She was about to ask him to tell her, to let her share that burden, to confess what caused those deep shadows in his eyes, what drew him to work so hard all the time. But he startled her by asking, “When’s the baby due?”

His fingers roamed up her leg as if he were going to touch her stomach, but he stopped at her knee. Mandy wished he would touch her belly and wasn’t sure why. But she seemed to be feeling a lot of strange things and wasn’t sure why.

“October eighteenth. Give or take.” It seemed so far away, yet just around the corner, and she was so unprepared, so nervous.

“And everything’s okay? The doctor did one of those ultrasound things?”

Taking a sip of water, she reached for the box of chocolates resting in his lap. She wanted—no, needed—another one. “It’s a bit early for an ultrasound. If a woman is healthy, they only like to do one at about eighteen to twenty weeks so I haven’t had mine yet. But the doctor has reassured me every step of the way that I’m healthy and the baby is progressing normally.”

He stroked lightly across her kneecap. “I’m glad to hear it.” His voice was thoughtful, his head turned away from her as he watched the ocean. “I think it would terrify me to know I had a kid on the way, but you seem really in control.”

God, if he only knew. She actually laughed. “Damien, I am absolutely terrified, trust me. I never expected to be having a baby this soon in life, and there are all these books and manuals and rules about how to do this. I have a huge textbook sitting in my beach bag that I’m trying to convince myself to read, but whenever I pick it up I have a panic attack. It’s overwhelming.”

He smiled. “If you approach motherhood the way you do your job, you’ll have that kid whipped into shape in no time.”

The laugh she knew he wanted stuck in her throat. She hated the way she felt so uncertain, so needy, but she couldn’t stop herself from asking, “Am I good at my job? Truly?”

The water bottle he’d had poised at his lips descended back into his lap. “Are you serious? You’re awesome at it. You’re my ASS, remember? Asshole’s awesome assistant, that’s you.”