rock and a hard place . Nothing she could think of to do made any sense to her.
Maybe the best plan of action was to do nothing at all and pretend that it had never happened, she decided, as she leaned back and settled herself as comfortably as she could for remainder of the drive to the Hunter homestead. That way she could pretend that the relationship she and Taine shared was a professional one and nothing more – and that it had never been anything more.
Ignoring their past relationship, and his blatant attempt to revive the sexual side of it, seemed like the only possible thing to do. She could tell herself that she tolerated his presence only because his father was her patient, and that his nearness did not make her heart beat wildly in her chest, her face flush and her breath catch in her throat.
If she simply ignored everything they had once been to each other, she could pretend they had nothing in common, that they shared nothing.
Especially not a child.
Her eyes misted over as she thought of Aroha, the joy of her life. How close she had come to not having her. How close she had come to giving away the happiness and the light that Aroha had brought into her life.
She and Taine had never intended to have a child together. As young and in love as they had been, they had never planned on becoming parents. They talked endlessly about college, careers, even building a future together, but never about parenthood.
Falling pregnant had certainly been the last thing on her mind, or she might have had the good sense to take better precautions.
She shivered, despite the warmth in the Jeep. The day she discovered she was carrying a child was vividly imprinted on her mind...
The summer holidays were drawing to a close , but the weather was still bright and warm. She lay in her narrow truckle bed, a light cotton sheet pulled over her to discourage mosquitoes, lightly dozing in the early morning sunshine. There were so few days of summer left and she needed to savor every moment of every day that remained. If she could have one wish here and now, it would be that this glorious summer would never end.
Three more days of heaven, and she had to leave for Wellington to start her university course, while Taine would be heading off down south to finish his agricultural studies.
She knew that she had to leave, for his sake as much as for hers, but that did not stop the hurt or the wanting.
She smiled as she thought of Taine, her beautiful Taine, with his golden brown body and the way his face crinkled when he laughed. She adored every inch of him more than she could ever say. He was so good to her, so kind and loving, that she would do anything for him. Anything at all. She loved him so much that sometimes it made her stomach hurt just from loving him.
And for his sake, she had to make him go and complete his last year of study. He had a great career in front of him. He was the smartest and most capable person she had ever met. He could do anything he wanted to do, and be anything he wanted to be. It would not be fair to him to keep hold of him, to drag him back from achieving whatever he wanted to achieve.
She sighed as she thought how willing he was to give up so much for her. He had tried to convince her that he should give up his studies at Lincoln College and transfer to the university in Wellington to be near her, but she had talked him out of it.
She would have followed him to Lincoln if she could have, but it was out of the question. Competition for places there was fierce and she had left it too late to apply, even if her less than stellar marks at school might have won her entry. She would go to Victoria University, get her degree and make him proud of her that way. Her ambitions did not stretch any further than that.
Three more days. How she hated to count down the hours they had left until they had to go their separate
Maybe the best plan of action was to do nothing at all and pretend that it had never happened, she decided, as she leaned back and settled herself as comfortably as she could for remainder of the drive to the Hunter homestead. That way she could pretend that the relationship she and Taine shared was a professional one and nothing more – and that it had never been anything more.
Ignoring their past relationship, and his blatant attempt to revive the sexual side of it, seemed like the only possible thing to do. She could tell herself that she tolerated his presence only because his father was her patient, and that his nearness did not make her heart beat wildly in her chest, her face flush and her breath catch in her throat.
If she simply ignored everything they had once been to each other, she could pretend they had nothing in common, that they shared nothing.
Especially not a child.
Her eyes misted over as she thought of Aroha, the joy of her life. How close she had come to not having her. How close she had come to giving away the happiness and the light that Aroha had brought into her life.
She and Taine had never intended to have a child together. As young and in love as they had been, they had never planned on becoming parents. They talked endlessly about college, careers, even building a future together, but never about parenthood.
Falling pregnant had certainly been the last thing on her mind, or she might have had the good sense to take better precautions.
She shivered, despite the warmth in the Jeep. The day she discovered she was carrying a child was vividly imprinted on her mind...
The summer holidays were drawing to a close , but the weather was still bright and warm. She lay in her narrow truckle bed, a light cotton sheet pulled over her to discourage mosquitoes, lightly dozing in the early morning sunshine. There were so few days of summer left and she needed to savor every moment of every day that remained. If she could have one wish here and now, it would be that this glorious summer would never end.
Three more days of heaven, and she had to leave for Wellington to start her university course, while Taine would be heading off down south to finish his agricultural studies.
She knew that she had to leave, for his sake as much as for hers, but that did not stop the hurt or the wanting.
She smiled as she thought of Taine, her beautiful Taine, with his golden brown body and the way his face crinkled when he laughed. She adored every inch of him more than she could ever say. He was so good to her, so kind and loving, that she would do anything for him. Anything at all. She loved him so much that sometimes it made her stomach hurt just from loving him.
And for his sake, she had to make him go and complete his last year of study. He had a great career in front of him. He was the smartest and most capable person she had ever met. He could do anything he wanted to do, and be anything he wanted to be. It would not be fair to him to keep hold of him, to drag him back from achieving whatever he wanted to achieve.
She sighed as she thought how willing he was to give up so much for her. He had tried to convince her that he should give up his studies at Lincoln College and transfer to the university in Wellington to be near her, but she had talked him out of it.
She would have followed him to Lincoln if she could have, but it was out of the question. Competition for places there was fierce and she had left it too late to apply, even if her less than stellar marks at school might have won her entry. She would go to Victoria University, get her degree and make him proud of her that way. Her ambitions did not stretch any further than that.
Three more days. How she hated to count down the hours they had left until they had to go their separate
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