His lips curl into that sexy smile that gets me every time. “I love you too, baby,” he replies without hesitation.

Without further delay, Brittany inserts the wand and I shift slightly before I can stop myself. Lucian and I stare at the large screen hanging from the wall to the side of us. She begins by measuring my ovaries before moving on. Suddenly, we see something that looks like an oblong circle with a shape moving inside. Brittany points out the head, which looks huge in relation to the rest of the body. She then says that the fluttering movement is the baby’s heart and that the two small stick-like figures are the feet. You can barely make out the arms because of the way the baby is turned. I vaguely register her telling us that the measurements are spot-on at eleven weeks. I feel tears running down my face and as I look over at Lucian, I’m surprised to see he’s wiping at the moisture of his own.

The rest passes in a blur as I fight to keep my emotions under control. Both Lucian and I are silent as she finishes up and leaves the room for me to dress. I begin to sit up, preparing to get off the table, when Lucian suddenly envelops me in his arms. “I love you so much, Lia,” he rasps in my ear as he lovingly drops one hand to cradle my stomach. “Did you hear our baby’s heart beating?” he asks in wonder.

I can only nod, my throat too tight to get a word out. We sit there for another few moments, holding each other until I say, “I need to get dressed before she comes back to get us.” Even though my sheet is barely covering the essentials by that point, Lucian doesn’t make a sexual comment. We’re both struggling to get our emotions under control.

I have just buttoned my pants when a nurse leads us to the laboratory. There is no sign of Brittany. She takes some blood, before recording my weight. Finally, we’re settled in an exam room and wait for the doctor. “That was intense.” Lucian sighs and I know he’s talking about the ultrasound. “I went once with Cassie, but it was different. Truthfully, things were pretty bad between us by then and I was preoccupied with everything that was going on with her. She resented being pregnant so much that she didn’t enjoy seeing the baby, nor did she want me to either.”

“Oh, Luc.” I run my hand over his face, trying to soothe the sudden tightness in his jaw. “I know this baby can’t take the place of the one you lost, but we’ll be together for this every step of the way. There is no one else I would rather be the father of my child than you.”

He kisses me tenderly. When he pulls back, he gives me a lopsided smile. “I’m sorry for bringing that up. This wasn’t the time or place for that.”

“Luc, I don’t care where we are. I always want you to feel free to share your pain with me. Of course, things bring back memories. You don’t have to hide that from me.”

We’re wrapped up in each other, oblivious to the world, when a throat clears behind us. A woman in a white coat stands smiling at us. She looks to be in her late forties or early fifties. She has long, dark hair with some silver threaded through. “I’m Dr. Sitton, and you must be Lia and Lucian.” Lucian releases his hold on me to take her hand. She tells us that Dr. Kay has sent her a copy of my chart and she’s reviewed it. Lucian takes a seat beside me, clasping my hand lightly. “Everything looks good on the ultrasound. The baby measures perfectly and I don’t see any cause for concern.” The visit is rather anticlimactic after the ultrasound. She instructs us to make an appointment for next month and then points to the front desk to checkout.

From the swift intake of breath and tensing of his arm around my waist, it seems my alpha male is again preparing to rear his head when the receptionist gives me the payment schedule. “This is an estimate of the cost of the medical care for your pregnancy. This includes your monthly visits as well as a standard delivery. The hospital will bill you separately for costs incurred in their facility.” She gives me a sympathetic look as she circles a number on the paper. “Since you don’t have insurance, this will be your monthly payment amount.”

Lucian abruptly pulls out his wallet and hands her his black American Express card. “Charge the full amount to this, please. We don’t need a payment plan.” She picks up the card gingerly, as if expecting it to bite. From the look on her face, apparently this is an unusual occurrence. “Just let us know if there are additional charges and they’ll be taken care of in full,” he adds as she returns his card to him.

Clearing her throat, she stammers out, “Of course, sir.” I can’t help but roll my eyes as she recovers from her shock and begins gushing over him like some groupie. The sex appeal of Lucian Quinn appears to be far-reaching and all consuming.  Without even bothering to look at me, she gives him a dazzling smile and says, “If I can help you with anything else at all, please let me know.” To his credit, he doesn’t even bother to give her one of his panty-melting smiles in return. Dear God, if he had, she’d probably have taken her clothes off right there.

“Oh, brother,” I grumble as he leads me out the door with a hand on the small of my back.

“What’s that, babe?” he asks as he opens my door and helps me inside.

“All of those women in there were thinking nothing but dirty thoughts about you,” I say crossly. Even though I’m barely even showing now, I still feel like his fat, pregnant girlfriend. He’s so unbelievably hot and I’m going to be a whale in another few months. Brittany probably only eats lettuce leaves…the bitch.