Carrying the Lost Heir's Child

by Jules Bennett

  The baby was healthy with a good, strong heartbeat. Lily’s blood pressure was a bit on the high side and the doctor warned about too much stress and urged her to rest for the next few weeks until the next appointment. Nash vowed silently to make sure Lily was relaxed, pampered and wanted for nothing as long as she was here. And she would stay here for the next few weeks...if not longer. They hadn’t really discussed her living arrangements, but Nash wasn’t backing down on this matter. His child would stay under his roof for now.

  The movie had officially wrapped up yesterday and Lily was free. Which meant he had some decisions to make. This wasn’t just about Nash and Lily anymore. An innocent baby would be coming into this world soon and would depend on his or her parents to provide a stable, loving home.

  When he stepped back into the living room, Lily was reclining on the leather chaise in the corner, pointing the remote toward the flat screen hanging above the stone mantel. He may be using this home as a prop for his plan, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t decorate it according to his style and his needs, just on a smaller scale. His designer had done quick work before Nash moved in and everything was perfect for a single groom who splurged only on a few necessities. A large television was a necessity.

  When Lily had mentioned how nice his home was, he’d indicated the place came already furnished. A small lie piled atop all the others he’d doled out since he’d put his plan into motion. At this point, what was a white lie about decor in the grand scheme of things?

  Lily’s vibrant eyes shot to his, a smile spread across her face as he approached. “I know I should still be scared, or nervous, or whatever, but I’m just so happy the baby is healthy.”

  Resting his hip next to her bare legs on the chaise, Nash settled his hand on her calf and rubbed from her ankle to her knee. “There’s no rule book that states you have to feel a certain way.”

  Lily rested her head against the arm, her hair falling over her shoulder, framing her natural beauty. This was how he preferred her. Not made up for a shoot with perfectly sprayed hair, but fresh-faced, hair down and wearing a casual dress. He loved how she didn’t worry about her looks, didn’t fuss with herself just because she came from the land where appearances were more valuable than talent.

  Small-town life suited her and Nash wasn’t immune to the fact he was starting to like how well she blended into his world...or the world he’d created for his charade.

  How would she look in his real home? In his grand master suite that had a balcony overlooking the fields? The need to make love to her beneath the dark sky slammed into him. He wanted her on his estate, not in the rental home that was merely a prop for a life that wasn’t even his.

  “I’m pretty calm right now.” She rested her hand on his thigh, her dainty pink polish striking against his dark denim. “The film is done, the baby is fine.”

  Lily’s hand came up, her fingertip traveled over the area between his brows. “Why the worry lines?”

  Where to start? Did he confess now that he’d lied about his identity all along? Did he tell her he had more money than she ever thought possible and that this house, even his name, was one giant cover to keep him trudging forward with his master plan?

  Did he truly want to see all that hurt in her eyes when he came clean about his life, that nearly every single thing he’d ever told her had been false?

  Damn it, he hated he’d become that man. Hated that he would inevitably crush her. He didn’t want her to look at him in disgust, but the moment would come and there wasn’t a damn thing he could do about it. All he could do was stall, earn her trust outside of the bedroom.

  Whether he wanted to face the fact or not, his feelings for her were growing deeper and damn if that didn’t complicate things even further.

  He’d thought getting her out of his system, then out of his life after the film was over, would be a piece of cake. His secrets could’ve remained just that from her and he could’ve revealed them once she was gone.

  Yet here he was, tangled in his own web of lies, becoming more and more restricted with each passing day, each new lie, and finding himself sinking deeper into a woman he knew only intimately.

  “Just worried about you.” And that was the absolute truth. “With your blood pressure on the high side, I just want to make sure you take it easy.”

  Her hand slid over his stubbled cheek. “I’m taking it easy right now.”

  Easing forward, craving more of her touch, Nash slid his hand up over her knee, beneath the soft cotton dress and over her thigh. “I intend for you to take it easy until your next appointment.”

  Lily stilled, her hand falling into her lap. “Nash, I can’t stay that long. I have a life in LA, a job, my mother is in Arizona...I can’t just stay here and forget all of my obligations.”

  “You can take a break,” he insisted. “You heard the doctor. A month off will be good for you and you don’t have another film to get to, right?”

  Lily shrugged, her eyes darting to her lap where she toyed with the bunched material of her dress. “I can’t stay here with you, Nash. This baby is real. I can’t just play house.”

  “You can.” His eyes held hers as he leaned closer, nipped her lips and eased back. “You can stay for today.” He nipped again. “And tomorrow.”

  He wasn’t ready to play house yet, either, but he also wasn’t letting her go.

  “Reality is so hard to face when you’re touching me,” she murmured against his lips. “I don’t even know what to do next.”

  Nash eased back and winked. “I’ve got a good idea.”

  “Does it involve the kitchen?” she asked with a crooked grin.

  Giving her thigh a squeeze, Nash leaned back. “I thought you were nauseous?”

  “Right now I’m starving.”

  Nash came to his feet and glanced down to her. The way she all but stretched out over the chaise, her dress hitched up to near indecent level, her hair spread all around her, she was sexy personified and had no clue the power she held.

  And she was pregnant with his child. He never imagined just how much of a turn-on that would be.

  Mine. That’s all he could think right at this moment and the revelation nearly had his knees buckling

  “What are you in the mood for?” he asked, trying to focus.

  “Grilled cheese.”

  “Grilled cheese? Like bread, butter and a lot of fatty cheese?”

  “You saying I can’t have that?” she asked, quirking a brow as if daring him to argue.

  “Not at all.” With a laugh, he held his hands up in defense. “I’m just shocked that’s what you’re asking for.”

  “Grilled cheese is just one of my weaknesses,” she told him. “All that gooey cheese and crispy bread.”

  Something so simple, yet a fact he hadn’t known about her. Which just proved he really didn’t know much about the mother of his child except how to excite her, how to get her to make those sweet little moans, how to make her lids flutter down just before she climaxed.

  “One grilled cheese coming right up,” he declared, quickly heading toward the kitchen before he took what he wanted, which was Lily all laid out beneath him.

  He was serious about wanting her there, wanting her to stay with him until they figured out a game plan. So that meant he needed to take the time to learn more about her and not just how fast he could peel down those strapless sundresses she seemed so fond of.

  As much as he wanted to learn about her, he was terrified she’d be wanting to learn more about him.

  Which begged the ultimate question. Did he come clean or continue this farce for as long as possible?

  * * *

  Ever the gentleman, Nash had put her bags from her on-site trailer in his guest bedroom. He was giving her the option of staying in a room by herself or sleeping with him.r />
  This baby had them taking every step carefully, moving from a hot, steamy affair into something more...calm.

  Lily slid her hand over her still-flat stomach and took in the cozy bedroom with its pale gray walls, dark furniture and navy bedding. The fact that she was pregnant with his child and trying to figure out where to sleep was really absurd.

  Lily turned, smacking into the hard, firm wall of Nash’s chest. His bare, gloriously naked, tanned, taut muscular chest. Would she ever tire of looking at this man? Would her body’s fierce response always be so overwhelming? When she was with Nash she couldn’t think, let alone figure out a future or make decisions. He aroused her, made her ache and crave his touch, and he’d managed to start working his way into her heart. Strong, firm hands gripped her bare arms in an attempt to steady her as her eyes held on to the tantalizing view before her.

  “I’m going to assume by the way you’re looking at me that you’re not sleeping in the guest room.”

  Lily’s eyes traveled up to see the smirk, the dark lifted brows. “Did you parade in here half-naked on purpose to sway my decision?”

  With his focus on her lips, the tips of his fingertips slid over her sensitive breasts and down her torso to grip her hips and pull her flush against his strong body.

  “It wouldn’t take much persuasion to get you in my bed,” he murmured against her lips. “The decision up to you.”

  She never grew tired of his hard body against hers. Lily flattened her palms against his chest. “I’d love to sleep in your bed, but I need you to know that I have no clue what’s happening between us. I mean, I know I have feelings for you that go beyond sex. And that was before the baby. I don’t know what to do now and I have no clue how you’re feeling.”

  Great, now she was babbling and had turned into that woman who needed emotional reassurance. She’d also exposed herself a bit more than she’d intended.

  Shaking her head, she slid her arms up around his neck and laced her fingers together. “Never mind. I’m not looking for you to say anything or make some grand declaration. I guess I’m just still scarred from trusting the wrong man a long time ago.”

  Of course she’d redeemed herself, but Lily had no doubt if she slipped up the media would be all too quick to resurrect that footage her then “boyfriend” had taken of her in the bedroom.

  “You can trust me,” Nash told her, sliding his hands up and down her back. “I know you’re worried about the future, but you can trust that I will always take care of you and our baby. Never doubt that.”

  The strong conviction in his tone had her believing every word he said. “You must’ve had some really amazing parents for you to be so determined and loyal.”

  A sliver of pain flashed through those icy blue eyes. “My mother was the strongest woman I’ve ever known. She’s the driving force behind everything good in my life.”

  “And your father?”

  Nash swallowed as he paused. Silence hovered between them and Lily realized she probably should just learn to keep her mouth shut. But she wanted to know more about Nash. He was the father of her child, for pity’s sake. They were bound together for life and eventually, little by little, they had to start opening up. “I never knew my father.”

  Lily’s heart broke for him as she smoothed his messy hair away from his face. “I’m sorry. My father passed when I was younger, so I know a little about that void.”

  Click. Another bond locked into place and her heart slid another notch toward falling for this man.

  “So it was just you and your mother, too?”

  That scenario would’ve been better, actually. After all she and her mother had lived through, being alone would’ve been for the best.

  “No.” Lily slid from his arms and went to her bag to pull out a nightgown. She hated discussing her stepfather. “My mother was a proud woman, but we were pretty poor and she ended up marrying for financial stability.”

  A shrink would love diving into her head. The stepfather had virtually ruined her for any man with money and power. Settling down with someone as controlling as that wasn’t an option. Lily would rather be alone than to be told how to live her life.

  Lily kept her back to Nash as she pulled her strapless maxi dress down to puddle at her feet before she tugged her silky chemise on. For now her sexy clothes still fit.

  “She probably wouldn’t have married Dan had it not been for me,” she told him, turning back around. “Mom was worried how she would keep our house, keep up her two jobs and keep food and clothes coming.”

  Picking up her discarded dress, she laid it on the bed and crossed back to Nash. “He was a jerk to her. Treated her like a maid instead of a wife. Treated me like I didn’t even exist, which was fine because I didn’t want a relationship with him anyway. But I loathe him for how he treated my mother.”

  Nash pulled her into his arms, surrounding her with the warmth and security she’d hardly known. This sense of stability was something she could easily get used to, but could she trust her emotions right now? Passion was one thing, but to fully rely on someone else, to trust with her whole heart...she wanted that more than anything.

  “He’s probably sorry he treated you like that now that you’re famous.”

  Lily laughed and eased back to look him in the eyes. “I wouldn’t know. He left my mother several years ago, just as I was getting my start. He took all the money, even what she’d worked for. He was always a greedy money whore. Money never meant anything to me, still doesn’t. It doesn’t define me, but I saw the evil it produced.”

  Nash’s arms tightened on her again. “Money isn’t evil, Lily. It’s what a person chooses to do with it that can be evil.”

  “Yeah, well I choose to keep my mother comfortable in a nice home that’s in a gated community where she can have her privacy and not worry. Other than that, I don’t need it.”

  “So if I were a rich man you wouldn’t have looked my way twice?” he joked.

  Lily laughed. “Oh, you still would’ve caught my attention. I’ve just always promised myself I wouldn’t get involved with anyone like my stepfather.”

  Nash squeezed her tighter. “Not all men are like your stepfather.”

  “Don’t defend him.”

  Nash’s chuckle vibrated through her. “I’m not, baby. I’m defending all of mankind.”

  Lily snuggled deeper into his embrace, wondering what path they were starting down. The last time her passion had bested her, she’d ended up across the internet, on the news and every magazine willing to make money off her bad decisions. Karma had intervened and her ex hadn’t made it very far in the industry. She couldn’t help but take a little satisfaction.

  Now her passion had cornered her again. This time the consequences were far greater than a soiled reputation. She was going to be in charge of another life. How long would Nash want to be in the baby’s life? Would he honestly be a hands-on father? He hadn’t grown up with a dad so perhaps he truly did want to give this child a better life.

  Lily hated all the unknowns that surrounded them, but her doctor said she needed to relax and she would do anything to ensure a healthy baby. Maybe she hadn’t planned on a child, but the reality was, she was going to have one. There was a little being inside of her right now with a heartbeat of its own, growing each and every day. Angry as she may be at herself for allowing this to happen, she couldn’t deny that she loved this baby already. If that meant relaxing with Nash for the next several weeks or even months, she wouldn’t argue.

  She’d wondered how they would work if they tried for something more serious, more than just ripping each other’s clothes off at every opportunity. How would they mesh together in reality?

  Looked like she was about to get her chance to find out.

  Six

  He was screwed. Royally, utterly screwed. He�
��d wanted to open up to her, wanted to start paving the way for an honest relationship. Or at least some type of relationship, considering she was carrying his child and he was developing stronger feelings for her.

  Nash still couldn’t put a title on whatever they had going because all their “relationship” consisted of so far was hot, fast sex in a stable loft and a surprise baby. He didn’t know what the hell the next logical step would be because nothing about the entire past two months had been logical.

  But Lily deserved the truth and Nash was too much of a coward to give it to her. He’d had an opening last night when they’d been halfway clothed and just talking. Such an emotionally intimate moment hadn’t happened between them before, but that moment slipped by about as quickly as he’d taken off her silky gown. Yet again, he’d let passion override anything else. His need to have her consumed him and he didn’t even try to push it aside and reveal his secrets.

  Desire was easier to deal with than the harsh realities waiting them both.

  Even when she’d spent the night in his bed, he had time to open up. Yet here he was making breakfast on a Saturday morning like some domestic family man when so many secrets hovered between them.

  Soon, he’d reveal the truth—or at least all he was able to.

  Damn it. He wanted more from her than sex. He hadn’t expected this...whatever “this” was. The fact so many lies lay between them only cheapened anything they would start to build together, but being stuck between the rock and the proverbial hard place was a position he’d wedged himself into. And he wasn’t going to be able to come out any time soon.

  How the hell was he supposed to know he’d start actually wanting more from Lily? He hadn’t planned on a baby, hadn’t planned on Lily being a permanent fixture in his life. Of course now she’d be part of his life no matter what, but beyond the baby, he wanted more.

  Nash scooped up the cheesy, veggie-filled omelet and slid it onto the plate. After pouring a tall glass of juice, he headed toward the bedroom where he’d left Lily sleeping.