I frowned at myself in the hotel mirror. I had grown increasingly irritable over the course of my latest business trip, which didn’t make any sense, given that everything had been going my way. One toymaker had accepted my offer, and would allow my company to expand even further. I had gone to oversee production, and was satisfied with the company’s policies and treatment of their employees; the transition would be a smooth one, and I would not have to ruin anyone’s life during my takeover.

Trips like this had always been the highlight of my work; this time, however, I spent every moment counting down the hours until I could be back in my own office.

I must be getting sedentary in my old age, I imagined, though at 32 I was hardly old.

I closed my eyes, focusing on the image that called me back: my sky-view office, my wide, uncluttered desk.

Uncluttered, save for the curvy, naked form lying across it, her brown-and-blue eyes laughing at me, her hair wild from my grip.

My ringing phone forced me out of my daydream, and I answered it with every ounce of irritability that had built up within me.

“Yes?”

“Oh! I'm, um, I'm so sorry to bother…”

“Kaley,” I sighed, squeezing my eyes shut. “No, don't apologize. Is everything all right?”

“Yes! I think it is, anyway. I took a pregnancy test this morning…”

My body tensed in a shock of anticipation. “And?”

“And…it's positive! I'm pregnant.”

Her voice caught, and I couldn't tell whether she was crying or laughing, so I laughed for us both.

“That's wonderful! I'm still out of town, but I'll move up my flight. I want to see you tonight. Excellent, excellent news! Take it easy today; I'll see you soon.”

I hung up the phone beaming, utterly delighted. It worked! I wasn't surprised. Things generally worked out in my favor.

Tension gone, I called my assistant to move the flight home, then went to my last meeting with a newfound bounce in my step.

The rest of the day was interminable, but finally I found myself comfortably seated in first class with a glass of champagne and a ridiculous grin. My assistant shot me worried looks until I laughed at him.

“What is it, Cory?”

“I just…I've never seen you in a mood like this. Are you feeling all right?”

“Perfectly all right,” I told him giddily. “Have James meet us at the airport with my car. I have a personal errand to run as soon as we land.”

“Yes, sir.”

Cory did as he was told, but continued to cast wary glances in my direction for the remainder of the journey. I ignored him. I had more enticing things on my mind. The image of Kaley, plump and round with my child, was more erotic than it should have been, and I was veritably aching for her by the time the plane touched down.

“Thank you, James. See that my bags get home and, er…don't wait up.” I winked at him and his eyes twinkled warmly in response.

Unlike my father, James's indulgent looks were always genuine, and never failed to boost my own mood. So, it was on wings of elation that I flew to her apartment, eager to see her, to touch her, to celebrate a successful first step.

I made two stops on my way, hurrying through checkout lines as quickly as possible, then drove to her building. Over the last month, the shock of her neighborhood had slowly worn off—the overflowing dumpsters, the stray cats, the graffiti and broken windows. The first time I’d visited her there, I’d nearly called the arrangement off, unable to see how someone so kind and beautiful could live in such a harsh, ugly reality.

I had suspected a darkness in her, but the warmth of her embrace and the sparkle in her eyes invariably called me back, and I had eventually determined that it was my own bias playing tricks on my mind.

Still, I parked as inconspicuously as possible and tossed a dingy, greasy cover over my car which I had procured for just these occasions. Kaley might be above reproach, but there was truth in every stereotype, and I wasn’t going to gamble my car against the possibility that everyone who lived around there was an angel.

I hurried through the lobby and up the stairs, ignoring the smell in the air and the small things skittering away in the shadows. She wouldn’t live here through her pregnancy, I decided. This was no place for a sensitive baby to develop. Granted, the lower floors were dingier and more worn than the upper floors, and by the fourth floor, the building appeared to be almost respectable. Not quite, but almost.

The gifts in my hands seemed out of place against the stained beige wallpaper, just as my shoes felt out of place against the threadbare carpet. I was definitely moving her in with me as soon as possible.

Breathless and still flying high in spite of my surroundings, I knocked at her door.

“Jonathan!” She beamed, flinging the door open and her arms wide.

I reached for her, scooping her up off the floor in a strong embrace, meeting her lips without a second thought. She tasted heavenly and felt like home. We tumbled inside together and I kicked the door shut before spinning her through the room to fall upon her comfortable sofa.

My gifts were forgotten on the floor as I embraced her, feeding my starving soul with her taste, her touch, her sounds. She held me tight, touching me as eagerly as I touched her, pulling at me as I pulled at her, telling me with every gasping breath that she had known the sharp cut of deprivation just as I had. But there was an order to this, and it should be honored. I slowed my kisses and drifted away until I could see myself reflected in her ocean eyes, till I could touch her blushing face and run my thumb over her swollen red lips.

“I brought you something,” I told her, my voice hoarse in my ears.

I kissed her forehead and moved to retrieve the packages as she straightened herself on the couch. I presented them to her one after the other: the long-stemmed roses wrapped in satin, the sparkling lemonade in a champagne-like bottle, and the box of decadent truffles.

“I should have brought dinner,” I realized out loud as she gushed over the gifts. “I didn’t think of it.”

“Let’s order a pizza,” she said, her eyes twinkling mirthfully. “We’ll celebrate like non-billionaires today.”

I laughed at that, but she was already pulling out her phone and dialing.

What the hell, I thought. It might be fun to have a casual celebration, dip my feet into her environment.

As Kaley ordered, I searched her tiny kitchen for wine glasses. To my brief dismay and lingering amusement, the only glassware she had in her cupboard were mason jars.

I brought a close-to-matching pair back into the front room and set them on the round, cheap table with a flourish, filling them with the lemonade as if it were the finest champagne, earning an appreciative giggle from her.

“I think you could make anything look classy,” she said with a smile as she took her flowers to the kitchen. “Even mason jars.”

I followed her to the kitchen, wrapping my arms around her waist from behind as she filled a vase with water and arranged the roses inside it.

“If I didn’t know better, I’d think you missed me,” she teased.

“You caught me,” I admitted, artfully deflecting the truth. “I was dying of sex deprivation on the road. If I don’t get an immediate transfusion, I might not make it till morning!”

Her laughter was like music filling the small apartment, and I nuzzled her neck. She smelled perfect.

Kaley moved to set the roses in the center of the table, and I followed, feeling a bit foolish but unable to find a reason to care. She turned on the stereo, releasing a stream of old, crooning notes into the atmosphere. Her eyes were smoldering over her impish grin, and she tossed her hair over one shoulder.

“Dance with me,” she ordered in a sultry tone.

“With pleasure.”

Sweeping her into my arms, I guided her around the room. She moved like a pro, taking my every lead and cue, swaying in her utterly feminine way. It reminded me of something I saw long ago, some romantic scene from a movie that stuck with me long after I had forgotten the plot and the title.

I kept telling myself that the heady wave of pleasure and delight was purely the result of the positive test; persuasive, as always, I managed to believe it. But the dingy little apartment faded away as we danced, leaving only the smooth music, her lithe body, and her soft, warm expressions in my perception.

The knock at the door barely managed to break through the haze.

“Pizza’s here,” she murmured against my lips.

I don’t know how much I tipped the man, but I know he paled and tried to argue before I shut the door in his face.

I carried the box like the finest silver tray to the table, served a massive slice to each of us, and sat across from her. Kaley’s face was framed on one side by roses, on the other by the luscious brown curls. I couldn’t take my eyes off of her. Our child would be absolutely gorgeous.

“To our baby,” I toasted.

“To your renewed image,” she replied.

We ate and drank, giddy with glee, and conversation flowed like water. Bits of myself, past and present, began to slip out of my mouth to her ears. I told her of my childhood pony, and she told me of her first kitten; both had been named Snowy, a coincidence which seemed more meaningful than it probably was. It wasn’t the first coincidence, though, or the most striking.

While gazing into her eyes, I finally identified where I had seen that particular color combination before.

“Have you ever visited the Mediterranean Sea?” I asked her.

“Oh, yes. My parents took me to Greece twice when I was growing up to visit my mother’s family, and I went back once after college. I adore it. It’s so blue and warm…it’s like paradise.

“Greece itself is…oh, it’s glorious. You can feel the ancient vibrations in your feet whenever you stray off the beaten path. You can almost see the history. Walking through hills and pastures, you could swear you were within reach of the gods themselves.”

Her gaze softened as she spoke, a dreamy look settling over her expression.

“It’s my favorite vacation spot,” I told her with a smile. “My mother was always enchanted by Rome, and I spent many summers there as a child. We did travel to some other places around there, but Italy held her heart. My favorite place in the world was this little tide pool in a tiny bay off the coast of Sicily. The rocks were round, deep brown and gold, and the sea was so clear it perfectly reflected the bluest sky. I could spend hours staring down into that pool. Your eyes take me back there.”

She blushed a deep crimson, making my heart flutter. Our plates were nearly empty; the last of our meal had been left neglected for some time. I held out my hand to her, and she took it. Pulling her close, I kissed her deeply.

Practice, I told myself. Practice for a lifetime of pretending.

But my blood burned and my heart thundered, and as she led me down the hall with gentle tugs and fierce kisses, I slipped into a passionate haze beyond reason or rationality, beyond the game we were ostensibly playing. She quivered under my touch, gasped as I disrobed her.

The animal in me wanted to take her, claim her as my own. The rest of me was too far gone to argue. The instant her soft, round breast fell into my waiting palm, I was lost to her. I tipped her back onto the bed as she loosened my tie and flung it away, her quick fingers unbuttoning my shirt and pushing it off before tugging helplessly at my belt.

“Shh,” I told her, a finger to her lips. “Lie back, relax. Let me taste you.”

Her eyes darkened as she settled back against the pillows, glittering like that Sicilian pool, inviting me to dive in. Dive I did, into her sweet red lips, down her soft, ivory throat, lingering at her heaving breasts until she whimpered.

Moving down her milk-white belly, I kissed her womb, thanking it directly for the part it played in my happiness, before sinking between her soft, firm thighs to kiss her once more.

I had dreamed of tasting her most intimate place for weeks; since it wasn’t strictly baby-making, I had resisted. Tonight, though, the lines were blurred, the intentions were hazy, and I simply enacted my desires. Her rich, musky nectar flowed over my tongue as she quivered around me, her thighs tightening over my ears as she arched into me and cried out my name.

I couldn’t hold myself back any longer. I took her, slowly at first, quickly tumbling over into ancient carnal rhythms, relishing every inch of her soft, vibrant skin, every pulse of her velvety sheath. Clawing and kissing, biting and holding, we tumbled over the passionate abyss as one until, spent, I lay quaking in her arms.

Gazing into her warm, liquid eyes, I knew I should go. I was dangerously close to falling over the edge into something beyond a friendly entanglement.

I couldn’t risk that. It was the one thing in the world I couldn’t afford. But then she wrapped her arms languidly around my neck and pressed her lips to my cheek.

“Stay,” she murmured.

I kissed her and rolled aside, cradling her in my arms. The feel of her skin on mine bound me to her bed, just as her quiet plea bound me to her heart.

With her pressed against my chest, sleep overtook me like a thief in the night, stealing the last of my defenses.