And then her body convulsed around him, clamping tight like a velvet fist, and dragging him over the edge with her.
Penny lay motionless beneath Jason’s warm and familiar weight. Her body was more than satisfied; her mind was spinning. She’d just had incredible, mind-numbing, body-melting sex, which should have been a cause for celebration rather than concern.
But when that mind-numbing, body-melting sex had been with a man whom she’d vowed to cut out of her life, things changed. A lot. When that man also happened to be the father of her baby, the situation got even more complicated.
She’d known exactly what she was doing when she’d kissed him. She’d wanted this to happen, she wanted a chance to say goodbye on her terms. But she’d failed to fully consider the ramifications of her actions, to anticipate that making love with him again would make it harder for her to break the emotional ties.
It seemed as if she’d made one mistake after another when it came to Jason Foley, but this was where it would end.
When he rolled off of her but tried to snuggle her close against his body, she held herself still. She’d been surprised, pleasantly so, when she’d first realized that the tough, implacable businessman was not just an incredibly considerate lover but a cuddler, and almost as much as she’d loved making love with him, she’d loved cuddling up with him after making love.
Of course, that was when she believed that they were making love. The knowledge that he’d only been using her had tainted all of her memories.
He pressed his lips to the back of her shoulder, and though she couldn’t prevent the goose bumps that rose up on her skin, she didn’t allow herself any other reaction.
“I missed you, Penny.”
His voice was husky. The words sounded sincere. But Penny was no longer the naive virgin who had been easily duped by this man before. She certainly wasn’t going to be duped again.
She extricated herself from his embrace and retrieved her discarded clothes from the floor. Because her knees were still trembling, she had to sit on the edge of the bed to put her panties back on. When he stroked a hand lazily down her back, his fingertips trailing down the line of her spine, she felt tears prick the back of her eyes.
She’d missed him, too. She’d missed the sound of his voice, the warmth of his laughter and the way his eyes lit up when he saw her, as if her presence had truly brightened his day. She’d missed the sense of companionship, the pleasure she derived just from being with him, whether they were sharing a romantic dinner or watching a late-night movie on television or shopping for groceries. And she’d missed his touch, the casual brushes and seductive caresses, and especially the way he was touching her now.
Their lovemaking had been not just amazing but incredibly varied, and she’d been both awed and overwhelmed to experience the unexpected heights of passion. Whether their coming together had been leisurely and tender or fast and hard, he’d always made her feel wanted. And afterward, when he held her close, he’d made her feel cherished.
Irritated with herself for the self-indulgent trek down memory lane, she yanked her nightgown down over her head, thrust her arms into the sleeves and stood up.
“It was sex,” she said, aiming for a dismissive tone to disguise the tightness in her throat. “Don’t try to make it into anything bigger than that.”
“Just sex?”
She had no trouble hearing the annoyance—and anger—in his question.
She lifted a shoulder, determined to play it casual, to not let him know how much the experience had shaken her. “Apparently, all the hormones that flood a women’s system during pregnancy can really jump-start her libido. Obviously, that’s what happened.”
“So it had nothing to do with the history or attraction between you and me?” The words were bit out between clenched teeth as he dressed. “I was just convenient?”
“Don’t go getting all indignant,” she warned. “I’m sure, from time to time, you’ve done it with a woman just because she was there and she was willing.”
His gaze narrowed dangerously. “We’re not talking about me, though, are we? We’re talking about you, and you were a twenty-six-year-old virgin until I took you to my bed a few months ago.”
“Did I forget to thank you for that?” she asked. “Because it really was an incredible night.”
“I’m not asking for a damn thank you.”
“Well, I’m grateful anyway,” she said. “And for everything that came after, I’m doubly grateful, because I really don’t think I ever would have known what selfish bastards men could be without your experienced tutelage in that regard.”
“You’re really starting to piss me off,” he warned her.
“So it’s okay for you to use me for your own purposes, but it’s not okay for me to call you on it?”
She saw the muscle in his jaw flex as he clamped it tight, and when he finally spoke, it was in what she referred to as his boardroom voice.
“I think we’re getting a little off-topic,” he said, his tone both cool and reasonable.
“It was a bad idea to try to talk about this tonight,” she responded levelly. “I’m exhausted, which is apparently normal in the first trimester of any pregnancy, but which is unusual for me. I’m also cranky because my whole life is about to change and I haven’t quite figured out exactly how I’m going to manage those changes. So if you don’t mind, I’d really like to postpone any further conversation until we’ve both had a chance to think about everything.”
“Of course,” he agreed solicitously. “But for the record, you mean a lot more to me than you obviously realize.”
She wanted to believe him, but she wasn’t going to be fooled again. “For the record, I won’t ever trust anything you say to me again.”
Chapter Four
Jason wasn’t in a good mood the next morning.
Of course, being awakened by an urgent call from his secretary after a mostly sleepless night had done nothing to establish a positive outlook for his day. And the cold shoulder he’d been getting from Penny since he crossed paths with her in the kitchen when he went to grab a cup of coffee did nothing to improve things.
How could she have been so hot for him last night and completely oblivious to his presence less than eight hours later?
“All the hormones that flood a women’s system during pregnancy can really jump-start her libido. Obviously, that’s what happened.”
Though her words came back to haunt him, he didn’t believe them any more now than he had when she’d thrown them at him the night before.
He did believe that she would spend the whole day pretending he wasn’t there, if he let her. But he had no intention of fading into the background just because it was what Penny wanted. And he sure as hell had no intention of denying that it was his baby she was carrying.
Unfortunately, he spent most of the morning on the phone with either his secretary or the assistant VP of an associate office in Denver, but while he went through the motions, his mind was preoccupied with that little bombshell that Penny had dropped on him the previous evening. It occurred to him that he could more quickly and easily deal with the unexpected office crisis if he actually went back to the office, but he had no intention of leaving before he and Penny had come to some kind of agreement with respect to their child.
Of course, she’d actually have to talk to him in order for that to happen, but he remained optimistic. Or maybe it was more accurate to say he was determined.
So, when they were once again all gathered around the big tables set up in Travis’s dining room, plates overflowing with slices of turkey and ham and mounds of mashed potatoes and stuffing dripping with gravy, Jason considered his plan.
A plan that got an unexpected boost when his father rose to his feet.
“Since we are all gathered around to celebrate Thanksgiving, I think it’s a good time to reflect on the many reasons we are thankful. Throughout my life, I have been blessed with a wonderful family, good health and good fo
rtune. But this year, I have even more reason to be thankful, and that reason is the beautiful bride sitting beside me.”
“I don’t see a bride.” Livie was the first to respond to the announcement.
“I think your grandpa’s telling us that he and Mrs. McCord got married,” Zane explained to his daughter.
“It’s Mrs. Foley now,” Rex said proudly. “But you can call her Grandma.”
“Or just ‘Eleanor’,” his wife said, apparently not wanting to push the child to accept her in the unaccustomed role too soon.
“Well, I guess congratulations are in order,” Charlie said, though he sounded a little dubious as he lifted his glass.
Not to be outdone, the rest of the McCords and the Foleys followed suit.
“Congratulations.”
“May you have a long, happy life together.”
“To the bride and groom.”
Though toasts rang out amid the clinking of crystal, Jason knew that not everyone was thrilled by the union. Or maybe it would just take a while for both families to accept that the ancient feud was truly at an end, as symbolized by Rex and Eleanor’s marriage.
“While we’re celebrating good news,” Jason began, rising to his feet to address the group crowded around the table. “I have some of my own to share.”
The conversations around him slowly died away, the clink of silverware ceased as all eyes focused on him. All eyes including Penny’s green ones—which were wide and panicked when they locked on his.
She gave a slight shake of her head, a silent, desperate plea. Apparently she’d finally given up trying to pretend he didn’t exist, an illusion that he’d already decided to put an end to in a big way.
“I’m going to be a father.” He looked across the table at the expectant mother. “Penny is going to have my baby.”
Penny wasn’t surprised that Jason’s proclamation was met with stunned silence.
Although her sister, her mother and, since last night, Gabby, were aware of her pregnancy, no one else had any idea about the extent of her relationship with Jason.
“Yay, another baby,” Livie said, clapping her hands.
She was shushed by her father, who obviously didn’t share the child’s enthusiasm for the proclamation.
Nor, it seemed, did anyone else around the table.
“I would expect that kind of news to be followed by the announcement of your impending wedding date.” Though Rex’s comment was directed to his son, Penny was the one who wanted to crawl under the table and hide.
This was exactly why she hadn’t wanted to make a public announcement about her pregnancy—because she wasn’t prepared to answer all of the questions she knew her well-meaning but interfering family would inevitably have. And obviously Jason’s family was no different.
“Penny and I have a lot of plans to make,” Jason said, deflecting rather than answering the question implied by his father’s statement.
Rex looked as if he was about to say something more, but to Penny’s surprise, her mother touched his sleeve and signaled him with a subtle shake of her head.
There were other murmurs and questions, but Penny let Jason respond to them. And then Paige, sensing her sister’s quiet desperation, took advantage of a lull and diverted the conversation by asking Blake about his plans for marketing the McCordite.
While there was no further mention of her pregnancy during the meal, she was conscious of the attention focused on her…and the speculation. When dinner was finally over and Penny had started to clear away the dishes again, Blake came into the kitchen and took her by the arm.
“Walk with me,” he said.
It wasn’t a question but a directive, and though Penny wanted to balk at being ordered around like a recalcitrant child, she welcomed the opportunity to escape the suddenly cloying atmosphere of Travis’s home.
“You can save the lecture, Blake,” she said, when they were outside. “It’s a little too late to warn me about the dangers of unprotected sex.”
“If I was going to lecture, it would be about the dangers of Jason Foley,” he told her. “But under the circumstances, I won’t bother.”
“Thanks,” she said dryly.
They walked in silence for a few minutes and Penny found the crisp air both refreshing and relaxing. For the first time, she really looked around, and she was pleased with what she saw. Travis obviously took pride in the land and Penny guessed her sister had probably fallen in love with the ranch, as well as the rancher.
“Have you thought about how you’re going to handle things?”
Blake’s question drew her attention away from the distant horizon and back to more immediate problems.
“I haven’t been able to think about anything else,” she admitted. “Not that I’ve come up with any answers.”
“Are you going to marry Jason?”
“No,” she answered that question quickly, adamantly.
“Have you told him that?”
“What makes you think he wants to marry me? Other than his father wanting him to do so.”
“Don’t underestimate family pressure,” Blake warned her. “But aside from that, he’s a successful businessman, a pillar in the community. He’ll want to do the right thing, and in his mind, that is marrying the mother of his child.”
Something in his tone—or maybe it was her understanding of their family history—made her ask, “You don’t think it’s the right thing, do you?”
“No, I don’t,” he told her. “I don’t think you’ll do yourself or your child any favors by marrying a man you don’t love just to give him a father.”
She knew, when Blake said “him,” he wasn’t necessarily referring to her child, but to the child he had been, and she knew he’d been badly hurt by their mother’s coolness toward him.
It was only in recent years that he realized Eleanor had always resented him, albeit subconsciously, for being the reason she had to marry Devon McCord. And though she’d remained married and had gone on to have three more children with him, the shadows of that initial resentment had never quite faded away.
“I didn’t plan on getting pregnant at this point in my life,” Penny admitted to Blake. “But I love this baby already, and I promise you that I will never blame him—or her—for the circumstances of conception.”
Her brother nodded. “You’ll be a good mom, Penny.”
Mom. The word created flutters of both excitement and apprehension in her belly. “I hope so.”
“And if you ever need anything, just let me know.”
She managed a smile. “Like a babysitter?”
“I’m not sure you’d want me to babysit,” he warned her. Then, more seriously, “But I mean it, Pen. I don’t want you to feel as if you need to count on Jason Foley for anything. Me and Tate and Paige, we’re your family. You can depend on us.”
“I know,” she said, and hugged him tight.
And while she appreciated that her brother had the best of intentions, she knew she couldn’t cut Jason Foley out of the equation as easily as Blake had implied.
While Penny was walking with Blake, Jason went outside for some air and was cornered by Gabby on the front porch.
“You do know you didn’t earn any points by publicly announcing Penny’s pregnancy, don’t you?”
He shrugged. “I was making a point.”
“That you’re too stupid to think about birth control?” She smiled sweetly. “I’m sorry, did I say that out loud?”
“I appreciate that you feel protective of your cousin, but I’m not going to discuss my relationship with Penny with you.”
“You’re the one who put it on the table—literally. And did you even think about the fact that Tanya Kimbrough is a reporter before you decided to make your big announcement?”
He scowled, because he hadn’t. “A reporter who happens to be engaged to Penny’s brother.”
“Do you think that connection is going to make her withhold that kind of news?”
“Okay, I didn’t think,” he admitted. “I just wanted Penny to know that I’m accepting responsibility for my child.”
“How far are you willing to go to accept that responsibility?”
“Did you hear me say I wasn’t going to discuss this with you?”
She waved a hand dismissively, like the blue-blood heiress she was. “I just want to make sure that you’ve considered all of the angles.”
“I’m working on it.”
“Including the negative publicity that this news could generate for both the Foley and McCord families?”
“Penny’s pregnancy is hardly newsworthy.”
“You don’t think so?” she challenged.
“She’s neither royalty nor a celebrity,” he said, but he couldn’t deny that Gabby had a lot of experience with the media, and if she was concerned, maybe he should be, too.
“Your brother and Penny’s sister found the Santa Magdalena Diamond—that discovery alone is enough to have the press salivating like a pack of mangy dogs over a juicy bone. Not to mention that their appetites have already been whetted by the teaser pieces Tanya did about the Foleys and the McCords and the ancient feud. Now you can add in Travis and Paige’s engagement and Rex and Eleanor’s marriage, and the paparazzi will be foaming at their mouths to find yet another meaty morsel of gossip to devour.”
“I suppose you have some advice on how we should handle it?”
She nodded. “Marry her. Give her—and your baby—legitimacy. Don’t let them turn Penny into a dirty little secret and your child into a mistake.”
“I mentioned marriage,” he admitted. “Penny didn’t seem interested.”
“You’re Chief Operating Officer of Foley Industries. I’m sure you didn’t rise to that position without knowing how to overcome opposition, how to make things happen that others thought never would.”
She was right. In fact, it was one of the reasons he’d been elected by his siblings to learn what he could about the McCords’ search for the Santa Magdalena Diamond. Even if that mission hadn’t been a rousing success, at least insofar as finding the diamond was concerned.
The Texas Tycoon’s Christmas Baby Page 5