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"Your kiss said otherwise"

"Sorry, but you’ve misread the situation I don’t knohy I kissed you" A blatant lie "But trust est mistakes I’ve ever made"

"I don’t think of it that way"

"Stop!" she shouted, clenching her fists Muchat hi to persuadeelse, I swear I alk out this door and never return That isn’t an empty threat, Will I mean it"

A pained look came over him and he nodded Then, to Miranda’s astonishment, he stepped closer, held her face between his hands and kissed her

When he broke it off, she nearly stumbled backward in both shock and wonder

"I--I quit," she stammered

"No, you don’t I expect you here by ten to"

Twenty-Four

The Pot Belly Deli was decorated for Thanksgiving Gloria glanced around at the dried cornstalk and gourd arrange her juice as she waited for Chad He’d asked for this reed, but she still wasn’t sure it was a good idea

Since the ultrasound, there’d been no direct contact between theed a nuenerally short nancy and her health

Gloria resisted the urge to ask hiether, her stomach twisted But she was the one who’d rejected hi someone else Sometiret what she’d done It was because of her shame and uncertainty that she’d run out of his bedrooht with hione to tell him about the baby--and perhaps even try to reconcile--it was too late

The door opened and Chad ca tentatively when he did

"Hi," he said as he approached her

"Hi" She didn’t estured for him to take a seat

The waitress stepped up to the table with a coffeepot and he righted his"Would you like a menu?" she asked

"No, thanks, just coffee"

She nodded and left therew more intense Nausea attacked her storeat," Chad said

He wasn’t the only one to say so Roy had said that pregnant wo that she was ical father didn’t hand out compliments casually and his comment had taken her aback She hardly kne to respond to Chad’s words any ed to say, "Thanks" And left it at that

"Would you ?" he asked

"Ah, sure" She pushed back her chair and stood

His eyes rested on her stomach, and a slow smile spread across his face A war to love this baby Seeing his reaction nearly brought her to tears

"May I?" he asked, extending his hand toward her

Gloria caainst the s yet?"

She smiled "All the time"

"Good"

She sat back down and reached for her drink to hide how moved she was by what he’d done She noticed that his hand shook as he picked up his coffee

"So," he said after a ht to the na about it a lot"

When he didn’t iestions or comment on other nahts?"

"No…I feel it would be best to wait until youthe baby up for adoption Have you decided?"

Gloria held her arms protectively around her stomach "I think adoption is a viable choice I was adopted into a loving home with parents who badly wanted a child"

Chad lowered his eyes, as if he couldn’t tolerate the idea, but didn’t want to argue with her

"My er with several years of school ahead of her Roy didn’t even know she was pregnant"

"I’m aware of that But thanks to your father, I know about this baby" Chad stiffened, apparently unable to keep quiet any longer "And I’m entitled to a say in what happens to my child" He emphasized the last tords "If you decide you don’t want him--"

"Do you think that’s what adoption is?" Gloria asked "Do you really believe a ives her child to another family acts out of selfishness? Do you think that’s what Corrie did with h to offer me a better life with two parents who yearned for a child of their own"

"Our baby has two parents"

"Every baby has two parents, Chad," she said, hoping he’d see the humor in his stateically speaking What I meant is that tial rights and I intend to pursue ive the baby up for adoption, then I think it’s only fair to tell you that I’d take hile father?"

"Yes"

"What about your hours at the hospital? Who’d look after hi? You make it sound easy It isn’t"

"And you know this how?"