“I’m glad she found you.” Claire sipped at her water, wondering how differently Logan might have turned out had Eunice not taken him into her home and life.
A crooked smile curved his lips. “You’re not the only one. Everything I have today is a direct result of her. She put me through college and gave me the financial backing to start LM.”
The revelation surprised Claire. It had always been so easy to imagine him as a man born with silver spoon in hand. But the more she learned about him, the more she appreciated and admired the sheer determination that had taken him from an alley dumpster to the CEO’s office.
“I admire you,” she told him, knowing he needed to hear it. Although he played the arrogant role better than anyone she knew, Claire was beginning to see the uncertainty he kept hidden beneath his veneer.
He looked up at her, his expression obviously startled. “There’s nothing to admire. I did what I had to do to survive.”
“And then some,” she argued. “Look at your company, how successful it has become. You amaze me.”
For the second time that day, a suspicious red tinged his cheekbones. Logan shrugged, looking uncomfortable with her praise. “I wanted to make Eunice proud of me. I wanted to prove to her she hadn’t made a mistake in taking me in.” He paused, taking a sip from his water glass. “If it hadn’t been for her, Derek and I wouldn’t have been able to stick together the way we did.”
Claire couldn’t imagine growing up the way Logan had, feeling unwanted, belonging nowhere and to no one. She and Sophie had always been best friends, and their parents had been warm and loving. She was beginning to understand him in ways she’d never dreamed. There was so much more to him than she’d thought. How wrong she’d been to think him emotionless and cold. The man was just too afraid to let anyone in, and she could hardly blame him for that.
Logan took a bite of his steak and considered her across the table. “So you’ve grilled me long enough. Tell me about you.”
His interest surprised her. She twirled her linguine on her fork and thought for a moment. “Well, it was just my sister Sophie and me growing up. We’ve always been best friends. Our parents were very close to us. They came to every soccer game I played and every art show Sophie had pieces in growing up.”
“You played soccer?”
“I did,” she acknowledged with a chuckle. “Just not very well. My favorite part was always the orange wedges at halftime and the donuts after the game.”
“I played baseball here and there,” Logan said. “But it was hard to keep up with the changing homes and school districts, so I eventually just dropped out. I always envied the other kids whose dads came to cheer them on.”
Claire wanted to skirt the table and hug him. She wished she could erase those years of heartache for him, but nothing would do that now. The only thing she could do was try to make up for it in the future.
“If it’s a boy, you can be there to cheer him on at every game,” Claire said gently. How had she ever thought she could keep this man from his child? It was painfully clear to her that Logan would make a devoted parent, more so than any other man she’d ever met.
“If it’s a girl, do you think she’ll want to play soccer like her mommy?” Logan asked, sending her a sweet smile that curled her toes.
“If she does, I know you’ll be right there by the sidelines cheering her on.”
He nodded, a sheen glinting on his eyes. Could it be that the great Logan Monroe was moved to tears by the thought of cheering on his little girl? Claire’s heart melted for him even more. If she wasn’t careful, by this time tomorrow, she’d be helplessly, hopelessly in love with him.
She did have to be careful. After all, she’d just ended a marriage. She didn’t want to throw herself into another serious relationship so soon. Or so she told herself. Because with Logan, everything she felt was new, more powerful, more moving than she’d ever expected. She wanted more.
“Penny for your thoughts.”
Claire looked up from her plate to find Logan studying her. “You’ll have to do better than a penny,” she teased, trying to distract him.
But Logan wasn’t to be swayed. “Do you ever wish you were still with your ex?” he asked suddenly. “That the baby was his?”
“No. There was a time when I thought that it would certainly be easier if the baby had been his, I won’t lie to you. But Logan, he and I weren’t happy. We spent the last year of our marriage fighting or avoiding each other. He and I never should have gotten married, and if this baby had been his, we’d be tied to each other forever, and miserable because of it.”
“You’ll be tied to me forever,” he pointed out. “Hell, I know you had regrets about that, or you wouldn’t have tried to keep the baby a secret.”
“No,” she denied firmly, hating her stupidity. “The only thing I regret about you and me and this baby is that I tried to keep the truth from you at all. My only defense is that I made the decision before I really came to know you, and I thought I was making a good choice for the baby.”
Logan raised a black brow at that. “You’ve known me for ten years.”
“I’ve worked with you for ten years,” she corrected. “I only really started getting to know you in the last few weeks. There’s a difference.”
“Fair enough,” he said grudgingly.
“Do you forgive me?” She had to know the answer.
“There’s nothing to forgive. I know you were doing what you thought best.” Logan paused, then raked a hand through his hair. “Do you think we’ll make good parents, Claire?”
