“None of that explains why you purposely withheld the fact that you’re carrying my child.”
I held up one finger. “I’m getting there.” Needing another moment to gather my wits, I squeezed lemon into the mug, then took my time getting the first sip.
“Can you speed things up? I have a long walk home.” He folded his arms over his chest.
I leaned a hip against the counter. “When you first suspected I was pregnant and asked if I’d been with anyone, that was the moment I realized you didn’t remember that night at all. Talk about feeling unmemorable.” I gave a watery laugh.
“So it was revenge?” Sebastian’s eyes darkened.
“No, Sebastian, not revenge.” I sat the mug down with a bang. “I didn’t even know I was pregnant.”
He blinked. “You could have told me later. Or were you not sure I was the father?”
“Excuse me?” I straightened. “I haven’t been with anyone except you in forever.” This wasn’t going well and my throat burned, my eyes stung. I took another sip from my mug, closed my eyes and tried to make peace with the fact that Sebastian probably didn’t want me anymore. And wasn’t knowing that better than not knowing? I needed him to be really honest about how he felt. “You were so sweet and my little crush started getting out of hand. And… I was afraid.”
“Afraid?” He unfolded his arms and rested a fist on the counter.
“I realized you were a really decent guy. I loved being around you and the more time I spent with you, the harder I fell.” Oh, God, did I really just admit to that? “Like I said, you’re a decent guy. And the good guys try to do the right thing.” My lips trembled, but I braved the humiliation, the truth. “What if I told you about the baby and you wanted to do the right thing? What if you were with me only out of obligation?”
Blasted tears spurted out of my eyes and I quickly turned away from Sebastian to wipe them. “I couldn’t bear caring about you and never truly knowing how you felt, always wondering if my feelings were returned. I planned to tell you as soon as I had everything sorted out between us, as soon as I knew if your feelings were genuine or if you were just being kind to the miserable pregnant lady.”
There, I’d said it all. I kept my back to him, because I didn’t want to see the expression on his face. I couldn’t even imagine what was going through his head. I mean, he was a brilliant rock star and could have any girl he wanted.
The heat from his body warmed me as he slowly slipped an arm around my waist to splay his hand over my stomach. “I’m sorry. Sorry for getting so drunk and being such a mess that I didn’t remember. I’m sorry you had to go through these last few weeks alone and I’m sorry for bailing without giving you a chance to give me your side.”
I moved backward into him and rested my hands on his wrists, uncertain whether leaning into his embrace would push him away or make him bolt. “Do not, do not feel sorry for me. I did this. I knew you were beyond wasted and I stayed. I have no one to blame but myself.” I filled my lungs with air as if it would give me strength. “I’m not an obligation or a duty to uphold.”
“Never.” Sebastian chuckled as he gently brushed my hair off my shoulder. “You’re smart, sexy and since the moment you walked into my house with that dreadful list, I haven’t been able to get you out of my head. And now, at the risk of sounding super cheesy, I can’t get you out of my heart.”
I pressed my lips together to keep from laughing. “Wow, that was super cheesy.”
“Baby, you have me so whipped, cheesy is all I’m capable of.” He gently nudged me away, and spun me around to face him.
“You’re like whipped cheese.” I chuckled at my bad joke and instead of laughing, he scooped me up into his arms and carried me out of the kitchen. “What are you doing?”
He hauled me to the living room and carefully deposited me onto the couch. Cupping both sides of my face, he planted the softest of kisses on my forehead, my chin, both my cheeks and then my lips. When I opened my eyes, he was staring at me.
“I’m going to take care of you. Not because I have to, but because I want to.” Sebastian brushed my lips again, then kneeled on the floor in front of me. “Because I hurt you and somehow, you eventually found the strength to let it go. Because you took care of my sister, made sure I didn’t lose her again. You made her feel safe and if not for you, I may not have had the chance to prove to her she could trust me. Because you’re the most amazing woman I’ve ever known. And I don’t want to be without you.”
My heart swelled with love and I pressed his hand between mine. “Wow, I’m really hating on you right now. You disgust me.”
He grinned. “Ditto.”
“I hate you so much, I refuse to give you a ride home.”
He shrugged. “Guess I’m stuck here.”
“That’s just awful.” The amusement waned and I rose, tugging on his hand until he stood too. I slid my hands over his chest, around his shoulders and planted them behind his head. “I’ve learned a lot these past few weeks. The most important thing: I seriously don’t want to be without you either.” But that wasn’t enough. I needed him to know how much I valued him, that I admired and respected him, that I didn’t think I was better than him. “I have a confession.”
Sebastian’s hand froze at my waist. “What is it?”
“I’m ridiculously in love with you. Have been for a while.” I braced myself, knowing that it was probably way too soon for him to say it back. He’d gotten close enough.“Are you sure you want to do this with me, be a family?”
“Positive. I’ve never wanted anything more. You, the baby—I want the whole package.”
I smiled, wanting more but knowing that had to be enough for me.
“I love our baby. Hell, I loved the baby when I thought someone else was the father. But I loved you before that.” He cupped my face, his thumb brushing my bottom lip.
Yeah, that was good. I beamed. “Okay.”
“Okay.” He kissed me, his mouth testing mine, exploring. I opened for him, letting the taste of him seep into me. In that moment, I knew there was no part of him—his body or his heart—that he hadn’t given to me willingly.
I had thought that I knew what I needed and had meticulously planned my life years in advance. Instead, I found the love of my life and would soon have his child. In the end, I got what really mattered.
THE END
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Full list of books by Veronica Blade...
Books in the Shapes of Autumn series:
Thrown to the Wolves: The Legend of Hannah & Eli (Shapes of Autumn, prequel)
My Wolf’s Bane (Shapes of Autumn, book one)
Wolves at the Door (Shapes of Autumn, book two)
Dead Wolf Walking (Shapes of Autumn, book three)
The Dark Wolf (Shapes of Autumn, book four)
Lord of the Wolves (Shapes of Autumn, book five)
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Books in the Something Witchy series:
Something Witchy This Way Comes
A newbie witch enlists help from the scrumptious school bad-boy to make her life and death choice between two battling covens.
Icing on the Stake (a stand-alone novel)
A Witch in Time (a Shapes of Autumn/Something Witchy crossover)
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A Bite’s Tale: A Furry Fable (a novella)
A Cinderella who spends her nights as a wolf. A prince with a taste for blood.
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Books
in the Rock Star Kisses series:
The Runaway Rock Star
An infamous bad-boy rocker falls for a small-town girl who has no idea who he is. Considering his reputation, that’s probably a good thing.
The Baby and the Rock Star
He’s trying to get his life back on track after three years of alcohol-induced oblivion. She can’t forget their one wild night together—that he doesn’t remember.
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Books in the Bride, Texas series:
Over My Wed Body (Bride, Texas series)
When Bailey learns that her longtime crush botched the annulment from their drunken night in Vegas, can she make him see that she and their marriage are worth fighting for?
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Blind Date, Checkmate (a novella)
Should a woman who’s unable to forget her first love give “happily ever after” one more try?
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From Fame to Shame (a novella)
When good-girl Maddie switches places with her famous bad-girl twin Jackie, she has some pretty high stilettos to fill.
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Books in the Single Girls series:
Single-handed (Single Girls micro trilogy, book one) : A FREE short story
A safer school has its perks, but what else did the years of martial arts training get her? Not a prom date, that’s for sure. (Also available now: Singled Out and Single-minded)
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Please feel free to visit our website at www.CrushPublishing.com or author’s website at www.VeronicaBlade.com for updates on releases.
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AUTHOR BIO
Veronica Blade resides in both southern California and northern Nevada with her husband and furbabies. By day she runs the family business, but each night she slips away to spin her tales. She writes stories about falling in love and lives vicariously through her characters. Except her heroes and heroines lead far more interesting lives—and they are always way hotter.
You can visit Veronica Blade on Facebook, check out her website or follow her on Twitter or Instagram. You can even e-mail her at [email protected]. She loves hearing from readers!
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Table of Contents
Title page
Copyright
Summary
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
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The Baby and the Rock Star (Rock Star Kisses Book 2) Page 14