“Feeling better?” he asked as he stepped out onto the patio.
“Yes!” she replied, a laugh in her response. He smiled, thinking she was excited about something. “I went to a sperm bank today and got more information.”
Jayce didn’t have any response to that, other than to grip his bottle more tightly.
Jessa wiggled slightly in her enthusiasm for her project. “It’s more expensive than I’d realized, but cheaper than trying to find someone new, only to find out that they are idiots, gay, or a criminal. I think the sperm bank is going to be a great solution!”
Everything inside of him tightened with dread. “Don’t do it,” he growled, as she turned startled eyes on him. Hell, even he was surprised by his comment.
“I’m sorry?”
He rubbed a hand over his neck and looked out at the trees beyond their houses. When he looked back at her, he wasn’t exactly sure what to say to stop her. It just felt so wrong. But instead of coming up with alternative arguments to convince her, he blurted: “I’ll do it.”
Wait! Huh? What the hell had he just said?! Jayce blinked at Jessa, trying to hide his stunned reaction. Especially since she was looking at him as if he’d just lost his mind. And in fact, he probably had. He’d do it? What the hell was he going to do?
Jessa blinked back at him. “You’ll…help me choose a donor?” she asked, trying to clarify.
“No.” Hell no! Doctors were…well, he avoided them whenever possible. It had taken a bullet to his shoulder in order to get him to visit a doctor last time! “I’ll be the baby daddy,” he clarified.
The stunned silence rang deafeningly, but he didn’t take his words back. He didn’t shrug them off. In fact, he stared at her, waiting for her to take him up on his offer.
“I’m sorry, I’m confused.”
His offer seemed simple enough. And for some reason, the solution seemed absolutely brilliant now that he thought about it. In addition, that irritating tension that had come over him last night was completely gone. A sense of rightness descended in its place. “I’ll help you get pregnant.”
More stunned silence. A moment later, she lifted her glass of wine and downed the whole glass. She stared at the ground for a moment, then looked up at him. “Repeat that, please.”
Everything inside of him was screaming for him to tell her that he was just kidding. In fact, he should be a gentleman and drive her to the sperm clinic to get impregnated. Yeah, that’s what a good neighbor, a good friend, would do.
Instead, the words, “I’ll help you get pregnant, Jessa. Don’t go to the clinic. Don’t get some anonymous donor. Use me. I’ll get you pregnant. You’re a beautiful woman. You’re smart, sexy, and I’d thoroughly enjoy helping you in this.”
Another long moment of silence. As soon as he said the words, he knew that they were right. He’d probably ruined their friendship, but he wouldn’t take them back. They were right and he was relieved that he’d said them. He’d been thinking about the idea for the past twenty-four hours. Okay, not specifically about offering to be a sperm donor, but about making love to Jessa. And not just over the past day, but for months. Why not help her out? It made sense.
“You’re kidding.” She chuckled, then leaned back in her chair and shook her head. “Good one.”
He took the seat in front of her and leaned forward. “Why would you think I’m kidding?”
Her mouth opened and closed. Damn, he thought about all of the times he had fantasized about that mouth. Her lower lip was full and lush while the upper lip was smaller, more delicate. He loved her mouth. Her lips. Jayce wondered what it would be like to kiss her, to feel that full lower lip against his own.
Focus! She didn’t believe his offer was sincere.
“Because we’re friends, first of all. Friends are good for borrowing a cup of sugar or talking through a problem, brainstorming an issue or going out for a drink together. Friends don’t…” she waved her hand in the air and he had no idea what that meant, but he could imagine. “Furthermore, you don’t want to be a father. And that’s a pretty huge issue, Jayce.”
All excellent points. “Yes, we’re friends. Good friends. And I would love to make that into something more. How does friends with benefits sound to you?”
She gave him another one of those doe-eyed stares and he wanted to pull her into his arms and kiss her.
Her eyes dropped to his mouth, her tongue darting out to lick her lips and his body reacted, fast and hard. That tongue…it too had featured in his fantasies over the past several months.
But instead of taking him up on his offer, she lifted her glass of wine up to her lips, realized that it was empty and sighed. “It sounds like you’re just kidding.”
“I’m not. Think about it. Last night, you said you wanted the father of your child to be educated, tall, strong, and successful. I fit every criteria. I have a master’s degree in business. I’m a partner in my company, but even if I were to stop working today, I’d still have enough money to live comfortably for the rest of my life. And even better than going to some clinic to get a donor, I would ensure that your child would be taken care of. I’ll set up a trust and a college fund.”
She was staring back at him as if he’d just lost his mind. She might be right, but what he was saying felt exactly right.
Jessa stared at Jayce, wondering if he was just teasing her. He must know that she craved his touch, wondered what it would be like to be with him. That was all this was.
“No, that’s not possible.”
“Why not?” he asked.
Because…? Her mind drew a blank. “Because it won’t. We’re friends.”
“We could be more.” He watched her closely, his eyes narrowing as he saw the panic and…something more…something that gave him hope.
Her eyes widened and she licked her lips again. Damn it, his eyes dropped to her lips and her mind blanked for a long moment.
Not a good train of thought, she reminded herself. “Friends who respect each other.”
He chuckled softly. “You think I won’t respect you when you get pregnant?”
Jessa was stumped. Shifting, she crossed and uncrossed her legs, not sure how to get comfortable. “I think we should just change the subject.”
“I’m successful and willing,” he pointed out and sipped his beer, keeping his eyes on her. “How about this: don’t reject my offer outright. Just think about it.”
He was such a nice man, she thought. Too bad he was one of the sexiest men she’d ever met in her entire life, smelled like sin, and…well, those eyes told her that he knew exactly what to do in bed with a woman. Jessa wagered that no woman had left his bed unsatisfied.
And all of those other women hadn’t been mousy, shy writers who were more comfortable with their own company. “You don’t need to do me any favors. I’m not a pity case.”
He laughed. “The last thing I feel for you is pity, Jessa. Lust, yeah. Respect, hell yeah. But pity isn’t even close.”
Lust? He felt lust towards her? Lust? As in, the wanna-jump-her-bones, hot-steamy-monkey sex, and all that kind of lust?
That was too much for her befuddled mind to handle, so she changed the subject. Work. Politics. Religion. Those normally forbidden topics were perfectly good conversational gambits between the two of them. Nothing was off-limits. But…well, Jessa just couldn’t figure out his last comment so she did what she usually did when she was confused. She ignored the issue and would come back to it later when she had more time and…privacy…to handle it more effectively
“What did you do at work today?”
Jayce smiled and Jessa relaxed. He leaned back, taking another sip of his beer and Jayce suspected that she wished she had more wine. Considering that she was more than slightly nervous about his offer, he allowed the change of subject, but only because he suspected that she was still thinking about his proposal. The more he thought about it, the more appealing the idea became. For too long, he’d thought about her in inappropria
te ways. But now, with her sitting there looking all pretty and soft and confused, he allowed his body to react, his thoughts to explore the possibilities and not admonish himself for going down that road.
Yep. This would be perfect.
Jessa wanted to scream. Another sleepless night! And it was all Jayce’s fault! The nerve of him! Telling her that he would father her child! What right did he have to offer something so outrageous? Did he think she was so pathetic that she’d take whatever crumbs he’d offer her?
Granted, he wasn’t offering her crumbs. He was just offering to father her child. But still! It was outrageous!
Getting up, she tossed the sheets off and padded into the kitchen. Once again, she heated up some milk, then grabbed the honey. Putting an extra-large portion of honey into her milk, she stirred the milk as she paced back and forth in her kitchen. Jessa told herself that the calories didn’t count since it was the middle of the night. Calories were only worth half as much in the middle of the night because a person’s body should be asleep. Yep, that made sense. Total sense!
She squeezed more honey into the mug, furious now.
The nerve of him! Jayce shouldn’t have offered! The idea was ridiculous! Although, to be fair, he had no idea how many times she’d fantasized about him. He couldn’t know how often she stared out her window at him, watching him without his shirt on, admiring all of those amazing muscles. And his butt. Yeah, the man had the best butt! Hard and firm and the rest of him…! He was lean around the waist and broad at his shoulders…he was better than those stupid underwear models! He was flesh and bone and hotness and…it was too late at night for trying to come up with other adjectives for Jayce. Suffice it to say, Jayce was all that and a cookie too!
Leaning her head back against the wall, she wondered what he would do if he ever found out that he was the inspiration for the sex scenes in her stories. She laughed softly and….
The movement out on the patio caught her attention. Jayce was out there again tonight!
Was he just as restless as she was? Most likely for different reasons. While she was thinking about what it would be like to explore his body, he was probably wondering what it would be like donating his sperm alone in a room with pornographic magazines for inspiration. Not the most enticing way to find pleasure, but she supposed guys could do that easily enough no matter what the environment.
She pulled one of her winter coats out of her closet and slipped it on, not wanting to embarrass him again tonight with her…well, with her nipples. Once she was adequately covered, she stepped out into the night.
“Another sleepless night?” she asked softly.
He turned and, although she couldn’t see his eyes in the darkness, she knew that they traveled up and down her body.
“I put on a coat so I didn’t embarrass you again,” she explained.
“I wasn’t embarrassed last night,” he told her, waiting while she moved towards him. “In fact, I was fascinated. And now I’m annoyed that I don’t get the same view tonight.” He sipped his beer. “It’s warm out here tonight. You’re going to be hot in that coat.”
She pulled it closer around her. “Yes, well, I know you’re just teasing me.”
“Not even slightly,” he said, his voice rough and intimate-sounding in the night air.
“Why are you having trouble sleeping lately?” she asked, changing the subject.
“Because I’ve been thinking about you and how much I want to help you get pregnant.”
She laughed. “You enjoy the dirty magazines and videos in a sterile, mint green room?”
He moved closer, towering over her. Not just his height, but his muscles also overwhelmed her. He was so big and so…there!
“When you finally decide to let me help you, Jessa, rest assured that we won’t be doing anything in a sterile room, green or otherwise. I don’t care about the magazines either. With you, I wouldn’t need the help.”
Gulp! “What do you mean?” she whispered, confused. Her thoughts were more focused on wondering what his broad shoulders would feel like under her fingers.
He moved even closer, his chest only a fraction of an inch from her fingers where they held her mug of warm, sweetened milk.
“I mean, that when you finally agree to let me help you, we’re doing it the old fashioned way.” She stared up at him, transfixed by the images that flashed behind her eyes. “We’re going to have a bed and a whole lotta heat. We’re going to enjoy the experience.” He smiled in the darkness. “I’m going to enjoy it thoroughly, and I’ll make sure that you do as well. Because you know that, after you get pregnant, there won’t be any sex.”
“For eighteen years, at least.”
“Exactly. So, we’ll make sure that it’s your last hoorah. I’ll show you things that will blow your mind. And we’ll reenact every single one of the scenes in each of your books and so many more.”
She held her breath, not sure if some of the scenes in her books were even possible! “Um…why would you want to do that?” she asked.
“Are you kidding me?”
The only thing astonishing at the moment was the fact that she was actually having this conversation. With Jayce! “No. Why?”
“Because you’re beautiful. You’re gorgeous, sexy, and intelligent. I love talking to you and…” he sighed, taking the cup out of her hands and setting it down on the table behind her. “And because of this.”
Jessa was more than shocked when he put one hand on the back of her head, his other arm slipping inside her coat to wrap around her waist. Then he kissed her.
She melted into his arms. She quickly decided that Jayce was an expert at kissing. He kissed with his whole body. His lips, his tongue, his hands exploring her back and his hips pressing into her. His strong arms lifted her and she gasped when he leaned back against the stone wall behind him. But it was more intense when his knee pressed between her thighs. She was literally sitting on his erection, his big hands cupping her bottom, giving her the leverage she needed to feel all of him. And yes, all of him was just as big as the rest of him.
When he lifted his mouth, they were both panting, her fingers woven in his hair, which was surprisingly soft. She had no idea where her coat was, but it wasn’t covering her. In fact, very little was covering her since his big hands had pulled her nightshirt up, exposing her skin to the cool night air.
Slowly, she pulled back, extricating herself from his embrace. He helped her, holding her steady as she lowered her feet onto the stone patio. But when she swayed slightly, he pulled her close again. Jessa stood between his long, powerful legs, leaning into his chest, his hands resting on her hips. She could feel his thumb moving against her skin and was surprised to realize that his hands were still underneath the silk of her nightshirt.
“Um…”
“Don’t you dare say anything, Jessa. Just think about it. Can you do that for me?”
She nodded, which wasn’t a lie. In fact, she doubted that she’d think about anything other than that kiss. Hmmm…not what he wanted her to think about, perhaps. Getting pregnant? Well, she’d definitely think about the various ways to accomplish that! Not exactly the pregnancy itself, but the act of getting pregnant.
“Jessa?”
She blinked up at him, realized that he was waiting for a response. “Yes. Yes, I can do that.”
“Good.” He reached around her and handed her the mug of milk. With another brief kiss, he stood up. “Get some sleep. We’ll talk tomorrow, okay?”
She must have nodded. Jessa turned around and headed back into her house in a daze. Her sanctuary from the insanity that her life had become.
The whole way up the stairs to her bedroom, she wondered what in the world she’d started!
Chapter 3
The following evening, Jessa paced across the stone patio, waiting for Jayce. She’d accomplished nothing today! Absolutely nothing! She had a writing schedule that she normally kept to and Jessa prided herself on being disciplined. But after last nigh
t’s kiss, she hadn’t been able to think of anything other than making love with Jayce or wondering why he would offer to help her get pregnant. They were friends! Why would he ruin that with a kiss?
When he stepped out of his house and walked to her patio, she glared at him, ready for battle.
Unfortunately, all of the steam went out of her when he kissed her. It wasn’t the same kind of kiss they’d shared last night, but it still threw her off.
“You look angry. Talk to me.”
Angry? She wasn’t angry anymore. She was confused.
“Why did you do that…last night?”
He sipped his iced tea and looked at her. “Because the idea of you going to some clinic to get pregnant bothered me.” He moved closer. “So, I tried to figure out why it bothered me so much. Then I came to the conclusion that I wanted to help. Why? Because I like you Jessa. I like you a lot. I think you’re beautiful and sexy, even if you don’t.” He tucked a lock of dark hair behind her ear. “You’ve had a series of bad dates with men in the past. Take a chance on me. I’ve thought too much about what it would be like with you, and this sounded like the perfect opportunity to find out.” He watched her features and she tried to ensure that her face was perfectly free of any emotions. “Once you are pregnant, we can go back to being just friends.”
Jessa blinked, wishing she could read his mind. But Jayce was…complicated. Complex. He was funny and tough, hard and marshmallowy. She suspected he could do extremely dangerous things, but he always helped her when she needed assistance. “You have this all worked out, don’t you?”
“I think it’s a good plan.” He led her over to the chairs and sat down, taking her hands in his. “As soon as you said you wanted to have a baby, I figured out a solution. That’s what I do, Jessa. I figure out solutions to problems. I’m incredibly good at it.”
“I think this is a bad solution.”
“Why is it bad?”
“Because we’re friends.”
His Baby Deal (The Diamond Club Book 6) Page 3