A laugh bubbles out of me. “You’re killing me. Who are you right now?”
He shrugs. “Your baby’s daddy.”
“But?”
“Callie, I don’t want to bribe you to move in with me, but I can’t stomach you living here with that creep of a landlord. I meant what I said. We’re in each other’s lives forever now, and it’s really important to me that we get along. Form some sort of connection.” His gaze falls to the ultrasound picture. “For this little one.”
“We could have weekly chats instead. A bullet-point list of what we should share.”
He slides off the stool and walks into the kitchen, leaning on the counter opposite me, and crosses his arms. “I just threw a huge truth between us. I’m showing you a side of myself I share with no one, not even your brother. I’m doing it for our baby, so I’d like you to consider it. Move in with me, and I’ll get you five big names.”
I’m still trying to wrap my head around how different he is from what I expected. “Will you be one of them?”
I know the answer before he even opens his mouth, but I have to try because if I could get this Foster Davis on If I’m Honest, it would get a lot of attention.
He shakes his head. “Sorry, that’s a deal I can’t make. You and the baby”—he nods at my stomach—“are the only two who will see this side of me. But I promise I’ll get you people better than me. After all, your success only helps my child.”
My shoulders fall, and our eyes meet, neither of us looking away. He’s waiting patiently for my answer. A part of me says this is a very bad idea. I’d be depending on someone again, and it will most likely end in heartbreak, but he’s offering a lot. The five guests plus getting to know a side of him that I’d only get behind his closed condo door. And don’t I owe it to my little one to at least try?
“Okay, but I’m putting down some rules.”
His eyes widen, and I kind of like the fact that I’ve surprised him.
“Lay it out for me.” He widens his legs and stares at me intently.
I inhale to keep my libido at bay. “No women at the apartment.”
“No men either.”
“No sexual partners at all?”
“Deal.” He nods.
“You can’t be asking me how much I’ve eaten or if I slept well. No papa bear vibes.”
He chuckles. “Sure, I will not care about your well-being.”
“Good.”
His eyebrows shoot up. “Anything else?”
“You have to be clothed at all times.”
He smirks at me. “So I can’t sleep in the nude?”
A full zap of electricity ignites through me when I think about him being steps away from me and completely naked under a thin sheet.
“Behind your bedroom door, but not in communal places.”
“Fine. And just so you know, you can feel free to be naked in communal places. I have zero problem with it.”
I roll my eyes, but then I point at him, hating that I have to make this rule but needing to. “No flirting.”
“Ah…” He bites the inside of his lip. “I’m not sure I can do that one.”
“Flirt with your girls on the road.”
His gaze flows down my body, and a little voice reminds me that I’m playing with fire. “There won’t be any girls on the road until we decide on a different arrangement at some point down the road.”
