The Soldier's Baby Bargain (10 page)

He immediately went into the nursery-to-be and began working. Faith let Topsy out into the backyard and fed the cats. She walked into the baby’s room a half hour later. Ryan sat on the only chair in the room, the sketchpad open on his spread thighs. She peered over his shoulder at his sketch.

“It’s just preliminary, but what would you think about something like this?” he asked, his pencil still moving over the paper. He moved aside the ruler to show her what he’d drawn. Fascinated, Faith sunk to her knees next to him, her forearms braced on the arms of his chair.

“Oh, that’d be amazing, Ryan,” she enthused, admiring the multi-unit shelving and cabinet unit. “I can’t believe you came up with that so quickly. I love it.”

He waved his pencil over the two corner benches. “These can be used for both sitting and for toy storage, and these cabinets can hold anything from sports equipment to clothing to diapers. Then there’s the book shelves, for displaying things and—”

“Books. Lots and lots of books.”

Ryan glanced at her. Their heads were close enough that Faith could easily see the warm gleam in his eyes. She also could smell his clean, spicy scent. She breathed deeper, as if she wanted to absorb it.

“I’m glad you think books are so important,” he said quietly.

“Of course I do.”

She couldn’t pull her gaze off his lips when they twitched in a smile. He leaned closer to her. She couldn’t seem to stop herself from craning closer to him, until their mouths were only inches apart. He still watched her intently. She saw his nostrils flare, as if he was trying to capture her scent as she had his. Her heart stalled, and then began to race.

“I should have known that learning would be a top priority for a straight-A student.”

“Don’t forget gym class.”

“I’m not forgetting anything,” he said before his lips brushed against hers.

Chapter Seven

I
t was more of a gentle, skimming caress than a kiss, as if he was curious as to how her mouth felt and used his own to discover the information. Faith closed her eyes and just experienced him; firm, warm, fragrant flesh sliding and rubbing against her own sensitive, tingling lips. She pressed closer, eager for more of the sensation of him, molding her mouth against his, hungrier now...blindly seeking.

He put his hand on the back of her head and pierced her lips with his tongue. Excitement knifed through her, sharp and compelling. Her nipples prickled and tightened. A gnawing ache expanded at her core, a feeling she knew from experience that Ryan could build and mount in her flesh...and finally vanquish in a delicious rush of pure pleasure.

A loud, high-pitched wail penetrated her haze of arousal. Ryan closed their kiss and leaned back slightly, a mixture of alarm and puzzlement on his face.

“It’s Topsy,” she said in an apologetic tone. She snorted into soft laughter when the comically mournful howling continued. Faith pushed up on the arm of Ryan’s chair and stood. “I’ll just go and get her. I left her out in the yard.”

“Her Highness doesn’t like to be left waiting,” Ryan said, grinning, although the embers of arousal remained in his eyes.

Thinking it was best to get some distance from him for a bit, considering how much she’d lost herself in that kiss, Faith busied herself in other rooms for the next several minutes. When she walked down the hallway to her bedroom a while later, Topsy panting after her on her heels, she noticed he was still in the baby’s room, absorbed in his task. She entered her room and closed the door, leaving it open a crack. She quickly undressed and pulled on some jeans. Standing in her opened closet door, she searched for a blouse to wear, her hands skimming over several garments. Her fingers paused on the hanger for her evening dress that she planned to wear for the benefit Wednesday night for the Animal Advocates Alliance.

Impulsively she pulled out the dress and closed her closet door, peering into the mirror on the other side. It was a champagne-colored sleeveless silk number that she’d purchased last October, before she was pregnant. She held up the dress to the front of her body, her brow furrowed in worry. It was a tasteful dress, but more low-cut than Faith typically wore her necklines. She hadn’t considered before—what if her slightly pregnancy-swollen breasts would be too obvious in the dress?

A knock sounded on her door. She started.

“Faith?”

“Yes?”

Ryan poked his head around the door. Faith’s heart did a flip-flop. She plastered the dress over the front of her. Ryan’s gaze immediately dropped and widened.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to—” He paused and cleared his throat. “I was just coming to say goodbye.”

“Oh, okay. Let me pull something on and I’ll see you out,” she said in a high-pitched voice.

His glance lowered again. “That’s very pretty,” he said, referring to the evening gown.

“Thanks. It’s for the ball next Wednesday,” she said, gathering herself a bit. It wasn’t as if he could really
see
anything, with the dress held up over her mostly bare torso. This is what she told herself, anyway, when he stepped into the room. It struck her how large he appeared to be in her feminine retreat—how male. He came toward her and paused a few feet away, examining the dress.

“You’ll look fantastic in that,” he said.

She gave an awkward laugh. “I hope it fits. I was just wondering about that. I bought it when I wasn’t pregnant. I’ll probably be a total disaster.”

He met her stare. “You won’t be.”

“How do you know?”

Instead of answering her, he calmly put his hand on the dress hanger. Faith released it hesitantly when he pulled. He tossed the gown over a nearby chair and put his hands on her shoulders. He turned her so that she faced the mirror and stood behind her.

Faith couldn’t breathe.

“Look at you,” Ryan said.

She inhaled with effort. He was following his own command, his eyes smoldering as they traveled over her image in the mirror. He placed his opened hand on her bare waist. Tendrils of pleasure curled through her belly when he moved it, sliding his palm over her hip and abdomen. His stare looked hot and worshipful as they both watched him touch her.

“I know Jesse pulled a number on you, but it’s time you saw reality,” he said quietly, his mouth near her right ear. She shivered when his fingers gently detailed her rib cage, his dark hand an erotic contrast to her pale skin. “You’re a beautiful, sexy woman. Are you looking?” he asked, nudging her hair with his nose. His fingers coasted along the tender skin at her sides. She bit her lower lip to stifle a gasp.

“Yes,” she managed.

“But are you
seeing?
” He stepped closer. She felt his groin brush against the top of her backside. “Flawless, soft skin,” he murmured, stroking the inner part of her elbow. He palmed her hip. “Curves that fit my hand perfectly.” His fingers traveled up the center of her rib cage, and then detoured to the left, tracing the skin beneath the cloth of her white bra. She couldn’t take her gaze off the image of them in the mirror. Heat coursed through her. “Delicate and narrow in all the right places.” He stepped closer as he caressed the sensitive skin, pressing his front more fully to her bottom. He brought his other hand around her and palmed both of her breasts, lifting slightly as if to test their weight.

A shaky sigh escaped her throat.

“Curvy and full in all the other ones,” he added, his voice now low and husky. His fingertips flickered over her nipples, making them tighten against the clinging fabric of her bra. He made a low, rough sound of male appreciation. Much to her disappointment, however, he released her breasts. His hands gathered her hair and pulled it behind her shoulders.

“Hair a man wants to sink his fingers into,” he continued, sliding his hands along her shoulders and collarbone. He traced the line of her jaw, his stare on her intense. “And a face that haunts a man’s dreams.”

For a few seconds he remained still. They examined one another in the mirror while the air burned in Faith’s lungs.

“At least this man’s dreams,” he added with a small, sheepish smile. He moved against her ever so slightly, leaving her in little doubt of his desire.

“Faith?”

“Yes?” she managed to whisper, even though her body was buzzing with sexual awareness and she was utterly entranced by Ryan’s stare.

“Do you have a date to the ball on Wednesday?”

She started slightly. It hadn’t been what she expected him to say.

“No,” she blurted out before she had a chance to censor herself.

“I’d like to take you.”

“Okay.”

What else could she say, with such a gorgeous man pressed against her, hot and aroused? No sane woman could have resisted his smoky-eyed, wanting stare that seemed to promise untold sensual delights.

He leaned down and pressed his face to the side of her neck. A shudder of excitement went through her at the sensation of his warm lips moving against her skin.

Then he straightened and the hard pressure of his body was gone.

“Ryan?” she asked uncertainly when he stepped away.

“If I don’t leave now, I’m not going to, Faith,” he said, his voice sounding edgy. He glanced around, spearing her with his stare. His expression softened.

“I’ll call you on Tuesday and we can make plans,” he said. He briefly caressed her shoulder, turned and walked out of the room, leaving Faith standing there alone, a vibrating bundle of confusion and clamoring nerves.

* * *

On Wednesday at five-thirty Faith raced through her front door, laden down with dry cleaning, her briefcase and a large bag of dog chow. Topsy’s loud yipping added another layer of chaos to her already overwhelmed state.

“I’m coming, I’m coming,” she muttered in a regretful tone, dumping all the items she carried on the breakfast nook. Both Cleo and Smokey circled around her feet, meowing loudly for their supper. “I’m sorry for being late. My hair appointment had to be rescheduled because I had a patient emergency—an Irish setter managed to consume a jumbo package of toilet paper, including the plastic. Don’t you ever think about pulling something like that, young lady,” she lectured a squirming Topsy as she liberated her from her crate. The puppy shot like a torpedo through the back door when she opened it. She gave the cats their dinner in record time.

She only had a half an hour to get ready before Ryan would be here. Luckily, she’d gone to the salon in town to get her hair done, so the only thing that was required was a quick shower and makeup application.

At six o’clock, she stood in front of the bathroom mirror, inspecting the final result. Her skin looked smooth and glowing next to the champagne fabric of the dress. Her hairdresser had straightened her hair, and then used a curling iron to create loose curls that spilled down her shoulders and caressed her bare upper arms. The dress gathered beneath her breasts and then flowed in graceful folds to below her knees. Nervousness trickled through her when she saw the amount of cleavage revealed in the V-shape of the neckline. Was it entirely appropriate? She’d tried the dress on for Jane last night, however, and her friend had insisted it fit her perfectly.

“With curves like that, you ought to be flaunting it a little. It’ll only help in getting a little extra cash from the male attendees during the silent auction you’re running,” Jane had said, her blue eyes twinkling. Faith had stood before a mirror at Jane’s house while they both inspected her appearance. “And I doubt you’ll hear that hunk of a man I met the other day in the office complaining.”

After that it’d taken Jane about three seconds flat to get her to admit that Ryan Itani was, indeed, the father of her baby. When Jane had seen Faith’s worried expression, she’d expressed confusion.

* * *

“Why are you upset that you’re about to have that man’s baby? He’s gorgeous, and I saw the way he looked at you—like he wanted to eat you up in one bite. What’s the problem?”

“Which one do you want me to start with?” Faith had asked drolly. She noticed Jane’s mock stern expression in the mirror. “He’s not in love with me or anything. That night—it was all a mistake...an impulse.”

“Seems to me that your impulses are pretty good,” Jane said dryly as she’d adjusted the bodice at Faith’s back.

“He’s not a one-woman man,” Faith said, scowling at her reflection in the mirror. “Look at his job. Pilots live out of their suitcases. There’s no...
security
in a man like that.”

“Who are you talking about?” Jane asked, her gaze sharp in the mirror. “Ryan? Or Jesse?”

Faith sighed. Jane knew all about the heartache her former husband had caused her. “It doesn’t matter. Ryan’s not interested in me that way.” Her cheeks grew pink when Jane gave her a
give me a break
glance. “I mean...he’s attracted to me. But he also told me he wants us to be
friends.
”

Jane had just shrugged in a matter-of-fact manner. “Lust and friendship aren’t a bad way to start, I’d say. Add a baby into the mix, and you’ve got the beginnings of a beautiful relationship.”

* * *

A loud knock sounded on her front door, causing Faith to jump and jerking her out of her thoughts. She spun toward the vanity, the decadently soft folds of the skirt of the dress whisking around her hips and thighs. She tossed some money, a credit card, a comb and lipstick into her evening bag and hurried down the hallway, her heart starting to hammer out an erratic tempo in her ears.

Ryan had called yesterday, and they’d chatted for a few minutes. Other than that brief interaction, however, she hadn’t had contact with him since last Sunday, when he’d touched her while they’d looked at one another in the mirror...when he’d
praised
her.

When he’d coaxed her into seeing herself in a whole new way.

“Hi,” she greeted between pants a few seconds later, opening the outer door. Ryan caught it with his hand. Her frazzled brain fully took in his appearance for the first time. She froze, her eyes going wide.

“Oh, my goodness,” she exclaimed. “You look great.”

It was a bit of an understatement, she thought as her gaze ran over the considerable length of him.

It was a
lot
of an understatement.

He wore a classic black tux, white dress shirt with wing collar, points tucked behind a black bow tie. Faith always thought he looked completely natural wearing casual clothing and his leather flight jacket. She realized for the first time that he was so magnetically handsome, he could probably pull off wearing a paper bag.

Seeing him in an immaculate tuxedo was like a sock to the gut.

“You look amazing, yourself,” Ryan said, his gaze going over her warmly.

“Where did you get that tuxedo?” she wondered incredulously. The elegant garment fit his large, lean body too well to have been anything but tailor made for him.

“I flew over to Chicago and had a rush job done on it. I needed to buy one anyway,” Ryan said. “Since I’ve started working for Nick and Deidre, they’ve invited me to a few formal events. I needed a tux.”

Faith realized she was standing there gaping at him while he stood on her front steps, holding the door.

“I’m sorry. Please come in. I just have to get my wrap.” She flew to the kitchen, where she retrieved the pale, fluid evening wrap she’d had dry-cleaned. When she rejoined Ryan, her wrap draped over her arm, she saw that he carried a small plastic container.

“This is for you,” he said, handing it to her.

Her eyes sprang wide. “A corsage?”

“No,” he said. “It’s just a single orchid. I thought it’d look great in your hair. If it doesn’t, though, you can just put it in a vase.”

“Oh, Ryan,” she said, staring at the single, gorgeous bloom resting in the container. For some odd reason, her eyes smarted with tears. He’d recalled the color of her gown from last weekend, when he’d walked in and she’d been holding it up in the mirror. That such a masculine man remembered such a small detail and translated that knowledge into such a perfect gift struck a deep emotional chord in her. She looked at him.