Expecting the Boss's Baby (8 page)

He gave a rough growl of approval that rippled throughout her nerve endings. “I want you in every way,” he said and moved his mouth down
her body. As if he’d been denied too long, he consumed her. He took her breast in his mouth, suckled her hardened nipple, and she sensed he couldn’t get enough. He treated her other breast to the same carnal pleasure, then skimmed his tongue down her abdomen.

Kate held her breath in suspended anticipation as she felt his seductive tongue trace a path of liquid fire over her skin. Dropping to a knee, he rubbed his cheek against her tummy and thigh, and took her intimately with his mouth. He stroked her sensitive, swollen femininity with his wicked tongue, taking her over the edge until her knees began to buckle.

Michael caught her before she fell, slowly rising up her body at the same time that he moved his hands up her legs to her waist. His eyes dark with primitive need, he pressed her back against the cool tile of the shower wall. “Hang on,” he said and urged her legs around his waist.

His gaze holding her and claiming her with the same insistence as his body, he eased her down on his hardness with a slow, sure thrust.

Everything about him, his body, his gaze, said
you are mine.
“Oh, Kate,” he muttered. “You feel so good.”

Sucking in a deep breath, he pumped inside her, erotically massaging her femininity with each stroke. Kate felt the rush of her climax like a land
slide roaring through her. She stiffened, clenching around him.

He swore and through the haze of her own peak, she watched his pleasure roll through him. Still holding her tightly, he dipped his head against her shoulder and glanced her bare skin with a kiss.

“Does it feel more real now?” he whispered.

Kate curled her arms around him, inhaling his essence. “Yes.”

Two hours later, Kate awakened to the sight of Michael sleeping beside her. She knew it was an unusual sight, because he found the need for sleep a nuisance more than anything else.

Her
husband,
she thought, and felt her heart race. Waking up to Michael Hawkins was like waking up to a powerful, wild animal in her bed. The dark fringe of eyelashes softened a picture of chiseled angles on his face and a hard, muscular body built for endurance.

Kate wondered what he dreamed. She tentatively lifted her hand toward him to touch his hair.

His eyes flashed open and his hand snaked out to catch her wrist. Her breath caught and she stared into his tiger’s eyes.

“What are you doing?” he asked.

“Watching you while you sleep,” she said and smiled. “It’s so rare.”

“You weren’t just watching,” he pointed out, drawing her closer.

“I thought about touching your hair,” she said. “Next time I’ll stick to thinking so I don’t wake you up.”

He shook his head slowly, his gaze fastened on hers. “You’re invited to touch,” he said, lifting her hand to his hair.

Her heart turned a flip at the simple gesture. “I also wondered what you dream.”

“Nothing,” he said. “I don’t spend much time sleeping, so I don’t dream much.”

“Maybe,” she said skeptically. Kate had a tough time believing a man who was such a visionary didn’t have dreams. “But you have secrets, and I plan to learn those.”

His gaze turned remote. “Nothing interesting. You don’t need to trouble yourself with my secrets,” he said, then lowered his head. “Besides, this is the night of our marriage. I’ve got plans for you.”

She struggled with a vague feeling of disappointment, but he kissed her and her body grew warm, her bones turned to liquid, and her head began to swim.

They shared one night of lovemaking and left the suite the following morning after a champagne brunch conducted primarily in the nude. Kate had to pass on the champagne because it wasn’t good for Cupcake, so Michael served her orange juice in a flute.

She still felt odd in his apartment and added touches from her place to provide some comfort. She looked at a few houses, then nixed the idea when Michael couldn’t join her. She simply didn’t feel ready to make such a big decision without his input. In the meantime, her adjustment to wifedom was rocky. Michael made love to her nearly every night, but he missed dinner with her as often as he joined her. More than one night she’d prepared a meal and he hadn’t arrived home until after nine o’clock. It occurred to her that she’d known his schedule when he’d been her boss, but it hadn’t bothered her too much then. “I didn’t prepare the food, then,” she muttered to herself as she glanced at the clock. “It wasn’t my meal that got cold.”

Michael breezed in the door. “Smells great, but I can’t stay. I’ve got to meet the guys at O’Malley’s.”

“Guys? Excuse me?” She glanced at the chicken parmesan and wondered how he could possibly prefer O’Malley’s.

He brushed a lingering kiss to her lips and pulled his tie loose. “I promised Justin and Dylan I’d meet them two nights ago and forgot. If I don’t show tonight, they might come knocking here, and I don’t want them scaring my new bride.”

“But dinner—”

“—looks great,” he told her. “I’ll eat when I get home. I shouldn’t be long.”

“Okay,” she said, but it didn’t feel okay when
he walked out the door and she looked at the uneaten meal on the table. Sighing, she shrugged and put the meal into the refrigerator. She heard a ringing noise, but couldn’t place it. It stopped, then started again. Kate followed the noise to the bedroom and found Michael’s cell phone on the bed.

“Must’ve forgotten it,” she said and picked up.

“Hello?”

A pause followed. “I think I have the wrong number.”

“You probably don’t,” she said quickly. “This is Kate Adams—uh—Hawkins. Michael’s wife,” she said, the reality still foreign to her.

“Bill Reynolds from Legal. I’ve got some urgent news. Could Michael return my call as soon as possible?”

“Yes,” she said, wondering at the worried tone in Bill’s voice. She promptly called O’Malley’s, but there was a baseball game on the bar TV and the noise was so loud neither she nor the bartender could hear each other. Giving up, Kate got in her car and drove to the bar. It took her a few moments to spot Michael and his two friends at the far end of the room. She walked up behind them and overheard Dylan.

“I have to say I’m surprised you’ve lasted this long,” he said. “Your bride was as pale as a sheet and you looked like you were gearing yourself for a marathon.”

“This guy is stuck in the worst way. He didn’t get her to sign a pre-nup,” Justin said.

Dylan looked at Michael as if he’d lost his mind. “Where was your head?”

“That’s obvious,” Justin said. “Michael explained it to me. He said he married her for regular sex and because he’d knocked her up.”

Kate’s stomach gave a vicious twist. She blinked. Justin’s words reverberated in her brain.
Regular sex, knocked her up.
A dozen emotions raced through her, all of them painful. She thought of the nights they’d shared in Michael’s bed and the nights she’d prepared a meal for her
husband
and he hadn’t bothered to show. Humiliation crowded her throat. She felt like a fool.

“Hey lady, you’re standing in the middle of the walkway,” a man loudly said.

Kate blinked and stumbled to the side. As if in slow motion, she saw Michael turn around and spot her.

“Kate,” he said, surprise on his face. “What—?”

She wanted to be anywhere but here, anyone but his wife. She thrust his cell phone at him. “You left your cell phone at home. Bill Reynolds from Legal called. He said it’s urgent. Bye,” she said, and raced away, headed anywhere except to Michael Hawkins’s apartment.

M
ichael slowed his car as he neared the home for unwed teenage mothers. He spotted Kate’s Volkswagen in the small parking lot and something inside him eased. He’d found her and she was at least physically okay.

Parking his car, he grabbed the flowers from the passenger seat, stepped out and slammed the car door behind him. He adjusted his tie and strode toward the building.

Kate hadn’t returned to his apartment last night. Nor had she gone to her old duplex or to Donna’s. Michael had almost called her parents, but Kate’s protectiveness of them had given him pause. He
suspected he knew what had made her run. She’d clearly overheard Justin shooting off his mouth.

Seeing her ashen face had caused something inside him to shift. He knew her open affection for him was something precious, and in one moment, he’d lost it. More evidence of the capriciousness of human emotion, he thought cynically.

Although Michael couldn’t blame Kate for her response, he refused to let her go. In his mind and gut, her leaving was not an option. Now he had to convince her.

He climbed the front porch steps and rang the doorbell to the old house. A young, very pregnant woman answered the door. She glanced at the roses in his hand then looked at him quizzically. “Yes?”

“I’m here for my wife,” Michael said. “Kate Hawkins.”

The teen nodded in recognition. “Oh, Kate Adams,” she said, then smiled. “You’ll have to get in line. She’s in the back finishing a tutoring session. This way.”

Michael followed the young woman down a long hallway and saw Kate working with another young, very pregnant woman in front of a computer. He drank in the sight of her, surprised by how much the tension inside him eased. She appeared incredibly focused, yet vulnerable. At first glance, she looked as if she were completely composed. Dressed in a black skirt and blouse, she exuded competence. That was a big part of the reason
he’d hired her. Michael looked closer, however, and saw hints of shadows under her eyes, and her smile was strained.

“I like your idea of sending résumés from the home to local companies for the residents to perform off-site computer work. After you complete your list, you can just use mail merge to—”

“You have a visitor, Kate,” Michael’s guide said.

Confusion crossed Kate’s face. “Visitor?”

Her glance fell on him and Michael felt an arctic blast. His stomach sank. This was not going to be easy. “I brought you roses,” he said, stepping forward to offer them to her.

“They’re beautiful,” her student said with a trace of envy.

“Yes, they are,” Kate murmured and set them down. “Would you excuse me for a moment while I talk with—” She broke off as if she were reluctant to call him her husband. “I’ll be right back,” she said, then turned to him. “Outside.”

Coming from a man, those words may have led Michael to expect a bloody brawl. His sense of unease tightened in the back of his throat. But he forced the words out anyway. “I’m sorry,” he said as they stepped out onto the front porch.

Surprise flickered across her face. “For what?”

“For Justin shooting off his mouth and hurting you last night.”

She crossed her arms over her chest. “According to Justin, he was just repeating your words.”

Frustration bucked through him. “Justin was giving me a hard time the day we got married. He’s got even more of a bottom-line mentality than I do. I just gave him some facts about marriage on his level to get him off my back.”

“He was giving you a hard time?” she repeated.

“He thought I shouldn’t marry you and that we should do a pre-nup.”

“Perhaps you should have followed his advice.”

Michael tamped down his anger at her words. “No. I knew marrying you was the right choice, and I sure as hell didn’t need a pre-nup because you’ve made it clear you’re not after my money. Where in hell did you go last night? I checked everywhere, everyone except your parents.”

“I went to a hotel. I needed some time to think.”

“And?”

“And I’m not sure us being married is going to work.”

“I didn’t take you for a quitter.”

Her eyes shot sparks. “You didn’t have your role as a wife reduced to sex and pregnancy. I don’t think you and I share the same ideas about marriage. To put it in your terms, the synergy may not be there. You’ve said that during a merger the policies, purpose and sociology of the two companies need to complement each other and respect
each other’s value. I’m afraid we may be way apart.”

Michael felt a trickle of perspiration run down his back. He told himself it was the summer heat, but the injured expression in Kate’s eyes told him he’d lost a lot of ground with her. “Then we’ll negotiate.”

She looked at him askance. “You forget that I’ve seen you negotiate, Michael. For every concession you make, you demand three.”

“We’re going to make this work,” he told her.

“That will take two.”

“What do you want?”

“The impossible,” she muttered under her breath and turned away.

He moved closer to her. “Kate,” he began.

She rounded on him. “You have no idea how humiliating it was for me to hear that. I’ve been knocking myself out trying to fix dinner for you nights when you don’t bother to come home and make a home and life for us. How silly for me to try so hard when all you want is sex and to give your baby a name. I feel like such a fool.”

The hurt emanated from her in waves. “The whole idea of marriage is foreign to me. You’re going to have to tell me what you want. This is not my area of expertise.”

“Women don’t like to have to say everything they want. They want men to—”

“—guess,” Michael interjected. “Often incor
rectly. This is too damn important to be guessing, Kate.”

She took a deep breath. “I still don’t know.”

“Quitting after a month?” he asked, challenging her pride.

Kate glowered at him. “I want to have dinner together five or six nights out of seven. I want us to go house-shopping together. Even though we didn’t have anything resembling a courtship, I’d still like to go out on a date. I want you to talk to me. I want you to need—” She broke off and shook her head as if she knew that was impossible. “I want you to let me know you. Really know you.”

Michael didn’t feel itchy until her last request. He’d almost rather trade his company than let anyone fully know him. One thing at a time. “Dinner tonight. Your choice of restaurant.”

“No,” she said.

Surprised and put off, he narrowed his eyes. “Why not?”

“The place you choose says something about you. It’s another way of letting me know you.”

Choosing a restaurant was considerably less painful than spilling his guts. Michael accepted her terms. “Good, I’ll pick you up at the apartment at six-thirty.”

“I don’t know if I’m ready to go back to the apartment,” she said.

“Yes, you are,” he said, backing her against a
corner post on the porch. “I may not fit your mold of the ideal husband, but there’s one very important thing I don’t do. I don’t bore you, and I’m betting just about every other man you’ve been involved with has.”

Kate gazed at him silently for a long moment. She wore a don’t-push-me expression and her black outfit hid what he knew—that her body was just beginning to show the signs of the baby she carried. He inhaled her scent. It amazed him how sexy he found her even in this tense sliver of time.

“Okay,” she finally said. “I’ll be at the apartment tonight.”

Something inside him eased and the urge to make love to her pushed and pulled. Reining it in, he lifted her left hand and caressed her ring finger where she still wore the ring he’d given her. He lifted her hand and kissed it. “Tonight, then.”

That night, Kate fought her nerves and her hair. She scowled into the mirror. Why had she agreed to this? She should have stayed at the hotel, or at the very least moved back into her duplex. Michael might be fascinating, but he was difficult too, which meant her life would likely be difficult.

And fascinating,
the small voice inside her said.

“Oh, shut up,” she muttered. “Listening to you is how I ended up pregnant and married.”

She adjusted the black sheath dress and turned to the side. She didn’t quite look pregnant yet. Just
fat, she thought with another scowl. She heard the kitchen door open and jumped, dropping her lipstick. There was no reason for these nerves, she told herself. This may be a first date, but she was married to the guy, for Pete’s sake. She quickly applied the lipstick and left the bathroom.

Michael stood next to the kitchen counter glancing through the mail. He wore a dark sport jacket, white shirt and silk tie, and when he directed his attention from the mail to her, his expression was just this side of predatory. “You look good,” he said. “Ready to go?”

“Yes, thank you,” she said, fighting her awkwardness. “Where are we going?”

“A surprise,” he said with an enigmatic gleam in his eyes and ushered her out the door.

They were quiet during the drive. When he pulled into a parking lot, and she saw the restaurant he’d chosen, she smiled in pleasure. Although she’d never been here, she’d always wanted to come. “The Vineyard,” she said. “I didn’t know this was one of your favorites.”

“It wasn’t. This will be my first visit.”

“How did you find it?”

He hesitated. “I did some research.”

Curious, Kate studied him. “Why do I sense there’s a story here?”

Michael sighed. “Do I have to reveal my sources?”

“Yes.”

“I sent an e-mail to five employees and one friend asking for their top three favorite restaurants along with descriptions. You’ll understand why I chose this one when we get inside.”

As soon as they were led to the table and placed their orders, Kate understood his choice. The restaurant boasted a ceiling of skylights, ficus trees with tiny white lights, and a waterfall in the center. “I love the greenery.”

“I thought you would. I pulled a few strings to get us next to the waterfall,” he said.

“Whose suggestion was this?”

“Dylan’s. He has a busy social life. Lots of different women.”

“You don’t sound envious,” she said.

He looked at her meaningfully. “I’m not.” He pulled out a handful of change and put it in the middle of the table. “Bet you can’t reach that stone on the other side with a coin.”

Challenged and charmed, she took three coins. “What do I get if I can?”

“What do you want?”

She thought for a long moment and felt a strange yearning swell inside her. He was such a dichotomy for her, such a challenge. She feared loving him, and at the same time she couldn’t stay away from him. “I want a story,” she said. “I want you to tell me something about yourself that I don’t already know.”

“Okay,” he said, with the same expression he might wear if she were giving him a tetanus shot.

She took a penny, aimed and missed by inches. She chose a nickel next, aimed and hit it.

“Something tells me there are a few things I don’t know about you,” he said, lifting his brow.

“I was pitcher for the high-school girls’ softball team and played intramurals in college,” she said with a smile. “Pay up.”

“My favorite ice cream is—”

“—raspberry sherbet. You have to do better.”

“I made excellent grades in high school without studying,”

“I could have guessed that,” she said.

He frowned at her. “I graduated number three in my high-school class.”

“That low?” she teased with a cheeky grin.

“Did anyone ever tell you that you’re demanding?”

Remembering what a challenging boss he’d been, she couldn’t contain her smile. “Talk about the pot calling the kettle—”

He lifted his hand to cut her off. “Okay. I wanted to learn to play the guitar when I was a teenager, but couldn’t afford one.”

She paused, trying to imagine Michael as a teenager. She suspected he’d grown up quickly after his mother died. “Very good. Acoustic or electric guitar?”

“Electric,” he said.

“You wanted to be a rock star!” she said, the realization delighting her.

“I did not,” he quickly denied. “Okay, I might have worn an Eric Clapton T-shirt for most of a year, but that was just a stage.”

“Did you play any sports?”

“Basketball in the gym at Granger’s. I kept a part-time job, so I didn’t have time for school team sports.”

“Always a working man,” she said, wondering if some of the same things that had driven him as a teen still drove him now.

“Dinner,” he said, closing the discussion as the waiter delivered the meal.

Kate saw a flicker of relief cross his face. Why, she wondered, did he find it so hard to talk about himself?

After dinner, Michael drove them to his apartment. It had been a long meal and the hour was late. A darkened kitchen and her cat greeted them. She reached for the light switch, but he covered her hand. “Leave it dark.”

Her heart flipped at the hint of sensuality in his tone. She allowed her hand to drop from the switch.

“I haven’t dated much in the last few years,” he said. “But I recall a tradition.”

“What’s that?” she asked, his nearness doing crazy things to her pulse. The darkness blocked
everything out of her senses except him, the sound of his voice and his clean, musk scent.

“A good-night kiss,” he said, sliding his arm to her waist and drawing her to him. His lips, firm, yet full, brushed over hers. Side to side, he moved his mouth as if savoring the sensation of her. He was slow, seductive and so gentle it made her chest tighten up with tenderness and longing. He stood so close Kate wondered if he could hear her heart beat.

His tongue slid past her lips, still slowly, inviting her to taste him. He tilted her chin for better access and she couldn’t hold back a soft moan at the sweet richness of the moment.

He continued the kiss as if her mouth absorbed and fascinated him. Spreading his legs, he drew her lower body against his. She felt his swollen arousal, but his mouth was her focus.

With each seductive stroke of his tongue, she felt her breasts grow heavy and a yearning tighten between her thighs. Instinctively, she rubbed against him.