Baby Buddies: A BWWM Pregnancy Romance Read Free Page A

that she would have to be distant from him often in order to also be with him in those scarce moments of closeness when she remembered why she loved him. It was the reason that Anaya was so desperately looking forward to that evening and having some rare alone time with her boyfriend in a romantic setting. She had even designed a dress for the occasion and spent all weekend bringing it to life. The dress was in that particular shade of blue that Jakob said suited her so well and she was going to wear her hair up in that way he loved because it exposed her slender neck.
    Anaya felt sometimes that perhaps it was her fault that she and Jakob were not as fascinated by each other now as they had been. After all, when he had first met her she had been twenty years old and had been perfect in her youth. She was still young, but her college love for short skirts and too much mascara had been replaced with the demure fashion sense of a sophisticated woman and she wondered if when he looked at her now he still saw her as that sexy young thing she had been, rather than as the dull receptionist she had become. She hoped that this dress would turn back time. It was designed especially for her body and Anaya knew that she looked beautiful in that dress. She couldn’t wait for Jakob to see her in it and for a moment, forget all his own disappointments and remember that he had the affections of a good woman that he had once adored.
    “It sounds to me like you’re trying to convince yourself,” Hannah said knowingly. “Maybe it’s not a case of the spark being gone but that you two just aren’t right for each other.”
    “We’ve been together far too long for that to be true,” Anaya replied. “A relationship doesn’t last eight years if there’s nothing good in it, does it?”
    “I don’t know,” Hannah replied, holding up her hands in a dismissive gesture. “I’ll get back to you after I’ve managed to get someone to be with me for eight years.”
    The day dragged by, but Anaya could smile knowing that at the end of it she would celebrate turning twenty-eight with a man who had put other things aside to be with her. This was the one thing that Anaya craved above everything else in her relationship with Jakob. She simply wanted to be his first choice sometimes. His mind was so often in some physics problem or work issue that he would listen to her in the evening with eyes that quickly glazed over and he would nod and make it seem like he cared, but Anaya could tell that he was always somewhere else. She understood that he had important work and that a man in his position had many things to think about, but she was still excited for a night that was just about her.
    After a long wait, the day was done and Anaya rushed into the office bathroom to get changed. As the silk brushed against her skin and Anaya looked at herself in the bathroom mirror she was even surprised herself at how beautiful she appeared there. She had become so accustomed to dressing for her job at the reception desk and never going out anywhere special that she couldn’t remember the last time she had dressed to impress. It made her smile once more when she thought of Jakob seeing her and maybe feeling lucky to have her for once. Hannah caught sight of Anaya as she was putting on her coat and gasped with admiration.
    “Anaya!” she exclaimed. “You look stunning. Where are you headed?”
    “Jakob is picking me up for dinner and dancing,” Anaya beamed. “Do I look all right?”
    “You look incredible. Jakob is a lucky man.”
    Her words gave Anaya another rush of excitement and she felt her anticipation for Jakob’s arrival growing. When he saw her in that dress, she knew that he wouldn’t be able to tear his eyes away and perhaps, just for once, they could have a lovely evening together like a normal, happy couple rather than as an egoist and his groupie.
    “What’s the occasion?” Hannah asked her.
    “It’s my birthday,” Anaya told