She was finding it hard to breathe. She fought for air, but it was as if her lungs didn 't know what to do with it.

Sam set down the cheesecake and placed his hands on her shoulders. "Now calm down. Don '1t hyperventilate on me. I 've been known to be wrong in my life. So if I 've said something that "

"I am pregnant. " It was only the second time she 'd said it aloud to anyone and it wasn 't getting any easier.

"Okay, okay. Well no need to get worked up. "

"You cannot tell anyone. "

He laughed and loosened his grip. "You have about three weeks before I won 't have to. "

"This is not a joke. " She stood and rushed to the bathroom.

Sam followed her and when she looked up from the sink where she washed away his practical joke he was standing there leaning against the doorjamb, his arms crossed over his chest, and a smirk on his face.

"Curtis 's baby? "

"That is none of your business. "

He held his hands up in surrender. "Whatever, honey. Point is, his baby or not, if you 're gonna be cooking him dinners like the one you did tonight, he 'll want to know. "

Simone took shallow breaths and tried to remain calm. Sam meant her no harm. Perhaps if she told someone, even Sam, she 'd feel better about it.

"It happened on the yacht after Carlos 's wedding to Kathy, before he married Madeline. "

"Uh-huh. " He nodded crossing his arms again.

"I love him. I fell in love with him in one week. "

"That happens all the time. "

"Not to me. " She looked at herself in the mirror. At that moment she hardly recognized herself. "I left him stranded in the ocean on my father 's yacht. "

"Your father has a yacht? "

She snapped her head toward him. He had no idea who she was. He 'd put as much faith in her as she 'd put in him.

Simone nodded. "I am the heir to Pierpont Oil -or at least I was. "

"No kidding. " His eyes grew wide. "What the heck are you doing in Nashville then? There has to be somewhere better for you to live than here. "

She shook her head. "My father cut me off from his empire when I told him I was pregnant. "

"Oh. "

"I have nothing. "

Sam moved into the bathroom and pulled her into his arms. Her head rested below his breast bone and his enormous arms could have wrapped around her twice.

"Listen, I 'm not going to tell a soul. This is for you to deal with. " He stepped back, but kept his hands on her arms. "But listen, you need to be taken care of. Have you seen a doctor? "

"Once, just for confirmation. "

He shook his head. "That isn 't going to cut it. You need to have a checkup. "

"I cannot risk Curtis or his family or Cynthia knowing yet. I am not ready. "

He rubbed her arms. "Ready or not you 're having a baby. " He dropped his hands and took a step back. "Listen, tomorrow let 's just take a look, okay? Nothing invading, we 'll take our lunch in the ultrasound room and I 'll look and see how the baby is doing. "

Simone bit down on the inside of her cheek to force herself to keep her composure. "You would do that for me? "

"Of course. "

This time she reached for him and wrapped her arms around his waist. "Thank you. "

"Are you going to tell him? "

Simone stepped back and looked up at him. "I tried tonight, but he was called out. "

"That 's going to happen a lot. "

"Cynthia said he lov1ed his job, I just hadn 't realized how much. "

Sam reached up to her hair and pulled a lingering piece of cheesecake off of a loose strand. "I really don 't know Curtis at all, but I know Cynthia thinks the world of him, so he must be a good person. I think he would do right by you. "

"I want him to love me. "

Sam laughed a hearty laugh. "I saw you two on the dance floor last night. He digs you. "

"I want more than that. "

He reached across to her and rested his hand on her tight stomach. "You have more than that. Give him a chance. "

Simone cleaned up again headed back to the living room to watch the movies with her very understanding roommate.

He 'd cleaned up the cheesecake and was nursing another beer. She sat down next to him and kicked up her feet.

"Now you look right at home. " He lifted his arm and wrapped it around her shoulders as she yawned. "You 're not going to make it through all these movies, are you? "

Simone leaned into him and rested her head against his chest. "Are you? "

"Eh, I fall asleep here all the time. " He reached around her with his free hand and pulled the small throw of the back of the couch. He covered her with it as she yawned again. "You know if you 're far enough along we can find out the baby 's sex. "

She sighed. "I will think about it. "

Sam kissed the top of her head and she closed her eyes. A weight had lifted from her shoulders by openly talking to Sam about the baby. Perhaps everything would be okay tomorrow. She 'd let Sam do the ultrasound. And then she was most certainly going to tell Curtis.

Curtis was exhausted. He 'd seen almost one hundred patients in the past three hours and had busted his butt to get back to Simone.

Now he stood at her front door, looking in the small window that peered into the apartment. He wasn 't sure what he 'd seen unfold, but Simone had sat down on the couch in her pajamas, Sam had gathered her up in his arms, covered her w1ith a blanket and kissed her head before she fell asleep on his chest.

His jaw hurt from gritting his teeth. Same old Simone, hopping from one man to the other, playing them all for fools. She 'd stabbed him in the heart and reeled him back in again only to cozy up with the nurse. Damn he 'd been stupid.

Well fire was fought with fire.

Curtis hurried down the front steps, climbed into his truck, and sped toward Cynthia 's house.

Chapter Twelve

Cynthia wasn 't happy when she pulled open the door, that much was for sure by the look in her eyes, which she 'd obviously pried open from a deep sleep. But Curtis didn 't care.

He quickly moved in, swept her into his arms and took possession of her mouth with his. He kicked closed the front door and a moment later had her pushed up against the wall. He 'd taken her by surprise, but that was when sex with Cynthia was most fun, when it was unexpected.