Expecting the CEO's Baby. Karen Rose Smith
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felt as if she’d landed in a minefield. There were so many questions she wanted to ask, yet from the expression on his face, she knew he wouldn’t answer them.
“I suppose everyone tries to plan their future and very few succeed,” she mused. “It never quite goes the way we expect, does it?”
“Fate has thrown its share of boomerangs at me,” he admitted, as though he was telling her something he wouldn’t tell many others.
Being on this boat with him created intimacy that scared her. Maybe it was the way he was looking at her, maybe it was the sparks of silver in his gray eyes, maybe it was the way they were standing almost toe to toe.
Slowly he reached out and fingered a tendril of her hair that wisped along her cheek. Waves of heat seemed to undulate between them. “You’re a very beautiful woman, Jenna.”
She felt her cheeks go hot for many reasons, mostly because she’d never thought of herself in those terms. “I’m pregnant,” she said, as if that contradicted him.
His crooked half smile made her tummy flip-flop. “I think being pregnant has just added to your beauty.”
She was twenty-six, but she felt like a naive teenager with this man.
“I’m glad you came along with me today.” His voice was husky and as mesmerizing as his eyes.
She didn’t know if it was the sway of the boat or the force of the breeze, or something else entirely, but she felt herself leaning toward him. As he began to bend his head, the call of a gull startled her and she was totally dismayed at what she’d almost let happen.
Stepping away from Blake, she tried to slow her racing pulse. “I think we’d better go back.”
He didn’t look at all flustered, and she wondered if his tender touch had been planned along with everything else this afternoon. Was this why Rafe had been fearful for her? Had he been afraid she’d come under Blake Winston’s spell?
That wasn’t going to happen. She had her child to think about.
Turning away from Blake, she went over to the captain’s chair again and settled into it, waiting for him to take her back to the marina. When she returned to Fawn Grove, she’d call Rafe and then they’d plan a strategy. This man would not take her baby away from her.
She wouldn’t let him.
Chapter Three
As Blake parked behind Jenna’s apartment complex, he was bothered by the silence between them. It had seemed to drown out the music coming from the CD player during the drive back. For that one moment on the boat, he’d forgotten about their situation, about who he was and who she was, and that they might be headed to court. It had been a stupid impulse to even think about kissing her. He had practically everything a man could want. Yet Jenna Winton made him long for more.
Climbing out of his car, he closed the door and walked around to the passenger side. He knew better than to expect loyalty from a woman. He knew better than to expect anything but physical satisfaction from a relationship. Danielle Howard had taught him a valuable lesson when he was eighteen, and he’d never forgotten it. Her betrayal had pushed him toward the success he’d found. If only his father had lived to see it…if only his father had had the courage to wait for Blake to return…the courage to keep on living even when he thought his life was over.
As Jenna unfastened her seat belt and opened her door, it seemed natural to hold out his hand to her. She didn’t take it. As easily as any woman who wasn’t pregnant, she swung her legs to the pavement and stood with a dancer’s grace.
“I’ll walk you to your apartment,” he said after he closed her door.
“That’s not necessary.”
“I want to make sure you’re safely inside before I leave.” He wouldn’t mind having another look around her place. If she did get custody and brought his child home to her apartment…
He couldn’t let her have custody. He wouldn’t give up his baby. Whether he’d known it or not, for years he’d needed some connection…some bond. He knew he’d spoil a child, but he wanted his kid to have every advantage he’d never had.
“What are you thinking about?” she asked as they walked toward the building’s outside entrance.
Her question wasn’t one that was asked often. His employees and business associates usually knew exactly what was on his mind. “Why?” he returned warily.
“You looked so fierce.”
“I was thinking about the baby—what I could give him…or her.” As they started up the stairs, he asked, “Have you had a sonogram?”
She glanced at him. “Yes, but I didn’t want to know the sex. I wanted to be surprised.”
That was a way they were very different. He didn’t like surprises. “That makes shopping difficult, doesn’t it? You’d have to buy everything in green or yellow.”
“I haven’t started shopping yet,” she said quietly.
“Why not?”
They’d reached the landing when she answered, “Superstition, I guess. I just wanted to make sure everything was all right. I wanted to make sure I was really going to term with the baby.”
He took her arm. “Is there something wrong I don’t know about?”
“No. No! I just felt more comfortable waiting. Besides, Shannon told me there are good baby sales at the beginning of July.”
Thinking about what he’d learned of Jenna’s finances and the stringent budget she must be following, he wondered if she even had a room set up for the baby. “How many bedrooms do you have in your apartment?”
“Just one. But I’m going to breast-feed so I’ll have the baby in my room with me, anyway.”
With her words, his gaze dropped to her breasts. He found himself picturing—
Blanking out the image, he motioned to the hall entrance to guide her ahead of him. As they walked down the second-floor hall, Blake saw two other apartment doors were open—probably because of the problem with the air-conditioning. If there was a breeze, the residents were trying to pull it through.
An exotic-looking woman who appeared to be near forty came to the door when she saw Jenna pass. “Jenna,” she said fondly. Her hair was fixed on the top of her head with a yellow banana barrette, her cutoffs were short, and her stretch top barely contained her breasts.
Jenna greeted her neighbor with a smile and a wave. “Hi, Ramona. Staying cool?”
“I’ve been sharing Trina’s Popsicles. Want one?” The orange treat in question dripped onto her hand.
“No, thanks. I just want to get a cold shower and turn in.”
Blake asked, “Any word on when the air-conditioning will be fixed?”
Ramona looked him up and down appraisingly. Apparently liking what she saw, she smiled. “Not any time soon. The landlord said he’s waiting for a part. You know how that goes. By the way, Jenna, you have a visitor.”
Jenna stilled. “A visitor?”
“I didn’t want you to get a heart attack when you walked into your apartment. Your father’s there.”
“Do you know why?”
With a shrug, Ramona shook her head. “I dunno. When I saw him using his key, he just said something about not being able to get hold of you.”
Jenna looked chagrined. But then her expression eased again as she asked her neighbor, “Did he say anything about another counseling session?”
“No. I made sure he knew Joe was gone for good. I took Trina to church on Sunday and your dad seemed pleased.