Just watching the scene had something disturbing squeezing
deep inside her. It wasn’t sudden; it had crept up throughout the day and
through each second that Andy had spent with Gabriel tonight. He could be the
perfect father, the perfect man and role model for her son. She cleared her
throat but nearly choked when she whispered, “Goodnight, Gabriel. Have a good
sleep.”
This was all so confusing. What did Andy want? Why hadn’t he
left, and why was he taking such an interest in Gabriel? Her throat felt all
scratchy and tight, but that was only because she wanted to tuck her face in
the pillow and cry those thousand tears she’d cried almost every night for
Andy. All she’d ever wanted was to be loved.
What he’d done today was horrible, cruel, and she wanted to
scream and yell “Why?” He had stayed, caring for her tonight and today at the
hospital in a way that made her feel important, special, but she also knew she
wasn’t any of that to him, not in the way she wanted to be. It was the babies.
She was just the vessel, a warm cocoon for a rich man’s babies, and that was
something she could not allow herself to forget. He was powerful, he was rich,
and his family was dangerous.
“Are you all right?” He brushed his finger across her brows.
“Yeah, fine,” she blurted as she pulled back, her skin
burning from the spark of his touch.
“You look worried about something, upset.” He was watching
her, studying her as if he knew what she was thinking, and she couldn’t have
that.
“No, I’m just...” She couldn’t think of what to say when her
brain suddenly blanked out. That always happened when Andy stood so close to
her and watched her with compelling blue eyes that could set her soul on fire,
so she shut her mouth and shook her head.
He sat right beside her on the bed so his hip pressed into
hers. She knew all too well what those slim hips and tight abs looked like
naked and pressed against her hips, nestled between her thighs. It was almost
too much heat for her, so she squirmed and tried to slide over and away from
him.
“You all right? You look uncomfortable.”
He wouldn’t even look away. Uncomfortable, hell yeah. And it
was all his fault. “Just stiff is all.”
“Can I?” He rested his hand over her swollen belly, where
the babies had been kicking furiously for the last hour.
He was connecting with her babies. She wanted to scream and
yell at him, “Hell no! Keep your hands off!” but her body was betraying her.
The reality was that she wanted him to touch her, to run his hands over every
square inch of her.
He didn’t wait for her to say anything, but then, she
couldn’t get her tongue to move. The damn thing had thickened, and her throat
had completed dried up as he invaded her space. My God, he even smelled good,
and his scruffy jaw...she longed to reach up and run her hands over it.
His touch sent shockwaves through her, and the babies
responded in kind. She’d swear they jumped from his touch, as if they knew that
Andy was their daddy. He smiled that charming, boyish grin she’d only seen a
few times. Never once had he smiled just for her.
“Wow, that’s amazing. Did you feel that?”
For a moment, she felt herself being pulled into his joy,
just like a little boy’s first Christmas, but she had to look away, to move
away from his touch, because she’d never again be treated as if she was nothing.
Andy Friessen could turn on a dime, and she’d never play second again. “Yeah, I
did. Listen, I’m tired.” She scooted over and lifted his hand off her belly.
She couldn’t look at him even though she could feel the sharp change in him as
if she’d just ripped away all his joy. So why was she feeling guilty? She
wasn’t the bad guy here.
