by Andre, Bella
Sophie stared at him for a long moment, long enough that he knew he had her right where he wanted her. Finally.
“If I say yes, at the end of the week you’ll agree to do this my way?” she asked.
No. He’d never be able to do that, could never in a million years not claim his baby or the mother of his child. But it wouldn’t help his cause if she knew that going in.
Knowing he needed the week to work his magic, he nodded, just one more lie to add to the pile. But he wasn’t done playing dirty yet, not when he knew using their sexual connection was his best chance to get her to change her mind. Even if he burned in hell for it.
“The bed is part of the deal, Sophie. It’s non-negotiable.”
“Obviously,” she replied, shocking the hell out of him, yet again. “We’ll have a bunch of sex for a week, and then you’ll leave again, and I’ll deal with the rest of my life.” She shrugged as if she couldn’t have cared less about it either way.
Jake belatedly realized his misstep. At the end of the week, Sophie was going to use all the great sex they were bound to have to prove that’s all there was between them. He’d never had to prove the opposite to a woman, had never wanted to.
It was one heck of a situation. Especially considering, he knew now, that it didn’t matter how hard he tried not to touch her. He was barely going to make it another seven minutes, let alone seven days, without making love to her again.
“So we’re agreed?”
“Fine.” The one word from her mouth held a world of irritation. “I’ll give you seven days, but you can’t tell anyone in my family about us. About the baby.”
It made sense that none of them knew yet. Because if they had, her brothers would already have hunted him down. And killed him. And then he’d never get this chance to try to convince her to be his. Forever this time, instead of just for one night he relived every single time he closed his eyes.
“Does anyone know apart from the two of us?”
“Only Lori. She wanted to do terrible things to you when she found out. Still does, actually.”
It would definitely be easier for him to win her over in seven days if her family wasn’t constantly interfering in their business, especially if her brothers put him in a full-body cast. But Sophie’s keeping something so big, so important, from the family that meant everything to her didn’t sit right with Jake.
“You look different.” Glowing. “Your mother will take one look at you and know.”
Her face went white again. “Oh, God, you’re right. I just won’t see her.” He could see her trying to convince herself that what she was doing was okay. “It’s just a week.”
The seven days she’d promised him started ticking like a time bomb, laughing at him as he tried to figure out a way to turn it off before it detonated. They’d talk about her family later. Right now he had the mother of his child to win over.
“Have you eaten?”
“This morning.”
It was late, way past when she should have eaten dinner. “You’ve got to think about more than yourself now.”
“Are you accusing me of doing something to harm—”
He cut her off. “No. I just want to make sure you eat. Sit down,” he said, pointing to one of his bar stools. “I’ll make you dinner.”
“I thought you were needed at the pub,” she said, throwing his earlier words back in his face. She turned and headed for the front door.
Jake didn’t think before reaching out and pulling her against him. He knew being held by him was the very last thing she wanted, but she belonged in his arms.
“Seven days starts now.”
Eleven
Some things were way too weird for Sophie to get her head around. Like the fact that after all these years of wishing and hoping and dreaming, she was finally sitting in Jake’s kitchen.
Where he was cooking her dinner.
While she was pregnant.
With his baby.
No doubt about it, she had been sucked into The Twilight Zone.
The city lights from his third-floor loft, in what used to be the industrial part of the city, were spectacular. But she couldn’t take her eyes off Jake.
He had a surprisingly full fridge for a bachelor, and he certainly looked as if he knew what he was doing with the carrots, potatoes and onions. She was still angry with him for his Neanderthal demands, but she needed to eat. And she was perfectly fine with letting someone else feed her on a day that had been more trying than any other she could remember.
Of course, just because big, dangerous Jake McCann looked impossibly cute cooking her dinner, Sophie knew not to read too much into what he was doing, or to confuse his concern for the baby’s welfare with concern for her.
Now that he knew he was going to be a father, she could tell all he wanted was a healthy kid. She had no doubt he wouldn’t blink twice at taking drastic measures to meet his goals, like tying her up and force-feeding her healthy meals.
If only the tying-her-up part didn’t still sound so good…
“Are you too hot? Too cold?”
“I’m fine,” she said in a clipped voice.
“Have you been—”
The most self-assured man she’d ever known suddenly looked like he didn’t know what to say. Darn it, Sophie told herself, it wasn’t the least bit adorable.
“Have you been sick?”
“No. Mostly I’ve just been tired.” But I thought that was because every time I tried to fall asleep, I ended up thinking about you instead. “That’s why I didn’t realize I was pregnant until today.”
“Good,” he said in a gruff voice as he refilled her half-empty glass of water and slid a plate of warm soda bread with butter melting on it toward her before moving behind the stove. “I’m glad you’ve felt okay.”
It was hard to remember he didn’t really care about her at all when he was being so sweet. How on earth was she going to keep her guard up for seven days?
And how the heck had he even gotten her to agree to a week in the first place?
Sophie still wasn’t sure, although she didn’t think she’d ever forget the expression on his face when she’d told him she didn’t want anything from him and would deal with the baby all by herself without ever naming him as the father.
Jake had looked momentarily lost. Then angry. Then determined.
Maybe she should have come more prepared for his reaction, but she hadn’t expected him to want a baby. Especially not hers. And, frankly, she still didn’t understand why he did want it. Jake was the ultimate bachelor. His night-driven life didn’t lend itself to family dynamics.
Tomorrow, after a good eight hours of sleep, she’d make herself face him down again and demand an answer. Tonight, however, she wasn’t even sure how she was going to stay awake through this meal.
“I can’t believe you know how to cook.” The simple statement came out with such a bite, more than she’d even known she had in her. Sophie couldn’t understand how she could love and hate him at the same time…just that she did.
He gave her a half smile, not quite the smirk she was so used to. There was something in this smile that was different, almost as if he was a little embarrassed to be caught doing something that didn’t scream womanizing male.
“I had to learn when the cook was sick and no one else was around to do it.”
“I never thought about how hard it must have been to have your own restaurant,” she said, assuming he was talking about buying and operating the first McCann’s Irish Pub.
“Yeah,” he said, “it was crazy knowing that running McCann’s was entirely up to me. Win or lose, I was the guy to blame, but that’s not where I learned to cook. I was ten. My dad was working the taps. I would hang out in the back, wash dishes for quarters. The cook was too drunk to fry up the orders. He passed out in the back, and the customers were giving my father trouble. He told me to cook.” Jake transferred the vegetables to a plate, then sliced the pork roast he’d heated up on the
plate beside it. “So I cooked.”
How long had she wanted to know something like this about Jake’s life? How long had she dreamed of being close enough to him to actually hear stories of his childhood? Now that the moment had finally come, she was so mad at him. Too mad—and too tired—to really appreciate it.
He slid the plate in front of her and it smelled wonderful. “Standard Irish fare.” There was a hint of defensiveness in his tone. “It’s what I do best.”
That, she knew, was where he was wrong. The food looked amazing, but she already knew what he did best. And while it involved plenty of heat, the kitchen wasn’t the preferred location…and there were a heck of a lot less clothes involved.
The bed is non-negotiable.
Over and over his earlier words played in her head, thrumming through her body, making every cell come completely alive, alert with wanting, despite how exhausted she was. She’d already accepted that seven days in close proximity with Jake would make it impossible to guard her hormones. Especially when she now knew exactly how good he could make her feel.
Only this time, she was smart enough to know she needed to guard her heart. No matter what.
Fortunately, the growling of her stomach stole her attention back from how close his bed had to be. She reached for the knife and fork. “Thanks for dinner.”
It wasn’t the most grateful she’d ever sounded, but it was the best she could do for now. Jake would just have to deal with it. But when she took a bite, she couldn’t stop the moan of appreciation coming from her lips.
“You like it?”
He was smiling at her, and when she looked up at him, when she saw those dark eyes on her like that, looking so pleased with pleasing her, she lost hold of every thought…lost hold of anything but the sudden, desperate need to feel his mouth on hers again, taking her, possessing her the way he had during their one beautiful night together.
It didn’t help when his smile changed, shifting to an intense look of desire that she was sure mirrored hers exactly.
Somehow she managed to pull herself together enough to say, “It’s great.” She took another bite, hoping that if she kept her mouth stuffed full, she could keep her lips focused on something other than wanting to feel Jake’s pressing against them.
“Good. There’s more if you need it.”
She frowned. “Wait, aren’t you having some?”
He shook his head. “I ate earlier.”
“Oh.” He really had done all of this for her. No man had ever cooked for her before.
Then again, no man had ever knocked her up, either. She supposed rustling up a meal was the least he could do.
Sophie was hungry enough not to care that he was just sitting there watching her eat. She’d never been one of those girls who picked at her food. Her hips and breasts were evidence of that, despite the laps she swam every day. Lori was quite a bit leaner, given her intense dance and choreography schedule.
But after several minutes, as her stomach went from empty to full, she realized she was going to lose the battle with keeping her eyes open. She put down her knife and fork and yawned, big and long.
“You’re tired.”
Jake, she’d noticed more than once, didn’t waste words. But before she could do much more than nod, his arms were going around her and he was lifting her off the stool.
Her brain—and body—immediately flashed back to Napa, when he’d picked her up, naked and desperate for him.
“What are you doing?” She couldn’t hide the panic that underlay each word.
He didn’t break stride. “Taking you to bed.”
Her breath lodged in her chest. Even wanting him as bad as she still did, she knew she couldn’t have sex with him tonight. Not when she was feeling so tired and weak. On top of it all, it was as if every wall she should have up to protect herself was lying down taking a nap.
What would happen if she lowered the defenses she’d tried to put up? What remaining part of her heart—or worse, her soul—would she end up handing over to him on a silver platter?
“Jake, dinner was great, but I need to go home now.”
“No.” His bedroom was big and masculine, just like him. “Seven days, Sophie. You promised me the week.” He moved to take off her shoes, and she was so stunned by how gentle he was being with her that she let him.
“I know I did,” she said when she found her voice. “But I thought they’d be like dates, that we’d meet up after work for a few hours.”
“I want you here. With me.”
It was everything she’d ever wanted him to say, and yet the words coming from her lips were, “What if I don’t want to be here?”
He looked up at her from where he was kneeling by her now-bare feet, his eyes an unfathomable near-black. “Then I’ll stay with you.”
She swallowed hard, suddenly realizing his intent—and just what she’d signed herself up for.
Not just seven days, but seven nights.
Oh, God.
He got up and went to the bathroom, but was back in seconds. “There’s a new toothbrush beside the sink. I’ll be back soon.”
Sophie knew she could put her shoes back on and leave, that she didn’t have to go into his bathroom and brush her teeth before slipping into his bed. But she also knew Jake well enough to know that if she did that, he’d just follow her.
He wouldn’t care about pounding on her apartment door loud enough to wake the whole neighborhood before she let him in. Not when he was so incredibly possessive, clearly wanting to take over her life by doing things like forcing her to eat dinner. It didn’t matter that she’d been hungry enough to eat a horse. She didn’t want anyone telling her what to do.
Especially not him.
But the craziest thing of all was that, instead of only being mad about his domineering behavior, she was aroused by it at the same time. So much so that she couldn’t stop her old favorite daydream from playing in her head, the one where Jake’s hard muscles were pinning her to the bed and he was looking down at her telling her exactly what he was going to do to her. And she was dying for it.
She shoved herself off the bed and went into the bathroom. “Stupid, stupid, stupid.” She ranted at herself the entire way across the carpet to the tiled floor.
Her stupidity had already gotten her into this mess. She didn’t need to compound it further by actually falling for his seven-day “let me convince you I can be there for you and the baby” game. Especially since any guy who kept extra toothbrushes on hand clearly needed them for a parade of women.
Furious at herself, she brushed her teeth hard enough to take off the top layer of enamel, then washed her face. He hadn’t offered her any pajamas, and she definitely wasn’t going to get into his bed naked.
Wouldn’t he just love that?
At least, she thought with a small measure of comfort, he didn’t keep women’s pajamas in his house to go with the toothbrushes. She’d never gone through someone else’s things before—Lori was the snoop in their family—but Sophie didn’t feel at all bad about opening his closet to look for a T-shirt. She hated sleeping in her bra, and she needed something to cover her in lieu of the white cotton she had on.
She found a black shirt, and as she quickly pulled off her skirt, sweater and bra, she tried not to appreciate the fact that the shirt smelled like Jake. A clean, masculine smell that went straight to her head.
Hearing footsteps, she all but threw herself onto his bed and beneath the thick covers, only to find his mattress deliciously comfortable. Clearly, from what she’d seen of his house so far, he bought the best for himself. She could only imagine how much a bed like this must have cost.
Oh, but it was worth every single penny.
She hadn’t thought she’d be able to sleep a wink in his bed. But it was so comfortable…and she was so tired.
Before she knew it, Sophie’s brain turned off and she was down for the count.
***
Jake stood in the doorway, so struck
by the picture of Sophie asleep in his bed that he couldn’t actually make his feet move forward. Yet again, he couldn’t do anything but stare at her, watch as her chest rose and fell slowly, her hair spread out across his pillow, her expression so serene.
His chest clenched tighter as he finally moved into the room. Her scent was already everywhere, wrapping around him, winding through him, drawing him closer.
He could still barely process what had happened tonight, that Sophie had come to his house and told him she was pregnant. The fear he’d felt had only been eclipsed by one thing: pure joy.
For two and a half months he’d missed her every day.
No, he silently admitted as he started to strip off his clothes, he’d missed her every second. Not just because their lovemaking had been spectacular, but because he’d always loved being near her. Listening to her talk and laugh and even sing when she thought no one was listening. She danced, too, in the kitchen when she thought she was all alone, and even though Lori was the professional dancer in the family, Sophie was just as graceful, just as beautiful in motion. Jake had missed getting to watch Sophie with her family, the easy way she had with her brothers, the sparks that often lit between her and her twin, the way she pampered her mother more than anyone else.
Every moment of the past ten weeks he’d been torn between knowing he wouldn’t give up the memories of his night with Sophie for anything…and wishing they could rewind back to that place where she was still Nice and he was the ninth Sullivan who knew better than to even look twice at either of the Sullivan girls.
And now that she was pregnant?
It meant she was his whether she wanted to believe it or not. And not just for a few stolen hours anymore. He wanted her. Badly. He hadn’t just wanted her since the moment he’d found her standing outside his front door, hadn’t just needed her for two and a half months, ever since they’d made love in the rental house in Napa. No, the truth was he’d wanted her for so much longer than that. So long that he could hardly remember a time when he hadn’t wanted her.
And he knew for damn sure that there would never come a time when he wouldn’t want her.
