Must Be Crazy: (Melissa and Jackson) (A Jetty Beach Romance Book 2) (24 page)

“Yes.”

“Ooh, that’s mine,” I say, grabbing a piece of steak from Jackson’s plate with my chop sticks.

We’re stretched out across the bed in the penthouse in the nicest hotel in Jetty Beach. We usually stay at my place when we’re in town, but the septic tank backed up and I literally can’t go anywhere near it. The smell makes me instantly nauseated. Besides, staying at a hotel isn’t so bad. I don’t mind not having to clean up after myself, and the sheets are spectacular.

We haven’t quite figured out the logistics of where we live. Do we live in Seattle? In Jetty Beach? I’m not sure anymore, but it doesn’t seem to matter. We spend time in both places and I kind of like our back-and-forth life.

The school year started, but I’m taking a sabbatical from work. Between the controversy, and my pregnancy, I decided to take the year off. I’m not sure if I’ll return to teaching. At this point, I’m content to focus on the baby. And, to be fair, money isn’t an issue. I figure I’m going to be a mom and I can take some time to figure out what my future will look like. It won’t be long, and everything is going to change.

I rub the swell of my belly through my white t-shirt. I’m visibly pregnant, although I still have almost four months to go. People usually assume I’m further along—apparently the baby has nowhere else to go but out. Nicole can’t stop talking about how cute I am, and she gives Ryan a lot of longing looks. I think I’m making him very, very nervous.

My ring sparkles in the light. I still love looking at it. We got married in Vegas a month ago, although we haven’t told anyone. We sneaked into a chapel with sunglasses and hoods over our heads to avoid anyone with a stray camera, and an Elvis impersonator did the honors. It was completely fucking perfect. I love having such a big secret that only Jackson and I share. Dennis is planning a real wedding for us late next year. I don’t want mine to overshadow Nicole’s, and I’d kind of like to have wedding pictures where I’m not hugely pregnant. Of course, there will be a baby in those pictures, but it isn’t like the kid won’t be able to do the math someday and figure it out.

“Hey, you wanted the chicken,” Jackson says, frowning at me when I take another piece of steak from his plate. He plucks a bit of meat from mine.

“Oh, hell no,” I say. “You do not take food from a pregnant woman.”

He grins at me and puts the chicken back. The takeout boxes are set on a wooden tray, along with bottled iced teas. He moves everything down to the floor and scoots closer to me.

“Is lunch what you wanted?” he asks, brushing my hair back. He leans in and kisses his way down my collar bone, his hand lingering on my breast.

“Mm, you need to stop that,” I say. “I’m starving.”

The only thing stronger than my appetite for food is my appetite for sex. My hormones are on fire, and Jackson has no qualms about my changing body. If anything, he enjoys it in new ways. He particularly loves my boobs—but let’s be honest, they look amazing. If my belly has to get huge, at least I get bigger boobs out of the deal.

He gently takes the plate from my hands and sets it aside, his mouth never far from mine. I’m hungry, but what the hell, the food will be here later.

I let him press me back onto the bed. He slides his hand beneath my skirt. I moan as he nudges my legs apart, his fingers working their magic.

“I guess you’re not freaked out,” I say.

He nuzzles against my neck, nibbling my skin.

We had our first ultrasound this morning. Seeing that tiny little figure moving around on the screen was one of the most intense moments of my life. I already feel such a bond to this little person; I can’t explain it. I don’t even know if it’s a boy or a girl, but I already love this baby with a fierceness that kind of takes my breath away.

“Of course I’m not freaked out,” he says. He pushes his fingers in harder, rubbing up and down. I fumble for his pants, trying to free his cock.

Jackson is as attached as I am. He caresses my belly constantly. He leans down and talks to the baby, insisting he needs to make sure he or she knows his voice. I even caught him reading a parenting book when he thought I wasn’t looking. Whatever fears I had that Jackson would spook and leave me are gone. He positively dotes on me, even when I don’t want him to. I had to convince him I don’t need the fucking secret service when I go places by myself. But I have to admit, his protective side is sexy as hell.

He stops before I can get his pants down and props himself up next to me. “Were you worried I’d freak out?”

I take a deep breath, my whole body tingling. “I don’t know, not really. But why did you stop?”

He smiles and trails a finger down my leg. I feel a little flutter as the baby shifts. It is the weirdest thing, to feel something moving in my belly and realize it’s a
person
. This pregnancy is so out of the blue, and so very unplanned—I never contemplated what it would be like to have a baby growing inside me. It’s strange and surprising and wonderful, and often very emotional, all at once. I’ve never laughed and cried so much—often at the same time.

“Do you regret not finding out the sex?” he asks.

We debated whether we wanted to know if it’s a boy or a girl. I think we were both on the fence and at the last minute decided to wait until the baby’s born.

“Do you regret it?” I ask.

Jackson gives me that gorgeous devil smile of his. “Maybe.”

“Maybe?” I say. “I thought we were in this together.”

“Do you regret it?” he asks again.

He definitely has something up his sleeve. “Maybe,” I say.

He gets up from the bed and pulls an envelope from his jacket.

“What is that?” I ask.

He sits down next to me and doesn’t say anything, just puts the envelope on the bed between us.

“Jackson.” I try to sound stern, but I’m smiling too much. I scoot so I’m sitting up—it isn’t easy—and pull the sheets over my lap.

“I have not looked at this,” he says. “You can see it’s still sealed.”

“But?”

“But I asked the doctor to write us a little note that we can either open, or not.”

I groan. “That is so mean! I was all set to wait, and now you have the answer sitting there in front of me? How am I supposed to resist that?”

“Let’s not resist,” he says.

I lick my lips, staring at the envelope. Should we? “Fuck it. I’m in.”

He tucks his finger underneath the flap and runs it along the edge, taking his damn time about it. My heart thumps with excitement, and the baby does a little roll. I put my hand on my belly. He makes a show of pulling out the folded piece of paper, a positively evil glint in his eyes.

“Damn it, let me see,” I say.

With maddening slowness, he unfolds the paper, smirking at me the whole time.

Suddenly his face falls, the smile disappearing. His eyes get wide and he swallows hard.

“What?” I ask, suddenly afraid. “What is it?”

He stares at the paper, blinking his eyes. He looks up, meeting my gaze, and passes the paper to me. Are there tears in his eyes? There can’t be.

I take the note and smooth it out. In messy script, but plain as day, is a single word, and suddenly I know why Jackson looks like he’s about to cry.

Girl.

~~~

Must Be Fate
, book three in the Jetty Beach romance series, is coming soon!

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About the Book

I’m just going to be honest. I love the shit out of this book.

Melissa was a natural choice for the next heroine in the Jetty Beach series and it was the title that came to me first. Must Be Crazy. What would be crazy? What would be something that would totally throw Melissa off her game?

Aha! Jackson Bennett. A rich playboy who presents her with an offer she can’t refuse. A week with him. And as she tells herself, she’s single, and she could use a little crazy in her life. Why not? What could possibly go wrong?

She might say a lot went wrong, but of course a lot more went right.

Melissa is a firecracker. I loved her combination of spunk and I-don't-give-a-fuck-ness. I got to indulge in my sailor mouth a little more than usual with her, and I won't lie, that was fun. Her commercial fisherman daddy, John Simon, was inspired by my in-laws, who have been fishermen for countless generations. John's comment about 'old fisherman and bold fisherman' is a direct quote from my wonderful father-in-law.

Jackson will always hold a special place in my heart. I feel like I took a risk writing him. Billionaire romances are such a THING, and they’re tons of fun. But Jackson, despite being the sort of rich that begins with a B, is not typical for that role. He’s not brooding and dark. He doesn’t have a weird fetish. He doesn’t need her to sign a contract.

He is confident, bold, and totally crazy for Melissa from the first time they meet. And that was what made him so utterly delightful to write. Here is this shark of a businessman (I know we don’t get to see him work very much, because that wasn’t what this story was about, but there’s a reason he has so much money), who goes all soft and sweet for a woman. His appeal isn’t in the cold, hard exterior. It’s in the way he’s completely taken with her. I loved writing a man who is flat out nuts for his woman, and has no idea he’s actually in love.

These two were crazy fun to write (see what I did there?). Although I always intended to write the Jetty Beach books as stand-alones, I was tempted to draw this one out. I enjoyed both of these characters so much. Stay tuned, because there might be another story about them down the road. I’m not sure I can leave them forever. Fear not, I won’t ruin their happily ever after. But maybe get them into a little mischief? That’s pretty tempting…

Thanks for reading!

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Acknowledgements

Writing can be a solitary endeavor, but in my case, I have a lot of great people on Team CK.

Tammi, as always, you’re a great friend, and a fabulous editor. Thanks for helping me keep my head on straight.

Shayne, thank you for yet another gorgeous cover.

A great big shout out to my ARC readers. You lovely ladies are absolute gold. Thank you for your support!

David, thank you forever. For everything.

About the Author

Claire Kingsley writes smart, sexy romances. She's in love with love, and finds inspiration in the stories of broken people who find love and healing together—with a generous dose of steam.

She can't imagine life without coffee, her Kindle, and the sexy heroes who inhabit her imagination. She's living out her own happily ever after in the Pacific Northwest with her husband and three kids.