“Thank you so much for doing this for me tonight,” I said.

  “You’re welcome.”

  His words were kind and exactly what I expected, but his tone wasn’t what I’d grown accustomed to hearing from him. “Brock?” I called when he looked away from me.

  “Yeah?”

  “Are we… is everything okay?”

  He nodded. “Yes.”

  “I can’t help but feel like you’re upset about something.”

  He shrugged and sighed. “I don’t know. I guess I should be asking you the same question. I don’t understand what happened tonight. I thought I made it clear I’d be more than willing to help you out whenever you need, and you wound up going to ask Russ for help instead.”

  Was this jealousy?

  Why would Brock feel jealous over anyone, namely Russ, who was a married man?

  I looked away, hating that I’d made him feel this way. “I… I… I just didn’t want you to think I was trying to take advantage of you.”

  His brows pulled together. “Why would I think that about you? Have we not become something more than just neighbors over this last month and a half or so? God, Mia, we walk together after work several days a week, having conversations about our days at work or simply getting to know each other. You’ve met my niece and even joined us for lunch on two separate occasions. You and I have had dinner together three times in that time. How is it possible that you thought you needed to go to Russ to help you carry this crib in when I was the guy who was standing beside you the first time you felt that baby move in your belly? What makes you think I wouldn’t want to be the guy to do this for you?”

  What was I supposed to say to that?

  He was right to question me, to be upset.

  While I had moments when I considered how different things would be if Brock and I were in a relationship, I hadn’t believed it was even a remote possibility that he’d want the same.

  And because I’d been struggling with how much I liked him as more than just my neighbor, I did what I’d done today.

  But Brock was right. We had moved beyond just being neighbors. He was, if nothing else, a genuine friend, had proved himself to be just that, and he deserved more than what I’d given him.

  Feeling like I had a boulder lodged in my throat, tears welling in my eyes, I croaked, “I’m so sorry, Brock.”

  In an instant, the hardness of his features vanished. He stepped close and wrapped his arms around me. I held on to him, my hands gripping the material of his shirt at his sides. “It’s okay,” he assured me.

  Shaking my head, I argued, “It’s not. I probably would have been just as upset as you if you’d done something similar.”

  His hands stroked up and down my back, comforting me. “It’s done now. We can’t go back and change it. I just want you to know that I’ve meant every word I’ve ever said to you, Mia. If you need my help with anything, all you’ve got to do is ask.”

  Easier said than done. I was mere months away from becoming a single mom. Sure, I knew my family would step up to help whenever they could, but they didn’t live close. Maybe I’d have their help in the beginning, but the reality was I needed to learn to do things on my own. And I wasn’t a stranger to it—I’d saved up for and purchased my home on my own. I knew I could do this, too.

  “It’s one thing to ask to borrow eggs I can replace, and it’s something else for me to ask for help with something like this,” I explained. “I don’t think I’m very good at it, because I don’t want to place expectations on anyone and wind up disappointed.”

  Understanding seemed to dawn in his expression, and a moment later, he offered a smile. “Then I guess I should just come right out and ask what’s on my mind now, shouldn’t I?”

  My brows furrowed. “What’s on your mind?”

  “Are you planning to build this crib yourself tomorrow?”

  My eyes went to the box and back to Brock. “That was my hope.”

  “Do you have the tools you need to do it?”

  I shrugged. “I don’t know yet.”

  He laughed, the sound relieving so much of the tension I’d been feeling, as he continued to hold me close. “If this is something you feel compelled to do on your own, I get it. But if you’re just afraid to ask me for help for fear of inconveniencing me, then I’d like to make the offer to come over tomorrow and help you get this assembled.”

  I tipped my head to the side, my eyes roaming over his handsome face. “That’s really sweet of you to offer, especially because you told me today on our walk that you didn’t have any work you needed to do in your garage and that you intended to relax. Helping me out with this would prevent that from happening for you.”

  “I don’t find spending time with you to be particularly taxing, Mia.”

  Spending time with me.

  He didn’t say building a crib or helping me out. He referred to it as spending time with me.

  Maybe it was okay for me to have hope about Brock’s intentions. It was entirely possible he was just being a really good man to a woman who needed some support. But what he’d said to me tonight made it clear that it wasn’t out of the realm of possibility for him to have some interest in me that went beyond friendship.

  Wouldn’t I be a fool to look the other way?

  “Okay, Brock. If you have nothing better to do with yourself, I’d love to have some help assembling this crib tomorrow.”

  Brock grinned at me. “Looks like I have plans for tomorrow. What time do you want me here?”

  If I was honest, I would have told him I never wanted him to leave. Not wanting to ruin his opportunity to sleep in and relax a bit if he intended to do that, I said, “How about around one o’clock? Would that work for you?”

  “That works for me. Should I bring some lunch with me?”

  Did he want to have lunch together?

  Feeling so much better about where we were, I felt safe enough to tease him. “You’ve never tried my peanut butter sandwiches. Maybe I could dazzle you with one tomorrow.”

  Laughter spilled out of him, and his arms tightened briefly around me. “I’ll prepare myself to be dazzled.”

  He released his hold on me, and we descended the stairs again. Once we were at the front door, I held his stare for a few seconds. “Thank you for doing this for me tonight and for offering to come over tomorrow. It means a lot to me.”

  “You’re welcome. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

  “Goodnight, Brock.”

  “Goodnight, Mia.”

  The next thing I knew, Brock was gone. No matter how easy it had been for me to fall asleep recently as I made it to the end of each day, tonight was different. Because I couldn’t stop replaying Brock’s words in my head from the second I closed the door behind him.

  FIFTEEN

  Mia

  “Okay. You win.”

  Already feeling exhilarated, those words caused me to perk up even more in my seat and beam at Brock. Surprisingly, I was as relaxed as ever and feeling great.

  It was Saturday afternoon, and Brock was currently joining me for lunch before we got down to the task of assembling the crib.

  I was thoroughly enjoying myself, doing my best to stick to the decision I made last night, not long after Brock left my place and went back home. I wasn’t sure exactly what Brock’s intentions were when it came to what was between us, but I knew I liked what was there now. I didn’t need to get caught up in my thoughts about what ifs and how things could possibly be, only to lead myself to losing the friendship I had with him.

  So, I was going to do my best to try to stop questioning it, to stop thinking about things I couldn’t control, be myself, and go with the flow.

  Today, that meant pulling out all the stops to impress Brock with a delicious lunch. We’d already settled on peanut butter sandwiches, so I had decided to spice things up and make some fresh, homemade sandwich bread.

  While I thought that might be enough to do the trick, I wanted to take the sandwiches up a notch, so I added banana slices and a sprinkle of mini chocolate chips to them.

  It seemed, based on the words he’d just said, I’d succeeded in my goal.

  “Can I take that to mean I’ve dazzled you?” I asked, recalling our conversation from last night.

  One half of his mouth quirked up. “You absolutely accomplished that goal, Mia.”

  “I’m so glad you enjoyed it. Maybe we’ll have to introduce Izzy to these,” I suggested.

  “Oh, I don’t know if that’s a good idea.”

  “Why not? Don’t tell me you’re worried she might like my sandwiches better and want for the two of you to come here for lunch every time she visits,” I teased him.

  Brock tipped his chin up slightly and out to the side, clearly considering that being a real possibility. “On second thought, maybe that is a good idea.”

  Though I’d promised myself I was going to try to not read too much into anything he said, it was difficult not to. Was he reconsidering his stance, because he wanted to be able to spend more time here with me?

  Feeling slightly giddy, I giggled and said, “I’d love to have the both of you over for lunch one day. Next time she comes for a visit, just let me know. I wonder, though, how she’ll take the news of the baby. I’m not sure I’m going to be able to hide it from her again, considering how quickly my belly seems to be growing now.”

  “Izzy will be thrilled to know you’re having a baby,” Brock declared. “She already adores you and can’t stop talking about you to anyone who will listen. So, you can rest assured she’ll be excited about the news. She’ll likely want to march right over here after the baby is born, so she can help take care of him or her.”

  “She’s so sweet. Does she want a sibling?” I asked.

  “Oh, I’m sure she’d love nothing more, but unfortunately, that’s not happening any time soon, considering my brother is a single dad,” Brock answered.

  It was a miracle my eyes didn’t fall out of my head. “Are you serious? I had no idea.”

  He nodded. “Yep. He’s been doing it on his own since very close to the beginning. Izzy hasn’t really known anything different, so she’s reasonably well adjusted.”

  “Wow,” I marveled, feeling a sense of solidarity with a man I had yet to meet. I was curious about what led to Chris becoming a single parent, but I didn’t think I was in the position to be able to ask that question just yet. “Well, I think your brother is doing an excellent job with her. She’s such a great kid, and she’s so well spoken, too.”

  “She definitely loves to talk,” Brock noted through his laughter.

  We spent the next few minutes finishing up the remainder of our lunches, and after we cleaned up the dishes, I led Brock up the stairs to the baby’s room. He immediately got to work, but I didn’t just walk away and leave him to do it on his own.

  While Brock handled the brunt of the work, the project was certainly much easier to tackle with two people involved. Following his instruction, I held things up or in place whenever he needed me to, and the truth was that I was grateful he included me the way he did.

  It would have been easy for him to merely take over and do it all on his own, as I was certain he was more than capable. He didn’t do that, and I had to wonder if he knew that since this was my first baby, I wanted to be involved in every part of the journey, even if handling the entire build on my own would have been an utter disaster.

  When it was finally finished, Brock said, “Okay, I think that’s it. Did you have a specific spot where you wanted it?”

  Lifting my hand, I pointed at the opposite wall and answered, “Over there.”

  Like it was nothing, Brock lifted the crib and moved it into place. “Good?”

  I stared.

  Seeing that crib there, it hit me.

  Just like it had been happening for weeks now, things kept popping up that reminded me of what was coming, of how real all of this was, and that was exactly what was happening to me now.

  “Mia?”

  Brock’s voice snapped me out of it. “Yeah?”

  “Is everything okay? Do you want me to move the crib somewhere else?” he questioned me.

  I lifted my gaze to his. “Everything is going to change.”

  “What?” His confusion was plain as day.

  My eyes went back to the crib for a fleeting moment before I returned my attention to Brock. “My whole life is going to change in such a short time. There are parts of it that I feel prepared for, parts I’m terrified about experiencing, and something else entirely that makes me worry that all the things I like and enjoy and love will no longer exist until this baby is grown.”

  A look of understanding and sympathy came my way. “I’m not an expert on any of this, Mia, but I think that what you’re feeling is normal. Maybe talking about it will help.”

  My head moved from side to side as wave after wave of uncertainty, fear, and anticipation moved through me. “I don’t know what to say. I mean, I’m terrified of the newborn stage and all the sleepless nights. But I’m used to working with young children every day, so there’s the part of me that feels slightly more prepared, or even excited, to experience the toddler and little kid phase. I’m worried about never being on time for events, functions, or work again, and I wonder if I’ll ever get to watch When Harry Met Sally or Crazy, Stupid Love ever again.”

  “Wait. What?”

  “What?”

  Brock’s eyes roamed over my face, his brows furrowed, as he searched for the answer to whatever was confusing him. Finally, he said, “Those are movies, aren’t they?”

  He was asking me that. As if… as if he didn’t already know the answer. “Yes, Brock, they’re movies. Are you telling me you’ve never seen them?”

  “I’ve heard of them, but I have not seen them.”

  I gasped, jerking back in utter horror at his admission. “You’re joking.”

  He tipped his head to the side, and I could have sworn I saw him fighting not to burst into a fit of laughter. I was convinced I saw his lips twitch. “I’m not. Can I ask what those movies have to do with the baby anyway?”

  I realized he’d asked a question, but I was far too disturbed by the news he’d just shared. “How have you never seen either of those movies? They are the best movies of all time.”

  Brock raised a curious brow. “That’s a pretty grand statement, don’t you think?”

  My eyes narrowed in response, and I might have allowed a slight growl to escape. I couldn’t believe he was questioning the validity of my declaration. “It’s an accurate statement. If you saw those movies, you’d understand.”

  Fearing things were about to get heated, Brock wisely held his hands up in surrender, but he couldn’t manage to contain the small smile playing on his lips. “Fair enough. I’ll reserve any judgment until I’ve managed to see both films. But I still don’t understand what either one of them has to do with the baby.”

  I sighed. “They don’t have anything specifically to do with the baby, but my guess is that once the baby is here, I’ll either be way too tired or entirely too busy taking care of him or her to be able to sit down and enjoy watching my two favorite movies of all time.”

  Something changed in Brock’s expression. It had gone from amused and entertained to sympathetic and understanding. “That’s not going to happen,” he said gently.

  “What?”

  “You’re not going to be suddenly unable to watch a movie ever again,” Brock clarified. “I suspect things will be a bit challenging the first few months, but it’s not going to be eighteen years before you watch your favorite movies or do things you enjoy again. The baby is due by the end of August. Assuming he or she arrives on time and without complications, I’m willing to bet you’ll be doing something for yourself, watching favorite movies or otherwise, within three to four months.”

  Now I was the one sending a raised brow in his direction. “I think that’s highly optimistic.”

  “And I think it’s accurate,” he fired back playfully, using my own argument against me.

  “I guess we’ll just have to wait and see who’s right,” I told him.

  “You know there is a temporary solution to this portion of what you’re dealing with, don’t you?” Brock questioned me.

  I had not a clue what he was talking about, so I shook my head. “No. What is the key to solving this dilemma?”

  “You’ve got four months.”

  “What?”

  “Mia, there’s a little over four months left until your due date. You could spend that time doing things that you enjoy that’ll likely have to take a back seat for a bit after the baby is here.”

  What was wrong with me? Why hadn’t I thought of it like that?

  Granted, I might not be able to do everything I enjoyed doing between now and then, especially with needing to make time to take care of things like the baby furniture, clothing, diapers, and more, but I could certainly squeeze in quite a bit of fun before the end of August if I tried.

  “That’s a great idea, Brock.”

  “I’m a smart man,” he declared, puffing up his chest with pride. “And do you know what the best part is?”

  I shook my head.

  “If you don’t have any plans for the rest of the day today, you could help me carry out my original plan to relax for the day and tick these movies off your list,” he shared.

  My belly dipped. Was he saying what I thought he was saying? Unwilling to make an inaccurate assumption and look like a fool, I said, “I don’t have anything else planned for today, but I’m not sure I understand what you’re suggesting I do.”

  Shrugging, appearing to be indifferent to what I thought about his plan, he said, “I haven’t watched your two favorite movies yet, and I intended to spend time relaxing today. I figure we can accomplish that for me while you get to watch those movies at least one more time before the baby arrives.”

  It was likely my forehead shrank from how high my eyebrows shot up. “You want to watch both movies today?”

  “Sure.”

  “With me?”

  “It’s better than doing it alone,” he reasoned. “Plus, we can take a break in between, if you’d like. I figure we can watch one, have some dinner, and watch the second one afterward.”