“I am. A girl likes to know she’s noticed by her man,” she said.
“I noticed,” he said, leaning closer to her for a kiss. And though Fiona didn’t want to rush the physical side of things, she completely forgot about her agenda for this matchmaking thing as his arms came around her and his mouth moved over hers.
His kiss was warm and quiet, but also very intense. He knew how to kiss, which surprised her, and she realized that there was much more to Alex Cannon than she’d expected.
Bella Ann made a mewling sound and Fiona stepped back from him, reaching down to touch her baby’s face. Then she turned back to Alex. He was watching her and the baby with an inscrutable expression.
“What?”
“I am just realizing how different dating you will be.”
“How do you mean?”
“With the baby. ’She’s going to take most of our time, isn’t she?”
“Yes,” Fiona said, the joy of his kiss evaporating at his words. “But that's part of being a parent. Has meeting Bella Ann changed your mind about wanting a family?”
"No, not really," he said.
What was he trying to say? He was starting to remind her more and more of Giovanni--Bella's father. Though to be fair Gio hadn't ever pretended to want children. "We could just end this now."
He looked at her that grey-blue gaze of his cutting past the pretense and going to her heart, she thought.
"I'm not being catty about your response, having a baby in my life has taught me that not everyone is ready for that. I'd rather end things now before I start to care for you and you realize that Bella Ann is too much for you."
He reached over and touched the baby's head and then looked back at her. "I have to add that to my planning for our time together. Its never going to be just you and me, is it?”
“No, it's not. I don't understand why you are just now realizing that I'm a single-mom,” she said.
“No. That’s not what I meant,” he said.
“What did you mean?”
Alex realizedthat he’d stepped into the fire with his ill-thought-out words. This was why he’d kept his interpersonal relationships so shallow. He didn’t have the filter that most people had when it came to speaking. He just said whatever entered his mind, regardless of the consequences.
“I meant that . . .” He had no idea how to articulate what he had meant without saying something harsh again. “Just . . . Iknow nothing about kids and even less about babies. For some reason I had this image of her sleeping all the time.”
Fiona tipped her head to the side to study him and he wondered if he’d screwed up again. Then her little half smile appeared. She licked her lower lip and reached down to touch the baby on the head.
“I’m learning that she never sleeps when I want her to and that my plans must always be altered.” She tucked a strand of her thick hair behind one ear and pushed her sunglasses up on the top of her head.
“Does it bother you?” he asked, because he suspected that kind of thing would mess up his work. He needed hours alone in his office with quiet to get code written and come up with new apps and games.
“No,” Fiona said. “I adore every minute with her. It does help that I’m used to working in complete chaos.”
“Chaos?” he asked. He had envisioned her with an entourage who took care of things for the child—at least he had before he’d met her. He’d expected anyone who had the net worth to go to Matchmakers, Inc. wouldn’t be too hands-on with kids, but now he wasn’t sure what to expect next.
“Well, I design in my loft and have at least six people in there at all times. People talk about fabrics and colors and all that noise somehow becomes white noise. I like it in the back of my mind as I create new pieces,” Fiona said, as they walked to the end of the park and then started back toward the entrance.
There were other families in the park, mostly moms playing with toddlers, and Alex wondered when Bella Ann would start walking and playing like that.
“Are you ever alone?” he asked her, thinking he might have figured out a part of Fiona’s extroverted personality.
“No. I hate being alone. My mother says it’s because she spoiled me and my dad said it’s because if I’m alone no one can tell me I’m fabulous,” she said with a self-deprecating grin.
“Is that the case?”
“Not at all. I know I’m fab all the time,” she said, winking at him, but there was something in her tone that ’belied the obnoxiousness of her words.
