Paradise Valley

“Deal,” she said, rubbing her lower back.



He continued to eat his spaghetti and salad and while he did so, he talked to her, friend to friend. “Here’s the deal—we have stuff to handle. We have mothers—enough said. We have your prenup, which can be handled, but it’s making you tense and you don’t exactly need tension. That needs to go away. You can’t live on air—you’ll have to eat and cover your head, so you’ll need some kind of income. There’s furniture and supplies to buy. We have twins coming and I know you didn’t hand-pick me for the job, but I’m the dad. Bad break for you, maybe, but I could turn out to be a good dad for them—I know a lot about kids. And this pregnancy is not the usual thing. I’d like to be close to the situation, to keep an eye on you and the babies. I am a doctor—that can come in handy, y’know?” He lifted a brow. “We should be in close contact, daily, on these issues and others—like names. They should get names before they come. Don’t you think?”



She swallowed. “Well, I guess that’s a good idea. You have my number.”



“Why don’t we consider moving in together? While we head for this event?”



She gulped. “What?” she asked weakly.



“Let’s clear the debt, get Kid Crawford out of the picture, I’ll take on your upkeep rather than Vanni and Paul shouldering your food and board, and we’ll evolve into…” He cleared his throat. “We don’t have to explain anything. People will just say, ‘Dr. Michaels likes that nice pregnant girl.’ We’ll share a house. I’ll be your roommate. You’ll have your own room. But there will be late nights you’re worried about some belly pain or later, night crying from the babies. You don’t want to do that to Vanni and Paul and—”



“I was just going to go home to Seattle. To my mom and dad’s.”



“They have room for me?” he asked, lifting his fork and arching that brow.



“Oh, for God’s sake,” she said, slamming down her fork. “You can’t mean to say you plan to just follow me and demand to live with the babies!”



“Well, no,” he said. “That would be obsessive. But Jesus, Ab, I don’t want to miss out on anything. Do you know how much babies change from two to six weeks? It just kills me to think you’d take them that far away from me. I mean, they are—”



“I know,” she said, frustrated. “Yours.”



“Yeah, sweetheart. And they’re also yours. And I swear to God, I will never try to take them away from you. That would be cruel.”



He had just aimed an arrow at her sense of justice. The shock of realization must have shown on her face, but he took another bite, had another drink of his beer, smiled.



“Live together?”



“Here’s how it’ll go if you stay with Vanni and Paul. Toward the end, when you’re sleepless, you’ll be up at night. You’ll be tired during the day, but there will be a toddler around, making noise and crying. And you’ll have all those late pregnancy complaints, worries. Then you’ll have a small guest room stuffed to the ceiling with paraphernalia. Then babies—and grandmothers as additional guests? Newborns, sometimes, cry for hours. They could have Vanni and Paul up all night, walking the floor with you. Nah, that wouldn’t be good. And besides, it’s not Paul’s job to help, it’s mine.”



“Where do you suggest we live? Here?”



“Here isn’t bad,” he said with a shrug. “But Mel and Jack offered us their cabin. It’s a nice cabin—two bedrooms and a loft, ten minutes from town. Ideally, we should hurry and look around for a place that can accommodate a man, a woman, two newborns, two grandmothers and… We don’t have to make room for the lawyers, do we?”



“Very funny,” she said, crossing her arms over her chest.



“Abby, we have things to work out every single day. We have to buy cribs, car seats, swings, layette items, lots of stuff—it’s going to take more than one trip to the mall. We have to let the families know there will be babies coming—it’s only fair. We should have dinner together every day, just so we can communicate, catch up. If there’s anything you need or anything you’re worried about, I want to be close so I can help. If you think I’m going to molest you while you’re huge with my babies—”



“You know, I’m getting sick of that word, huge.” She blinked at him. “Are you independently wealthy or something?”



“Nope,” he said, shaking his head. “Just barely got all the bills paid from med school and residency. I have a little set aside. Not too much. In fact, after the babies are a couple of months old, I’m going to try to find a second job in one of the bigger towns to supplement my income. Then I can live in or close to Virgin River so I don’t let these people down. I promised Virgin River a year. I’d hate to renege on that. They need a doctor here. But if you need me more…”



“You expect me to stay here while you give them that year?” she asked.



“Abby, I just hope I can take care of you and the kids well enough, help and make you happy enough, so you’ll give me some time before you spring some major change on me. Because I care a lot about all of you. I do. I’m trying everything I can think of. And, Abby—I wouldn’t run out on you.” He swallowed. “But,” he said with a shrug, “if you can’t stay here, for whatever reason, I’ll look for work wherever you and the babies go.”



Oh goddamn, she thought. She was getting teary. Why would she get teary? He was trying so hard. But, he asked her to be his roommate.



He’d also offered to help her with everything in her life, from her finances to her medical condition. And didn’t he suggest he’d walk the floor at night with screaming babies?



“The idea,” she said, “is totally nuts.”



“Not a first for us,” he agreed, grinning handsomely. “We’re not exactly running with the pack, you and me. Think about this. It could work. We could take care of each other and our kids real easy. Eat more of that spaghetti. I have a little cheesecake in the refrigerator.”



“When do you want an answer?” she asked.



Cameron hoped it didn’t show on his face that he was elated to have gotten this far. Realistically, he had expected to be wearing the spaghetti dinner just for the suggestion. But she was actually considering it? Amazing. “Take your time, Ab. There’s no emergency.” He glanced at her belly. “For a good week or two.”



“I think I’ve lost my appetite,” she said.



“Nah,” he laughed. “I didn’t do anything scary. I didn’t threaten or beg. I offered help. We’ve had a few rough spots, but we have good rapport. Abby, I really want to be part of this. You’re awful special to me. Keep eating and tell me about those fireflies you caught as a kid. Tell me about going to the lake with your family.”



She did. It took a couple of minutes before she loosened up, started talking about her childhood with laughter. She never expected it, but this was so much like their first night together, their one night together. They began as strangers and before an hour had passed they were telling their stories, their secrets, laughing, touching hands, like old friends. Like lovers.



She asked him about his childhood, about his family. He told her anything she wanted to know and she realized how much she had missed him since that fateful night. The only reason they’d spent the night together in the first place was because they clicked so well, had so many common feelings and experiences.



Then they picked up the dishes and began scraping and rinsing them. She pulled out the trash can from under the sink and before dumping her leftover sausage and meatball into the bin, she started to laugh so much she bent over her tummy. She stuck her fork into the opening of a discarded jar and lifted it out of the trash. She presented an empty jar of Ragú spaghetti sauce.



He grimaced.



“Old family recipe?” she asked, laughing.



“Well, they’re an old family,” he said. “Or so I heard.”



“Cameron,” she laughed. “You’re such a liar!”



First thing in the morning, Abby drove into town and went to the clinic. She had primped and tried to look her best, then she’d had a stern talk with herself about this situation.



Cameron not only made sense, he was being both reasonable and honorable. Whether they’d hand-picked each other or not, they were having a set of twins. Children who needed parents. Parents who would have to rely on each other and should not only get along, but be familiar with each other. There was no better way to accomplish that than by being roommates. She looked down at her stomach. There was certainly no chance of them being lovers.



But there was more to it. As gracious as Vanni and Paul had been about her extended stay, they deserved a life of their own. After all, she hadn’t intended to impose for the duration—she had planned to rent something and go it alone. It took about five minutes to realize, going it alone was really not an option. She had to have a support system. She could live somewhere else and see Vanni every day if she wanted to. Not only did Vanni and Paul need their space, so did Abby. She wasn’t used to living with people. She’d had a roommate years back, but they had been very independent of each other. And there was that brief time with her husband—very brief. Other than that, she was used to solitude.



At Vanni’s house there was always someone around: a baby crying or squealing happily; Walt popping in regularly; Shelby and Luke dropping by, often bringing Luke’s helper, Art, along, sometimes for dinner. Most evenings the house was full and noisy or they were all going to Jack’s and got a little funky and worried if she tried to beg off and stay home. In the end, she always went along. She had almost no time to herself.



At least with Cam, he’d be at the clinic every day and wouldn’t pester her to death in the evenings. And she would have her own room to flee to if Cameron made her feel the least bit crowded.



Really, it made sense. It would just be so awkward.



And boy, was there going to be a lot of talk!



When she walked into the clinic, she found Mel in the reception area going over some paperwork at the counter. She turned and smiled at Abby. “Well, hey there. How are you?”



“Good, thanks. I’m here to meet Cameron. He wants to show me your cabin….”



Mel got an unmistakably wistful look on her face. “I hope you like it,” she said softly.



“If you’re absolutely sure it’s okay,” Abby said.



“Oh, I’m thrilled for you to use it. That little cabin changed my life. I lived there until I married Jack, then we lived there together until our house was finished. When the weather gets a little warmer, you’ll wake up to deer in the yard. New fawns with freckles on their backs. David was born there. Jack delivered him.”



Abby got a wild look in her eyes. “I’m not planning to get that far back to nature,” she said nervously.



Mel laughed. “I wasn’t either. I didn’t plan it,” she said. “And Jack certainly didn’t. But I wouldn’t worry—with Cameron hovering over you to make sure everything is all right, that won’t happen. I think you’re in good hands.”



“Mel,” she said tentatively. “I’m a little worried about…”



“What?”



She took a breath. “Gossip. Everyone talking about us.”



Mel’s eyes twinkled and she smiled. “Abby, you’re an unmarried woman pregnant with twins and you’ve been spending time with our pediatrician. He never misses a chance to sit by you at Jack’s. Surrender. The gossip is way ahead of you.”



Abby gasped. She leaned forward and whispered conspiratorially. “Do they think there’s something to us? Like a relationship?”