do you mean?” she asked, startled.

“I know that we’re still getting to know each other and there will be bumps along the way to becoming a family and trusting each other completely. I know that renovating this house will be a challenge.”

Samira went still.

Unsmiling, he touched her cheek. “I know that you don’t look in the mirror and see the spectacular woman I see. I know that your adoption and your broken engagement have made you insecure and afraid—”

Automatic outrage put her on the defensive. “I am not—”

“—and I also know that you’re proud and stubborn. Oh, and you drool when you sleep.”

He ducked and laughed as she swung on his face.

“So all of that makes it a challenge to navigate our relationship. But I love challenges. And there’s nothing I can learn about you that would make me leave. Because I already know the worst. And you’re still exactly what I need.”

Her heart had stopped by then, which made it hard for her to respond.

“I hope that’s okay.” He started to smile, but swallowed with a rough bob of his Adam’s apple. “Because you already know the worst about me and my past, and I’m hoping that I’m what you need.”

The question in his eyes—the naked vulnerability—unfroze the last little corner of her heart.

“Yeah,” she said, stepping all the way into his arms. “You’re exactly what I need.”