“Now look at the monitor. There’s your baby.” The nurse tapped the screen. “See the ears?”

Ang took a panicked breath and lifted her shoulders as she stared at the screen. “No. I can’t see them. It’s a blob. Are you sure those are ears?”

“Sure they are. Look right here. This is the front of the baby’s head—”

“It’s a blob.” She fumbled for Sterling’s hand on her shoulder. “Can you see anything, Sterling? What does it look like to you?”

“A blob.” He cleared his throat. “But a very attractive one.”

“I knew it. I’m not really pregnant. I just need to cut back on carbs.” Ang started to sit up, but Sterling’s hand tightened, holding her in place. The flutter of air from her movement made the cool gel on her stomach seem even colder.

“Easy, baby. Relax.” Sterling brushed a kiss over the top of her head. “Can you point everything out again? We’ll pay closer attention.”

Panic coiled tighter inside her, threatening to make her toss her cookies. “But there’s nothing there. It’s a sponge of…fat. All those Oreos I eat every night. I must’ve had a false positive test.” But seven of them? It could be possible. Sure.

“Ma’am, look here. This is the baby’s foot. See here?” More tapping on the monitor.

“No. I can’t see it. Why can’t I see it?”

“Oh, hey. I think I see the foot. Cute.” The awe in Sterling’s voice didn’t make her feel better. It made her sense of impending failure loom even larger.

“I’m a horrible mother who can’t see her own baby and no one even cares.”

Her whine made Sterling laugh. “We care. Relax and look again.”

She looked. “You really see a foot?”

“I really do. And a head and a little indentation for the eyes.” Sterling tapped the monitor in several places. “Let your eyes unfocus for a second and try again.”

Breathing deeply, she did as he asked. And she saw a freaking foot. And a head. And a little indentation for the eyes. “Oh my God,” she whispered. “It’s real. There’s really a baby in there.”

“Yes, there really is,” he said gruffly, bending down to brush his lips over her forehead. “You made a beautiful baby, Thumbelina.”

Like magic, the flood started in her eyes. “Oh God.”

“Do you two need a minute alone?” The nurse started backing away.

“No, we’re okay. Aren’t we okay?”

“We’re fine.” The reassurance in Sterling’s voice went miles to calming the nervous butterflies still whirling around in her belly. “It’s a big moment.”

The nurse smiled. “When parents see their baby for the first time, it always is.”

For a moment, silence reigned. Then everyone spoke at once.

“Oh, he’s not the father—”

“I’m not the—”

“I’m sorry, did I say something wrong?”

Then the silence returned.

Ang took a deep breath. Those couple of seconds where she’d been able to pretend that Sterling was her child’s father had been incredible. Reality always came too soon. “Everything’s fine.” She lifted her voice and started to reach for her belly. At the last instant, she diverted her hand to stroke her eyebrow ring. “Just perfect.”

“Okay, well, let me get you a printout of the baby’s first picture and we can get you on your way.”

“I get a picture?” Ang glanced at Sterling. “Did you know I got a picture?”

“Yes, darling. It’s standard.” He smiled at the nurse. “Could we get two? I’d like one too.”

The lump in Ang’s throat made it impossible to speak, so she listened while Sterling and the nurse chitchatted. After a quick discussion on time lines and the schedule for her upcoming appointments, they headed down the hall into the crowded waiting room.

She’d changed ob-gyns because she hadn’t been thrilled with her old one, and also to give herself some privacy. She’d chosen one on the outskirts of Long Island in the hopes of being more anonymous, but considering she’d already seen two distant acquaintances in the waiting room, she hadn’t picked wisely. That was part of the reason she walked faster than usual.

Only part. The small room she’d had the ultrasound in had felt claustrophobic, full of too many emotions she wasn’t ready to deal with. She’d cried enough already. And surely Sterling had better things to do than to hang around looking at the proof another guy had hit it and quit it.

Sterling caught her hand. “Hey, Speedy, where’s the fire?”

“I figured you had to get back to work.”

He pulled her to a stop and rubbed his hands up and down her bare arms. “That can wait. I’m actually thinking of blowing off the day.” He met her gaze. “What do you think?”

She wanted nothing more than to snuggle in bed with him and have that hot sex they’d teased each other about before sleeping the afternoon away in a blissful tangle of arms and legs. Then waking together to make an early dinner before she had to go to work at the parish center. She craved that normalcy more than she’d ever craved anything. Must be the baby was increasing her nesting instinct, because that wasn’t her. She wasn’t domestic. Wasn’t anyone’s little woman, especially his.

“Ang?”

She blinked the images behind her eyes away. “I don’t want to take any more of your time than I have already. I’ve been nothing but a huge bother.”

“You’re not a bother. You couldn’t be.” He tipped up her face until his lips hovered over hers. “Guess I’m going to have to prove that to you, hmm?”

Backing away would be the smart thing. The logical one. She couldn’t risk her heart to him, not when so much of her was already on the line. She had a baby to think about now.

The baby he carried a picture of in his pocket.

She stepped closer and covered his hand on her jaw with her own. “Guess so. You got any ideas how you can accomplish that?”

“I may have one or two.” Lips curving, he lowered his head.

“Sterling? What are you doing here?”

Ang went still at the shrill feminine voice, but Sterling didn’t even seem to notice. He was much too occupied brushing his mouth over hers.

“Sterling,” Ang whispered. “We have an audience.”

“They’ll go away.”

“Sterling?”

Apparently not.

With a sigh, he moved back and slid his hand down to grip Ang’s as they faced the tall, impeccably dressed blond directly in front of them. If she’d gotten any closer, she could’ve joined in on their kiss. Jeez.

Sterling’s arm tensed. “Tricia. What are you doing here?”

Tricia. Sterling’s possibly sex-obsessed ex. Fabulous.

“I’m here with a friend.” Tricia frowned as her gaze drifted over Ang’s messy, dark hair with its fading streaks of blue chalk at the tips and her loose T-shirt and low-cut jeans. She stopped at Ang’s pink cowboy boots, then looked up again, her eyes widening as she stared at Ang’s midsection. “Angelina, isn’t it?”

“It is.” Her tone sounded a little snooty maybe, but she wasn’t giving an inch. Not when the dismissal in Tricia’s eyes hung in the air as heavily as her fancy perfume.

“Sterling and I had dinner with your parents a few times. They have pictures of you all over their home. I’ve heard a lot about you.” Ang didn’t miss the emphasis she put on your parents. A nice dig about her age. The secondary shot about hearing a lot about Ang barely registered. She was used to not measuring up.

“Oh, did you? How nice. Did they mention my arrest record?”

Sterling’s arm shook and for a second she thought he was restraining himself. Then she shot him a sidelong glance and realized he was suppressing a laugh.

It made her grin. Some people didn’t think she was a little naughty girl. Or maybe they did, but they still liked her.

Tricia diverted her attention from Ang to Sterling. “You never said why you were here, Sterling.”

He tightened his grip on Ang’s hand. “I’m with a friend too.”

“I can see that. A friend you kiss.” Tricia’s eyes narrowed. “A friend who’s obviously pregnant.”

Ang glanced down and smoothed her shirt over her stomach. Yeah, there was no denying it anymore. She had a baby bump. Good thing she’d finally bought a couple of maternity tops yesterday.

Okay, so they weren’t exactly maternity tops. More like looser styles than she usually wore. But close enough, right?

“You are an astute woman,” Ang said after a moment when it became clear Sterling wouldn’t answer.

She understood why. If Tricia knew her parents, even peripherally, there was a good chance that she might mention Ang’s pregnancy. Maybe that wasn’t a bad thing. She couldn’t keep avoiding family dinners forever, and besides, she’d asked Sterling to lie enough. It was time she stood up and faced reality.

Amazing how that idea became easier to contemplate when she had a certain man at her side, holding her hand.

“Friends kiss,” Ang continued cheerfully. “It happens.”

Tricia’s gaze lingered on their clasped hands. “They also hold hands?”

“Sometimes. We’re close.”

“Sure you are.” Tricia hoisted her purse higher on her shoulder and directed all her attention at her ex. “I’ve called you several times, Sterling. Are you no longer taking my calls?”

“Don’t be ridiculous. I’ve been busy.”

“I can see that.” Yet again her focus centered on Ang’s stomach. “Your young friend is clearly several months pregnant. I’m sorry if I have questions about how that came to be.”

Uh-oh. Tricia had understandably gotten the wrong idea. There was letting Sterling ease her way out of a jam, and then there was taking unfair advantage. Not correcting Tricia’s assumption fell into the latter category.

Ang cleared her throat. “He’s not the—”

“We’re broken up. That means we are no longer required to check in with each other.” While Ang gaped, Sterling cupped her elbow and ushered her up the hall. “Have a good day, Tricia. We’re late for another appointment.”

“What the hell are you doing?” Ang whispered loudly the instant the exterior door closed behind them. “Now she’ll think you knocked me up.”

He winced and continued nudging her, gently but firmly, to his car. “Knocked up is such an unsavory term.”

“Unsavory meaning low class?” She stopped by the passenger door of his sedan and whirled to face him. “Well, guess what, rich guy, that’s the way I talk. That’s who I am. I’m not some pretentious society babe who wants to land a Sterling spoon I can shove in my mouth every night.”

Much to her disgust, his lips twitched. “How about every morning?”

She crossed her arms. “This isn’t funny.”

He rolled his shoulders and glanced skyward, his usual tell when he was searching for patience. “I’m not laughing. I guess I don’t see the problem.”

“You don’t see the problem? She’s probably going to tell people you sperminated me. There, is that better?”

“Not particularly, but again, not seeing the issue. Trust me, she’s harmless.”

“Sure she is. Do you want the rumor to get around that you’re my child’s father?”

His eyebrow winged up. “You do realize you’re shouting right now. That probably won’t help to hide my supposed indiscretions.”

Hissing out a breath, Ang tried to relax. “You said she’s already hot for your bod. If she thinks you went from her to a younger model, she’ll be hot to have your head.”

“Hot for my bod?” His eyebrows furrowed as they always did when he was puzzling something out.

“You told me she was obsessed with having sex with you, remember?” She sighed. “I can see why now, but still.”

His mouth quirked. “You can?”

“Sterling, stop repeating everything I say and focus.”

His smile only grew. “So let me get this straight. You’re worried about my honor.”

“You don’t have to lie for me. No one does. I’m handling my shit. I appreciate everything you’ve done for me. God, do I appreciate it.” She forced away the memory of Pete’s bruised face and those papers she’d stuffed between the mattress and box spring in Sterling’s guest room. “But that doesn’t mean I’m about to stand by while you harm yourself to help me.” Again.

“I’m harming myself by allowing people to think that I fathered the baby of a beautiful, smart, funny, sexy as hell woman. That doesn’t track for me.”

“It wouldn’t,” she said, fighting not to let the glow from his praise swim through her bloodstream. His approval was headier than any drug.

He stepped forward and brushed her hair back from her cheek. Even that brief skim of warm fingertips elicited a shiver, and she knew from the way he moved that much closer he hadn’t missed her reaction. “If I don’t have a problem, why do you?”

She had to get away from him. With every word, every touch, he wove more of his spell. The picture he painted of their cute little happy family—even for the benefit of other people—wasn’t real. This wasn’t her fairy-tale ending. Not because she didn’t deserve one, but because she needed to earn it. She’d screwed up badly by sleeping with Pete. She hadn’t thought ahead, and she’d be damned if her baby paid the price.

Impetuously rushing into things again would be a horrible mistake. Sterling wasn’t like Pete in any way, but that didn’t mean she should lean on him. He was just being sweet to her, as he always was. When he came to his senses, she didn’t want to be his mistake. His Pete.

Sucking in a breath, she took a determined step back. “You should take me home—” Jesus, his house wasn’t her home, “—I mean, to your house and head to work. I’ve disrupted enough of your day.”

“Do you remember that part about me blowing off work and us spending it together?”

When she didn’t say anything, he exhaled and yanked open her door for her. “You know what, never mind. You’re right. I belong at work.”

She slipped inside the car and fastened her seat belt while he circled the car, got in and did the same, well aware that he was seething. Well, as much as Sterling ever seethed. He rarely got angry. But she’d made him mad now.

She waited until he’d pulled out of the lot. “Look, don’t get me wrong.”

“I haven’t gotten much right in the last twenty minutes, so I don’t see how that’s possible.”

“Sterling.” She reached over and laid her hand on the wrist he’d thrown over the wheel. He cut her a glance, and damn if her nipples didn’t harden as if he’d stroked them. He did, but only with a look. He could see she was affected by him.

Probably the whole world could.

“Ang,” he returned, voice soft.

“This isn’t about what I want.”

“Says who?”

“Says the blob with toes in my belly. I have to make good decisions now, for her. It’s one thing when I’m only fucking up my own life. But I can’t do that to her.”

“And being with me is going to fuck her up.” He stared straight ahead, his jaw going taut. “Nice to know.”

It was her turn to stare. “When did this become about you and me…being together?” He couldn’t even toss that around in theory. Her heart was already pounding much too fast, her breath coming too short. Hypotheticals were fine in any case except this one.

The glance he aimed her way could’ve frozen water. “The minute you came to my bed.”

She dropped her hand from his arm and used it to cover her face instead. “I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be. Clearly one of us got their wires crossed, and it wasn’t you.”

“You don’t understand.”

“So you keep telling me, but you’re not offering me anything to clear up all of my misconceptions.”

She should just put it all out there. I pretended to be someone else to get close to you, and you’re going to hate me when you find out I lied. But that’s better than you regretting one day that you got involved with the crazy wild chick with a baby in tow. I couldn’t live with it if one day I turned into the biggest mistake you ever made.

But she stayed quiet, because even having him annoyed at her was better than having him hate her. She’d have to go there soon enough. Just not today, after she’d seen her Maybe Baby for the first time and soared through the thrill of having him at her side and weathered the crash of reality all at once.

A few minutes later, he pulled in to his driveway behind a motorcycle. On the front porch sat Cass and who Ang assumed was her fiancé, Jax. Terrific.

“You forgot to call in to work, didn’t you?” Ang picked up her purse off the floor.

“Yeah, but I didn’t think Jax would show up here. That they both would. Guess I should’ve answered their calls.”

“It’s okay. You guys can talk. I have to get ready for work anyway.” Not for a few hours yet, but he didn’t need to know that. She’d go wander around the mall or something. Maybe buy an ice cream cone. It was all she could afford after yesterday’s ill-advised shopping trip and today’s doctor bill, since she wasn’t using her parents’ health insurance. Last thing she needed was for them to get a bill about her pregnancy-related care before she’d fessed up.

Yet another thing she needed to deal with soon.

Sterling picked up his cell phone from where he’d set it in the console. “You really should consider getting a new position that’s more in line with your qualifications.”

Despite the accuracy of his statement, she didn’t appreciate his opinion on the subject right then. “Thanks for that.”

“I’m serious. Do you honestly want to be calling out bingo numbers when you’re nine months pregnant? Being on your feet all day isn’t a good idea.”

“It’s a job. Besides, it’s only a few hours a day.” She’d intended to tell him about getting hired at Tech Edge, but after last night’s sexcapade, she hadn’t had a chance yet. She also hadn’t fully decided to quit the bingo hall. Maybe she could do both jobs for a few months, sock away some cash. That would be the responsible thing to do.

He tucked his cell in the inside pocket of his jacket and waved at Jax and Cass through the windshield. “You’re wasting yourself.”

His supercilious tone set her teeth on edge. “Am I? Perhaps I should make that decision.” She grabbed the door handle.

“I don’t want you to be stressed out. If you need a job, I can—”

“No. Just…no.” She got out and shut the door, proud of herself that she didn’t slam it. She didn’t want to embarrass him in front of his friends, and she didn’t want to cause a scene. His heart was in the right place, and when she’d calmed down a little and gotten some perspective on the day, she’d probably apologize. But right now, she needed space.

Sterling climbed out and rounded the hood, his gaze steady on her in spite of the heckling coming from the porch. In his impeccable three-piece suit and tie, he looked like the epitome of a cool Wall Street stockbroker, if not for the blaze in his light-blue eyes. “Ang, wait.”

“Yo, dude, finally decided to drag your ass back home, huh?” Jax called. “Would’ve been nice if you could, you know, show up at your job. Or call. Calling would be awesome.”

Ang gave a halfhearted wave to Cass and Jax and faced Sterling again. She should say hi to Cass, especially after their surprisingly fun day yesterday. Except she couldn’t. All her jagged emotions were way too close to the surface. Better she go now and catch up with everyone later when she was back to normal. Or as normal as she could get while trapped in a hormone vortex.

“I’m going to head out for a while before work.” She gripped her purse so tightly that her knuckles whitened. “I have shopping to do.”

“For the baby?”

She rubbed her mouth. How was she supposed to tell him she was afraid to buy things for the baby when she didn’t know where she would be living? She’d figure it all out. She had a better job now, and everything was improving. First she needed to bank a few of those paychecks, and then she’d start making the hard choices. About a place to live, and what she’d need to buy to furnish her new space. Where she would live alone. No big deal. Sure, she was facing more difficult decisions than she ever had before, but she would handle everything like a newly minted college graduate, adult-like person.

When she didn’t reply, he scraped his hand over the back of his head. “If it would help, I put together a spreadsheet.”

Dropping her hand, she stared. This wingtip-wearing, spreadsheet-toting man was the one she was so in lust over she couldn’t think straight? Life sure had a funny way of playing tricks. “A spreadsheet for what?”

Unless she was mistaken, the tips of his ears reddened. “Uh, for things you’d need for the baby, in developmental order. While I was reading What To Expect When You’re Expecting, I started taking notes. Spreadsheets help me think.” He frowned. “You were an engineering major. Deep down, you’re an analytical type. You must use spreadsheets too?”

“Yeah, but on the surface I’m a bimbo, so that cancels it all out.” She gave him a sweet smile and headed toward her car. Luckily she’d parked on the street, because she had a feeling he wouldn’t simply back out and let her go. He’d want to talk.

God save her, perhaps she really didn’t want a decent man. She couldn’t figure out exactly what to do with him when he wasn’t flat on his back. At least not without putting some tape over his mouth before he totally wrecked that decent man image.

“You’ll be home later?”

Home. There was no reason at all for her throat to get tight. Absolutely none. “I’ll be back,” she called over her shoulder, throwing him a wave before she escaped to her car. When she was alone, she didn’t have to put on a happy face. She didn’t have to be brave.

God, she seriously needed ice cream. A whole bucket’s worth. Too bad Cass’s shop hadn’t reopened yet. She’d heard her ice cream was to die for.

Now the pregnancy cravings were kicking in. Next she’d be running out in the middle of the night to get pickles and sauerkraut. Or else she’d beg Sterling to—

No. She had to stop thinking like that. They weren’t a real couple and he didn’t have to deal with her cravings. She was on her own, enjoying a temporary dalliance with someone she was close to. That’s all.

Right. She should set that to music.

She watched out of the corner of her eye as he walked over to talk to Cass and Jax, and her throat constriction eased a bit when he smiled. She loved that smile. Too much. Reason numero uno she needed some space and time to think.

A quick glance at her cell showed a couple of texts from Brandy and one from Pete. Have you made up your mind yet?

She tossed her phone on the passenger seat and put the car into gear. Yeah, she was springing for a three-scoop cone today.

Ang came home as promised, though not until almost eleven o’clock. When she arrived, she heated up something in the microwave and neatly deflected Sterling’s every attempt to pry her out of her silent shell. Then she took her snack upstairs to eat in the guest room, where she remained for the rest of the night.

So much for them getting everything out in the open.

The next morning he had another martial arts class, followed by a quick stop at a novelty shop. Ang’s birthday was a little over a week away, and he was willing to bet she didn’t think he remembered. He hadn’t finished gathering things for her yet, but he’d made a good start. They were, quite possibly, the most nontraditional gifts he’d ever purchased. Today’s acquisitions continued that theme.

He spent the next couple of hours studying his private investigation study guide while he manned the front desk at Deuces Wild. He’d given Cass the morning off after his disappearing act yesterday. Besides, it wasn’t like they were getting a zillion clients. Business was steady most of the time, but the phone wasn’t ringing off the hook.

Neither was his own phone for that matter.

Somehow he’d managed to focus on the sensei during his class, but his study time was mostly wasted on an endless succession of cell checking. She wasn’t talking to him via text or online. Even S-quared no longer rated a response. Being cut off from her on all avenues at once was a bitter pill indeed.

So much for him being offended by her lie. It wasn’t as if he weren’t shouldering his burden of lies as well. Meeting up with Tricia yesterday could’ve blown his cover, if his ex hadn’t somehow played right into his mistruth. She’d never seemed all that interested in him beyond a mild affection in the past, but maybe the idea of him having someone new in his life brought out her competitive side.

Then he’d spoken too swiftly and things had escalated yet again. He and Ang had spent so many years without a cross word between them. When he thought of her, he remembered her smile. Her laugh. Before the past few months, not much ever got her down or ruffled her feathers. Now she spent more time than not annoyed at him. Possibly for good reason. He just wasn’t adroit at this whole relationship business.

Not that they were having a relationship. She’d made that clear yesterday. They’d had sex. End of story. As much as it bothered him to let the gulf between them widen again, perhaps she was right to take some space.

The back of his neck heated. The item in the bag in his desk proved that things were moving too fast between them. He never should have purchased it. They should put on the brakes, take some time to think—

The door swung open. As he opened his mouth to speak, the visitor darted inside and flipped out the lights. It was a gloomy day outside, and the thin slats of daylight through the blinds offered the only illumination. Then the lock clicked and his lunchtime caller turned in his direction.

His breath escaped in a rush. “Ang?”

He hadn’t recognized her at first because she wore a voluminous dress that covered her from neck to ankle. It might as well have been a muumuu. She had no shape underneath the folds of fabric, and as she walked toward him, she even waddled a little, thanks to her outfit.

She gestured to her attire. “Like it?”

“What the hell is it?”

“This is a maternity dress.”

“Says who? The Michelin man?”

She chuckled and toyed with the top button. “Actually, no. I had a visitor this morning at your lovely home.”

He tensed and rose. If this was about that bastard Pete… “Who?” he asked tightly.

“Not him,” she said quickly, reading his expression. “This visitor was female and blond and perfect. Ring any bells?”

“My mother?” Though why his mother would be buying Ang maternity clothes, he had no idea.

Her smile took him off guard. “Oh, sometimes you do win points, don’t you?” She moved on to the next button. “Your ex showed up this morning on a fact-finding mission. I do believe she wanted to see if we were really an item. My guess is she convinced herself last night that we weren’t, though I’m pretty sure my answering your door in booty shorts and a tank top with a towel around my hair didn’t allay her concerns.”

“Booty shorts.” He cleared his throat and shifted in his chair. He’d managed not to get hard upon his first glimpse of her, but the image of her she put in his head took care of that problem in no time flat. “You’ll have to demonstrate exactly what those are for me sometime.”

“Gladly.” She undid a couple of buttons. The dress seemed to have fifty of them. The bonus was that she was wearing something beneath it that clung to every one of her ample curves.

He leaned forward, his mouth dry. Dick already straining. “So you decided to pay me an early lunch time visit to…what? Castrate me for indirectly causing you discomfort?”

She tilted her head, eyeing him openly. “What I had in mind involved that part of you, but castrating isn’t on the menu. I’m too fond of your family jewels to threaten their existence.” She licked her lips and came a little closer. “Yet.”

Swallowing was getting more difficult by the moment. So was breathing. “There’s a relief.”

“Tricia supposedly purchased this fine maternity wear to apologize for her ‘abrupt’ treatment yesterday. I thanked her profusely, as you could imagine.” She braced her hands on the arms of his chair. “You owe me, buster.”

“I owe you? For what?” He touched the sleeve of the dress. Bristly cotton. Must be a big seller for Mrs. Michelin. “You didn’t have to actually wear it.”

“Oh yes, I did. It went so nicely with this lingerie Brandy picked out for me. Besides, I wanted a proper before and after.”

“Before and after what?” he asked, his fingers itching to yank open his drawer. He wanted to lock her in place before she got away. Wanted to kiss that sassy mouth, then use it the way he had the other day while she made those appreciative noises and begged him for more with her eyes.

She’d awakened those desires inside him, and now he couldn’t turn them off. He didn’t want to. They’d started down this road together, and he yearned to see how far it went. How far they could go.

“Before and after we make up from our fight, of course.”

“Making up usually involves a discussion of serious issues. Of which we have many.”

“Maybe, but they’ll keep.”

“No. They won’t.” He forged ahead before his throat grew too narrow to speak. “Tricia never craved sexual contact from me.”

“Never? Wow. Not the brightest bulb in the box, was she?” Then she blinked, slowly. “Oh.”

“Yes. Oh. I lied to you to get you into my home. It was an impulse, and I regret it.” There, he’d said what he needed to. Well, one of the things he needed to say.

Perhaps she would feel a similar urge to unload.

She sighed. “I suspected as much.”

“You did?”

“Well, I wondered. But eventually it didn’t matter as much. I know you’d never do anything to hurt me. Piss me off, yes. Use your advantage unfairly, perhaps. But hurt me? Never.” Her throat moved. “I wouldn’t hurt you either. I swear.”

“I know,” he said gently, imploring her with his eyes to keep going.

Instead of revealing her deep, dark secrets, she traced a fingertip down her throat, stopping before the shadowy valley between her breasts. “Right now, I’m hurting pretty badly myself. Only one thing can make me feel better.”

His breath stuttered as he stared into her witchy gray eyes. “And that is?”

“You getting inside me before I lose my fucking mind.” She undid the last button and shrugged the dress off her shoulders, baring her skimpy peach teddy. It was more lace than actual fabric and pushed her breasts up so high that the nipples played peekaboo with the edges of the cups.

His token protest died on his lips.

As far as distractions went, it was rather notable. In another minute, he wouldn’t remember his social security number, and he’d had it memorized since the age of four.

His hard-on pushed against his pants, threatening to tear right through as his gaze traveled lower to where a see-through panel guarded her pussy. A visibly soaked, see-through panel. Delicate curls pushed against the fabric, taunting him until he had no choice but to drop to his knees and bury his face against her.

He’d meant to press his mouth between her thighs. Instead he kissed her gently curved belly, inhaling the raspberry scent that made him lightheaded and gave him laser-like clarity all at once. When they were together, he didn’t care about how quickly things were moving. Nothing else mattered but the two of them and how she made him feel.

“If this is how you apologize, I like fighting with you, Ms. McFee,” he murmured, nipping her midriff through the teddy. “Though you should know this will be the first time I’ve ever misused office furniture.”

“You’re overdue then.” Her soft exhale fluttered his hair as she bent over him, clutching him to her midsection. Holding him there while he stroked up the velvety soft insides of her thighs to where she burned. He nudged aside the panel and groaned at the liquid heat that greeted his finger. So hot. He massaged her swollen clit, exulting in her broken gasps.

“I can’t disagree. Seems like I’m overdue for a lot of things.”

“Besides, who says…” She trailed off, tried again. “Who says I’m the one who needs to apologize?”

He dragged his lips over her needy cleft, absorbing the shudder that rocked her against his mouth. Then he went deeper, sliding on her wetness until he could lick her entrance. Her moan burst over his skin, inflaming his nerve endings, sending every part of his body buzzing with need. She sifted her fingers through his hair, gripping a handful as he plunged his tongue inside. Her hold intensified as he pushed in and out, sucking with every pass. Her wetness flavored his erotic kisses, sweet and slick. He cupped her ass and shoved her against the desk, spreading her open until something fell off and shattered.

Only when she was sprawled on his blotter, arching up on her elbows to watch him while she hissed air between her teeth, did he realize what he’d done.

He’d thrown her across his desk. Wildly. Like an animal. Even now he held her thighs far apart, bathing her flesh with his own unsteady breaths while their eyes locked. The smell of her arousal was making him crazy.

“Do not apologize, Sterling Vance,” she whispered. “Take a good look at me and tell me if I look like I’m hurting in any way but one.”

He opened his drawer, withdrawing the object he’d bought for no real reason except she’d put the idea in his head and it had burrowed there like a sliver, impossible to get out.

The metallic clink of the cuffs caused her eyes to widen, especially when he held out his hand. “Give me your arms.”

She didn’t hesitate. Her easy trust would’ve floored him had he not been too turned on to fully appreciate it. Seeing that playful pink metal close around her wrists brought a growl to his throat, one he let loose when he set aside the key and took in the picture she made. Tousled, short cap of dark hair, breasts tilted high, legs akimbo. Wrists bound and lying limply above that triangle of heat between her thighs that beckoned him like nothing—and no one—else ever had.

Or ever would.

“I’m not going to apologize.” He reached for his belt, tugging it free and going to work on his zipper. “You were a bad girl.”

He waited for her to laugh. Instead she writhed. “Yes. I was. So bad. Please punish me with your cock.”

Christ, this woman was going to kill him.

He shoved down his boxers and stepped forward. Totally worth it.

“Put your hands over your head.” His voice didn’t sound like his own. Gravelly, thick, raw.

She obliged, arching her back so that her breasts nearly tumbled free from their constraints. He reached up and yanked down the fabric, revealing them to his hungry gaze. And eager fingers. He twisted each nipple in turn, taking his time to work them good.

“Please.” She threw her head back and sent something else crashing to the rug.

Some men might’ve prolonged the agony. He wasn’t one of them. He’d already waited his entire life for her.

Pushing aside the panel of lace, he lined up his cock and shoved in deep, savoring her loud cry. Her head bounced off the edge of the desk and he winced inwardly, but he didn’t stop. Later, much later, he’d kiss away every hurt he’d caused. Now his one and only mission was to deliver every bit of the pleasure she deserved.

“Please. More.”

“Yes. More,” he gasped back, wondering how his lungs didn’t simply explode from the pressure.

She was helpless, bound at his mercy, and he couldn’t do her hard enough to suit the unrelenting anvil of need pounding at the base of his spine. The root of his cock. Drumming inside him so loudly he could barely hear her frenzied moans.

Tugging her closer, he wrapped her legs around his waist, hauling her upward so that he could surge in and out in long, endless thrusts. Her heels dug into his flesh as she squeezed her inner walls, milking his cock. Circling her pelvis to match his crazed strokes. His thumb slipped over her slick clit, fast and hard, her heat scorching him through the skin.

Shivers overtook her, proof she was on the verge of release, and he couldn’t hold back. He had to spill himself inside her, to fill her in that primal, utterly male way. “Let me feel you come,” he murmured, his only focus her sweat-streaked, utterly magnificent face.

“Oh yes.” She flexed her bound wrists, fingers clawing through the air. “There.”

His balls throbbed, the anticipation cresting inside him with a furor he had no control left to stop. He pinched her clit and slammed home one final time, hoping like hell she came along for the ride.

Her scream shattered him in two, encouraging the flames that licked him from the inside out to burn even hotter. He groaned her name, reveling in the rhythmic pulses of her pussy contracting around his length. Mindlessly, he kept thrusting, driven to burrow as far inside the warm, wet haven of her body as he could go. And she took him, still moaning, still shuddering, her hips bouncing with each stroke.

“Oh shit,” she gasped, and she spasmed again, her silken walls fisting him over and over again while he continued to caress her clit. She whimpered, tossing her head back and forth. “I can’t. No more.” But she was still coming, clasping him deep inside, soaking him.

His balls started to tingle, on the verge of filling again to match his already stiffening cock. God help him.

“Baby, I’m pulling out now. Or else we’ll be doing this again.”

“Okay.” She quivered. “I’m game if you are.”

Grinning, he gripped his cock, inordinately proud of how wet she’d gotten him. Maybe he had some prowess after all. Unless she’d reached the increased moisture stage of pregnancy, but even so, he was taking the victory.

She gasped when he followed through and pulled out, though her body’s slick suction made his eyes roll back. Christ. He hadn’t been lying. He really could go once more. She’d turned him into some kind of raging beast.

For that alone, he wanted to kiss her senseless.

He braced a hand on the desk and leaned across her, careful to keep his weight off her belly. His lips skimmed hers. “Remind me not to be sorry ever again.”

She only laughed.