Seducing Simon (4 page)

“I’ve been reading this.” He held up a book. “I bought it for Toni. Has all you ever want to know about being pregnant in it. According to it, she will feel overwhelming fatigue in the early stages and it will taper off by the second trimester.”

Toni looked at him in shock.

“I thought you might want to read it,” he said smiling at her. “C’mon guys. Let’s leave her to rest.” He dropped the book beside her on the bed and bent over to drop a kiss on her forehead. “I’ll call you when supper is ready.”

“Thanks,” she whispered.

When they left, she buried her head in the pillow once more. She couldn’t do this. It was torture. Yes, she’d done something terrible, but even that didn’t deserve such torment as this. Every gesture, every touch from Simon had her wanting, aching to curl herself into his arms and tell him she loved him. But now, she’d placed an insurmountable barrier between them.

She shoved the book aside and slapped a pillow over her head. How much different would this be if she and Simon were in a relationship?

Simon would make such a wonderful father. They could have read pregnancy books together. Cuddle on the couch. His tendency to be overprotective would be endearing.

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Maya Banks

Her tears wet the sheets beneath her and she closed her eyes wearily.

She wondered what the preggo book would have to say about her weepy fits.

A warm hand shook her awake, and she slowly climbed from the comfort of her dreams.

“It’s time to eat,” Simon whispered close to her ear.

She yawned broadly and lay there blinking at his face, so close to hers. It would be easy to wrap her arms around his neck and pull him to her lips.

He extended a hand to her and pulled her up to a sitting position.

“Thanks,” she mumbled.

“I’ll see you in a sec.” He turned and eased out the door leaving her to temper her raging hormones.

She was going to have to get it together. She couldn’t continue like this. Not only was she setting herself up for major disappointment, but if she didn’t cool it, she could wreck the friendships of four people.

That had a sobering affect.

Smoothing her unruly hair, she padded into the kitchen where the guys already sat at the bar. Matt patted the stool beside him and she slid onto the seat.

“How you feeling?”

“Much better,” she replied.

Simon set a plate in front of her, and she sniffed appreciatively. Her stomach growled in response, and she didn’t spare any time digging into

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Seducing Simon

the baked chicken. For once, the thought of food didn’t make her nauseous and she was going to take full advantage.

“The guys and I have been talking,” Simon spoke up.

“Uh oh.” She set her fork down and eyed them suspiciously. “Anytime a sentence begins with ‘the guys and I have been talking,’ it usually means you’ve hatched some hare-brained scheme, and it usually involves me.”

They laughed.

“Well, it does involve you, but I don’t think it’s hare-brained,” A.J.

volunteered.

“Do tell.”

“We don’t want you to move out,” Matt said.

Simon crossed his arms over his chest and nodded in agreement.

“We’ve talked it over, and we want you to stay here where we can help out. You’ve been there for all three of us, and we aren’t dropping the ball on you. Moving out right now doesn’t make sense. We don’t want you to have to go through this alone. Besides, this is your house.” Tears welled in her eyes.

“Ahh shit, Simon, she’s going to cry again,” A.J. said with a frown.

Matt quickly handed her a napkin.

“It’s normal,” Simon said matter-of-factly.

“Let me guess, you read it in the preggo book,” A.J. said rolling his eyes.

“As a matter of fact, I did,” he replied. “You can also expect her to be moody, prone to tears, easily fatigued, and nauseous for the first trimester.”

“Gee thanks,” Toni muttered. “Nothing like kicking a girl when she’s down.”

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Maya Banks

“The good news is that all changes with the second trimester. See, then—”

“Simon,” Matt interrupted.

“What?”

“Shut up!”

He grinned. “Fascinating stuff. You should read it sometime.”

“So will you stay?” A.J. asked, directing the attention back to Toni.

“Yeah, I’ll stay,” she replied. “For now, at least.”

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Seducing Simon

Despite the fact she had been exhausted when she went to bed, Toni couldn’t sleep. After tossing restlessly for an hour, she shoved aside the lacy covers and swung her feet to the floor. Running a hand through her hair, she sighed and got up.

She shuffled to the kitchen and poured herself a glass of juice. Then she tiptoed into the living room and sank into the couch with the remote.

She turned the volume down low so she wouldn’t wake the guys.

To her delight,
Lonesome Dove
was airing on a cable station, so she settled down to watch it. She’d been up an hour when she felt a kiss on the top of her head.

“Can’t sleep?”

She turned at hearing Simon’s voice to see him standing behind the couch in just a pair of boxers. He walked around and sat down beside her.

“Everything okay?” he asked.

“Yeah, couldn’t sleep.” And she hadn’t a prayer of ever sleeping now.

The muscles rippled across his bare chest as he sat back and stretched an arm over the back of the sofa. He propped his foot on his knee, giving her a great view of his tanned legs. Gulping, she quickly turned her attention back to the TV.

“Wanna talk?” he asked.

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Maya Banks

She glanced back over at him and let out her breath in a long shaky sigh. “Not really.”

“Now why don’t I believe that?”

“I’m just scared,” she admitted. She never could resist him. He had a way of coaxing words from a mute.

“Come here,” he said, gesturing for her to lean into his arms.

He pulled her to his chest, and she snuggled against him, loving the comfort of his embrace. “I won’t tell you not to be scared. Heck, I’d be petrified, but the important thing is, you aren’t alone. There isn’t anything me or the others won’t do for you. You helped me through a rough time in my life, and I am going to be here every step of the way through your pregnancy.”

She turned her face into his chest and curled her arms around his neck. “Thanks, Simon. I don’t know what I’d do without you.” She hugged him fiercely, tears slipping down her cheeks as the stress of the past few days came rushing out.

He stroked her hair and hugged her just as tightly. When her sobs quieted, he pulled her away and wiped her tears with his thumb. “Feel better?”

She sniffed and shook her head.

“You know you can talk to me anytime.”

“Yes, I know,” she whispered. Except she couldn’t. Not this time. And it made her want to cry harder.

“Want some more juice?”

She smiled. “Yeah, I’ll take a glass.”

He got up and went into the kitchen to pour her juice then returned to sit by her. He held out his arm for her to lay her head back on his chest, and the two turned their attention back to the TV.

“Simon?”

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Seducing Simon

“Hmmm?”

“Do you think I screwed up?”

“No, sweetheart. Do you?”

“No. I don’t regret it. It wasn’t the right thing to do, but I don’t regret it.”

“That’s all that matters then.”

She snuggled back into his chest and closed her eyes. If he knew the truth, his answer would probably be different, but for now, it felt good to have his support.

“When do you go back to the doctor?”

“Not for a month.”

“Want me to come with?”

She rose up and looked at him in surprise. “You’d do that?”

“Sure, if you don’t want to go alone, that is.”

“I’d like that.” She smiled at him. “Thanks, Simon.” He winked at her. “No problem.”

Simon opened his eyes and yawned widely. He looked down to see Toni still fast asleep on his chest. He smiled and gently eased from beneath her and placed a cushion under her head.

She looked so innocent in sleep. Just like the same Toni he’d known for years. Only she was pregnant. It was hard for him to comprehend.

But then she
was
twenty-five years old. Not like she’d stay a bright-eyed eighteen-year-old forever.

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Maya Banks

He sauntered into the kitchen and opened the fridge. Taking out the ingredients for an omelet, he began preparing breakfast. A few minutes later, A.J. came stumbling in, bleary-eyed and looking like hell.

“Rough night?” Simon asked with a raised brow.

He grunted in response. “Hey, what’s Toni doing on the couch?”

“Shhh, don’t wake her. She couldn’t sleep last night.”

“You stay up with her?”

“Yeah, I just woke up.”

A.J. frowned and looked at his watch. “She’s gonna be late for work.”

“I wasn’t planning on waking her. She’s exhausted. She needs the rest. The girl is completely stressed out. I was thinking about calling Doc Johnson and telling him she wouldn’t be in today.”

“Yeah, she looks like she could use the shut-eye. You fixin’

breakfast?”

“For me, I am.”

“Oh, come on, you know I can’t cook for shit. Have a heart and make me an omelet.”

Simon rolled his eyes, but good-naturedly complied.

“So did she tell you who the guy is?” A.J. asked around a mouthful of egg.

“We didn’t discuss it.”

“What
did
you talk about then?”

“Nosey this morning, aren’t we?”

He shrugged. “Just curious. I’m as worried about her as you are.”

“I offered to go to her appointments with her.” A.J.’s brow shot up. “Seriously?”

“You have a problem with it?”

“Nah, I just didn’t picture you as the type to be caught dead in an office with a bunch of pregnant women.”

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Seducing Simon

“I’m doing it for Toni,” he said evenly.

“Maybe you ought to consider hooking up with her.” Simon threw a dishtowel at him. “Get real.”

“I can think of worse things. Starla comes to mind.”

“Point taken, but Toni isn’t like that. She deserves someone who can do a lot more for her than I can. Besides, she’s
Toni
.”

“Yeah, she is, but she’s also one gorgeous chick, or hadn’t you ever noticed? And she happens to be the most genuine woman I’ve ever met.

When do you ever find those combined qualities in a girl?”

“What are you guys talking about?” Matt asked, rubbing his eyes sleepily.

“How hot your sister is,” A.J said in an innocent voice.

Matt’s eyes came open. “What?”

“Correction, A.J. is dithering on about how gorgeous she is.”

“And you don’t think she is?” Matt shot back.

“I am not having this conversation,” Simon replied. Had they all lost their minds? Sure Toni was pretty, smart, fun. She had more integrity in her little finger than most people would ever have. She was loving, caring and loyal.
Everything you want in a woman
. And she’d never betray him like Starla had. But she was Toni. Kid sister Toni. Toni who trusted him.

Never mind how she’d felt in his arms. Or how he’d caught a glimpse of her small breasts through her thin T-shirt. The perfect size. Not too big, not too small, just enough to fill his hand. Any more was a waste.

He shook his head. Man, he needed to snap out of it. It wouldn’t work. The timing sucked. Besides, she was pregnant with another man’s child.

It shouldn’t bother him that another man had made love to Toni, but it did. The urge to smash something suddenly became appealing.

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Maya Banks

“You gonna call Doc Johnson, or should I?” A.J’s voice filtered through his thoughts.

“Why are you calling him?” Matt demanded.

“Be quiet or you’ll wake Toni up,” Simon said, pointing to the couch.

“I’m calling to tell him she won’t be in. She needs the rest.”

“She’s not going to like it,” Matt advised. “She’s never missed a day of work.”

“Precisely why she needs to take one off,” Simon replied. “She didn’t sleep at all last night, and she’s exhausted. I don’t think she ought to go into work today.”

“Suit yourself, but I’m not taking responsibility,” Matt said with a grin.

After making the call, Simon started clearing away the dishes, but not before leaving enough stuff out to cook an omelet for Toni when she woke up. She’d already slept later than he’d ever known her to sleep.

On cue he saw her stir then stretch sleepily.

Slowly, Toni surfaced from the loveliest dream. She blinked lazily and snuggled back into the couch. The couch?

“Shit!” She scrambled up, nearly falling as she struggled to get out of the couch.

She hit the floor at a dead run, but Simon stuck out his arm and caught her as she dashed by.

“Slow it down and park it back on the couch. You’re resting today.”

“I’m late for work,” she said struggling to get out of his grasp.

“You don’t work today.”

“Huh?”

“I called Doc Johnson and told him you wouldn’t be in.”

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Seducing Simon

“You did what?” Her foggy brain fought to comprehend what he was saying.

“You needed the rest.”

“You called and told them I wasn’t coming in?”

“Ahh the birds finally pecked you on the head,” he teased.

“Why didn’t you wake me up so I could go in on time?”

“You were tired,” he said quietly. “You need to rest. Take a day to figure things out.”

Damn him and his logic. Simon the Serious struck again. Only he had a good point. It would feel good to take a day to rest. Maybe she’d feel better and not so unbelievably tired all the time.

“Want something to eat?” he asked, letting her go.

She wrinkled her nose. “Toast and juice?”

“I live to serve.”

She glanced down at her tattered T-shirt and gym shorts. “Do I have time for a shower and change?”

“I’ll dish it up in fifteen. Sound good?”