Free Deceived by Thayer King Page A

dropped her off after the doctor’s appointment. Aidan had been at his most charming and since then, Dionne had been firmly in his corner.
    “Yes. He texted that yogurt is supposed to be really healthy for me and the baby. He also suggested a book on pregnancy that he thought I might find informative.”
    “And you’re not marrying this guy, why?”
    Janelle fiddled with the papers on her desk before answering. “After Jerome, how can I trust my judgment? I knew him far longer than I’ve known Aidan and look at what a fiasco that was.” And remained to be , Janelle thought. Jerome continued to call and text her, though she’d long since set her phone to ignore his calls. He left benign messages telling her about his job hunt and saying that he missed her. She still couldn’t understand what his plans had been by setting her up with Aidan. How had he expected them to continue on afterward? She could only conclude that he didn’t have the same values she did and she was glad she’d found it out before she’d done something so foolish as to marry him.
    “We both know I’m not the person to give you advice on long-term relationships. But if you look at his actions, Aidan seems like a good guy.”
    “Didn’t you have a date for drinks last night? How did that go?”
    Dionne shook her head. “Girl, he was a Sagittarius.”
    Janelle frowned. She tried to make logic out of Dionne’s statement, but gave up after only a few seconds. “And that means?”
    “It wouldn’t work.”
    “When did you get into astrology?” The last thing Dionne needed was more reasons to dump a guy.
    “Oh, I’m not.”
    “Then why—”
    “I like guys born in the summer. You know this.”
    “Oh, yes. I forgot.” Dionne had a long list of requirements so it was no wonder she forgot some of the rules on occasion.
    “Back to you. What’s holding you back from saying yes?”
    “It’s so old school to get married because of a baby.”
    Dionne smiled. “But that’s so you.”
    Janelle scoffed and pretended to be offended. “But I’d also like to be in love with my husband.”
    “And you don’t think you could fall in love with him?”
    The question unsettled her. “Yes, yes, I could.” But would he love her in return? He lusted after her. Could it be more? If she could rely on his promises, he intended to stand by her side as long as she needed him.
    “Well, if you’re going to marry him, you’d better do it while you can wear a regular-sized gown.”
    * * * *
    Janelle sat before her laptop searching for fabric for the wedding dress she’d sketched this afternoon. Whether it became her dress or not, she couldn’t get the design off her mind and decided not to discard the dress. While she’d eaten her spaghetti dinner, she’d thought of different fabrics and colors. For some reason, she couldn’t get enough spaghetti these days. She’d had it for dinner every night for a week.
    Though the design was not traditional, ideally, she wanted an ivory satin and lace. Her cell rang. She glanced at the clock on the screen and smiled. Picking up her cell, she accepted the call. “Hello, Aidan.”
    “Hello, Janelle. I hope I didn’t disturb you. Are you in bed?”
    “No. I was…searching online for fabrics.” She hadn’t made her decision yet and she didn’t want to raise his hopes. He’d been very patient with her. She appreciated that he wasn’t pressuring her about marriage.
    “How are you doing? Do you need anything?”
    Janelle bit her lip. She did have a craving for strawberry ice cream, the kind with real frozen berries in the mix, but she was hesitant to ask Aidan for favors. “No, I’m fine.”
    “You paused,” he pounced. “What is it? What do you want?”
    “It’s too much of a bother. I’m out of ice cream. I’ll buy some tomorrow on the way home.”
    “What kind of ice cream? What brand?”
    “No, really—”
    “Janelle, I’m doing this for you. Tell me the brand.”
    Forty minutes later,