She found him in the kitchen, seated at the island alongside Derek. Both had bowls of cereal before them. Only Derek looked up at her entrance.
He sent her a genuine smile. “Morning. How are you and Baby Thumper?”
She found herself smiling back at him. Derek had quickly become her ally, despite the oddness she felt in confiding in a famous actor. Last night they had talked for hours, Derek regaling her with talks of growing up with Logan. It seemed ironic that Derek provided her with so much information Logan would not.
“We’re fine.” Claire patted her belly. “But hungry. Where’s the cereal?”
Derek stood, pulling out the barstool next to his and gesturing for her to take it. “Sit down. I’ll get it for you.”
Claire started to argue, but Derek silenced her, holding up a hand. “It’s not optional.” He winked before striding over to the cabinets along the far wall.
She felt awkward as she slid up onto the barstool. Logan still had yet to acknowledge her presence. He had theNew York Timesspread out before him and seemed deeply engrossed in the Metro Section.
“Christ,” he muttered suddenly, looking up—not at Claire, but at Derek. “Did I hear you calling my child the name of a character fromThe Little Mermaid?”
Derek looked back at Logan as he pulled a bowl from the cabinet. “Actually, it’sBambi. And yes, you did.”
Logan raised an imperious brow and at last swung his gaze to Claire. “Might I ask why?”
“The baby kept kicking last night,” she replied, struggling to keep her voice even. This morning scene, with Logan ignoring her in favor of the newspaper, seemed an eerie echo of her marriage to Garrett. It wasn’t what she wanted for herself ever again.
The musical clink of cereal raining into a bowl invaded the silence. “It was incredible,” Derek called over his shoulder. “I’ve never felt a baby kick before.”
“Really,” Logan drawled, still pinning Claire with an inscrutable look. “How nice that you could start with Claire.”
Claire stared. She couldn’t believe the rudeness he was displaying, not only to her but also to his best friend. He had once again reverted back to a cool, remote stranger. She found it difficult to reconcile this Logan with the passionate, consumed man who had made love to her so feverishly last night.
Derek didn’t comment on Logan’s rudeness as he brought the cereal over to Claire. “I hope you like this,” he murmured. “Logan only has one kind of cereal.”
Claire didn’t bother looking at the bowl’s contents. “It’s fine,” she told him. “Thank you.”
“What do you want to drink?” he asked, looking eager to be helpful.
“For God’s sake, she’s pregnant, not helpless,” Logan said cuttingly. “Leave off.”
Derek spun on his heel, facing Logan. “What the hell’s the matter with you, Loge?”
Logan’s lips tightened into a harsh line. “Maybe I don’t like you flirting with Claire.”
Derek reeled as though he’d been physically struck. “Jesus, is that what you think?” His fists clenched at his sides. “You’re right, she’s not helpless, but she is carrying your child. I was just trying to show her some respect.”
Logan’s jaw clenched. “Are you saying I don’t?” His voice was deceptively quiet, his tone lethal.
Claire had heard enough. She stood abruptly, the barstool scraping across the tiled kitchen floor. “If you’ll excuse me, I’m not hungry after all.” She rushed to the front hall, retrieved her purse and keys, and slipped out the door as quickly as she could manage.
When she reached her car, she heard the side door slam and turned to find Logan striding toward her. He looked furious, though with her or with Derek, she couldn’t quite tell. Likely, it was a combination of both. She tossed her purse onto the passenger seat and gripped her keys.
“I’m leaving.”
His eyes flicked over her. “Obviously.”
Claire felt dangerously close to hysteria. “I don’t think this is going to work out.”
He leaned forward, bracing a hand on the roof of her car, effectively trapping Claire between his body and the passenger door. “You don’t think what is going to work out?”
“Us.” She swallowed. “I don’t know how we’re going to raise a child together when you can’t even be civil to me after we’ve spent the night together.”
Logan ran his free hand through his hair, his eyes glittering. “Frankly, Claire, I’m the one who has a right to be angry. Not you.”
