Chapter 8

"Of all the-!" CC was so annoyed she couldn't even finish her thought.

Niles shook his head. "I'm sorry they found out like that, my dear. I could strangle Miss Fine."

CC had only rarely heard him speak a negative word about Nanny Fine, and she glanced at him, surprised and gratified. "Well, she has the biggest mouth of anyone I know. I can't say I'm surprised. If only I could have vomited more quietly," she said dryly.

Niles smirked. "Though she could have done it more subtly, my mother does raise a good question. When are you going to make an honest man of me, Babcock?" He spoke evenly, but CC could hear the uncertainty behind his question.

"Oh, Niles," she said, and sat beside him on the bed. "Marriage isn't something I've ever wanted."

Niles drew back from her. "Never?" He asked.

"You've met my parents. Their marriage was—less than ideal. Their relationship, before and after the divorce, made us all miserable. I'm not subjecting our child to that." She spoke with conviction and hoped he would drop the subject.

"But we're not our parents. You know my family's story too—the duchess, the divorce—we don't have to be like them."

"We don't have to be, but what are the chances we would be very different? I don't need a piece of paper to know how I feel about you or to be committed to our relationship." The last part she said haltingly; she had not yet come to enjoy discussions of her feelings, and she didn't anticipate that she ever would.

"But it would be more respectable, wouldn't it? I don't want people gossiping about you or our child."

CC narrowed her eyes. "I don't give a damn what people say about me, and I'll end anyone who makes a rude comment about the baby. And besides, we're not living in the 1950s. Society has become more understanding about different kinds of families."

"It's about—" Niles swallowed. "Is this about the difference in our social stations?"

CC looked at him in disbelief. "I would have no qualms about making you sign a prenup, if that's what you mean." She grinned at him and placed her hand on his chest. "Niles, I want you. I don't want the trappings of what our divorced parents find acceptable. You're already an honest enough man for me," she teased, stroking gently over his heart.

He rested his hand over hers. "If you're sure," he said, some doubt remaining in his tone.

"I'm sure. And I'll do my level best to convince you," she said, her voice dropping as she leaned in and touched his lips with her own. Niles pushed up against her, deepening the kiss, until CC remembered why they were currently in a bed in the Cardiac Care Unit. She pulled away reluctantly. "I made your mother leave so you could get some rest. Now get some rest."

She moved to stand up, but he pulled her back. "I can't rest without you beside me," he murmured.

CC curled into him, stretching out on the narrow bed as she kicked her shoes off. "Better?" She whispered.

"Much," he responded, and wrapped his arm around her before closing his eyes.

Much like the previous day, CC was startled awake once again by the voice of Dr. Nash. "Mr. and Mrs. Babcock?" He said inquisitively.

CC groaned and shifted. As she moved her leg, nestled between Niles's, he, too, groaned, though his problem was not aching muscles.

The doctor cleared his throat. "Have I come at a bad time?" He asked, amusement coloring his tone.

CC sat up in one effortless motion and adjusted Niles's blanket to cover him as best as she could. "Dr. Nash, hello. We were trying to catch up on rest. How are the latest test results?"

"Very promising. I think you're perfectly ready to go home, if you are prepared to alter your diet and exercise regimen. The diet needs to change immediately, and you should get plenty of rest for the next couple of weeks, then begin to exercise."

"I'm certainly prepared, doctor," Niles said, taking CC's hand. "When can we leave?"

"Well, we have some paperwork to complete, but I think you should be out of here well before dinner."

CC squeezed Niles's hand. "Do you have some information for us on the diet and exercise changes?" She asked the doctor.

"Indeed we do. The nurse will bring it in and go over it with you before you leave."

CC stood and extended her hand. "Thank you, Dr. Nash. I don't know what I'd have done without the old coot."

The doctor smiled at her. "Well, I'm glad he's on the mend. And I understand congratulations are due to you both?"

CC suppressed a sigh. News had clearly traveled fast. "Thank you," she said, and Niles echoed her, grinning proudly.

An hour and a half later, CC had called Max and arranged to use the limo to take Niles back to the penthouse. She stood near the curb, chatting with the driver, as she waited for Niles to be pushed to the door in a wheelchair. Finally she spotted him, and her heart leapt. Thank god he was going to be all right. She couldn't bear to contemplate the other ways this might have ended.

She strode to the doorway and extended a hand to him. "Come on, let's go home," she said, and Niles quirked his lips at her. He took her hand and they walked slowly to the limo. The driver held the door, and CC slid in first, followed by Niles.

As she contemplated the rest of the evening, CC began to regret involving Max in their homecoming. If she hadn't let him know Niles was leaving the hospital, perhaps she could have postponed the inevitable descent of their motley family until the following day.

That mother of Niles's—CC wasn't going to tolerate any more unsolicited comments from her. You're stuck with the mother-in-law whether you're married or not, she thought ruefully, and rested her head on Niles's shoulder for the rest of the ride as she contemplated how to cut the woman off at the knees.

Niles, for his part, had noticed the narrowing of CC's eyes soon after they got into the limo, and correctly interpreted her thoughts. At the very least, he suspected that his mother might have finally met her match.