A Tropical Rendezvous: A BWWM Interracial Bad Boy Billionaire Multicultural Romance (African American Romance) (23 page)

“Jack, don’t tease me.”

“But it’s so fun,” he told her and sank the blunt tip inside her wet heat. He groaned as he sank deeper inside her body, her tight sheath squeezing him hard. “Fuckin’ you feels good, Ruby.”

Chills prickled her entire body when he entered her, filling her up and making her feel whole. She squirmed, urging him to move when he seemed perfectly content to sit there as she pulsed around him. “Please,” she moaned again.

“Baby I love it when you beg,” he told her, grinning as he pulled out and thrust back in with gentle force. And then no words were spoken as they both worked hard to please each other. Jack kept up a torturously slow pace that had her climbing the walls she was so mindless with need for him and for what he could do to her body.

Then she felt the tightening of her body, that sweet clench of her core, her feet and her legs and the sensation washed up her body. And then she was falling. It wasn’t a gentle floating descent back to the earth. No, it was a free fall to earth, and she landed with a jarring thud, only to have it start all over as Jack pound his way to orgasm. He grunted and growled, emptying himself deep inside her convulsing body while her body clung to him, sucked him deeper into her and milked him dry. “Hell,” she panted when he finally stilled.

The look in Jack’s eyes softened, and he leaned forward kissing first her belly, and then her mouth.

Ruby looked away, hoping he couldn’t see the tears forming in her eyes.

Chapter Five

Something was wrong with Ruby, and Jack had no idea what but he was terrified he was losing her. Ever since making love nearly a week ago, she’d pulled away and erected more walls around her. Gone was the vibrant girl he’d met hiking inside a national park. Gone was the flirtatious pregnant woman he’d reunited with more than a month ago. In her place was a polite but distant woman during the day and an insatiable wild cat at night. Not that he was complaining about the way they came together every night because each time it was hotter and more explosive. He never imagined pregnant sex would be so hot, but it was.

But he hated that she kept so much of herself from him when he thought they’d made such progress. They needed to talk, but she had her iPod blasting music in the kitchen as she cooked in anticipation of the arrival of his parents. Yesterday the doctor had given her the all clear. Her blood pressure was under control, and the baby would be here in about three weeks. She’d been encouraged not to wear herself out, and she’d promised to do nothing more strenuous than cook and have sex. He smiled at that. She was still a firecracker, and that gave him hope.

“Let me help with that,” he told her and pulled the lamb from the oven for her.

“Thanks,” she muttered and turned to another task. “I thought we’d eat out on the terrace.”

Jack nodded his agreement because what else could he say? She worked hard on this meal for his parents, and he was grateful, but. “Talk to me, Ruby.”

She turned a questioning green gaze on him. “About what?”

He sighed and tried to remove all frustration from his voice. “About what’s going on with you lately. You’ve pulled away from me completely, and I don’t know what I did to piss you off.”

She gave him a sad smile that made him sick to his stomach. “I’m not pissed Jack. I just lost my head for a moment, and I needed to get it twisted on straight.”

“What does that mean?”

She slammed down the spoon she used to mix herbs into a bowl of mashed potatoes and glared up at him. “It means I don’t do love Jack. It’s a sucker’s bet, and it never works out. It literally killed my mom, and I promised I’d never let myself get sucked into something so stupid, but I did. I stupidly fell in love with you, and I’m doing my best to get over it if you don’t mind!” She turned and waddled away as fast as her legs would carry her.

Instead of feeling stunned, Jack smiled. Then he laughed. Only Ruby would think it the end of the world that she’d fallen in love with a man who was a billionaire as well as the father of her child. She was in love with him, reluctantly, but still. It was good news and made the next part of his plan much easier.

~

Dan and Alicia Silver were exactly the parents Ruby wished she’d had growing up. She loved her mother, still did and missed her like crazy, but the Silvers were a team. She’d caught them kissing by the tulips in the yard and felt a pang in her chest. A longing. They bickered over who got the last scoop of mashed potatoes—it had reluctantly gone to Ruby—then they turned around a shared a large slice of chocolate mint cheesecake, feeding each other and flirting. It was incredible to watch. And it hurt like hell.

Watching them after she’d revealed her own feelings to Jack, Ruby was surprised she was able to keep anything down. He hadn’t said anything about it; then again she hadn’t given him a chance to. She’d stomped off like a child. Now all she felt was empty. Hollow. And his parents had only arrived thirty minutes ago, which meant she had a few more hours of pretending her heart wasn’t dying inside.

“What do you do for a living, Ruby?”

She smiled and rubbed her tummy. “I am a photographer, mostly food and girls until recently. Can’t do much like this, so I only take a few gigs here and there.” She braced herself for their judgment. Not that they seemed like judgmental people but their son was a billionaire and she…well, she wasn’t.

Alicia smiled at her affectionately. “I always wanted to do something creative like that. I wanted to be a florist before I got pregnant and started focusing on my children.”

“Luckily I’ll be able to take him with me most of the time.” She would have to work out the childcare situation but not until her baby was six months old. By then she figured she would be alright leaving him with a stranger.

Alicia covered her hand and rubbed softly. “Don’t be afraid to call me if you need help. This guy is our first grandchild, and I want him as much as you’ll let me have him. It’s a grandma’s prerogative, you know.”

Ruby smiled like she knew, but she didn’t. And she didn’t want pity, so she said nothing. “Thanks, Alicia.”

“I should thank you, sweetie. I’ve wanted grandkids for years now,” she sent a sideways glance at Jack. “How did you two meet?”

Ruby let Jack tell the story of them happening upon each other in the park and hiking together. She listened as his family laughed when he told how he’d gotten lost and soaked in the rain. “If Ruby hadn’t come back for me, I might still be there.” He flashed her that smile that always hit her in the chest.

She ignored the jolt that went through her this time and turned her attention to the lemonade in front of her. While it was nice to listen to the Silver family laugh and chat, she felt again like she was an outsider intruding on family time. The same way she’d felt out at the ranch during every meal Cheryl insisted they eat together. Ruby thought that was all behind her. “Excuse me,” she fled the table and sought solitude in the guest bathroom.

It was time to go back to her bungalow in Santa Monica. Play time was over; it was time to get back to real life. Ruby gave herself a few minutes to indulge in self-pity and tears before washing them away with cold water and taking a long breath to settle her nerves. A quick glance in the mirror and she knew she looked like she’d been crying. “Good enough,” she told herself and opened the door. And she crashed right into the hard chest of Jack. “Oh, sorry.”

He frowned down at her. “Are you alright?”

“Of course. I’m fine. Just felt a bit queasy but now I’m done.” She was done for real; only he didn’t know it yet. But when his warm hand pressed to the small of her back she knew she’d chosen to leave too late. He’d gotten under her skin. In her heart.

“Are you sure you’re okay? You’ve been…distant.”

“I’m fine.” At least she would be if she could get through this visit and back to the bungalow. “We should talk. Soon.”

“I’m glad you said that,” he told her and they stopped close to the table where Dan and Alicia sat. Jack turned her around and flashed a nervous smile. “Ruby, you’ve become very special to me since we’ve become reacquainted. I think we’ve proven we make a great team, and our chemistry is off the charts. Would you do me the honor of being my wife?”

Very special. Great team.
The words echoed around in her brain until it was nothing more than a high pitched whistle. “You want to get married?” She had to have heard wrong; maybe she was getting that pregnancy brain she’d read about.

But no. Jack smiled as though everything was perfectly normal. As though his words hadn’t just sliced her heart into tartar. “Yes. We can have a small wedding with a big reception and we can do it soon. Before the baby is born.”

Of course. She should have realized. The baby. She looked around; every eye was on her. Waiting expectantly. Expecting her to say yes because he was handsome and sweet, rich and bossy. She would have said yes, if she wasn’t in love with him. “Do you love me?”

Wheat blonde brows dipped in a deep ‘v’ of confusion. “What do you mean?”

Yeah, right. “Okay, Jack. I love you. I am
in love
with you. Do you love me?”

She watched, her heartbreaking as he struggled to catch air, to speak. So she did exactly what a woman in love did. Gave him another chance.

“Because if you do love me, Jack, my answer is yes. I will marry you.” And she waited. Watched as a hundred different emotions crossed his face before the iron curtain slammed shut over those dark chocolate eyes. He opened his mouth to speak, but nothing came out.

After a quick nod, Ruby watched Jack turn on his heels and walk away from her.

~

She had been gone two days, and the house felt empty without her. Jack was angry, and he didn’t know who or where to direct his anger. So mostly he’d directed it at himself. He worked fourteen hour days, drank all night and slept a couple of hours. Twice. Now two days had gone, and she hadn’t come back or even called. What was he supposed to do? He couldn’t go after her knowing he couldn’t give her what she wanted.

Love.
“What a joke,” he growled into the empty living room. Decorated in all the girly shit Ruby had chosen. He stupidly thought he could placate her with decorating the house, jewels and other luxuries she hadn’t been impressed by. Instead—surprise, surprise—she wanted the one thing he couldn’t give. Not anymore.

He’d tried love once before and got burned in the worst way. He wasn’t interested in going back there. Not at all, thank you. It was that mentality that caused the press to call him the Bad Boy of Bond Street, because he never dated a woman more than three times and because there wasn’t a tech company on the infamous street that he hadn’t bought and sold at one point in his career.

But now he’d have to get past all that if he wanted a shot at a future with Ruby. He wanted it, but Jackson wasn’t sure if he had the balls to go for it like she deserved.
Do you love me?
He couldn’t close his eyes without seeing the hurt expression on her face, those green eyes sad and broken. So he’d drank himself stupid and if not that, at least to the point of passing out. He dreamed of her; Jackson knew he had, but blessedly he couldn’t remember them.

He’d come home early from work today because he couldn’t concentrate at the office and figured he would work from home. When that didn’t work, he’d began to brood. Now he was just pissed and tempted to go see her and tell her exactly what he thought about her. “Love,” he scoffed. “Where is that love, now?”

“Talking to yourself now, man?”

He turned and frowned. “What in the hell are you doing here?” His voice could only be described as a bellow, yet his best friend and CFO looked unimpressed as he strolled in.

“My assistant told me you left early so I figured either you were dying, or the baby was coming.”

“Nope,” he fell back on the sofa and looked his best friend in the eye.

Nate raised a questioning brow. “So what did you do to screw it up with Ruby?”

Jackson sighed. “I asked her to marry me.” Arrogantly in front of his parents, too. Just to add a tad more humiliation. “She told me she didn’t believe in love. That it was for suckers and couldn’t be trusted.” He’d believed her. “My mistake,” he said drawing a confused stare from Nate.

“I feel like you left out a few details.”

So he started from the beginning, their meeting in the park and their day in the cabin during the rainstorm, all the way to the party and buying this house for them to live in together. “She told me she didn’t believe in love, and I believed her. Now she won’t marry me because I don’t love her.”

Nate’s blue eyes held a healthy glint of skepticism. “You don’t?” His tone was incredulous.

“Of course, I don’t. Counting that one day almost a year ago, we’ve known each other for two months.”

Nate leaned back a smug smirk on his face. “Oh is there a time limit,” he asked innocently.

“Don’t be a smartass, Nate.” His friend laughed. “Fine there’s no damn limit, but it's too soon. She can’t be in love with me, dammit. I boss her around, give her gifts she hates, nag her about eating healthy and I don’t love her. She
can’t
love me.”

“Yet she does. Ruby doesn’t strike me as a fanciful woman who says things she doesn’t mean. If she says she loves you, take her at her word.” He smiled knowingly again. “If it makes you feel better I doubt she’s all that happy about being in love with you, especially when she could have had me.”

That drew a laugh from Jackson. “You wish. You’re too old for her.”

Nate barked out a laugh. “I’m six months older than you, asshole.” Taking in his friend’s appearance, he frowned. “Even if you’re not sure, I am. If she didn’t really love you, she would have accepted your proposal and become your wife.” At Jackson’s skeptical look, he explained, “It’s better to be the ex-wife of a billionaire than just a baby mama.”

“Shit,” Jackson said with sudden clarity. That’s why she hadn’t said anything about loving him before then. “I don’t know if that makes me feel better or worse.”

“That depends.”

“On what?” Nate wasn’t the best at relationships, his longest had been six months, but Jackson was willing to take whatever advice he could get.

“On whether or not you’re ready to admit you love her.”

His shoulders slumped in defeat. “I don’t know, Nate.”

Pushing off the couch, Nate stood. “Then leave her alone until you do know.”

“You are absolutely no help; you realize that right?”

Nate shrugged. “You’re so used to getting what you want
now,
and Ruby isn’t falling in line. I think that’s what you need, but if you can’t give her the one thing she wants from you, maybe you should marry someone who just wants your bank account. She already said she wouldn’t keep the kid from you, so why marry her?”