Just Married (More than Friends) (7 page)

“I can see that.” Except she’d be canceling his perpetual adolescence tomorrow when she told him she was pregnant.

“And you’ve been his Wendy, allowing him to do as he pleases.” Her tone resigned, not accusatory. “I knew he’d never settle down as long as he had you. I just never realized there was more going on than friendship.”

“We preferred it that way.”

“I would have treated you differently, had I known. We might even have been friends, allies.” Her pale eyes shone with regret.

“Really?” Mira chuckled. “You wouldn’t have tried to push Cal into marriage and demanded grandbabies at the wedding?”

“You’re warming to the idea of having a baby. I can tell.”

“Or maybe I’ve learned arguing the point with you is a fruitless endeavor.” She grinned and decided she’d tell Bridie tomorrow before she left. Someone ought to be over the moon with happiness about these babies. The woman might have her own agenda, but learning grandchildren where in her future would be a sight to behold. Might even be the antidote for Cal’s reaction.

“Most people do see things my way eventually.” Bridie put her hands on her slim hips. “Do you need anything? Something to eat or some champagne?”

Guilt kicked her hard whenever champagne was mentioned. She said a silent prayer she hadn’t hurt the babies as she shook her head. “I’m wiped out. I planned on being asleep by now.”

“I won’t keep you then.” Bridie started for the door, but paused. “Good luck with Callum tomorrow.” She cast a knowing grin before leaving. Mira shook her head, trying to figure out what that was supposed to mean. It wasn’t until she started to walk that she realized she held a protective hand across her still toned belly.

Had Bridie guessed her secret already?

Callum pushed open the door to his penthouse, intent on shouting “Honey, I’m home” for the first time in his life. Only the sight of Mira doing some kind of standing split yoga in his living room left him speechless. And hard as a rock.

“You’re early.” She spoke from her upside-down position, as if it were perfectly natural to have your head by your ankle with the other leg reached to the ceiling. Leggings clung to her from ankle to hip, while her loose pink tank had slipped to expose her lean belly and the bottom of her purple bra.

“No, I’m late. I should have been here yesterday watching you twist yourself around.” He dropped his bags and toed off his loafers.

“True.” She brought her other leg down before he got to her, which ruined his plan of carrying her to the bedroom that way.

“Hello, wife.” He caught her before she could turn around, wrapping his arms around her middle and slipping his hands beneath her tank. Her warm skin was soft beneath his palms.

She tilted her head back to look at him. “I missed you too, Cal.”

“Yeah? Show me.” He leaned into her, her lips parting when they met his. He kissed her slow and deep, until her fingertips grazed the front of his thighs. White-hot need blinded his control. He slid his hands from her belly and under the waistband of her tight leggings.

She broke the kiss and stilled his hands with her own. “Hold on. We need to talk.”

He rubbed his cheek against her silken hair, captured completely in a French braid. “We’re not
that
married.”

“We really are.” She tried to turn, but he held her tighter, pressing his rock-hard cock into the curve of her perfect ass.

“I know what ‘we need to talk’ means. And right now I need to be inside you more than I need to know what’s on your mind. We can talk after.”

This time he let her spin to face him. Cal frowned. She really wasn’t going to let this go. He could tell by the furrowed brow and worried look in eyes. He framed her face in his hands, all smooth skin and hazel eyes.

She shook her head. “It can’t wait.”

“Why? Is the problem going somewhere?”

She released the barest sigh. “No, it’s here to stay.”

“Then let’s talk in twenty-four hours.”

She shook her head. “I leave in less than thirty.”

He smoothed his thumbs along her cheekbones. “I’ve missed you more than you need to talk.”

She parted her lips to protest, so he leaned in, silencing her argument with a kiss deep enough to remind her it had been five long weeks since they’d been together. He released her face and grabbed her thick braid, pulling her head back as his mouth tasted her lips, the line of her jaw, and that spot below her earlobe that made her slump against him.

He gripped her tight ass with both hands, lifting her off her feet. She wrapped her arms around his neck and her legs across his back. She climbed him like a vine while he carried her to the bedroom.

He didn’t want to talk about anything troubling, now or ever. He only wanted Mira, hot and willing in his bed, warm and welcoming in his life. They had so little time together, the rest of it was a waste. So long as he kept them naked, and her floating on a sea of orgasmic bliss, the only hard thing they’d have to deal with this weekend was his cock.

Cal ran his fingers through the wild mess of her hair, probably trying to wake her. But Mira had been up for a while, pulling the warm scent of him into her lungs, his steady heartbeat against her ear, and the crisp hair of his chest on her cheek. She hadn’t noticed a single pregnancy craving until Cal had come home yesterday and wrapped his arms around her. He’d always smelled good, but now he was intoxicating.

It had certainly impaired her judgment. She’d spent an entire day indulging in the pleasure of his body when she should have been explaining their new situation. He was so blissfully happy, so different from the last time she’d been here, when grief had paralyzed him. He deserved this moment of heaven, and she wanted him to think of their marriage like this. She needed it too. Everyone deserved a honeymoon.

After he learned about the babies, his anger and disappointment would cloud everything for a while. Maybe forever. And if her sushi habit and wedding-night champagne binge had harmed the babies, there wouldn’t be enough forgiveness to get them through it.

“Doll,” Cal whispered before kissing the top of her head. “We should shower.”

“Maybe later.” She opened her eyes, bright sunlight spilling through the windows.

“Brunch is in forty-five minutes.”

“What brunch?” She pushed against his chest until she caught his dark, sleepy gaze. His short hair mussed, his jaw dark with stubble, he looked positively edible.

“I rescheduled Friday dinner to Sunday brunch.”

“And you’re springing this on me now?” Not that she didn’t have a secret of her own, big enough to bring them both down.

“It’s at my mother’s. We’ve barely been out of bed since I came home. The pizza we ordered from Emilio’s is long gone and the only thing here to eat is scones and biscuits. I can’t live on that.”

“Then you’ll be useless in a zombie apocalypse.” She sat up with a sigh, pulling the sheet to cover her breasts.

His rich laugh wrapped around her like a hug. She rested her hand on the center of his chest, not wanting their weekend to be snatched away by responsibility just yet.

“You should come back to Seattle with me.” It would be so much easier to tell him there, on her own turf.

“Don’t tempt me.” He took her hand from his chest and kissed it before sitting up and swinging his long legs over the side of the bed. “I’ve been out of the country for two weeks, so I have to bring things back to order.”

“Will you have time for our weekend in September?” It was only three weeks away; waiting to tell him might be best for everyone. She still wasn’t used to the idea and she’d known for a week.

“We’ll work something out.” He stood and stretched, so comfortable and confident in his body she had to smile. “See something you like?”

“Always.” She shed the sheet and rose up beside him. She spent time every day examining herself for signs of pregnancy, worried she’d start to show before she could explain and terrified her lack of symptoms meant there was something wrong with the babies.

He scrubbed a hand over his face. “I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I think we should shower separately.”

She placed a hand on her hip. “Really?”

His Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed. “If I take you in there, we’ll be late.”

“Not if you apply yourself.” She reached out and wrapped her hand around his cock. It rose from half-mast to full sail almost instantly. “I can multitask. Can you?”

He groaned in response. Her pulse skipped ahead, always giddy at how she could bring him here, where he lost his ability to reason. It leveled the playing field, since he could do it to her with a glance.

Keeping her fingers tight around his cock, she walked toward the shower, leading him straight into temptation.

Miranda let out a deep breath and stretched her neck from one side to the other as she stared out her rain-splattered office window. Giving up coffee had a serious effect on her afternoon productivity. She’d spent the first few days back writing it off as jet lag, and the rest of the week as caffeine withdrawal. Maybe if she slept away the long Labor Day weekend she’d be back to normal by Tuesday.

Unless the babies were making her tired. Then she’d be stuck with it until she could mainline maple lattes again. And the time line for that depended on so many factors she shook her head to dispel the random bits of pregnancy knowledge. She almost wished she’d told Cal last weekend so that she could tell her girlfriends and glean from their experiences what actually mattered. But then, she would have ruined their moment of happy matrimony. The only one they were likely to ever have.

She glanced to the wall of white bookshelves lining one side of her office and smiled as her gaze caught on the wedding photos she’d recently framed. She loved the shot of her and Cal as they turned from the altar, her bouquet in the air and Elvis striking a pose. She’d liked it so much that she had one here and at home. Smaller prints of her and the girls all rubbing Molly’s belly for luck, shoving a whipped cream–covered waffle in Cal’s face, and a candid shot of Cal whispering something in her ear. It all looked so romantic, so fitting with the rest of her collection of happy memories and beautiful places. The vibrant frames kept the modern space from seeming so stark.

Mira stood and walked to the window, staring out at Puget Sound through the thin veil of drizzle. She straightened her plum dress, which had started to cling to her middle, and decided she’d pack a bag and catch the ferry out to Whidbey Island for the long weekend. She used her aunt’s house as a vacation rental, but thanks to a last-minute cancellation it was available. And since she’d turned her condo into a library of all things baby, she could use the clear space to figure out how to break the news without breaking her marriage.

She’d honestly rather these babies not know Cal at all than know he didn’t want them. Miranda had felt like a burden the moment her aunt had arrived at her parents’ apartment after their death. It had weighed heavy on her, though she’d tried her level best to be as easy on her aunt as possible. There had to be a way to tell Cal without the risk of him saying something she’d never unhear.

Her office door slid open and she turned at the sound. Her assistant clutched a folder to her chest as she stepped into the room. But it was who appeared next that had her reaching for the back of her white leather chair.

Cal, in tailored wool trousers and a French blue dress shirt, looked as if he’d stepped off the cover of a fashion magazine. Or a romance novel. His aura of authority filled the space, the handsome face and athletic body made a sexy combination that always knocked her sideways. Her stomach flipped in a mixture of excitement and trepidation.

“What are you doing here?” She pulled the chair closer, hiding her midsection. She wasn’t showing, but the instinct to protect her belly grew stronger by the day.

Her assistant grew pale. “I’m sorry. I know you’re leaving early today so when he arrived I just assumed—”

“It’s fine, Nadine.” She forced a smile, her palms growing damp. “Just unexpected.”

“Careful, doll.” Cal spoke as he wheeled a tiny suitcase into her space. “You’re acting like I’m an unwelcome surprise.”

She opened her mouth, but couldn’t find the words. He had never dropped in unexpectedly. Ever. Hell, he was usually late to events scheduled months in advance. She turned her attention to her assistant, whom she knew how to handle.

“Nadine, could you buzz Rob and tell him Cal is here?” She needed a buffer, and Rob would just have to cancel whatever he had planned to run interference.

Her assistant left with a nod and a smile, closing the door behind her. Cal settled onto one of the white leather slipper chairs facing her glass-topped desk. He stretched his arms behind him, lacing his fingers behind his head.

“Make yourself comfortable, Mr. Kerr.” She put a hand on her hip and pulled her stomach tight. She’d thought she had another week to pretend everything was okay. They’d planned to meet next weekend in Portland where he had a meeting. She had an ultrasound scheduled this afternoon to measure the babies. This one would be more sensitive, and hopefully ease her mind about her pregnancy transgressions.

“I plan to, Mrs. Kerr.” He winked at her. “I thought you’d be so excited to see me, you’d be on my lap by now.”

“Did you?” She matched his grin, though her stomach churned. “What are you doing in Seattle? Layover?”

“Labor Day weekend with the wife. It’s a new month.”

“Indeed it is. I didn’t know textile moguls bothered with holidays.”

“I don’t, but I thought you’d have a long weekend and since I shortened ours, you are supposed to be thrilled to let me make it up to you. By the odd look you’re giving me, I’m guessing you had other plans?”

“It’s not that. I just don’t know what to make of you here, now.” She motioned to her office, neat and orderly. She knew how to handle business here. Her unexpected husband, not so much.

He rose and made up the distance between them. “I thought surprises were romantic.”

“Your surprises feel like an ambush.” His scent hit her like an opiate. She took a deep pull of that combination of soap and man, and wished she had a normal pregnancy craving. Pickles and ice cream instead of eau de Cal. “I find proposals and invitations far more romantic.”

“You know what I find romantic?” He set his hands on her hips.

“Not a damned thing.”

Faint lines crinkled around his dark eyes as he laughed. “Too right.”

She tapped the button in the center of his chest. “Are you staying the night?”

“I’m here the whole weekend. I sent the plane back, so you’re stuck with me until Tuesday.”

“Get out.” She leaned back to read his expression.

“I enjoyed being married so much last weekend, I couldn’t wait to do it again.”

“I think you’re the only person in the world who uses the term ‘married’ as a euphemism for sex.” She used her fingers to put air quotes around married, and he grabbed her hands. He brought them to his lips for a kiss.

“Let’s lock the door and dirty up your office. There is too much white in here, just mocking me.”

She stepped back. “No, no. That’s never going to happen. I don’t slut it up at work.”

“Come on. You’ve thought about it.”

“Not once.” It was the honest truth. She kept that part of herself laced in, which was likely why she unleashed it when she was around him.

“I’ve been here five minutes and it’s all I’ve thought of. Who decorated this firm? The good witch? It’s like an art gallery with all white everything. Convents have more color.” He moved past her and to the bookcases. “Would you look at that gorgeous wedding. That groom is hot. I bet his bride was all over him for the honeymoon.”

“Can you believe that rat bastard invited her to the wedding? No proposal, no engagement, just an invitation.”

He turned and mocked a pout. “I proposed, and you accepted. And afterwards we were very engaged. Perhaps you need reminding.”

She bumped into her desk as she backed away, beyond thankful when Rob slid the door open.

“What the hell, man?” Rob was definitely more excited than she’d been. The two men shook hands, then pulled into that back-clapping embrace guys invented to show macho affection. “I thought you weren’t coming out until the christening?”

“That was the premarriage plan. Now, I don’t need an excuse to come to Latteland. We’re bicoastal.”

“You ought to give in now and move. The sooner you start, the sooner you’re back to soaking up the liquid sunshine and watching the Mariners.” Rob grinned at Cal, then shot Miranda a look that showed he understood his role as distraction. Good thing.

“You East Coasters can’t rip on my team.” Mira picked up the folder that lay forgotten on her desk and slid it into her black attaché. “Rob, I have an appointment this afternoon. Do you think you could entertain Cal while I’m gone?”

“Sure thing. Anna’s day care is closing early, so he could spend some time with his goddaughter while she’s still an only child.” Rob was officially her favorite person in all the land.

Cal coughed. “As tempting as that party sounds, I was thinking I’d get some work done before you finished for the day. If you give me a key, I’ll just wait at the condo.”

Her heart stalled in her chest. Her condo was a disaster zone, with baby paraphernalia everywhere. Books and magazines were stacked high, not to mention the towers of boxes she’d filled to transition her home office into a nursery. She’d used a pair of corkboards from law school study sessions to develop a network of pediatricians and nannies, lactation consultants and baby-proofers.

“Come on, man. She can show you the new princess big-girl bed you bought.”

“I did?” He arched a brow and glanced at her.

“Anna wasn’t interested in leaving the crib, so her fairy godparents made a magical princess bed appear.” She shrugged, hating how Rob’s eyes widened. No one had an issue with gifts from Cal because he was made of money. Which was why she always said things were from the godparents. It kept their friends from saying it was too much.

“Did it work?” Cal asked Rob.

“Perfectly.”

“Good. Money well spent.” At Cal’s words, the tension on Rob’s face eased. “Listen, I don’t want the boys to think I’m playing favorites. Why don’t we all get together for dinner on Monday. My treat.”

“Tell you what, why don’t I get everyone together at our place for a barbecue. It’s our last chance to host before the baby comes.”

Cal clapped his hands together. “Good plan. Have the caterer call me and I’ll cover everything.”

Rob shook his head. “We’re not penniless law students anymore. I don’t make as much as Mira, but I’m doing well enough to handle a barbecue.”

“I just meant that because Molly is so pregnant she’s not going to want—”

“I know you meant well, man. I know we all appreciated the hell out of it when we were in school. But, you don’t have to take care of us anymore. Just come and play with the kids.”

“We’ll do that.” Mira moved beside Cal, their arms touching, trying to break the uncomfortable tension. She’d told Cal he didn’t need to bankroll everything years ago, but maybe he’d take it better from a guy.

“I’ll text you the time,” Rob said before leaving.

“Well that got awkward,” Cal said when the door slid closed. “Do you really make more than Rob?”

“I have more time to work, so I’ve moved up a little faster.” Which would change once she had the babies. She wanted to cut back for a few years, though doing that would stall her career. A month ago that would have struck fear in her heart, but now it wasn’t even sigh-worthy.

“Another reason why our marriage is perfect. No day-to-day relationship drama to get in the way of work.” He wrapped her up in his arms, and she let herself settle there, safe for a moment, wishing she wasn’t about to throw everything into disarray. “Tell me, why were you trying to pawn me off on Rob? Were you leaving early for a hot date or something?”

“I have a doctor’s appointment.” She drew in his scent, as deep as she could before looking up at him. Guilt ripped at her. If any other woman were to have trapped him with a pregnancy he didn’t want, she would have shredded them. But someone else would have had an agenda she did not. She was so accustomed to being his defender it felt foreign to stand up for herself.

He wrinkled his nose. “You should cancel. You’re perfectly fit. No need to waste time confirming it.”

“Come sit.” She released him and walked to the white slipper chairs facing her desk, turning one closer to the other. She sat, folding her hands neatly in her lap. She tried for a reassuring smile, but his scowl showed she missed the mark.

“You’re not ill.” A statement, not a question.

She motioned for the chair. A weighty silence thickened the air. He stood there, stoic and regal. She supposed in another time he would have been royalty, responsible for villages and towns. Willing to battle back anything that looked like bad news. Which this wasn’t. At least not to her. “Cal, please.”

He folded into the chair and leaned toward her, propping his forearms on his muscular thighs. “We’ll fix it, whatever it is.”

“Nothing’s broken.” She smiled, wishing there was some way the news wouldn’t be so jarring.

“Then why the buildup?”

“I don’t know how to tell you this. It was a shock to me, so I can only imagine how it will be for you. I just ask that you’re careful in what you say.”

“Doll, out with it.”

Every nerve in her body vibrated with apprehension. Her stomach pitched and her mouth watered like she was about to vomit. She reached out and took his hands, wanting to hold on to their former life.

Miranda took a deep breath and met his gaze. “Cal, I’m pregnant. We’re having twins.”