Propositions (21 page)

“You saw Troy?” she gasped and turned to face him again.

“Yes. Now please, will you just hear me out?” He would resort to begging if he had too.

Though pain was still evident on her face, Nate felt relieved when she nodded. He stepped closer, narrowing the distance between them. The ache to hold her grew unbearable.

“I love you.” He stepped towards her and caressed her cheek. “More than anything. I want to be with you … and raise our child together.”

“You … you want to have our baby?” Her eyes searched his face, unconvinced his words were honorable.

“Yes. I know it’s no excuse, but the lack of sleep and stress over the launch weekend were clouding my head when you told me that you were pregnant. I handled the whole situation terribly. I didn’t think things through. Now I have, I know I made the biggest mistake in my life letting you walk away. Please forgive me. I’ll do anything to make this right.”

Jessica’s eyes were wide with shock and her mouth hung slightly open. He saw she was about to protest and he raised his finger to silence her.

“Hear me out, okay? I think I have a proposition that may just work.” Her eyes flared with worry but he continued. “You want to expand. Right?”

Jessica furrowed her brow.

Why did she still have to look so goddamn sexy? It made it so hard to concentrate.

“Remember we talked about our European hotels? Well, it clicked. I need them rebranded and promoted. So, what do you say about opening an office in London? I’ll help you by giving you some office space in our building while you find your own feet. I’ll give you the Somers Europe hotels account and a few friends owe me a couple of favors, I’ll easily convince them to use your agency as well. So you’ll have an office, clients … and me … if you want.”

She gasped. “I can’t just up and leave my business to be with you in London. Are you crazy?”

“Absolutely. Just think for a moment. I know it’s a lot to take on board and there’ll be a lot to sort out,” Nate went on. “This is what you’ve always wanted. I’m not asking you to leave your business—I’d never do that. We’re both tied to our companies and we’re both pigheaded and unwilling to sacrifice everything. So is this a compromise that could work? We could spend half of our time in London where I can work on business development alongside the board, then the other half back in Sydney, or wherever in the world you want to call home. But the main point here is that I want you, our baby and a life together. What do you say?”

Was that fire burning in her eyes? Oh shit, he’d blown it. Jessica’s hand trembled even more and her eyes filled with tears.
Damn it!
He’d approached this all the wrong way.

Nate felt drained. How could he convince her that this would work? “I love you Jess, please say yes!” He stroked her tears away with his fingertips and caressed her cheek. “We can do this.”

Her eyes, swarming with tears, wrenched at his heart.
Oh God! Was this it? She was going to turn him down? No! He wouldn’t let her. He’d do everything in his power to win her heart back.

“Baby, please tell me what you’re thinking. You’re killing me here.”

She closed her eyes and her lips trembled. “Tell me what you said again, so I know I’m not dreaming.”

Hope filled his heart as he raked his brain trying to quickly recall his jumbled words.

“First—I love you. Second—I want to be with you and have our baby. And then, do you think you could live between London and Sydney with me?”

She laughed through her veil of tears. “You want to have our baby?”

Nate nodded, sucking in a hard breath trying to keep his own charged emotions at bay. He entwined his fingers with hers.

“I was going to call you.
” Her lips trembled as she spoke.
 
“
Or email you. Or somehow tell you that I couldn’t abort our baby. I couldn’t get rid of the little part I had left of you.”

“Believe me, I’m glad you didn’t.”

“And you want to live between two countries?” Her eyes shone with tears. “Alex will take so much convincing. I’ve always wanted to expand, but I was thinking about different locations—not London. The UK? I’ll hate the weather.”

“Jess, stop for a moment. Neither one of us thought about this as an option. I suppose we were too focused on the launch. I just want to be with you with no deadlines or end dates in sight. Just a due date in nine months’ time.”

He drew her hand up to his mouth and kissed the back of her hand, thankful she didn’t pull away. “You’ll love London. The shopping, the theatre, the lights. There’s so much to do. Our hotel and offices are in the heart of the financial district. We’re right next to the Gherkin—that egg-shaped building on St Mary Axe. And I do actually own a house in London, so there’d be no living in a hotel.”

His excitement was starting to light fire within his chest, but it immediately fizzled out when Jessica shook her head. “I’ve got so much work on over Christmas. We have to look at this realistically.”

“I know it’s a big decision and you’ll have to discuss it with Alex. I’ll come back to Sydney with you and attend the board meeting by video conference. I can delay the new renovations for a little while longer until January. Let’s spend Christmas and New Year’s Eve together, then if we can get everything in order you could come over with me and start working on campaigns for Europe.”

“I can’t move countries in a month.”

He pondered the idea for a moment. Would it be possible? Pack, sort out work commitments, staff rearrangements, visas, Alex. He knew she couldn’t just up and leave her business partner in the lurch. Then there was her son, Conner.
Goddamnit!
There was so much to consider. But, if there was anyone who could do it, it would be Jessica.

“You, the woman who just pulled off a massive hotel opening in six months. You, whose business needs this. What else do I have to say or do to convince you that this is right? Do you want me to get down on my knees and beg?”

He started to bend down on one knee when she hooked her hand under his arm to stop him. He stood back up and wrapped his arms around her waist.

He could see doubts and questions rattle though her mind. But this was a way for them to be together. She’d still have her business and finally expand. He could keep the Somers empire growing. They’d travel the world, have their baby and be a family. A real family. They’d both be crazy to let a chance like this at happiness slip by.

As she wiped the wetness off her cheeks, she looked at him. “You know you’re crazy, right? Coming all this way, halfway across the world.”

He nodded holding his breath, waiting for her response.

“But I love you so much,” she whispered. “And I do like your proposition.”

Nate curled his fingers around her neck and drew her lips to his. His heart thundered within his chest as she finally melted into his body and kissed him.

No more heartache, no more pain, no more end in sight. She was his now and forever more and had given him a new lease on life. One they’d share together and raise their child in a home full of love. Nate took her face gently in his hands and looked down at her beautiful smile and sparkling eyes.

“Love you, too. You’re my life. My love. My everything.”

The sun shimmered on the surface of the clear turquoise waters in front of the bungalow, where Jessica lay on a deck chair reading a book. Nate had magically won the tickets to Tahiti at the silent auction back at the awards night in Los Angeles. After months of hard work, they finally had time to take a much-needed holiday, a few weeks’ rest before heading back to Australia.

In addition to a few contacts of Nate’s, Jessica had managed to score several stable accounts, hire a small team and set up Kick’s first international office in London. Alex had been over to visit twice to handle all the rigmarole of paperwork, accounts and company incorporations. She was more than glad to pass that process over to him.

Wearily she rubbed her hand over her protruding belly. Her feet ached, her breasts were swollen like melons and her nipples stung when she went in the salt water, so she was content to lounge around like a beached whale.

She looked out into the ocean and saw Nate snorkeling across the coral reef in front of their hut, duck diving under the surface and floating about. The muscles on his arms flexed as he swam toward her. His buffed body looked magnificent. She thought she was bad before, but being pregnant made her randy as hell. As he climbed up the ladder out of the water, he flicked his head back. Droplets of water fanned out behind him and danced above him in the shape of a halo.

Mmm, my angel all right.

He grabbed a towel off the railing and rubbed himself down. He walked over to her and sat down on the edge of the chair next to her legs. “Here, I found this.”

Nate placed an oyster shell on her big belly.

“Oysters? Do we really need an aphrodisiac, Nate?”

“Definitely not. But open it.” He smiled.

Jessica was about to tell him not to be stupid and say that she’d need a knife when she saw the shell was already cracked. She opened it up and gasped. Inside lay a ring sparkling with a massive princess-cut diamond, at least a few carats. It was the most beautiful ring she’d ever seen.

“Please don’t tell me you’ve been swimming around with this stuck down your pants somewhere?” she said, waving her finger toward his groin.

“No,” he chuckled. “I left it down on the steps, wrapped up in my shirt.” Nate dropped to his knees and took her hand in his. “Jess, you have turned my life around and now it would mean nothing without you in it. You complement me in every way and I can’t wait to share our life together and raise our child. I love you and want you to be my wife. Will you marry me?”

Jessica looked at the ring, then at Nate, then back at the ring. Her belly lurched with a massive kick from the baby inside. Was it protesting or screaming in delight? Her hand cradled the place where she’d just been kicked. Nate leaned down and kissed the very spot.

“We’re two of a kind, you and I,” he said. “Meant to be together. You’re my world, my universe, my life. Marry me and make me the happiest man alive.”

Images flashed before her eyes—their first meeting, their first time together, the night they made slow love after the industry event, Byron, their dance at the launch. Jessica had never been in love like this in her life. Her heart and soul were complete with Nate.

She looked up into eyes that reflected the color of the ocean. Her heart pounded like waves crashing against the shoreline. “Yes. Yes, Nate … I will marry you. I love you so much.” She leaned over and kissed his lips. “I should sleep with my clients more often!”

For all the dedication, motivation and time it takes to write a book, there are many who have encouraged me, tolerated me and kept me motivated along the way.

In no particular order, I’d like to thank:

Katrina Hill, my best friend and guinea pig. The first one to ever read my stories and your feedback is always invaluable.

Yon Beyond Writing Group especially Kendall Talbot, Noelle Clark, Isabella Hargreaves, Matt JX and Anthea Jones you motivate and inspire me every day. What a team we make!

NightWriters Writing Group thank you for your feedback and support over the past few years.

To my cousin Christopher Roberts who gave me in-depth and informative facts about hotel operations and what goes on behind the scenes.

To Haylee Nash and the team from Momentum Books and Pan MacMillan for believing in me and my story.

To my husband and my family. Words cannot describe how much I thank you for supporting and giving me the opportunity to pursue this dream of mine.

Love to you all. 

XOXOXO

Tania Joyce

Web:
http://taniajoyce.com

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Tania Joyce is an Australian author of New Adult and Contemporary Romance novels. Her stories thread romance, drama and passion into beautiful locations ranging from the dazzling lights of Sydney Harbour or the glitter of New York, to the rural countryside of the Hunter Valley or Darling Downs.

She’s widely traveled, has a diverse background in the corporate world and has a love for shopping, shoes and Shiraz. She’s rarely seen without glitter, sparkle and stilettos. Her quirk is she collects key rings everywhere she goes and often has an intriguing tale about each one.

Tania draws on all her real-life experiences and combines them with her
very
vivid dreams to form the foundation of her novels. She likes to write about strong-minded, career-oriented heroes and heroines that go through drama-filled hell, have steamy encounters and risk everything as they endeavor to find their happy-ever-after.

She grew up loving books like
Anne of Green Gables
, reading the classics like
Pride and Prejudice
, and getting lost in the world of fantasy, like The Wheel of Time Series by Robert Jordan, before finding her home in the romance genre.

Only unearthing the desire to write after having children, Tania now shuffles the hours in her day between part-time work, full-time family life and never-finding-enough-time to write. One day she hopes to find balance! She lives in Queensland with her husband and two boys. When she’s not writing, she enjoys camping, hot yoga, and the company of friends and family
—
especially if it’s over a glass of wine!