Chapter 5

Chase doesn't make eye contact with me often. In fact, I'm not sure he ever makes eye contact with anyone. But he just held my gaze for a solid five seconds, and I think my heart fell all the way down to my toes. It's hard to tell if he's completely oblivious to his effect on me, if he's ignoring it entirely, or if he actually likes seeing me drool in his presence.

When Chase walks down the hall, I can't help but follow his movements. He's built like a tree—strong and sturdy. I haven't climbed a tree in years, but I'd make an exception for him.

His hunter green joggers outline his thighs where I know he sports a tattoo. I've never seen the entire thing; though, I imagine it goes higher than he wants my eyes to see. His arms start to pull his white t-shirt off before he's even in his bedroom, giving me a split second where I get a glimpse of the muscle definition on his back. His broad shoulders take up nearly all the space as he walks through his doorway and I'm practically panting over my cup of coffee.

"Ahem!" Abby comes up beside me, knocking her hip into mine. "Am I interrupting?" she asks in a playful tone.

"Just admiring. The usual," I reply.

I've always appreciated that she's never been weirded out by my everlasting crush on her brother. When we were younger we'd always talk about how much fun it would be if Chase and I were married because that would make us sisters, but truth be told, Abby is already my sister. She's the closest thing I've ever had to a sibling with me being an only child. Having Abby, I never really felt like I missed out on not having a brother or sister. I went on family vacations with them often, we spent holidays together sometimes, and when my parents had to travel for work I'd stay at her house for weeks at a time. All of that time around Chase is likely part of the reason I developed feelings for him, but part of me believes it was inevitable.

"I think I'll get going. I'm sure he saw enough of me last night." I reach for my purse just when he's walking down the hall back into the living room and my thighs press together as he shakes the excess water from his hair. It's like a knee jerk reaction at this point when I see him. Stare, get turned on, leave immediately, and pretend it didn't happen.

Of course he'd come out shirtless and wearing athletic shorts that barely keep his legs contained. Tree trunks, I swear.

"I was just heading out, I'll see you later." I try to rush out but Abby grabs my attention.

"Wait, wait." She waves her hand.

"While you're both here, it's probably good to talk to you at the same time." Abby takes a seat at the kitchen island and Chase follows her lead. I eye her suspiciously before putting my purse down on the white marble counter and leaning my elbows on the cool surface.

"What's up?" Chase asks, taking a sip from his water.

"I don't want to make this into a whole thing, but my schedule is about to change a little, Chase. Although, I'm here to bring you a problem with a solution. I'm not totally sure if either of you will go for this. I mean, I didn't really even want to suggest it at first, but I think it's the best option. And well, the solution involves you, Summer, so that's why I need you both here." Abby twists her wedding band on her finger and sighs.

"Okay, so Ford and I were referred to a fertility clinic." She clears her throat before she goes on, and Chase leans over to check that CeCe is still asleep. "We've been trying for over a year to have a baby and it hasn't happened yet, so we're hoping that the doctors will be able to help. We're both in the beginning stages, just getting bloodwork done and I've done an ultrasound, but still need to do a handful of more tests. They're really thorough and it makes me feel hopeful. So far, everything has looked fine, but like I said, there's still a few things to test."

"Okay… and if things look normal so far, what do they think is going on?" Chase leans forward.

Abby sucks in a deep breath before exhaling. "It could mean a number of things. I mean, just because things so far look okay doesn't mean the next test will say the same. I guess right now we still just don't have a reason as to why we aren't getting pregnant. I'm almost wanting something to come back that will give us a reason, you know? Being told it's just unexplained infertility might be harder to wrap my head around. But we'll see with all the testing and then of course, they will have some suggestions either way."

Abby seems optimistic. Even though I know deep down she's anxious about it. I can't even imagine how she's feeling.

"What are their suggestions? If they've told you," I ask.

"There are a number of things we can try, anything from different medications all the way to IUI or IVF. Ford and I both really like the team of doctors we've been seeing, so we feel comfortable and confident in their advice. This office is highly rated and recommended by so many people." The green in Abby's eyes deepen as she looks to her brother. I suspected that she might be seeking out a specialist, but I know this is all new information to Chase.

"I didn't know…" Chase says, almost in a whisper. His brows crease as he looks up at her and she tilts her head slightly, her lips curving into a small smile. "I'm sorry. I didn't know," he repeats, and it's not lost on me that Abby's eyes are tearing up.

Knowing Abby, telling Chase was probably hard for her. She looks at him and sees her dad. He's a direct reflection of him and I think in some ways sharing that with Chase feels like she's telling him.

"No, it's all right. How could you?" She laughs lightly. "We didn't want to share anything until we had more of an idea on what was going on. But pivoting to my reason for telling you both together… With more testing and the possibility of procedures taking place, I just wanted to make sure you weren't completely blindsided. I know how… particular you are, Chase, about who is with CeCe."

I snicker at her word choice, glancing in Chase's direction and he immediately gives me a side eye.

"I'm suggesting that you let Summer help you. She isn't a stranger, she's in the medical field, you know she's good with CeCe." Abby folds her hands in front of her like she's a mediator.

"Summer?" he gapes, jerking his head in my direction, and I can't stop the eye roll from happening. I expected as much.

Abby gives him an encouraging nod.

"I don't know. I can probably figure something else out for the days you aren't free, Ab. No offense, Kincaid," he says, one hand running through his damp hair.

"Your call." I shrug. "But you can trust me, you know. I love CeCe, and if you need the help…" I trail off, watching the wheels internally spin in his head as he thinks about this.

He scoffs, but Abby jumps in.

"He does need the help," she says firmly through a smile.

There's a stress line already forming at the corners of his eyes and a vein in his forehead that might explode if he actually has to agree. And as I'm staring at him, I know he's trying to come to terms with the fact that I'm his best option. He doesn't trust easily—or at all, actually. He has a good reason for it, so I don't blame him. But one of these days, that'll have to change.

"Well, you think about it then," I casually say, grabbing my purse. "I'm a nurse, so I know all the things. Well, not all the things, but you know… I know things."

His eyes narrow and I know my poorly worded sentence doesn't give him a whole lot of confidence.

"Let me rephrase that so I sound like a competent adult who is able to watch your child… I'm happy to help. And we both know that this is important for Abby. Don't be stubborn right now."

He knows I'm right. I wouldn't be this pushy with just anyone, but I love Abby and I know how badly she wants this. Helping him out is also in a way helping her. She doesn't need the added stress of trying to cater to her brother's needs all the time.

Both hands skim his hair for the third time and he leans back in the stool as he sighs, nodding his head at Abby and then looking at me.

"So, you'd be like a nanny?" He cringes at the word, and I nearly do the same, shaking my head back and forth.

"No, oh God, no. I have a job that I love and I don't want your money. You let me know when you need help and I'll help. Just like Abby does. I usually know the days I work pretty far in advance, so we'll work it out from there." Feeling Chase's glare nearly burning through me, I risk looking directly at him.

I understand this isn't ideal for him, but he had to know that Abby wasn't a long term solution. Plus, her reason for being unavailable isn't something she can really control. His reservations are warranted, but whatever I need to do to earn his trust, I'll do it. And I really enjoy being with CeCe. She's fun and silly and she's creative and it makes me feel like I can be those things too, even though I'm twenty-eight and should probably be opening up an IRA… or at the very least, figuring out what that is and why I need it.

No one has said a word in what feels like the longest thirty seconds ever and the house is quiet as we're all gathered around the island. Both of us glancing at Abby as if we're waiting for her to say something, anything.

Chase's body is stiff, giving away his reluctance, but this actually might be good for him. It might help him loosen up a little bit and learn to let himself lean on someone else for help every now and then. It might backfire for me, of course. Spending more time around him with my track record will probably only make me fall even more in love with him. But I've grown used to admiring from afar, so what's another decade of being in love with someone I can never have?

"Fine," he says with a sigh. "We'll try it out."

"Great, my next appointment is Wednesday afternoon, so I can be here in the morning and then Summer, if you can take over?" Abby perks up with our verbal agreement in place.

"I'm already off on Wednesday, so… I guess I'll see you then, boss."

"Don't call me that." Chase's head spins so fast to scold me and a feeling of excitement spurs at the edge in his voice.