Page 19

Ayla sat at the table, hands folded in her lap, and tried not to ask Oz again if the time was up. It wasn’t. She’d watched him set the timer on his phone and it hadn’t gone off.

She’d left the pregnancy test on the bathroom counter to avoid constantly checking it, but now she wondered if she’d made a mistake. Maybe it would be easier to wait if it was in front of her.

“Relax, Pollita,” Oz said from across the table. “It hasn’t even been a full minute yet.”

She wanted to retort it was easy for him to say relax , but she didn’t, because Oz had reassured her many times that she wasn’t in this alone. For a mercenary, he seemed to have an honorable streak a mile wide. But how often would he be in the States?

It could be worse.

She could be waiting for the test results back in LA with no idea what his name was or how to find him.

Maybe they would have exchanged information if she hadn’t run out while he’d been in the shower.

There was so much she didn’t know about him, but at least she had his name. His first name. “What’s your surname?”

Oz looked startled. He hesitated, and she scowled at him. “You can’t use it after I tell you,” he warned her. “It will be dangerous for me if my full name gets out.”

“I won’t,” Ayla promised.

“You’ve forgotten what I’ve told you to do before. You’ve spoken too loudly, and then there was the pace you used when we left the café. If I hadn’t held onto your arm, you might have set the world’s record for the fastest 5K.”

“You’re exaggerating.” He gave her a look. “I was scared, okay? You know my full name.”

“Yeah.” He looked around as if someone had snuck into the room while they were talking, and he hadn’t noticed. “It’s West. Oziah West.”

She opened her mouth to repeat it, caught Oz’s expression, and pressed her lips together. “Sorry. The stress of waiting…it has my thoughts all scrambled.”

“I know. I’m dealing with it, too.”

He was? To her, Oz looked calm. His stubble was thick and his long, dark hair hung loose to his shoulders. Even decked out in his mercenary clothes, he made her breath catch. “I don’t do hookups,” Ayla said.

“I know.” The non sequitur didn’t seem to throw him.

“That night with you was the first time I ever did anything that crazy. My sister? She’s the one who does the crazy things.

Although I don’t know about her sex life.

We don’t talk about that.” Ayla realized she was rambling and returned to the topic she’d started.

“I’m the cautious twin, the twin with the five-year plan.

The twin who dots all her i’s and crosses all her t’s. ”

Oz nodded. “We talked for a while before we went to my room. I know you’re normally sensible. I also know something was going on with you that night.”

Ayla grimaced. He hadn’t asked that as a question, but that’s what it was.

“Last Halloween? It was my twenty-ninth birthday. Our twenty-ninth birthday. My parents had gotten stuck somewhere in the Alps, and Io? Who knows where she was. When we met in June, it was the third time the birthday celebration was postponed. My parents got a deal on a cruise in Asia, and Io used the opportunity to go to Ireland.”

“You were feeling abandoned.”

“I was feeling sorry for myself,” she countered.

Oz shook his head. “No, you’re not the type who wallows in self-pity. You wanted to feel as if you were important enough to your family that they’d put aside their travel plans to celebrate with you.”

“Sitting at that table in the bar—” Ayla stopped. Shrugged. “You listened to me when I talked as if what I said mattered to you.”

“It did matter. You matter.”

The tears returned and Ayla blinked until she had control. She changed the subject. “How much longer?”

He checked his phone. “A couple more minutes.”

“That long?”

“Sorry, Pollita.”

Ayla took a deep breath and then another. “Why’d we decide to take this chance that night? I’m as cautious as they come, and since I arrived in Trujillo, everything I’ve seen from you suggests you’re not a big risk-taker either. Did we lose our minds?”

“There’s that possibility.” His lips curved. “It was early in the morning, maybe four or so, and we were both pretty worked up before I realized I didn’t have any more condoms stashed somewhere. Arousal and fatigue can lead to poor judgment.”

“I don’t think I’m pregnant.” But what if she was wrong?

“We’ll find out one way or the other shortly.”

“Oz?”

“What?”

“I’m scared.”

“I know, Ayla. I promise to not run out on you. If you’re pregnant, we’re in this together. I’ll say it a million times if that’s what it takes for you to believe me.”

“I do believe you.” She didn’t remind him about his work being in Puerto Jardin.

Her hand shook as she pushed her hair out of her face.

“My parents—they love to travel. They dragged me and Io everywhere with them when we were kids. We missed too much school growing up, but they thought we learned more by visiting different countries.”

“And it didn’t matter that you’re afraid of flying. They selfishly wanted to travel, and you had to go along for the ride.”

Oz understood what she was saying without her spelling things out. They’d connected like that from the start. “I wouldn’t use the word selfish,” Ayla said.

“I would. What they want to do is more important to them than your feelings. That’s selfish. Did they ever manage to get together with you for your delayed birthday dinner?”

She shook her head.

He frowned, but the timer buzzed before he could comment. Turning it off, Oz said, “That’s it.”

“Yes.” Ayla didn’t move. She couldn’t move.

Oz stood, came around the table to her, and held out his hand. “Come on, Pollita. Not knowing doesn’t change anything.”

Since he was right, Ayla put her hand in his and let him pull her to her feet. She held on tightly until they reached the door, and she was forced to release him to enter the bathroom. Taking a couple of steps inside, she looked over her shoulder, making sure Oz was with her.

He was.

Ayla stood in front of the counter and braced herself, but she couldn’t force herself to glance down, not until Oz’s arms went around her from behind.

The warmth of his body against her back gave her the courage she needed to look.

That’s all it took. The second line was nearly as dark as the control line.

Oz was right. She was pregnant.

Ayla sat beside Oz in a sedan. Not the sedan they used yesterday, but a different one. This car wasn’t as old and decrepit as the other, but it sported dents in multiple locations. They were stuck in traffic. On a Sunday.

She shifted to see his profile. With his long hair and thick stubble, he looked like a member of a biker gang.

He appeared dangerous. Frightening. Then he turned, caught her gaze, and his face softened.

He reached over and gave her knee a light squeeze before returning it to the wheel.

“Hang in there, Pollita. Another mile or so and we should get clear of the jam.”

Questions about the traffic in Trujillo popped into her head, but Ayla didn’t ask because it was a way to avoid thinking about the tough things, not something she cared about. She spotted the tattoo on his hand. That she was interested in.

Ayla had explored every inch of his gorgeous body and knew it was his only one. It raised questions. “What does your tattoo mean?”

There was silence as he maneuvered them through a knot of vehicles. When they were back to a normal level of insanity, he said, “It’s the Celtic symbol for new beginnings.” He glanced over at her. “My background is mostly Irish.”

“Why your hand?”

Oz grimaced. “So I could see it whenever I needed to remind myself.”

That increased her curiosity, but his expression made it clear he was done with the topic. There was something there, something he wasn’t ready to talk about. Ayla let it go. For now. She’d come back to it later. “I don’t think I said this yet, but I’m sorry.”

“For what?” His voice was soft and calming.

“Getting pregnant.”

“No apologies, Pollita. You and I were both there, and we both decided to take the chance. We were in it together then. We’re in it together now.” Oz gave her knee another squeeze. “Do you always apologize for things that aren’t your fault?”

The question startled Ayla enough to stop her immediate denial. More thought tempered her answer. “Maybe. I remember saying I’m sorry a lot as a kid. My dislike of flying caused trouble when we traveled.”

“Did anyone in your family have sympathy about your phobia?”

He glanced over at her for an instant, before refocusing on the road, but it was long enough for Ayla to see the concern in his blue eyes.

“Io did. We always sat together with our parents in the row behind us. Io took the middle seat so I wouldn’t have to sit next to a stranger.

She would give me her hand on takeoffs and landings.

” Her lips curved. “I squeezed so hard, I hurt her. I know I did because I could feel her pain, but she never said anything, and her expression didn’t give anything away. ”

“Yet, she couldn’t manage to show up for your birthday celebration.”

Ayla couldn’t read Oz’s tone. “It was her birthday, too,” she pointed out. With a sigh, she added, “Birthdays are just another day to Io. That’s probably her reaction to how over the top our parents were when we were preschoolers.”

“Over the top, how?” Oz stopped at a traffic light, and she got a longer look from him.

“Matching frilly dresses, which Io loathed.” Ayla smiled. “Magicians, children’s television stars, ponies, a long guest list. When we were teenagers and Io mentioned those parties, she said we were shown off like prize-winning dogs.”

He frowned and sped up as the light turned. “What happened to the parties after you started school?”

Ayla turned farther toward Oz. “That’s when Io’s rebellion against dressing alike occurred. My mom lost interest in planning elaborate events after that.”

With a sigh, she settled back into the seat. The wig felt itchy, but she left her hands in her lap, afraid she’d knock it askew if she tried to scratch. She hated wearing the thing—it was as hot and heavy as she feared—but Ayla would go through worse for her sister.

“Io always had my back,” she said. “When I wasn’t brave enough to fight a battle, she charged forward for me.

It’s funny, in a way. We don’t share the same interests.

She’s usually traveling somewhere for work, and I’d rather stay home, but if I needed her, she’d hop on the first flight and still slay dragons for me.

That means more than a birthday celebration. ”

Oz was silent for a moment, and Ayla felt her stomach knot. Something about his expression suggested she might have revealed too much.

“So,” he said slowly, “it was your parents not showing up for the belated birthday dinner that bothered you, not your sister’s absence.” He nodded. “Yeah, because you know she’ll be there for you at the drop of a hat, but you don’t have the same faith in your mom and dad.”

Damn, he’d seen through what she’d said and understood what she hadn’t told him.

“They tried. I guess they just didn’t know how to be parents. It was easier on everyone when Io and I were old enough to go to college.”

“I’m sorry,” Oz said, and this time when he squeezed her knee, he left his hand there. Ayla rested her hand on top of his and curled her fingers around him.

They were clear of the jam and moving at a better speed, when she worked up enough courage to say, “I’m scared, Oz. What if I’m a terrible mom? It’s not as if I had any kind of role model to emulate.”

“You’ll be fine.” He risked shooting her a quick glance. “You saw firsthand what didn’t work, and the fact you’re worrying about it means you care enough to figure it out.”

“And you said you’d be with me on this, so I’ll have you there to help me learn.”

Oz scowled. “Pollita, we both might need to find out if there are lessons available on good parenting. Mine are worse than yours.”

“Worse? How?”

His hesitation was brief. “Both my parents are serving time in federal prison.”