Bad Boy's Kiss (Firemen in Love Book 2) (15 page)

She beamed. “I'm glad you like it. I probably should have asked you earlier, but you don't have any dietary restrictions, do you?”

“Not that I know of.”

“That's good. I used to cook for Rich when he came to visit.” She stabbed a carrot with her fork. “It wasn't easy. He'd only eat expensive organic food and had the pickiest tastes. He liked the sauce on the side of his pasta so he could mix it in himself. And I had to serve him on portioned plates, 'cause he'd get pissy if his veggies touched the meat.”

“Sounds like a royal pain in the ass.”

She chuckled. “I suppose he was pretty neurotic. But you know how it goes – when you think you love someone, you'll put up with a lot of crap.”

“Yeah. You put up with it and then he went home to his wife.” I was suddenly really angry for her. “You're a sweet girl, Anna. You shouldn't have dealt with any of it. Not from him. Not from nobody.”

We ate quietly, both of us clearly thinking hard about our own personal problems. I thought about the accident, replaying the whole episode in my head, trying to figure out if there was any way I could have prevented this from happening.

But even as I did, Anna's issues kept floating back into my head. She was really worried, and I didn't know how to fix it. Not being able to fix things ticked me off like nothing else.

“What am I gonna do?” she asked me finally.

“You could hide me in the closet until your parents leave. They're not staying with you, right? Maybe they'd never have to know.”

She shook her head. “Rachael noticed the bump, and she's kind of ditzy. Dad's sharp as a tack, though, so he'll certainly figure it out. And mom, well... She knows everything, it seems.”

There really was no good solution here. Telling the truth about how Rich knocked her up and bailed wasn't an ideal solution because, for some bizarre reason, her family would blame her and start treating her like a leper. Now here I was, taking up space in her home, and I'd started to feel like I was part of her problems.

I had to do something to help her, but what?

“What if you had a long-term boyfriend living with you, rather than a playboy like me?” I rolled my eyes. “Would your parents accept that, or is that against their religious beliefs too?”

“That's better, I guess. It would make me look like less of a slut.”

I took her hand, the way she held mine in the hospital. The last time I'd actually held hands with a chick was back in high school, simply 'cause I saw it as a waste of time just getting in the way of us being naked in bed.

Who knew I actually liked it? When Anna's fingers slid between mine that night, my heart stopped for a second. Her skin was so soft and warm, her touch kind and caring.

Caring, for me? I didn't understand.

I also didn't get why it made my cock hard, but that was something to ponder another day.

“You don't look like a slut at all. You're a fine woman who was just dealt a shitty hand in life. If anybody wants to judge you for that, let 'em. You don't need assholes like that anyway.”

“If it were so easy, I would agree.” She stifled tears, but they still fell. “You know what's at stake for me. My home. The farm.
Everything.
”

Her quiet sobs tugged at my heartstrings. If I could have stood up and hugged her, I would have.

“I always wanted a child, but not like this. I wanted to love being pregnant and the baby, not be ashamed of it. This isn't how it was supposed to go.”

“Life never goes how you think it's meant to.” I patted my leg. “You think I expected this? Of course not. You just gotta adapt and survive.”

She nodded, then circled the living room, thinking hard – and suddenly her face lit up with excitement.

“I have an idea that just might work.
You
could pretend to be my boyfriend.”

“I could pretend?” I laughed. “Don't think I've ever been a woman's boyfriend in my life. I'd have no idea how to go about acting like one.”

“I'm sure you'd figure it out quick enough. Think about it, Max. It's the best solution. It would give you an acceptable reason for living in my house. All we'd have to do is tell my parents we're totally in love – look like a legit couple for the cameras, whatever – and I think they'd be happy.”

“Does being a pretend boyfriend come with free sex?”

She gave me “that” look. It was the look you gave a naughty puppy for peeing on the rug.

“What? If I'm supposed to be your partner, it won't be acceptable for me to go traipsing around town picking up girls at the bars. A man's gotta get his needs met somehow.”

“First, I don't think you're doing any bar-hopping in that chair. Second, I can't believe you're thinking about getting laid right now. Your body needs to heal.”

I took a gamble and swatted her butt when she passed by. She paused and glared, but I saw the interest in her eyes. She couldn't hope to hide it from me.

“But the doctors said physical activity is good for me. I also heard that orgasms are a natural painkiller.” I winked. “Wouldn't you rather that than me getting hooked on prescription drugs?”

“How did we get on this topic? I thought we were discussing a way to avoid catastrophe and now, all of a sudden, you're begging me for sex.”

“I've never begged for sex in my life, darlin', and I don't plan to start now.” I wheeled my chair to her. “I know you're still thinking about that night we had. That was just an appetizer. You want the main course.”

She didn't answer as she put the leftover food away in the fridge. Was I being selfish, hitting on her so relentlessly when she wanted to talk serious business?

No, I didn't think so. She needed a good lay just as much as I did. Why deny ourselves such pleasure, especially in the midst of life taking a dump on both of us?

“I don't see how we'd fit body parts together given your broken bones.”

“Surely we could manage. Ain't that hard to stick a peg in a hole.”

Her eyes rolled. “How poetic. You know how to turn a girl on, that's for sure.”

Never really thought about it, actually. When I went out, I aimed to cut to the chase. The faster I could get a chick in my bed with her clothes off, the better.

Foreplay, in my mind, was a silly waste of time. The girls still seemed to like my performance; never heard any complaints out of them.

But Anna had me curious. She wasn't one of those loose, easy women from the clubs who'd had more lovers than they could count. Her body was a work of art, and I wanted to take my time exploring it.

“I need you to be serious for a minute, Max. Will you do me a favor and act like my boyfriend when they're here?”

I sighed. “Suppose I do owe you big time for what you're doing for me. But what about the baby? Like you said, they'll notice.”

She petted her belly. “What if I tell them it's yours?”

I hadn't laughed so hard in a long time. She didn't find it funny, and looked as if I'd just gone and slapped her.

“You must be kidding. Even if your parents buy it, your dad'll castrate me with his bare hands for getting his unmarried daughter pregnant.”

“I'd rather say you're the father than Rich. Of the two of you, he's far more scandalous.”

“So I'm the back-up daddy. Great. Just so you know, I do
not
want kids.”

“No one's asking you to actually have a kid! Just pretend like you are until they leave. They'll be upset, but if we tell them we're planning on getting married before it's born – like 'good Christians' should – it will be okay.”

Had I two functioning legs, I probably would have run away screaming in terror right about now. Boyfriend, baby, marriage... Those words struck fear into my heart. Too bad Anna had done so much for me that I owed her, and I always made sure to repay my debts.

“Frankly, I think this plan is crazy. What happens when they go home, and I'm healed up enough to leave too? They'll think I bailed on you, which I'm pretty sure will send your father into rage-beast murder mode.”

“I can tell him we split amicably. You'll be off the hook, and I'll get to keep the farm. Everyone wins.”

“I fail to see how
I
win. You realize how much faith I gotta put in you if we do this?” I cringed. “What if you decided, in the end, that you don't want me to go after all? You could tell your parents I abandoned you, and there'd be no going back from there.”

“I would never trap a man where he doesn't want to be. If you were to stay, I'd want it to be of your own volition.”

I sensed a heavy sadness in her words, but I was too busy freaking out inside to wonder what it meant.

All right, calm down. I wouldn't really be dating her, or getting married, or having a baby. None of that was real, all just a show. Hey, I'd taken acting classes when I was ten years old; I could handle this. No reason to panic.

Except that Anna's dad was a bear of a man, and I'd really rather not have to fight him if he got mad at me. She would be none too impressed.

“There's another hitch in your plan,” I reminded her. “What about Trey and Rachael? When they find out how far along you are, compared with how long I've been here – a couple of weeks – the numbers don't add up.”

She thought for only a moment before coming up with another idea. The girl was clever, I'd give her that.

“I went out of town for a few days to sell my soap at a craft fair in Dallas. It was just around the same time that I...” She frowned at the memory. “Anyway, I could say I ran into you, we reconnected, and it happened then.”

“It?”

“You got me pregnant.”

I wheeled my chair away from her. “Please stop saying these things as though they're facts. You're making me nervous.”

“But it's perfect! I have a workable cover story, the time frame makes sense... This might not be so impossible after all.” She gazed intently at me. “All I need is to know if you're on board.”

I realized that there was a very good chance of something going wrong, as things often did when women were involved. Still, she needed me – and I couldn't deny that I needed some alone time with her naked body, too. She might not be in the mood now, but a guy could cling to hope.

“Aw, how could I say no to those pretty brown eyes?”

She shrieked with delight and threw her arms around my neck, nearly choking me to death with her surprisingly strong grip. Even so, I got hard for her. I liked a tough woman, one who could handle it a little rough in the sack.

If only she'd let me give her what we both so badly wanted...

“Thank you so much, Max. This means the world to me.” She rubbed her happy tears on my shoulder. “Maybe I was wrong about you. I thought you were a selfish prick.”

“Honey, I
am
a selfish prick. I'm warning you right now, don't get too close to me if you know what's good for you.”

She hugged me tighter. My heart skipped a beat or three. Don't get close, I said.

Too late.

Chapter 11 - Anna

Watching Max pick vegetables in the field was probably a mistake, but I couldn't help myself.

He was out there in his wheelchair, sweating in the afternoon sun as he cut summer squash from the vines and yanked potatoes out of the ground. Even without legs, he'd managed an impressive haul already.

But it wasn't his basket of produce I was staring at. It was his mouthwatering body, so gorgeous no sane woman could resist.

It dawned on me that although we'd slept together, we hadn't yet seen each other naked. That was a good thing in my case, of course, because I doubted he was attracted to the pregnant belly look.

Especially given that rude remark he'd made on the phone a few weeks back, which I'd yet to completely forgive him for.

As for him, though, I wanted to see what was under those clothes. The way his biceps flexed as he reached into the blackberry bushes, that sexy look of determination on his face, even the way his shoulders rose and fell as he breathed hard from his work...

Yes, I would have been delighted to peel off his pants and have my way with him. Pregnancy hormones were driving me crazy, and I had this awful urge to be filled up and plowed hard no matter how many times I employed my trusty vibrator.

Only the real thing would do. Why did I hesitate, then?

My attention shifted from him to the cookies I was sliding off the tray – peanut butter, mom's favorite. Figured maybe the treats would distract her from my bump, at least for a little bit.

“Hey, darlin'. I got a whole bucket full of berries.” He held it up. “That enough for your pie?”

He'd taken to calling me “darling” more recently. We figured it sounded like a nice, believable pet name, and he'd best start practicing using it before mom and dad got here. If we were to convince them we were a couple, it was those little details that counted most.

I didn't, however, tell him just how much I enjoyed it when he called me that in his thick southern drawl.

“Anna?”

“Uh, yeah.” I smiled sheepishly. “That's actually enough for about ten pies.”