by Leanne Banks
Pulling down the straps of her bra, she watched his gaze lower to her nipples. His eyes turned dark and she felt the tips of her breasts tighten. She unbuttoned his shirt and he helped then pulled her against him so that her breasts meshed with his hard chest.
Her sigh of pleasure mingled with his.
"You're like wine I'm supposed to sip, but I can't help gulping," he muttered. "And you have on way too many clothes."
The smell of his aftershave and his closeness had the same effect on her as two glasses of wine, a great buzz. She unfastened her slacks, pushed them over her hips and they slid to the floor.
He immediately slipped his hands beneath her panties to cup her bottom. "You have the best rear end known to mankind."
"And here I always thought I could serve tea on it," she said.
He laughed and squeezed her bottom, but his laugh was cut short when she lowered her hands to the fly of his pants. She wanted nothing between them, not even skin.
He took her mouth in a French kiss that left her breathless and left them both without underwear. She felt him hard against her belly as his tongue seduced hers.
She wrapped her hand around his hardness and he groaned. "I brought protection this time."
"I've already taken care of it," she said. One benefit of pregnancy, she said to herself and let out a breathless chuckle.
He slid his hand between her legs and gave a moan of approval. "You're wet and so warm. You feel so good, so—"
He broke off when she slid to her knees and kissed his belly. "Oh, Nic, you—"
She took him into her mouth and he exhaled on a hiss of air. Wanting him every way a woman could take a man, she made love to him with her mouth, feeling him grow more swollen with each stroke of her tongue. She tasted the honey of his arousal.
He swore and pushed away, drawing her to her feet. His eyes black with passion, he shook his head. "I can't get enough of you."
Kissing each other, they climbed the stairs to her bedroom. He gently pushed her down on the bed and took a delicious journey with his mouth, starting with her throat then traveling to her breasts. All the while he rubbed her sweet spot, driving Nicola higher and higher.
Control burned away like mist on a hot summer morning. He replaced his hand with his mouth and his wicked tongue sent her over the edge.
She started to breathe again and he plunged inside her to the hilt. "Oh, wow," she managed, always amazed at the way he filled her completely.
"Oh, yeah," he said and began to pump inside her.
She looked into his eyes. His gaze held hers. She couldn't have glanced away if she tried. In his eyes, she saw something that made mountains move and platelets shift. Her heart tripped over itself and the combination of emotion and physical sensation sent her over the edge again.
* * *
The following morning, he awakened earlier than she did. No surprise there, Nicola thought, stretching in the bed as she heard him climbing the steps. Abe was Mr. Early Riser. She'd had a hard time keeping up with his early schedule before she was pregnant. Now, when she often felt as if she needed more sleep, it would be even more difficult to win a morning race against him.
Wearing only his boxers, he entered her bedroom, carrying a cup of coffee for himself and a cup of tea for her. His hair was tousled from her hands, but his gaze was entirely too alert for first thing in the morning.
She smiled and sat up slowly, bringing the sheet with her. "Great room service."
He smiled in return. "I remember you've recently developed a preference for tea."
She took the cup. "Observant man. Thank you."
"You're welcome," he said, setting his coffee on the nightstand. He jostled the stand slightly. "Damn, my feet are too big for this room," he muttered. The cabinet door opened and Nicola's books spilled onto the carpet.
Alarm swept through her. She panicked, swearing under her breath and setting her tea on the other nightstand. Ditching her modesty, she scrambled across the bed to get to the books before he did. She didn't want him to see those books. She'd bought so many of them she'd had to cram them inside the cabinet before Abe arrived last night.
Her hand touched the first one at the same time his did.
He laughed. "Why the rush? Were you afraid I'd dump coffee on your books?"
"No, I just want to help," she said trying to shove them into the cabinet out of his sight. They slid back out.
"Hey, settle down. I'll get them." His large hands covered hers and she knew the second he read the title.
"What To Expect When You're Expecting?" he read aloud and she cringed. He glanced at the book underneath. "Baby and Child Care. Successful Single Parenting."
Abe looked at her then back at the books. He pinned her with a gaze that could melt steel. "There's only one reason I can think of that you would be reading these books."
Reaching blindly for the sheet, Nicola bit her lip. "I—uh—"
"How long have you known?" he demanded.
"Not that long," she said in a low voice. "My periods aren't particularly regular."
"I can't believe I didn't see this," he said, standing and still holding one of the books. "The stomach flu that lasted too long, the quick switch to tea and no wine," he said then narrowed his eyes. "But you drank wine last night?"
"It was water in a wineglass," she confessed, feeling silly. "I didn't want any questions."
"The baby's mine," he said, tossing the book on the bed and rubbing his forehead.
"Yes, it's yours, but you don't have to do anything." She took her heart in her hands. "I know you don't want any more children, but I have to have this child. I don't expect anything from you."
He rolled his eyes in disgust. "Nice try, Nic. Were you trying to get pregnant?"
She dropped her jaw in shock. "Absolutely not."
"You didn't make me use anything last night or the last time, either."
"That would have been trying to close the barn door after the horse got out," she said. "And why would I have been trying?"
"Some women use pregnancy as a way to snare a husband."
Guilt switched to anger in a nanosecond. "I think I've made it clear that I don't expect anything from you. If you don't recall, I repeatedly refused your offer to go to Washington and I tried several times to put our relationship on a professional footing." Fury raced through her. "I don't deserve this. Yes, I should have told you. But I couldn't figure out how, since you've made it abundantly clear you don't want any more children. I've spent the last few weeks torn apart over how to deal with this, how to keep this from hurting you or your career in any way."
"Too late for that, and we both know what the only solution is," he said, his jaw set like granite.
Her stomach twisted. "I'm not giving up the baby."
He swore. "I wasn't suggesting that. The only solution is for us to get married as soon as possible."
* * *
Abe felt as if he'd been caught with his pants down, literally. His mind went into crisis mode, developing a plan of action. "I know a judge who can push through the license so we won't have to wait. A civil ceremony will be the best route. We can get the blood tests from my doctor to assure discretion. I'll tell the kids about the baby after Christmas."
He glanced at her. She was looking at him as if he'd sprouted three heads. "There's no time to wait if you're already two months pregnant."
"I—I'm not sure it's a good idea to rush into marriage."
"This is an excellent reason to get married," he said. "I'm not having any more illegitimate children."
"We haven't even discussed marriage before," she returned, frowning.
"We would have eventually," he said and knew that the possibility, inevitability of marrying Nicola had been moving from the back of his mind to the forefront.
Her eyes full of doubt, she shook her head. "I'm not sure of that. We never discussed anything past Washington."
"Because you've been so difficult lately," he said. "If you had a
llowed our relationship to develop naturally, then I'm sure we would have progressed to wanting something permanent."
"Naturally," she echoed. "Do you call this natural? 'Oh, Nicola, you're pregnant. We're getting married this afternoon.'"
"We don't have time to allow things to develop naturally now. We have to do this for our child. We'll work out our relationship after we take care of the legalities." He reached down and gave her a quick, firm kiss. "I have to get moving. Harold and Miranda won't mind being witnesses. Let's shoot for four o'clock."
"Abe, I'm not easy about this."
"I'll make it easy," he promised. He would take care of the fear and doubt in her eyes.
By four o'clock that afternoon, he had a judge, witnesses in the form of Harold, Miranda, Abe's daughter Kimberly and the new love of her life, Navy SEAL Zach. Kimberly and Zach had shown up early for Christmas. Abe had demanded and received expedited results of the blood tests and sent a driver to pick up Nicola.
At five minutes after, he wondered if the driver had run into traffic. He pushed out the cell number for the chauffeur. "Henry, where are you?"
"Uh, I'm still in Miss Granville's driveway, sir. She told me she won't need the car. She told me I can wait till Christmas, but she's not coming."
Shock rendered him speechless. He felt the gazes of everyone in the room on him. "She said what?"
"She said she's not coming."
"Thanks, Henry," he said in a voice that sounded clipped to his own ears. "Keep the motor running." He punched out Nicola's number. "Henry says there's been a misunderstanding about the time of your arrival."
He heard her sigh on the phone. "I'm really not comfortable with this."
"Nicola, we don't have time for this. It's the right thing to do."
"Not for me," she said, her voice shaking. "Not right now."
"Nic," he said. "Nic—" He glanced at his phone and got the Call Lost message. The woman had not only stood him up at the altar, she'd hung up on him.
* * *
Twelve
« ^
"Abe?" his brother, Harold, said.
Abe shook his head in disbelief. "She's not coming."
Judge Kilgore cleared his throat. "Then I assume you won't be needing me this afternoon," he said. "You have my number if there's a change. If you'll excuse me," the man said and left the room.
His daughter Kimberly moved closer. "This has happened pretty fast. Maybe Nicola just needs a little time."
"Exactly," Harold's wife, Miranda, said. "You've barely given the poor woman time to breathe and a woman's emotions during pregnancy can be a tricky thing."
"Hear, hear, to that," Harold said.
"Pregnancy," Kimberly echoed and looked at her father in disbelief. "You got Nicola pregnant?"
His gorgeous, brainy twenty-five-year-old daughter Kimberly was known for her bluntness. She claimed it was the only way she'd been able to hold her own with her brothers. "Yes, she's pregnant. Yes, I'm the father."
"But you're too old for that," she said.
Harold chuckled. "Apparently not."
Abe threw a sharp glance at both of them. "I don't have time to explain. I have to figure out how to get through to Nicola. I told her I would take care of all the arrangements. The ceremony would be at 4:00 p.m." His head spinning, he began to pace. Why had she backed out?
"You told her you were going to get married?" Kimberly asked.
"It was the only course of action. She's apparently been pregnant for two months. It had to be expedited," he said firmly.
"Gosh, how romantic," Kim said sarcastically. "Did you give her the orders in military time, too?"
Her new husband, Zach, put his hand on her shoulder to calm her. "Honey, you don't need to hammer the guy. He's just trying to do the right thing."
"But you can't order someone to marry you," she argued. "And Nicola's more girly than I am. She might have wanted a church wedding with a dress and a reception."
"You could have at least let her get a dress," Harold's wife scolded.
Abe had a sinking feeling in his gut. "I thought," he said and corrected himself. "I knew it was best to do this as soon as possible."
"I still can't believe you knocked up your campaign manager," Kim said, shaking her head.
Abe noticed Zach give his daughter a jab in the ribs. "She's not knocked up. She's pregnant with my child."
"And her child," Kim pointed out.
"That's what I said."
"No, you said your child. I realize you have control issues, but not everyone likes someone else to make major life decisions for them." She glanced at Zach and her gaze softened. "Although some of your interfering decisions turn out well, some of us get a little testy about being told what to do. Here's a news flash, Dad. Some women like to be asked."
"My daughter seems to have grown more assertive since she got involved with you," Abe muttered to Zach.
"She said it has to do with confidence, sir," Zach said.
Abe nodded absently, his head spinning with ways to fix this predicament. "So I should ask her," he murmured to himself. "She doesn't trust me yet," he said. "I would trust her with my life, but she doesn't trust me yet."
The room went completely quiet.
"You're really in love with her," Kimberly said, astonished. "You're messed up about this. I've never seen you this way." She put her hand on his arm and he felt her searching gaze. "You really love her, don't you?"
He nodded, his gut burning at the same time a weight felt as if it was lifted from his chest. "Yeah, I do."
"Have you told her?" Kimberly asked.
* * *
It took Abe an hour to figure out where he'd gone wrong and what he needed to do to correct it. In the meantime, he told the driver he could return to Crofthaven and Abe took some antacid, changed out of his suit and headed over to Nicola's.
He rang the doorbell four times before she answered. Her eyes were red from crying. He felt like pond scum.
"Oh, sweetheart, I'm sorry," he said, stepping inside and pulling her into his arms.
"I couldn't do it, Abe. It just felt so wrong. We're not ready for marriage."
"I disagree from my side, but if you need time, you can have it, Nicola."
She glanced up at him with a searching gaze.
"I handled this all wrong. I shouldn't have ordered you to marry me. Miranda can't believe I didn't let you at least get a dress. I should have asked. I should have told you that I love you and I need you in my life, forever. And it's kinda late now, isn't it?"
She nodded sadly.
"Hard to believe how much I could screw this up."
She took a careful breath. "I think you were trying to protect the baby."
"And you, too," he said. "I still want you to marry me. I would have bought a ring, but I don't know your taste and I'd like you to be part of that choice if you decide you can put up with me for the rest of my life. I couldn't believe it when you didn't show up for the wedding. It hit me hard, but not having you in my life at all would hit me a lot harder. So, if you need time, you've got it. Just give us a chance."
She gave a little shudder and tears streamed down her cheeks. "But there are things you don't know about me. Things you may not be able to accept about me."
"Tell me," he said. "Try me."
She shuddered again and looked away. "Oh, this is hard. I was pregnant before, when I was a teenager," she said, her voice barely a whisper. "I gave up the baby for adoption."
Shock, followed quickly by compassion rushed through him. His heart wrenched for her. Remembering that she'd told him about her high school boyfriend bailing on her, he pulled her against him again. "Oh, Nic, you poor thing, having to go through all that by yourself. No mother, no father around."
"I felt so guilty," she said, sniffing. "I still feel guilty. Like I should have done more to keep her, but I had no money, no family." Her voice broke.
"Have you ever checked on her?"
She nodded. "I get
photos every year from the adoptive family. She's doing great. She has a wonderful family. She hasn't asked to meet me, though, and unless she does, I think it's right that I stay away." She took a shaky breath. "This is part of the reason I couldn't marry you, Abe. I didn't know if you could accept it."
Looking into her pain-filled eyes, Abe knew he had never felt so much love for another person in his life. "Accept that you got into a rough situation and made the best decision for someone other than yourself? Accept that you did your best for your baby? How could I not love you even more for that?"
Her eyes filled with tears again. "Oh, Abe."
"Nic," he said, holding her precious face in his hands. "I obviously haven't made it clear to you how much you mean to me, how much better my life is since you came into it. I love you and I will love our child. Don't you understand? If you marry me, you're giving me a chance to get it all right this time."
* * *
On the day before Christmas Eve, Nicola gave Abe the chance of a lifetime he was asking for by saying, "I do."
"I now pronounce you man and wife," the judge said, and Nicola tilted her head upward for Abe's kiss of commitment.
At Miranda's urging, Nicola wore a new dress suit for the occasion. The waist was a little tight and she suspected that due to her baby's growth, she wouldn't be wearing it again for several months. She looked into Abe's eyes and saw the light of love. It was still hard to believe. He'd done a complete turnaround on the baby and he was as randy as ever for Nicola morning, noon and night.
"I love you," she said.
"I love you," he echoed, and she felt his declaration vibrate in every fiber inside her.
Kimberly wiped her eyes and embraced her father. "Congratulations, Dad!"
Lea rushed to Nicola's side. "Congratulations, Nicola."
"Welcome to the family," Reid said. "You've already done wonders," he whispered to Nicola. "The love of a good woman can make miracles happen."
* * *
Five months later, Nicola lay in the bed of the Georgetown home she shared with Abe and his children and nieces and nephews when they got a chance to visit. Her nightgown pushed up just below her breasts, she tried not to laugh as Abe sang an off-key rendition of "Eensy Weensy Spider" with his mouth pressed against her belly.
