Tempt Me by Carly Phillips (11)

“I’m nervous,” Mia admitted as Austin pulled the car into a parking lot in Manhattan for her trial prep with the district attorney. “I mean, not nervous for the prep but for the trial on Friday, which is ridiculous considering I’ve done this before.”

“It’s normal to be worked up. First of all, this guy has been trying to scare you away from testifying. And second, it’s nerve-racking not knowing what the defense is going to ask you. The good news is, it’ll all be over soon.” He placed his hand on hers, and to his surprise, she didn’t pull back.

Her skin was soft and his dick noticed. Of course it did. It was the first time he’d really touched her since he’d carried her up to his bed.

Taken care of her.

Fallen asleep beside her.

Woken up holding her, her lithe, warm body curled back into his.

Since life had felt right and good if only she hadn’t been sick. And she’d been sick for a while now. A niggling thought suddenly prickled at his brain.

No. They’d used protection.

But maybe it hadn’t worked?

One thing he knew for sure, if she was pregnant, unlike Kayla, Mia hadn’t arranged for it to happen.

How had he not recognized the possibility before? It wasn’t the flu, no fever, no cough, chills, congestion. And the longer it went on, the less likely it was a stomach bug.

Hell, it had been right in front of him this whole time and he’d been blind. Because Kayla had had a textbook perfect pregnancy, no morning sickness at all.

Mia could be pregnant.

Fuck.

But instead of panic, he felt an overwhelming sense of rightness settle over him, making him wonder, what the hell had he been fighting so damned hard against?

She was his perfect complement in all ways. An out-of-the-blue realization? Maybe. Or maybe not. Maybe it had been floating around in the back of his mind for a long time now but he’d taken his time coming to the right place because she’d been there all along.

He’d been an ass, letting things go on as they’d been, Mia always there in his life but not where she should be. In his bed. In his heart.

He loved her.

He blinked. Glanced at her delicate profile, the serious expression on her face an indicator of the way she’d withdrawn from him because he’d let her.

“Austin? I asked if you’re ready to get out of the car,” she said, concern in her voice.

He blinked. “Yeah.” He wasn’t. Inside he was trembling.

He wanted nothing more than to take her into his arms and put her out of her misery. Whether she knew, suspected, or not, she needed him. But there was something she had to get through first and it needed her focus. However, when this mess that was screwing with her life ended, they were going to have a serious talk about their future.

Because her being around wasn’t enough for him. Not when she’d become as essential to him as breathing.

He climbed out and strode around to her side, helping her stand. “Are you feeling okay?” he asked. She’d seemed fine this morning but he had the sense she was hiding as much as she could from him… and now he understood why.

“Yes. Better today,” she said, ducking her head, not meeting his gaze.

She obviously didn’t want him to know. Because he’d made it clear he didn’t want to start over with marriage, a family. He damned himself for being so clueless.

“You ready to do this?” he asked.

She nodded. “I don’t think I’ll be in with Kate for long. An hour, tops.”

“I’ll be waiting when you get out. I’m not leaving you alone.”

“I appreciate that.”

He dealt with the parking lot attendant and led Mia out to the street. On the walk to the office, he kept an eye on everything going on around him. The city was busy, people rushing to work on a normal morning, but he had an arm around Mia, holding her close, ready to protect her if need be.

They approached the building, which had five steps up and a set of double doors through which to enter. Before they reached the first step, Mia looked down and her sunglasses fell from her head to the ground.

She paused, bending down to retrieve them at the same time Austin caught sight of a man with a gun. Everything happened at once. The man fired as Austin shoved her to the ground, doing his best to take the brunt of the fall even as he kept her beneath the protection of his body.

Mia screamed. People around them shouted, in a panic. And Austin had to let the shooter go to concentrate on Mia.

He turned her onto her back. “Hey, baby.” He looked into her eyes, his heart pounding with the thought that he could have lost her. “Are you okay?”

She shook her head and he glanced down, seeing flecks of blood staining through her clothes. Jesus Christ, she’d been shot. Nausea rushed through him.

He pulled her into his arms, covering her body with his own. “Fuck.” Anger and fury pulsed inside him, both at himself and the bastard who’d been so brazen as to shoot in a crowd.

He glanced around but they were surrounded by onlookers and the assailant was long gone. “Someone call 911!” he shouted to the people around them, then refocused on Mia. “I’ll get you out of here, just hang on. I’ve got you.”

Tears pooled in her eyes. “I’m fine. My shoulder burns but… I’m okay,” she said, as if he were the one who needed reassuring. “But—”

“Give me a second.” He ripped off his jacket and pressed it against the wound, applying pressure.

She winced at the pain.

“I’m sorry but I have to staunch the bleeding.”

“Ambulance is on its way,” someone yelled to him.

He breathed out a harsh breath.

Suddenly Mia grabbed his arm with her good hand. “Austin, I’m scared.”

He leaned closer, his lips near her cheek. “It’s going to be okay.”

“But…” She drew a shuddering breath, her gaze hesitant. “I’m pregnant. What about the baby?”

The sound of sirens blared and relief flooded him. She said it was her shoulder that burned but until he knew if that bullet exited and didn’t hit anything vital, he wouldn’t breathe.

He sucked in a shallow breath, possibility suddenly becoming definite. In the chaos of her getting shot, he’d forgotten his earlier thoughts about her possibly having his baby.

“I know you are,” he said with a soft smile. “I figured it out, but right now we’re going to focus on you, and when the ambulance gets here, we’ll fill them in.”

Her eyes opened wide at his admission. “You know?”

“I just figured it out as we pulled into the garage.” He pushed harder on the jacket as the ambulance pulled up to the curb.

Paramedics ran out and pushed Austin aside. He knew the drill but it still rankled. “She’s pregnant,” he informed them. “Make sure they’re both okay.”

“We’re on it. Just stay back,” a female said.

Austin couldn’t see over their backs or shoulders and he was in a panic of his own. Finally, they put her on a stretcher and he ran up beside her, grasping her hand.

“Sir, you can’t—”

“I’m her fiancé. I’m coming with her,” he said in his sternest, most insistent voice.

Mia’s eyes grew wide in her now pale face.

Ignoring her shock, he pushed past the paramedics and joined her in the back of the ambulance.

*     *     *

Mia lay on a bed in the emergency room, her shoulder burning, the pain agonizing, but she was fortunate the bullet had only grazed her. The amount of blood after the shooting had been deceiving as far as the damage done. They’d given her a painkiller, assuring her it was safe for the baby in the early stages of pregnancy, and considering the level of pain she was in, she decided not to argue. She’d take it to get over the initial pain and cut back as soon as possible.

Now she had to face Austin. The fact that they hadn’t let him back with her while they worked on her shoulder was a blessing because she didn’t want to deal with the baby talk on top of everything else going on. But now she was alone, it was quiet, and she’d have to deal with the fact of her pregnancy and her future.

The sweet nurse who’d been by her side through the worst of the cleaning of the wound had gone out to get her fiancé, as he’d called himself to the paramedics. Not that she blamed him. The label enabled him to stay by her side and she appreciated not being alone and afraid at the same time.

“Hello?” Austin pushed aside the curtain. “Is it okay if I come in?”

“Sure.”

He stepped into the small cubicle in which she’d been placed. One look at him and she knew he wasn’t doing well. He’d taken off his jacket to staunch her blood loss and now wore a rumpled white shirt, sleeves haphazardly rolled up. His hair stood on end as if he’d been running his fingers through it over and over again. He was pale, his eyes glazed, and her heart squeezed tight in her chest.

She hadn’t meant to put him through something so traumatic, and though she understood this was his job, even she had to admit he’d been affected by today’s events.

“Hey.” He came up to her bed and gripped the metal side rail.

“Hey.”

Unable to help herself, she reached out and placed her hand over his. “I’m okay,” she reassured him. “The bullet grazed my shoulder. It didn’t penetrate or do any major damage.”

“Because you dropped your glasses. Otherwise you would have taken a direct hit somewhere more vital. I wish I’d been on your other side,” he said, teeth clenched, his frustration and anger with himself obvious.

“You couldn’t have guessed where he’d be.”

Austin nodded, his jaw tight, as if he really did know that, he just hated the fact that she’d been hurt.

Silence followed for a few minutes and he finally spoke. “Are we going to talk about it?” he asked.

She glanced down at her still-flat stomach. “We should.” She ran her tongue over her dry lips. “I was going to tell you right after the trial.”

He inclined his head. “I believe you. I just can’t really wrap my head around the fact that you’re pregnant. I mean, we used protection, no holes in the condoms,” he said wryly.

“It happens.” She still looked down, needing to gather herself as she said what she’d planned to say next. “Austin…”

“Yeah?”

“I don’t expect anything from you.”

“Mia,” he said, a definite warning in his tone.

She shook her head. “No. Let me finish.”

He waved a dismissive hand. “Go ahead.”

She swallowed hard. “I know this happened to you before.”

A low growl escaped him but she forged on. “You got a woman pregnant and it wasn’t planned and you felt obligated to marry her and try to create a family for Bailey’s sake. And I admire and respect that about you, I really do. But I want you to know, I’ve heard you loud and clear.”

She looked up in time to see him narrow his gaze. “You heard what?”

“I heard you when you told me you didn’t want anything serious, and more importantly, I heard you tell Ben you’ve done the family thing once and you weren’t going to do it again.” She ran her tongue over her lips. “I wasn’t eavesdropping. I was waiting for the bathroom at Dan’s,” she said quietly. “And I respect you too much to ever put you in that position again.”

“Are you finished?” he asked, his tone low and brittle.

“No,” she said, her head buzzing, dizziness and emotional pain assaulting her. “There’s one more thing. I won’t stop you from having whatever relationship you want with our child.” She met his gaze. “Now I’m finished.”

“Good. Because you have everything wrong.”

She blinked up at him. The fluorescent lights from above her head were harsh and she glanced down. “I don’t know what you mean.”

She couldn’t imagine how she’d been mistaken in any of this.

He jiggled the bed rail until he lowered it and sat on the bed beside her. He picked up her hand, and her heart rate spiked at the feel of his more calloused fingers entwined with hers.

“Let’s start with Kayla. She tricked me into marriage, and yes, I married her because she was pregnant, but here’s the difference between you and my ex-wife.” His grip tightened around hers. “I love you.”

She blinked and tears fell from her eyes. It was everything she wanted to hear, and she understood that, if they were going to have any kind of future, she needed to start trusting in things she’d never quite let herself believe in. She needed to trust in him.

She was overwhelmed by his words and the events of the day as she spoke. “Austin, I—”

“Shh.” He leaned over and kissed her cheek. “You’ve had a rough day, a shock to your body, and now this. I know you want to believe me and you’re afraid. You might even think I’m saying I love you because you’re pregnant, but when you think about things, think about this. I married Kayla, yes, but I never told her I loved her.”

Her eyes opened wide as the meaning and import of his words sunk in.

“Ms. Atwood?” A nurse pushed the curtain aside. “The police want to talk to you. We have to report all gunshots, you understand.”

She wanted to decline the visit, to focus on Austin and all the new feelings floating around inside her. Of course, the floating could be the painkillers, but the high caused by his words? Not so much.

“You can send them in,” she said, shooting Austin a regret-filled glance.

“Don’t worry. I’m not going anywhere,” he promised, his hand still in hers.

And though she hadn’t processed what his proclamation really meant for them, the baby, or her future, she squeezed his fingers tighter as she prepared to deal with the police. At least now, her heart was light and her entire body filled with hope.

*     *     *

Austin sat by Mia’s side, refusing to leave when she spoke to the police. He gripped her tighter when she repeated the details of the shooting. The entire incident had been running on replay in his head ever since. They took his statement, as well, and he knew she still had to talk to the district attorney, but finally the officer left, walking through the curtain, and they were alone until the doctor signed off on Mia’s release.

“Hey,” he said, treating her to a concerned half smile. “Are you okay?”

Her skin was pale, eyes half-mast.

“I’m hanging in there. How about you?”

“The same.” He ran his thumb over the smooth skin of her hand. “I want you to know something else. I realize you don’t come from a family where love is abundant, and because of that, your ability to trust is somewhat compromised.”

She studied him, obviously invested in what he was saying.

“I also realize I didn’t help my case by telling you, and repeating, that I didn’t want marriage or a future with you.”

She blinked and a tear leaked down her cheek. He caught it with his hand.

“I’d kick my own ass if I could—for being so shortsighted and for hurting you. But since I can’t, I’m just going to have to do my best to convince you that I was wrong. I was afraid to believe in you. In us. And I hope you won’t follow my example of running away from what could be, what is the best thing to ever happen to us.”

He grasped her other hand, too, and held both up to his chest. “I love you, Mia. And I want to spend every day I have left showing you how much. The baby is icing on an already spectacular cake.”

She laughed. “So now I’m a cake.”

“You’re sweet enough.”

She rolled her eyes at his silly joke before sobering. “You’re right, you know. Everything you said about my past, my fears, you nailed it all. And a part of me really wants to run away because it’s easier than believing everything I ever wanted is within my grasp.”

“And what is it you want?” He held his breath as she spoke, hoping with everything in him they desired the same things and she was brave enough to go after them.

“You. Bailey. A family.” She visibly swallowed hard. “When we first got together, I knew it was dangerous for me because you represented all the things that could make my life complete. The things I didn’t have growing up. Parents who loved each other and their children. But you didn’t want that. Only I did.”

He remained silent even though he wanted to pull her into his arms, giving her the same chance to speak that she’d given him. But he was sorry he’d put her through the pain of wanting, longing, when he should have had his eyes opened sooner.

“But now you’re saying you’ve changed your mind. And I can believe you… or not.”

“I’m hoping you will,” he said, unable to remain quiet any longer.

“I do,” she whispered. “Because I love you, too.”

Her affirmation was all he needed. Careful to protect her shoulder, he leaned into her, pressing his lips to hers. With a soft moan of acceptance, she slid her tongue over his and he slipped his inside her waiting mouth.

The kiss couldn’t go further despite the hard bulge growing behind his jeans, even if he did have the urge to crawl into the bed with her, align his body with hers, and lose himself in her warmth and heat.

“Knock knock!” A nurse said, pushing the curtain aside and letting herself into the small cubicle. “Sorry to interrupt you lovebirds but I have your discharge papers.”

Austin grinned, aware of Mia blushing beside him. “My fiancée would be happy to sign your papers.”

“Wait, what? We didn’t… You didn’t ask—” Mia stuttered over her words.

“Didn’t I say that I love you and I want to spend every day I have left showing you how much?” he asked, aware they had an amused and rapt audience in the nurse.

Mia blinked. “You did. But—”

“What did you think I meant?”

She grinned at him. “You silly man. I would think you’d ask me if you meant you wanted to marry me!”

“Will you marry me?” he asked, his gaze never leaving hers.

“Yes.”

“Good. Ring and proper proposal to follow. I just didn’t want to leave here without being one hundred percent clear on where we stood.” He rose to his feet, never letting go of her hand.

The nurse sighed. “Sometimes we have a good day. And today was definitely one of those. How romantic,” she murmured.

Austin was pretty damned pleased himself.

“Now can we go over your discharge instructions?” the nurse asked, back to business.

*     *     *

The next few days passed in a blur, the focus not on their personal lives but on Mia’s testimony, something Austin was determined to see her through. The district attorney came to the house the day after the shooting and went over court prep with Mia. She’d also assured them they now had police officers watching the house and sticking by Mia’s side through the trial and until Parker Alexander was back in jail, where he belonged.

Austin spoke to the DA and all agreed Parker’s agenda had been to prevent Mia, the key witness against him, from testifying. Once that was over, he’d turn his focus elsewhere. Revenge wasn’t his MO. Self-preservation was. When Mia’s testimony was finished and the verdict was in, she would be safe. And she’d have him by her side to make her security a certainty.

She was set to testify only two days after the shooting, and she insisted on showing up on time. She wanted the trial over with and he didn’t blame her. As long as she felt physically capable, he would support her all the way.

The bad news was that Austin wasn’t sleeping, because when he shut his eyes, he saw Mia covered in blood, remembered holding his jacket on her shoulder to stop the flow. The good news was that he now had her by his side, in his bed. He took care of her day and night, catering to her shoulder and the pain she was in and repeating how much he loved her.

The day of her testimony, it went like clockwork. She walked through the city streets and entered the courtroom surrounded by protection on all sides.

Her words were damning, her demeanor calm, her voice strong as she testified. Not even the gunshot or the bandage covering her arm kept her from doing the right thing, and Austin was so damned proud of her.

Their lives as a family could soon begin.

*     *     *

After the trial testimony ended and Mia walked out of the courtroom, Parker’s angry eyes on her as she went, she felt as if a huge weight had been lifted off her shoulders. She refused to be afraid now that it was over. Parker should go back to jail and he no longer had a reason to want her out of the way. She’d done her duty.

An hour later, they returned to the house. Austin’s parents’ car was parked in the driveway.

“Bailey’s home?” she asked, excited.

“I thought it was time. But don’t worry. You’re still healing and you don’t need to take care of her,” Austin said.

“What? Of course I want to take care of her. I’ll do what I can with this arm. They want me to keep it immobilized. But I don’t want to scare her, either. So what’s our story? What happened to me?”

He studied her, a soft smile on his face.

“What?” she asked, uncomfortable under his intense scrutiny.

“You worry more about Bailey than yourself. It’s one of the things I love about you.”

Her heart fluttered at his words and she wondered if she’d ever get used to hearing it. She hoped not.

“If she asks, we’ll tell her you fell. She won’t know the difference.”

No sooner had they walked into the house from the garage than Bailey came running. “Daddy! Mia! I’m home!” she yelled, crashing into Austin’s legs.

“Hey!” He swung her into his arms, one eye on Mia.

She smiled, reassuring him she was fine.

“Oh, Mia!” His mother rushed up to them. “I’ve been so worried about you,” she said, lowering her voice at the end so Bailey wouldn’t catch her concern.

“Thank you but I’m fine. I promise.”

Sarah squeezed her hands. “You’re a strong, brave woman.”

Tears sprung to Mia’s eyes. If this was what she had to look forward to in her life, wonderful people caring about her, she was even luckier than she had thought.

“Hey, everyone, let’s go sit. Mia and I have something to tell you,” Austin said.

They’d talked about filling Bailey in on their engagement and the fact that she would be having a baby brother or sister, but they hadn’t said when. Mia was coming to realize that Austin was impatient when it came to things that he wanted.

They settled into the sofa in the family room, Mia and Austin on one corner of the sofa, his parents on the other, a pleased, hopeful look on Sarah’s face.

“Come up here, baby.” Austin patted his thighs and Bailey came and sat on his lap. “So here’s the thing. You know how much you love Mia?” He looked at his daughter, love in his expressive brown eyes.

“So much,” Bailey said, causing Mia’s breath to catch.

“Well, Daddy loves Mia, too.” He reached out and grasped Mia’s hand, pulling her close.

His mother gasped and his father chuckled with pleasure at his wife’s reaction, while Mia sat happy and overwhelmed by the emotions both filling and surrounding her.

“So Mia and I are going to get married,” he went on, talking to his daughter, but now his mother started to cry happy tears.

“Is that okay with you?” Mia asked the little girl. “Because more than anything, we want you to be happy.”

Bailey glanced at her through curious eyes. “Does this mean you’re my mommy?”

Mia wasn’t sure what to say. Once again, hope filled her as she deferred the answer to Austin.

“Is that what you want?” he asked.

Bailey wrinkled her little nose in thought and Mia continued to hold her breath.

“Well, duh!” she finally said. “I told you I wanted a mommy. And now I get my pick in mommies!” She dove forward and threw her arms around Mia’s neck.

Ignoring the stabbing pain in her shoulder, Mia hugged the little girl back. “I love that you’re my first baby girl,” she said, her voice thick.

Austin carefully pried Bailey off Mia’s injured arm. “I guess this means now that things have settled down, I can leave the house and buy a ring.”

“Oh, Austin. Didn’t I raise you better? You should have had that thing on you when you proposed,” his father muttered.

Mia laughed. Little did they know, she didn’t need the ring. All she needed were the people in this room and now part of her family.

Especially the man who’d changed her life and gave her so much more than anything he could buy her. He gave her love.

Thank you for reading TEMPT ME. I hope you enjoyed Austin and Mia’s story! I would appreciate it if you would help others enjoy this book by at your preferred e-tailer.

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Up next: A new set of siblings and family fun and drama! Fall in love with the Wards beginning with FEARLESS coming March 20, 2018. Please PREORDER FEARLESS today by .

FEARLESS

Fall in love with the Wards…

Mechanic and garage owner, Kane Harmon is used to the wealthy beautiful women visiting his beach town. He doesn’t get involved because he knows most females would merely be slumming for the summer.

Except Hayley Ward isn’t just passing through. She lives a solitary life in a bungalow on the beach. A woman tormented by her past, distant from her wealthy family, different from Kane’s usual fare of town girls who know his M.O. – Don’t expect more than he’s willing to give.

Kane rescues Hayley and her broken down car from the side of the road and instantly he’s hooked. She says she’s not interested in him. He knows she lies. And he makes it his mission to bring her back to life, to return her emotionally to her family. To show her the colors around her were as vibrant as the ones she puts on her canvas.

Until past meets present and Kane’s life threatens all the progress they’ve made. Then it’s Hayley’s turn to step up and stand up for the relationship and life she’s finally coming to believe she deserves.