The Baby Surprise by Brenda Harlen Page B

any time Emma is even out of your sight.”
    She couldn’t deny it was true. “I don’t know you well enough to trust you yet,” she reminded him. “Maybe staying under the same roof will change that.”
    â€œThen I’ll accept the offer,” he said. “Because I know you have no reason to want to help me and all kinds of reasons not to.”
    â€œI’m doing it for Emma,” she said. “Because if it turnsout that you are her father, I want her to have a relationship with you.”
    â€œDo you really still doubt that I am?”
    â€œIt doesn’t matter what I think. It only matters what the DNA test reveals.”
    â€œHow long did you say it would take to get the results?”
    â€œBecause we’re using a private lab, probably not more than a week or ten days.”
    â€œWhen did you say we can get it done?”
    â€œCameron said he can squeeze us in right after lunch on Monday.”
    â€œThat would be good,” Zach said.
    For him, maybe. Paige would prefer to do the test…never. But that was an emotional and selfish response. This wasn’t about her and the potential repercussions for her life—it was about Emma, and she truly did want what was best for Olivia’s daughter.
    â€œI’ll head over to the B and B now to settle up and be back here in about an hour. Then—” he glanced at Emma, who was sitting in an Elmo chair and turning the thick pages of a favorite book “—maybe I can take Emma to the p-a-r-k.”
    Although Paige knew logically that a fourteen-month-old with a very limited vocabulary couldn’t possibly spell, she also knew that Emma had an unerring instinct about some things, which she proved when her head shot up in response to Zach’s comment. “Pawk?”
    Zach’s brows lifted. Paige shrugged.
    â€œLater,” he promised.
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    Later, when Zach and Emma had gone to the park, Ashley brought a plate of frosted brownies over to Paige.
    â€œI had a craving,” she offered the explanation along with the squares.
    â€œThank you.” Paige’s mouth was already watering and hergratitude was sincere. “But how does your craving lead to me getting brownies?”
    Ashley followed her into the kitchen. “Because I satisfied my craving, and because it will be something completely different that I have to have tomorrow, I thought I would share.”
    Paige peeled back the plastic wrap and snuck a square out from under the cover.
    â€œYou could offer me a cup of tea in exchange for the goodies,” Ashley suggested, settling at the table.
    â€œOh. My.” Paige’s eyes closed as she bit into the chocolate and pure bliss exploded on her tongue. “All you want is a cup of tea? I’d be willing to give up one of my kidneys for chocolate this good.”
    Ashley smiled. “Been a while since you had some?”
    They both knew she wasn’t referring to chocolate. Paige popped the rest of the brownie into her mouth as she turned on the tap to fill the kettle. “I’m not even sure I could tell you how long.”
    Her cousin removed the cover from the plate. “Dig in.”
    Paige tossed teabags into the pot and retrieved a couple of mugs from the cupboard before she helped herself to another brownie.
    â€œSpeaking of sex,” Ashley said. “Did I see Zach come in here with a duffel bag?”
    â€œI’m not sure I follow your segue,” Paige said cautiously.
    Her cousin smirked. “You look at Zach Crawford the way a sexually deprived woman looks at a plate of double-chocolate fudge brownies.”
    Paige turned away from her cousin’s knowing gaze to pour boiling water into the teapot. “Hadfield House was booked for the weekend and because Zach is spending most of his time here anyway, it made sense for him to take the spare room.”
    â€œI don’t think it’s a bad idea,” Ashley said.