But now that was a dream that would never come true. Although there was no physical reason why she couldn’t have a child, she would never be able to let a man touch her that way. At one point she had thought about artificial insemination, but a lot of things prevented that. First, she didn’t have the money and her insurance would not cover such a procedure. Second, she would still have to take off her clothes for the procedure, and she couldn’t do that in front of anyone. Third, the thought of carrying a baby from someone she didn’t know was a turn-off for her. The only man’s baby she’d ever dreamed of having was Reese’s.
Feeling a knot settling in her throat, she wiped a hand across her face, swiping at the tears that she couldn’t stop from flowing down her cheeks. Life was cruel, but considering all the hard times she had given her father while growing up, maybe in the end she had gotten everything she deserved. With that thought more tears began to fall.
Reese had just walked out of the café holding a steaming cup of coffee. It was early and the air was brisk, but nothing smelled better than fresh roasted brew in the morning. He headed for his parked truck, determined to be at the construction site before the men got there this morning. He needed to go over yet another change Marcella Jones had made, but at least thanks to Sebastian Steele, it was a change she would be paying for.
He liked Steele, although he knew Jocelyn hadn’t yet gotten used to the guy hanging around. But he felt fairly certain that once she saw he wasn’t one of the bad guys she would be okay. His handling of Manuel’s situation had proven that he did have a heart.
Reese was about to unlock his truck door and get in when something made him look to the right. He blinked, thinking he was seeing things. Standing a few doors from the café was a woman whose profile so closely resembled Leah’s that it was startling. And the more he stared at her, the more he began to realize that it was Leah.
He would know her anywhere, the woman who years ago had stolen his heart, just like he would always remember the one night he had made her his in a way no other man had. It had been special for the two of them and—
He immediately forced the thoughts from his mind. That night had been special for him, but evidently not for her, because less than a month later she had left town without looking back. He would never forget the pain he had felt when she’d left. It was pain that still lived in a place deep in his heart, although he wished it would get out of there and leave him alone. He knew that until he was able to let go he would never be worth a damn to any other woman. The thought that Leah had done that to him left a bitter taste in his mouth.
A part of him just wanted to get in the truck and drive away and pretend he hadn’t seen her. But for some reason he couldn’t do that. The only way he could eradicate Leah from his mind and heart forever finally was to come face to face with her again. He no longer wanted to know why she’d left the way she had, since nothing she said now would matter. He just had to be convinced that he could look her in the face and then turn and walk away.
He took slow steps toward her, and the closer he got the harder his heart began pounding. And when he finally came to stand behind her, he stood without moving since she hadn’t noticed his presence. She was too busy studying the items in the store’s window. He glanced beyond her to see what had her absolute attention and frowned. It was a baby shop and she was looking at baby clothes. Why would she be doing that?
The next question that skated through his mind was who was pregnant? He didn’t like the answer he suddenly came up with. Could the reason Leah wasn’t in a hurry to return to California be because she was pregnant?
A blade, sharper than any knife he’d ever handled, sliced through his insides at the thought that she could possibly be carrying a child that wasn’t his. He hung his head as pain clouded his thoughts, and he knew he had to get away from there. But something held him transfixed and he knew he had to do this. He had to confront a part of his past that he wished at that moment had never taken place.
Sighing deeply, he took a step closer and noticed Leah was trembling and her shoulders were shaking. Evidently, she was a lot colder than he was.