He nodded.
“Noted. Now, if you boys think you can cut me out of the Dimefront reunion, then you’ve got another conversation coming.” She turned, pulled at the band in her hair, and paced away from him so she didn’t jump him. “Do you want to have another conversation coming?”
“No.” He shook his head. “I really don’t want that kind of conversation.”
“I mean, we’ve got to figure out how to work Tiny Badass into our lives long-term,” she went on. “Might as well start now.” Then she turned back, marching toward him. “I’m coming. Got it?”
He didn’t move. Didn’t argue.
Dammit, she wanted him to argue. The air buzzedwaitingfor him to argue.
“Promise you’ll ask for help if you need it?” he asked instead of planting his feet and taking a stand. “Me. Just me. Promise me that if you’re physically not okay, you’ll tell me? I know we’ve had our problems, but you’ve always mattered to me.” The way he said that? Sounded like she mattered, not just their baby… but her.
“I matter to you?”
He nodded as his throat worked against some kind of emotion she’d never seen on him before.
Well, that totally diffused the angry mood she’d been stoking and made her chest feel tight in a good way, the hopeful kind of good.
She reached for him, took his hands in hers. “Bax, I’m fine. The pregnancy is fine. Our baby is totally fine.”
He didn’t move other than his Adam’s apple bobbing.
She stroked his hands with her thumbs. “I solemnly swear I will tell you if anything is off with Tiny Badass.”
Bax nodded. “And you.”
“And me.” Now her throat was thick.
Again, he had that uncomfortable aura shift around him. “I wanted to talk to you about us.”
“What about us?” This was dangerous territory because technically there was no “us” and now she didn’t want to fight with him. Definitely not about that.
“I wanted to see if you might want to…” He was remarkably off-kilter.
She stepped into his space, closer, still holding his hands that now gripped hers too. “Want to what?”
“If you might want to try it.” He pulled his hands away and gestured to himself. “With me.”
“Like try me and you?”
“Not just like we’ve been. Not just a team.” He looked at the carpet. “More than that.”
Did she want that?
She didn’t not want that.
“Like date?” she asked.
“Like try the couple thing. See if it takes.” He shrugged like it wasn’t a big deal either way, but the words wobbled a bit, and she could tell this mattered to him.
“See if it takes…” That wasn’t the best come-on line she’d ever heard, but coming from Bax—
“Just think about it?” he asked.
She didn’t answer. Simply blinked excessively hard because how was this her reality? Okay, she was in, and she’d try the couple thing. They could totally do that.
“About the other issue. I can… I can help with that too.” Bax looked at the bed. Back to her.
