Riley came around and helped her out of the car and cupped his hand under her elbow as they walked up the flight of concrete steps to his apartment.
Once they reached the top, Riley unlocked the door. Shoving it open, he turned to Hannah and without a word calmly lifted her into his arms.
Taken by surprise, she let out a small cry of alarm. "Riley," she pleaded, "put me down. I'm too heavy."
"Let me assure you, Hannah Murdock, you weigh next to nothing." With that he ceremoniously carried her over the threshold, gently depositing her in the leather recliner.
Hannah smiled at him, a little breathlessly, although he'd been the one to do all the work. This man was full of surprises. All week she'd been convinced she was marrying a monster, but Riley had gone out of his way to prove otherwise. Perhaps this marriage had a chance to survive, after all.
Riley turned on the television and reached for the evening paper and, after a few minutes, Hannah excused herself and began unpacking a few of her things. Since they would be moving within a matter of days, she only removed items she'd be needing.
Since Riley seemed wrapped up in something on television, she decided to bathe. The water was warm and soothing, and as she rested her head against the back of the tub, she traced her index finger over her stomach. There was no evidence her body was nurturing a child – at least not yet – but she hadn't reached the fourth month of her pregnancy. The doctor had told her to expect to feel movement at any time, and the prospect thrilled her.
When she'd finished, she dressed in a thick flannel gown and brushed her hair away from her face. Riley was still in the living room, sitting on the edge of his cushion, punching his arms back and forth. She noticed he was watching a boxing match, and she cringed inwardly.
He must have noticed her, because he reached for the television control and turned down the volume. His eyes widened as he assessed her.
"Is something wrong?" she asked, glancing down at herself.
"You normally wear that to bed?"
"Yes." He made it sound as if she'd donned sackcloth and ashes.
He nodded and punched the control, turning up the volume. "Then my guess is Junior will be an only child."
Hannah bristled; then, not knowing what else to do, sat down and tucked her feet under her. The fight taking place on the television screen was violent, with two boxers slugging it out as though they had every intention of badly maiming each other. Hannah winced and closed her eyes several times.
"Why would anyone fight like that?" she asked during a commercial break.
"Ten million might have something to do with it."
"Ten million dollars?" Hannah was incredulous. Standing, she looked around for something else to do.
She walked into the kitchen and poured herself a glass of water. The evening paper was on the floor next to Riley's chair. She picked it up and read through it.
"Would you like to go to church with me tomorrow?" she invited.
"No." His eyes didn't stray from the screen.
She set the paper aside and yawned.
"Go ahead and go to bed. I'll wake you when I come in."
Hannah was skeptical, but the fight was only in the sixth round and it looked as if it could continue for a good long while. "You don't mind?"
"Not in the least," he answered, and waved her toward the bedroom.