Wilde For You (The Wilde Sisters Book 3)

by Marianne Rice

  Second for walking out on her at dinner. Sage hadn’t done anything wrong and he probably hurt her feelings. He wasn’t usually that kind of guy. Knowing an apology was in order, he dialed her number and waited for her voicemail to pick up.

  “Hi…It’s ah…Luke Riley. Look, I wanted to apologize for the other night.” Luke paced his living room. “I don’t want you to think I’m…well, I don’t want to um, hound you or make you feel uncomfortable. So if you don’t want to see me again, I get it. No hard feelings. I’m sorry. Really. I never meant to…I just…yeah. Anyway. Thanks for listening.” He hung up and tossed his phone on the couch. What an idiot.

  Could he sound any more immature? Sage Wilde was an educated, sophisticated woman and Luke was…well, he barely got his high school diploma and signed up for the military because he had no other career aspirations. After one long tour, he realized he was more a hometown boy than a soldier. Thankfully firefighting seemed to fill his need for adrenaline and kept him busy. He’d never be of Sage’s caliber.

  Not that he was scum. No one was as low down and dirty as Rachael’s ex-boyfriend, Dylan White. The restraining order seemed to be working, and, according to his sister, the past few months had been better.

  The last thing Luke wanted to do was make a woman feel unsafe. If he’d freaked Sage out, it would be something he could never forgive himself for.

  Luke’s job was to protect people. Rescue them from harm, not make them run from him. Needing to get some frustration out, he changed into his workout gear and headed for the gym. A few rounds in the boxing ring at The Warehouse would loosen him up.

  ***

  Sage

  God, she hated telephone tag. She hung up before leaving a message. Hearing Luke’s voice made her smile. The man was nervous. Not that she cared. Much. She wasn’t looking to date the guy. Go a few rounds playing mattress gymnastics, yes. So Luke thought he was coming on too strong. Well, in a way he was.

  His charm and witty personality were not something Sage was accustomed to. Sage dated dignified men who brought her to nice restaurants, ordered bottles of wine, discussed business, spreadsheets, Wall Street, brought her back to their places so they could have sex and then she went home. No harm. No foul. She didn’t do emotions and feelings.

  Luke, however, was different. He talked about family with a warmth in his voice that nearly touched Sage. The man was relationship material. House, two kids. Family dog.

  Sage wanted nothing of the sort. A house would require maintenance and yard work, which would take time away from work. A house had multiple bedrooms that should be filled up with children. Sage definitely didn’t want kids. She didn’t mind carrying one for a few months for her sister, but sleepless nights? Disgusting diapers? Toys in every nook and cranny? No. Not her thing.

  And a dog? Gross. Hair. Smell. Poop in the yard. Nope. Not her thing either. And she’d bet her next contract that Luke Riley had a dog, a house, and a dream for a few brats running around.

  Sage absently rubbed her belly. Not because of any maternal instinct. Nope. Definitely not her thing. She only hoped she was pregnant so her sister and brother-in-law could have their dream. That’s what Sage did. She planned other peoples’ dreams. And she was damned good at it.

  Giving in to temptation and feeling a tad horny, she called again, this time leaving a message.

  ***

  Luke

  He had a split lip, but it was worth it. Sparring with Blake always made him feel better. It wasn’t often his brother was in town, usually just Thanksgiving and Christmas, and when he visited, they often spent time at the gym. Blake immediately picked up on Luke’s foul mood and teased him voraciously about it. Something Luke would have done if their places were reversed, but he was in no mood for the taunting.

  Using his towel to mop his sweat, he thought about Sage. Again. Damn, the workout did nothing to clear his mind or settle his libido. He picked up his cell phone to check the time and noticed one new message. Without looking at who it was from, he clicked on the icon and put the phone to his ear.

  A sexy, sultry voice filled his head. “Hi, Luke. First, no need to apologize. You’re nowhere as creepy as Robert Barrows. Kidding. Anyway, secondly, why don’t we reschedule? I’m sure I can come up with something that will suit your…needs. I’ll be home by seven tonight. Why don’t you come over and we can…plan your party.” She rattled off her address and hung up.

  Luke swallowed and headed to the locker room. If he read between the lines, Sage was asking him over for more than a business meeting. He needed to take a cold shower. Stat.

  ***

  “I wasn’t sure if you’d show,” Sage said as she opened the door to her condo less than an hour later. Damn, she looked sexy. No business suit and killer heels tonight. Instead she wore butt-molding yoga pants and a tight T-shirt. No part of her body was left to the imagination. Her clothes fit her like a second skin, and Luke was ready to rub her all over.

  “Um, yeah. I got your message,” he said nervously as he shuffled his feet. She stayed in the doorway, inviting him in with a nod of her head. His big frame couldn’t fit through the door without brushing against some part of her body. His elbow decided on its own will to rub across her chest. “Excuse me,” he muttered, covering up his moan.

  “Can I get you a drink? Beer? Wine?” she asked as she walked past him, skimming his arm with hers.

  “Yeah. Sure. I’ll take a beer if you have one.”

  He followed Sage through a sparsely decorated living room into the kitchen, which was even more sparse. The countertops were bare, no knick-knacks, junk mail, or any sign that she actually cooked here.

  Was it his imagination or was she stroking the beer bottle? Sage licked her lips as she picked up an opener and popped the top. A smoldering look darkened her eyes as she brought the beer to her lips and slowly exposed her tongue, gently licking the rim. Her mouth opened wider as she brought the bottle to her mouth and then she froze.

  Deer in the headlights frozen. Her mossy green eyes locked on his for a few heartbeats before she lowered the bottle to the counter and abruptly turned her back. Luke took advantage of her turned back and adjusted himself.

  “I hope Shipyard is okay? I don’t have much of a beer selection anymore.”

  She fumbled in the cabinet for a glass, opened the fridge, and poured herself a glass of iced tea. The sexual tension that was in the air dissipated as she opened and shut the oven door, then banged open and closed the fridge while getting out vegetables for a salad.

  “Can I help?”

  “Nope,” she said, her back stiff as she destroyed an innocent cucumber with her knife.

  “I’m pretty handy around the kitchen.”

  “I bet you are.”

  Okaaay. What the hell was that supposed to mean?

  “Look, Sage, you don’t have to make me dinner. We can talk about my mom’s party and I can get out of your hair.”

  “Dinner is ready. I’m hungry, so you can watch me eat or join me.” Her smile didn’t reach her eyes as she placed the salad bowl on the tiny table. “It’s vegetable lasagna. Take it or leave it. Doesn’t matter to me.” Sage grabbed two hot mitts and pulled the steamy dish out of the oven.

  Not one to refuse a home-cooked meal, Luke pulled out a chair for Sage and waited until she served herself. A nice, hefty portion too. Not one of those dainty girls afraid to eat in front of a man. He liked that.

  Sage started eating before he even put a piece of lettuce on his plate. The seductress who greeted him at the door vanished and this distant one had replaced her. The vibes coming off the woman could freeze beer. Remembering his bottle, he picked it up and drained nearly half of it.

  They ate in silence. Before Sage could get up, Luke stood and cleared their plates. “Thanks for dinner. You cooked. I’ll clean. Then we can do business.”

  “Not really. My sister made it. I just threw it in the oven. I won’t say no if you want to do the dishes, though. I hate domestic crap.
”

  Whatever was going on inside the woman’s head had spooked her. Luke ran their conversation back through his mind but couldn’t recall any stupid foot-in-mouth things he said. In fact, he stood there silent as she stroked his beer bottle.

  Maybe she thought he wasn’t interested? Maybe she thought she made a fool of herself? He’d have to show her that he was very interested and one hundred percent invested in a night ending in nakedness.

  ***

  Sage

  Damn, she was an idiot. Pregnant for five minutes and she already almost ruined everything. Having a beer with a sexy man, or with dinner, was second nature to her. She needed to train herself to stay away from alcohol. Not that she cared about being dry for the next nine months. Alcohol didn’t define her, and while drinking socially was part of her job, part of her look, part of the sex appeal, surely sipping on tonic water for a few months wouldn’t put the kibosh on her entire life.

  Pretty soon she’d have no sex appeal. She’d have a fat belly, swollen ankles, and saggy boobs. She’d done some research online. Not too much—the internet could be a damn freaky source of too-much-information—just enough to learn the basics of pregnancy. The do’s and don’ts. Beer was a definite don’t.

  Thankfully sex was a definite do. Until she felt like a tuba. In the meantime she’d have lots and lots of sex. Preferably with Mr. Sex-on-a-Stick. If she could ever get a read on the man. Was he here to get laid or was he seriously planning a birthday party for his mother?

  A mama’s boy. Definitely not her type. Still totally doable. He’d quench her thirst for a while. She couldn’t have a beer, but she could drink Luke Riley up. He finished drying the last plate and stacked it in the cabinet, making himself comfortable in her kitchen pretty fast. It had taken her six months in her condo before she remembered where everything was.

  “So, about your mother’s party…”

  He turned and dropped his chin to his chest for a moment before sucking in a deep breath.

  “Yeah, about that.”

  “Ha! I knew it. There is no birthday.” So he was after sex. Perfect.

  Luke’s head lifted and he shifted his weight from left to right. Putting his hands in his back pockets, he flashed a dimpled grin at her. “There is a birthday, and I could probably handle it on my own.” Sage raised a knowing eyebrow at him. “But it would be a hell of a lot more fun to plan it with you.”

  An unfamiliar sensation overtook her body. Probably pregnancy hormones. Her belly fluttered. The baby moving? Her research told her the kid wasn’t even a kid yet and more like a grain of rice. Gas? God, she hoped not.

  “What exactly did you have in mind, cowboy?”

  His eyes crinkled when he smiled, lighting up his whole freaking adorable, sexy face. “Cowboy? That’d be my brother. I’m just a redneck firefighter.”

  “Hmm.” Sage took four steps across the kitchen and pulled at the collar of his denim shirt, peeking around his neck. “I’m not seeing any tan lines here. Got them anywhere else?”

  Luke growled and pulled her into his hard body, crashing limbs against limbs. He wasn’t smooth or gentle, taking her mouth rough, just like she liked it. He sucked on her lip, hard, and put his hands on her butt, drawing her tight against his chest. Sage freed her arms that were trapped between their bodies and wrapped them around his neck, pulling him in even closer, breathing his scent, sharing his air.

  The man knew how to work his lips and tongue. She’d never felt so thoroughly kissed in her life, and she’d done a lot of kissing before. Although, now that her mouth was being licked, sucked, and loved, maybe she hadn’t done a lot of real kissing. Sex had always been more animalistic than sensual. The roughness of Luke’s kiss should feel the same way, but it didn’t.

  “God you’re beautiful.”

  “Liar.”

  Luke pulled back. His lust-filled eyes turned from amber to molten chocolate. “You’re gorgeous. And funny. And the sexiest woman I’ve ever met.”

  An unladylike snort escaped her. “I don’t need the words, big boy. You’re going to get lucky. Save the sweet talk for someone else.”

  He looked offended and she felt a twinge of guilt. Damn pregnancy hormones again. Sage didn’t do guilt. Especially when it came to sex. She was a woman who spoke her mind. “I’ve got an idea how I see the rest of the night playing out. What I’m wondering is if it aligns with yours?”

  That devilish grin appeared again and his licked his lips, eyeing her as if he wanted to eat her for dessert. “I was thinking vertical first. Then horizontal.”

  “I see we have parallel thoughts. That works for me.”

  Only he didn’t rip her clothes off and do her against the kitchen wall. Instead he slowed his movements, sliding his hands slowly up and down her rib cage, her back, her butt. Keeping them off the two areas she desperately needed to feel him.

  “Luke.” His name escaped her. She wasn’t used to begging. She was used to being in control. Her legs turned weak, her mind went fuzzy, her erogenous zones became ultrasensitive and needed—desperately—to be touched. Now.

  Damn pregnancy.

  Sage trailed her hands down Luke’s chest and unbuttoned his jeans. “Now, Luke. Now.”

  He ignored her pleading, moving his hands to her front and gently massaging her super-sensitive nipples. Too much foreplay. Sage pushed his jeans down his legs and reached for him. Luke stepped back and smiled. “Easy, honey. I’m not going to last if you keep doing that.”

  She didn’t care. Hell, she wasn’t going to last and he was only on second base. It was the hormones. She had to be pregnant. But…what if she wasn’t? What if Luke had a condom malfunction and she got pregnant with his child? She’d never freaked about pregnancy in the past because she had always been double protected: the pill and condoms. But she’d been off the pill for months and…no. Pulling away from Luke, she tugged down her t-shirt.

  “Sweetheart, what’s wrong?” His voice tender and sensitive. His touch loving and supportive.

  “Stop. We have to stop. I can’t chance getting pregnant with your baby.” Her heart thumped so loudly she couldn’t think straight. Couldn’t hear anything beyond the drumming in her head. She pulled her hands over her ears. “God, make it go away.” It was like she was…the Grinch. Only it wasn’t a heart that was growing, it was her…feelings. Sage didn’t do feelings.

  So, maybe if she had feelings then she was pregnant already and she could have sex with Luke. Maybe. Taking a cleansing breath, she lowered her hands and opened her eyes only to find Luke buttoned up and storming for her front door.

  “Wait. I’m okay now. We can finish this.”

  Luke spun around. “Finish this?” He had one hand on the door and his eyes bore into her, daring her to speak. “You’re the most emotional, confusing woman I’ve ever met.” He closed his eyes and breathed deep, as if calming himself so he wouldn’t fly off the handle.

  “I have no idea what kind of sex games you’re playing, Sage, but I’m done.” He spoke so softly she shivered at his hurt tone. “I wouldn’t want you to live in fear of getting pregnant with my child. I obviously can never live up to your standards.” He closed the door gently behind him before she could reply.

  And say what? Sage Wilde didn’t explain herself to men. And she never wanted them to explain themselves to her. Uncomplicated. That’s how she liked things.

  And Luke Riley was one hell of a complication.

  Chapter Four

  Sage

  “Congratulations. You’re pregnant!”

  So she could have had sex with Luke a few weeks ago.

  “Why do you look so disappointed?” Thyme and Dr. Whitmore stared at her with confusion. “If you’re not sure about going through with this, we can…”

  “What? Take it back? No, Thyme. I’m fine. I’m just in…shock.”

  “I know. Me too. I can’t picture you nine months from now with a big round belly.”

  “Actually, it will be seven and a half months.
Sage is about six weeks along.” The doctor played around with the large wand that was inserted in her, taking pictures of the grain of rice that would soon be a baby. The internal ultrasound was a little too personal to have her brother-in-law in the room, so she made Grayson sit out in the waiting area. Daddy or not, he didn’t need to see her do-da.

  “Can we keep the pictures, Dr. Whitmore? They’re adorable.”

  Gah. Thyme and her perkiness were enough to make Sage want to puke. In fact…“I’m going to be sick.”

  The good doctor withdrew the magic wand and helped her sit up. “Can you make it to the bathroom?”

  “I’m not an invalid,” Sage grumbled as she ran to the bathroom door just two feet away. As she retched, she could hear her annoying sister talk with the doctor.

  “Is she going to be okay? I know morning sickness is common, but how does the baby look?”

  The doctor spoke too softly for Sage to decipher her words, but she heard Thyme’s scream. “Twins! Grayson, we’re having twins!” The outer door opened and Grayson’s laugh echoed through the walls from the waiting room. They were sickly cute. So not Sage’s cup of tea.

  And a cup of tea right now would be awesome. After flushing and gulping a quick swirl of water from the sink, Sage stepped back into the exam room. “Seriously, doc? Twins? My body’s going to take a toll as it is.”

  Dr. Whitmore smiled sheepishly and patted the table. “I need a few more pictures.”

  “You owe me big time, little sis. Big time,” she said to Thyme when she came back into the room, beaming with pride.