“I agree, but the not knowing is probably making it more stressful. Besides, you’ve learned not to hide from your troubles, so it’s important for you not to return to old habits.”

“You’re right, but I’m not hiding from it, I promise. It’s just that once the possibility is confirmed, I won’t be able to keep it from Mason. And I can’t deal with that and everything else at the same time. Just give me a week or so. If it’s still an issue, I’ll take the test.” I told him about how I wanted the baby to be loved and wanted from the moment I found out for sure.

“Rose, plenty of babies have led wonderful childhoods after being accidently conceived. The baby surely won’t know the difference.”

“I know,” I said, twisting the hem of my shirt. “But I want to want it when I find out.” I looked up at him. “Is that so wrong?”

“No.” He smiled softly. “It sounds very much like you. Besides, a week or so won’t make a difference in the scheme of things. So which problem is most pressing?”

“What’s going on between Violet and me has been brewing for some time. I’m not gonna fix that in a few days. If at all.”

“I agree you won’t be able to resolve it that quickly, but where there’s love, there’s always hope. And despite it all, you still love each other.”

It was hard to admit at that moment, especially if she’d set a course to singlehandedly financially destroy me, but I did love her. “So what’s left is the money. That seems so wrong.”

“No, Rose, it’s not the money. It’s your business. Your heart and soul. You didn’t just start the nursery for Violet, but even if that was your primary motivation, you love it now. It gives you a purpose that’s all your own, separate from Joe and Mason and even Violet, despite the fact that she shares it with you. You love landscaping and you’re good at it. And let’s not forget Bruce Wayne.”

I closed my eyes. “He can find another job if need be. Mason will give him a recommendation to go along with my own. The assistant DA standing up for a man with a criminal record should help, right?”

“Working with you isn’t just a job for Bruce Wayne, Rose. It gives him a purpose too. For the first time in his life, he feels like he belongs somewhere. Just like you do.” His hand covered my upper arm. “The money is just part of the bigger picture. You’re fighting to give all three of you a purpose.”

I shifted my gaze to him. “Three?”

“Violet. She needs this too, even if you don’t want to hear that right now.”

He was right. But what Violet needed was the last thing I wanted to think about. I’d much rather focus on helping Bruce Wayne and me. “Okay.”

I shook my head. “You know Mason loves you even if he hasn’t said it yet. He’d do anything to help you. Perhaps you should shelve your pride and ask him for help.”

“You’re right about my pride—it would kill me to ask him for help, but even if I conquered that, asking him wouldn’t do any good.”

Jonah tipped his head back. “You’re not insinuating he wouldn’t help you, are you?”

“No, not at all. I’m saying he can’t help me.” I sighed. “Between paying off his student loans and his legal troubles over what happened with his sister’s murderer—not to mention the fact that he paid for her funeral expenses—he doesn’t have anything to help me with. He doesn’t even have the money to move out of my farmhouse until his insurance company cuts him a check.” I put my hand on Jonah’s arm. “But he’s a proud man, so please don’t tell him I told you.”

“Of course not.” Jonah gave me a soft smile. “You know what we talk about is confidential.”

“Before Savannah’s murder he was financially stable—better than stable—and I could tell how hard it was for him to admit the extent of the situation to me. He’d hate for anyone else to know. Which is something I can’t explain to Violet, of course.”

“Not to worry. He’ll never know you told me. But he loves you and he’ll want to know what’s going on. At least tell him you’re in trouble.”

I shifted in my seat, my stomach cramping. “I can’t. Not yet. Once he figures out what’s going on, it will devastate him to know he can’t help me. You know him.”

Jonah tapped his finger on the chair arm for several seconds. “I’ll let the subject drop for now, but at least think about how he’s going to feel when he finds out that you kept this from him.”

“I’m not going to keep it from him indefinitely. Besides, we might figure something out.”

Jonah’s silence was answer enough.

There was a knock on the door and Jonah said, “Come in.”

A pretty blond poked her head in the doorway and her smile widened as her starry-eyed gaze landed on the minister. “Jonah, your next appointment showed up early. What would you like me to do?”

“Tell Mr. Smeller I’ll be right with him, Jessica,” Jonah said. “We’ll be done here in a few moments.”

When she shut the door, I grinned. “Why don’t you just ask her out already?”

Jonah looked like an opossum caught by a flashlight in the backyard. “What are you talking about?”

My mouth gaped. “You seriously don’t know that poor girl has a crush on you?”