CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
Riley took another sip of the ginger ale Sam’s assistant Callie had left by her bedside and found herself relaxing with even the knots in her tortured stomach loosening slightly. Her morning sickness hadn’t appreciated the plane ride to New York City.
Like a vengeful god in an old Norse tale, epic morning sickness had hit her today and she’d been blindsided, unprepared for the ferocity. When they’d left for the airport she’d been a little nauseous but nothing terrible, so she hadn’t thought much about it. By the time the plane took off, however, she was clutching a barf bag and grossing out all the other passengers in first class. At one point, Sam had apologized to the flight attendant that he hadn’t booked a charter.
Now her stomach had emptied itself of not only its contents – decaf coffee and a muffin – but the lining as well. She had nothing left to give and that almost made it worse. Apparently, her digestive system was extremely pissed off at the moment.
I might live after all.
Cautiously, she swung her legs down from the mattress and slowly stood, testing her jelly-like knees and finding them surprisingly solid. Walking into the ensuite bathroom, she could almost see her reflection in the expensive white marble and shiny faucets. Too cold and sterile for Riley’s tastes.
The mirror above the sink told the tale and it wasn’t pretty. Her face was pale, her hair limply clung to her skin, and she had nasty dark circles under her eyes making her resemble a panda she’d once seen at the zoo. She needed some damage control and quick. It was bad enough that she’d basically thrown up on Sam for three hours, but she didn’t want to look like a zombie afterward.
If we have any future, he’s just going to have to take the good with the bad.
Riley rinsed her mouth and splashed some cold water on her face before running her fingers through her hair.
More human.
Time to seek out the other human in the place. Sam.
But first she took her first good look at the bedroom. Was this Sam’s room? With the massive bed, it probably was. All done in black, gray, and white, the space screamed that a single man lived here and he had money. The drapes were open, showing off an amazing view of the New York City skyline on a sunny day.
She had an inkling that a condo like this in the Upper East Side wasn’t cheap. It was one more item to remind her how different their lives were, not that she needed it. She’d never flown first class until today either, but it had been clear it was old hat to Sam.
The living room was also masculine with brown leather couches and navy blue throw pillows. The television in here was even larger than the one in the bedroom, resembling a movie screen more than a TV. Her father and brothers would love to watch a football game on this. They’d be in sports junkie heaven.
A phone to his ear, Sam stopped pacing and looked up, giving her a smile. He held up one finger and mouthed just a minute.
“Thanks, Bobby. No, just call me if you see anything. I know you’ll take care of it.”
He pressed a button and tossed the cell into the cushions of the couch.
“There you are. How are you feeling? You look much better than when we got here.”
If she looked this bad now she could only imagine how terrible she’d looked about an hour ago, but then she’d been praying for a swift and merciful death at that time.
“Better. That ginger ale and crackers were seriously magic.” She walked over to look out of the large windows at the far side of the room. The view was even better from here. “Callie seems nice.”
Which was an understatement. She’d been invaluable in the few hours that Riley had been in New York City.
Sam’s smile grew wider. “She is. She’s the best damn assistant I’ve ever had but if you tell her that I’ll deny it. I can barely afford her as it is, and I swear every year that she works for me she gets more bossy. Sometimes I wonder who works for whom.”
“Your secret is safe with me,” Riley vowed. “I think I owe you a thank you as well as Callie. I don’t think I would have survived that flight without you. As it is, I doubt that we’re going to ever be allowed to fly that airline again. I’m sure we’ve been blackballed. Or at least I am.”
Frowning, he came up behind her, placing his hands on her shoulders. She could feel the heat of his skin through the thin cotton of her shirt and the warmth seemed to penetrate her very bones, soothing her even further after the long journey.
“I’ll always take care of you, Riley. Don’t ever doubt that. If you need something – anything – don’t hesitate to ask me. I mean that.”
That was sweet but there wasn’t much he could do about morning sickness. She was going to have to tough this out. Reaching up, she allowed herself the luxury of stroking his forehead right where his brow furrowed. The skin was smooth under her fingertips and from the way his eyes closed for a long moment he enjoyed it as much as she did.
He was hers to touch, after all. He’d said he wanted to marry her.
“I’m still going to say thank you. We’re going to have to do battle as a team.”
She hoped teasing him a little would garner a smile. He’d been far too tense this entire trip. He should be happy and relieved they’d arrived at his home in one piece.
His lips turned up at the corners and his whole demeanor softened. “We are a team but when one of us is down the other has to pick up the ball, so to speak. If you don’t mind the sports metaphor.”
“I don’t.” She nodded toward the expansive view. “Pretty impressive.”
“New York is one of my favorite cities. I hope you’ll come to love it as much as I do while you’re here. Which brings me to my next question. I know you wanted to go sightseeing the minute you got here but maybe you should take it easy today and try again tomorrow?”
He’d said it like a question, but she had a feeling she’d have a fight on her hands if she didn’t agree. Riley already felt much better but still less than a hundred percent, so she wasn’t going to argue. In fact, she might spend the rest of the day in this beautiful home reading and watching television. Sam had assured her they had nothing that needed to be done until he had to be on the set tomorrow morning.
“I think that sounds like a good idea. I have plenty of time to see the sights and I am a little worn out.”
Hopefully morning sickness would indeed stick to only the morning hours and she’d be recovered very soon.
“If you feel better later, we can go out to dinner.”
“I’d like that. Callie said you were talking to your publicist. Has anything been published on social media?”
“Not yet, but he’s keeping watch. I asked the flight attendants to ask the other passengers not to post anything but of course no one can stop them. I didn’t notice anyone taking our picture while on the plane but that doesn’t mean someone won’t just post on Twitter that they saw us and that you were sick. That would be enough to start the conjecture and rumors. I think we may need to tell your family and my mom sooner rather than later. Especially as we have the doctor’s appointment day after tomorrow and you’ll want to do some baby shopping while you’re here. The news is going to filter out whether we like it or not.”
She didn’t like it. It was too soon, but then would she ever really be ready for the world to know she was having Sam Collins’s baby? She doubted people would care all that much about her, but they would be curious about the child. If it resembled Sam, and if he or she had inherited their father’s talent. He did, however, have a valid point and the last thing she wanted was for her parents and siblings to find out about her pregnancy from a supermarket rag.
“You’re right,” she sighed. “Although I wish you weren’t. Maybe after the doctor’s appointment we can call them.”
“Sounds like a plan. Now is there anything I can get you? More ginger ale or crackers? Maybe make you some tea?”
He had that anxious look on his face as if she were going to pass out on the floor at any minute. Of course, he had good reason after their flight.
“Thank you but I’m feeling much better. I’m going to get a refill of ginger ale and then maybe sit down and read a good book. The light from those windows is perfect.”
Holding up his phone, Sam grimaced. “I have several more calls to make, if you’re okay with that. If you need anything–”
“I’ll be fine.” Riley waved away his concerns. “I know that you’re here to work. Believe me, nothing is more luxurious to me than a day spent lounging around and reading. This is heaven and I’m all happy. Go make your million dollar deals.”
“I’ll go in the office so I don’t disturb you.”
Settling on the couch, Riley stretched out her legs and opened her e-reader. She had a massive to be read list and the biggest decision she wanted to make for a few hours was which book was she going to choose.
The other more important decisions about her life would have to wait. Taking it one day at a time here in New York with Sam was the most prudent course. This could work out, but it might crash and burn. This was all shiny and new to Sam, but in a few weeks would he still be all in? Only time would tell.