Raising His Baby

by Tressie Lockwood

  “I’m not sure I’m cut out for this.”

  Sonya heard the hesitation in his voice. “I bet you’re blushing. I’ve never known a man to blush as much as you do.”

  “I’m not blushing!”

  She laughed. He so was. “Okay, sit here. Let me feel his belly.”

  Romy complied, but she felt his lack of confidence. She ignored Romy’s feelings and concentrated on her baby boy and making him comfortable. Arron curled tiny hands around one of Romy’s fingers and fought through his pain. Romy made a sound not unlike his son’s.

  “He’s hurting, Sonya. Do something!”

  “I know, I know, sweetheart.” She wasn’t sure if she was talking to Arron or to both of them. Right then Romy sounded just as tormented.

  She ran a hand over Arron’s belly, and sure enough it was swollen with gas. They needed to coax his bowels to do their job properly to give him some relief.

  “You’re going to put his back to you and cross his legs. Then you’ll pull them gently toward you, kind of like rowing. Give it a try.”

  Romy followed her directions in awkward jerky movements. From the first row, Arron pooted, and Romy looked proud of him. She rolled her eyes. Men. They worked for several minutes, and then fresh stink filled the air.

  “Let’s get him changed.” She set the diaper and wipes in place. “Correction, you’re doing it.”

  He frowned. “You sound too happy to turn the job over to me.”

  “I don’t know what you mean,” she teased.

  After his poop, Arron settled down and Romy seemed to calm as well. She gave him instructions, and he opened the diaper. He gagged and coughed. She thought he would run out of the room, but he braved through it.

  “Ugh, I got it on me,” he shouted. “What do I do?”

  She bent over cracking up. “For one, calm down. It’s not going to melt your skin no matter how it smells.”

  “I don’t like this part.”

  “Contrary to what men think women don’t like it either. Tough it out.”

  “Perhaps I should hire a nanny.”

  “Not on your life. Nobody else is taking care of my baby.”

  He frowned, but he didn’t comment. Sonya worried they would have this argument later, but she wouldn’t give in to him. They might be stuck having bodyguards follow them and other limitations, but no other woman was going to take over responsibility of raising Arron. She couldn’t love him more if she had given birth to him herself.

  Sonya felt Arron’s belly. “Much better. Come on. I’m tired out of my mind, but he’ll settle down even more if he has a bath. The warm water should relax his muscles.”

  Romy agreed, and she got the bath water ready, adding bubbles to the warm water. She took Arron from Romy and placed him in the bath. Her heart skipped a few beats as the big man knelt down at the side of the tub and began fumbling with Arron’s washcloth and his liquid soap. Romy ran the cloth over Arron’s skin as if he was scared the baby’s skin might wipe off if he was too rough.

  “You have to wash him all over,” she instructed.

  He paled, and she laughed.

  “Hand it to me.” He did, and she continued to clean the baby. Romy watched her every move as if he sought to learn each detail of how to care for his son. She had never met a man so devoted so quickly. More and more, she prayed Charlize wasn’t pulling a fast one over all of them because she began to suspect Romy’s heart would be shattered if Arron wasn’t his.

  “You were right,” Romy said, his voice a bit hoarse. “He’s happier. Look at his smile.”

  “Uh oh, I think my little man has captured your heart. That’s how he does with everyone he meets. He’s too cute to resist.”

  He frowned. “You keep calling him your son.”

  “He’s mine until we establish he’s got your blood running through his veins. Then he’s your son too. Let’s get something straight. He’ll always be my son.”

  “I don’t want to take him from you.”

  They stared at each other for a few minutes, and she got what he was saying. If Romy found out Arron was truly his, he wouldn’t stop at anything to get legal rights to him. Maybe that was what Charlize feared—Romy taking the baby away from her. The Sartoris were probably used to taking whatever they wanted, and if anyone put up a fight, they used their financial influence to get their way. At the end of the day, Romy was Ezio’s brother, and she could tell Ezio would be ruthless about getting his will enforced.

  After Arron’s bath, Sonya let Romy wrap him in a towel and carry him to the bedroom. He ruined only one diaper before he got the procedure down, and he beamed like he had just solved world hunger. She rolled her eyes.

  “If you walk with him, he should fall asleep right away.”

  In less time than she thought, Arron curled tiny fists against Romy’s shoulders and drifted off to sleep. He was learning to trust his papà. She watched over Romy as he laid the baby in his crib, and then she walked him to the hall.

  “Are you sure he’ll be okay?”

  Sonya grinned. “He’s fine now. Trust me.”

  He didn’t say anything, reminding her about his view of women. She gazed around the darkened hallway with the door of her and Arron’s bedroom shut at her back. Thank goodness no one else had been disturbed by his cries.

  “Thanks for helping me with him. I’m glad he didn’t bother anyone else. He’ll be fine the rest of the night, and I’m going to give him light foods tomorrow, all the ones that don’t usually give him much trouble.”

  Once again Romy said nothing. With the door blocking out the light she had turned on in the room she couldn’t see his face very well. Moonlight from a window gave enough illumination one could walk along the hall without falling down the stairs or tripping over a hall table.

  Romy moved a step closer to her, and she caught her breath because she couldn’t be sure what was on his mind. He raised a hand as if he would touch her, but once again drew back. She marveled at how expressive he was. Most men hid what they were thinking pretty well, but Romy was like an open book to peruse at leisure. She liked that about him.

  “I had no idea it was like that,” he breathed.

  “Caring for a baby?”

  “Yes, my own. Or rather I hope…” He trailed off, but she already knew what he hoped. He wanted Arron to be his.

  “You can help me get him dressed in the morning if you want.” She bit her lip. This was feeling like a couple taking care of their son together, and it was misleading her emotions. She was no stranger to falling in love, but most men hated how assertive she was by nature. Maybe it had to do with her choosing the wrong type of man. They wanted sweet little women whose sole purpose in life was to chase behind them. Sonya wasn’t that type of woman.

  “I should get in there.” She felt around behind her for the knob.

  Out of nowhere Romy seemed to be standing even closer. She couldn’t draw in a breath. He didn’t speak, and his eyes, illuminated in the moonlight, were doing things to her senses.

  This isn’t real. Don’t let the moonlight and the imaginary closeness of the situation fool you.

  He dipped his head, and her chin came up although she meant to turn away. His warm breath caressed her skin just before his lips touched hers. Alarm bells went off in her head to tell her to back away. Better yet, she needed to run into her room and slam and lock the door. Instead, she arched against him.

  Romy’s arm came around her waist, and he dragged her up to his body. She extended upward to clutch his shoulders. Against her better judgment, she opened her mouth, and he invaded it with his tongue. Her heart raged out of control, and her body went off like a firecracker.

  A low moan escaped Romy, and she matched it with one of her own. They kissed for long moments, and she ran her hand down his side to grip his hip. She felt the firm muscles beneath her touch and the warmth from his body. Unbelievable longing washed over her. She wanted so much more she could hardly stand it.

  “Romy,
” she whimpered, and he stiffened. She knew he had snapped out of it just before he thrust her back. Her butt bumped the door, and she gazed up at him, confused by the fire that wasn’t desire in his eyes.

  He straightened. “I won’t be taken in.”

  “Excuse me? You’re the one that kissed me.”

  “And you didn’t fight me off.”

  “Oh now it’s my fault? What you think I’m trying to seduce you? Maybe you didn’t notice you’re falling all over yourself already to take care of Arron.”

  She sensed him close down in anger, but she wasn’t going to try to appease his doubts. He wanted to blame her for his desire, but she wasn’t going for it.

  “I’m not afraid to admit I liked the kiss. I don’t play games with people. It doesn’t matter anyway. I know we aren’t going to get together, and neither am I trying.” She held up her hand when he was about to speak. “Like I told your brother, I don’t want your money. I wanted Arron to know his daddy in compliance with my sister’s wishes. You seem like a decent person so far, but I will do whatever I deem best for Arron. So forget about me trying to seduce you—or don’t. I could care less!”

  She swung away from him intending to stomp into her room. A wrench in her ankle brought tears to her eyes and bile to her throat. She clamped down on the pain, but Romy must have noticed something. He dragged her back to his chest with an arm about her middle. Her feet left the floor.

  “Let me go!”

  He growled in her ear. “You apparently don’t know how to take care of yourself.”

  “Wait, first you’re accusing me of trying to use you. Then you accuse me of being too stupid to take care of myself?”

  “I won’t argue with you.” He flung the door wide and shifted her in his hold. In a couple of steps he reached the bed and set her gently onto it. She burned up in anger at him, partly because she liked how delicate he made her feel and because he assumed her size made her weak.

  “Don’t underestimate me,” she grumbled. “I’ve spent years proving to boys what I’m made of. Men aren’t too different.”

  Blue eyes glittered. “That I don’t doubt.”

  For a few minutes, he stared down at her. She started to feel self-conscious but refused to let him see it. Romy was attracted to her but he resisted the feeling. She wasn’t in the habit of denying her desires, except when she met him.

  “All right,” he said after some time.

  “All right what?”

  He colored. “I wanted to kiss you. I still want to. That means nothing.”

  “Exactly what I’ve been saying.”

  “I can’t promise it won’t happen again. However, it won’t change the position I take regarding Arron.” His eyebrows crashed low over his expressive eyes. “So don’t try to make yourself…more appealing.”

  “You are not serious?”

  “I’m very serious.”

  She snorted. “Wow, the Sartori ego is huge. No wonder you need to live in a mansion. It’s for your big heads!”

  He nodded. “Better for you to insult me.”

  “To keep you safe?” She tilted her head to the side and gestured to her entire body. “Trust me, honey, this right here is more than you can handle. Any day of the week.”

  His eyes grew wide, but she saw the intrigue. “You’re a very confident woman.”

  “I can read people pretty well, and for real it doesn’t take much to know a man wants you.”

  She bit her lip to keep from smiling at his coloring. He was so easy and so fun to bug. Not that she didn’t know he was also dangerous. She had never met a man like Romy Sartori, and after one day under his roof things were getting dicey. She needed to be careful.

  “Let’s keep our relationship on a professional level from now on. No kissing, no touching, and definitely no more carrying me around. Deal?” She held out her hand.

  He ignored it but nodded. “Deal. Good night, Sonya.”

  “Good night, Romy.”

  Her heart drummed a tune that said not touching Romy would be close to impossible.

  Chapter 7

  “We have a ninety-nine percent chance that Arron Crane is your biological son, Mr. Sartori.”

  Romy could hardly believe the words the man spoke. Dazed, he glanced over at Sonya who held the baby in her arms. She too seemed taken aback, although he was pretty sure she expected the results to be as they were. He focused on Arron and lost the ability to draw in a breath.

  My son!

  His knees gave a little, and he staggered to a chair to sit down in case he made a fool of himself. This was too unreal, to hard to believe. Him? Romy Sartori a father? Yet, it was true. Joy sprung up inside him, then anger, fear, and resentment. The feelings he had once held for Charlize were long gone, and the negative ones solidified at the mere thought that she intended to keep Arron from him.

  “My son,” he murmured and reached out toward the baby.

  Sonya brought him over to Romy, and Romy took his son into his arms. Arron still wasn’t too used to him after only a few days living together, but he would do all in his power to help the baby accept him.

  A lump formed in his throat as he stared down at his son. Jeez, was he thinking the word son too much? Who cared? He had a son!

  Romy looked up at the attendant. “You’re sure?”

  The man nodded. “Yes, sir. The results are all here in these papers. We ran the tests three times as you requested. There’s no mistake about it.”

  “Thank you,” Sonya said in a soft voice, and she sat down beside Romy. She hadn’t commented since they got the news, and he wondered what ran through her mind. Relief? Triumph because her scheme worked? Then again, he supposed there couldn’t exactly be a scheme if he was responsible for his boy. Of course he would make sure Arron was taken care of for the rest of his life. Romy would see his lawyer immediately.

  “His name will change.”

  Her eyes widened. “What?”

  He didn’t mean to blurt it out, but since he’d said it, she might as well know. “He will be a Sartori in name as well as blood.”

  She pressed her lips together, and he caught the defiant tilt to her chin. Romy could guess she thought he would try to take the baby away from her, and he wasn’t ready to soothe her worries just yet. The fact was he would have parental rights.

  “You still don’t trust me.”

  He ran a hand over Arron’s soft curls, and a lump formed in his throat. After several minutes of trying to clear it away, he spoke. “Whether I trust you or not isn’t an issue.”

  “It is for me.”

  “Arron will be my heir. He must have my name.”

  “You all think too much about your stupid name. Arron is my baby.”

  “For now, he’s ours,” he corrected. Again, he kicked himself because he didn’t mean to get into an argument with her. “We’ll talk about it later.”

  “Whatever. I have to change him.” She took the baby from his arms, and he allowed it with reluctance. Now that he didn’t have to hold back a piece of himself, he didn’t want Arron to go too far. He wanted to keep looking at his son. All of a sudden, his greatest desire in life was to have his baby reach up to him, eager for Romy to hold him. Would it be too long before he could have that experience? He hoped not.

  Sonya tucked the baby on her hip and walked away. Romy nodded to one of the guards. Since she was so headstrong, he had decided to hire a temporary bodyguard for Sonya and Arron. There was no telling when she would take it into her head to leave the mansion without his knowledge just because she was so independent. He was pretty sure she hadn’t noticed Frost yet. Now Romy was sure he would keep the man on staff. Arron would never be unprotected because it would kill him if anything happened to his son.

  His phone rang, and Romy answered as he walked toward the bank of elevators at the end of the hall. “Cason.”

  “Fratello. Well? We’ve been waiting to know. Come on, man. Don’t keep us in suspense.”

  Romy had tr
ouble keeping the smile off his face although Cason couldn’t see it. “Ezio there?”

  “Yeah, you’re on speaker.”

  Romy grinned so hard his cheeks hurt. “He’s mine. Arron is mine!”

  Cason whooped. “I knew it. Now we get to keep Sonya too.”

  “That’s not necessary,” Ezio barked. “You should be able to get a judge to give you custody of him right away, Romy. Those papers are enough.”

  “Whoa, hold your horses. I’m not going to rip him from her.”

  “Oh ho,” Cason gushed. “So you’re saying you want her.”

  Romy felt heat suffusing his face. “I’m saying she’s the only mother he’s known for months now. He’s young, and I don’t want to hurt him.”

  “The longer you wait, the harder it will be for both of them.”

  Romy clenched his jaw. There was no compromising with Ezio. Sometimes Romy couldn’t understand how Ezio could be so starkly different from him. Then again, their father was like Ezio before he passed. Their mother was devoted to that hard man, and papà was devoted to the family.

  When he didn’t respond, Ezio spoke again. “You’re not telling me you don’t want to officially make him a Sartori now that we know?”

  “Of course I want to. I will.”

  “Good. We’ve got to go to a meeting. I’m assuming you’re spending the day with your son?”

  Romy’s heart stirred. “Yes.”

  For the first time since the start of the conversation, Ezio softened. “I don’t blame you. See you later tonight.”

  “Yeah.” Romy ended the call and tucked his phone away. He scanned the area and didn’t spot Sonya. She was taking too long. Jody gave him a slight shrug when he glanced his way. Romy hurried around the corner where he had seen Sonya disappear. Surely, she didn’t run off with the baby. His heart pounded just thinking about it. A plan of action ran through his mind should he have to go after her.

  At the end of the next hall, he picked up Sonya’s voice and sighed with relief. She stood just outside the restroom door chatting with a man Romy had never seen before.