CEO's Pregnant Lover Bundle (Books 1-3)

by North, Leslie

  Chapter 2

  Chance was relieved when Rachel scooted away from him. The urge to drag her over his lap and quiet her tears in a much more satisfying manner was almost overwhelming in its intensity. When she raised her tear-stained gaze to his, he locked his eyes on hers, letting her see that she was safe with him.

  “You still haven’t answered my question,” he reminded her after several moments of silence.

  He watched her throat work as she swallowed and was shocked at the rush of desire that coursed through his body. This woman got to him like no other had before.

  Rachel saw the banked lust in his gaze and dropped her eyes once again. She’d been married for several years prior to her husband’s untimely death and had enjoyed the physical intimacy that came with it immensely. Since Sam’s death, she had been so wrapped up in caring for her infant twin sons, she hadn’t felt much like a woman, let alone felt the pleasant hum of desire running through her veins.

  Swallowing once more, she asked, “What was the question?”

  Chance chuckled before he could stop himself, “I asked you why you were crying again. You were crying when I was here earlier as well.”

  Rachel shrugged her shoulders, “I’m a horrible mother!” she blurted out.

  Chance smiled at her and shook his head, “No, you’re a fine mother. You’re just overwhelmed right now. Does Chelsea normally help you?”

  At the mention of her sister’s name, Rachel stopped thinking about how miserable her own life was and grew concerned. Was this man back because something had happened to Chelsea? What would she do without her sister?

  “Where is she?” she demanded.

  “Whoa! Calm down, Chelsea’s fine. In fact, I just saw her not thirty minutes ago.”

  “Where is she? Can I talk to her?”

  “Again, she’s fine. She’s with my brother, Seth, at his place.”

  “Why isn’t she here? Something’s wrong, isn’t it?”

  “No. Look, you’ll be able to talk with her in the morning.” When he saw Rachel open her mouth to argue, he interrupted her, saying, “Not gonna happen. Chelsea’s had an extremely stressful day and Seth is taking care of her. I am here to help you in her place.”

  “I don’t understand,” Rachel complained, shaking her head. She wrapped her arms around her middle, hoping to stop the tears that were threatening to return. She’d never make it till morning without someone to relieve her. She needed her sister. Now!

  “Why can’t she just…”

  “Rachel, I’m here to help you out. It’s going to be okay.” Chance looked deep into her eyes and when the twins decided to make their presence known, he tore his gaze away, looking towards the infants. Standing up to get them before they started fussing in earnest, he asked, “Have they been fed?”

  “I was trying to feed Tony just before you got here, but…”

  When her voice trailed off, he turned to look at her inquiringly, “But what?”

  “He bit me!” she exclaimed, embarrassed and once again reminded of the pain she still felt.

  Chance burst out laughing; he couldn’t help himself. “I told you they were teething,” he said between chuckles.

  Rachel fumed; it wasn’t funny! Well, maybe it was a little bit funny, but damnit, it had hurt! She tried to hold onto her anger, but the more Chance laughed, the funnier it seemed and pretty soon she found herself laughing right along with him.

  “It’s really not funny. I screamed so loud, it startled David who decided to try and out scream both Tony and I.” She glanced down, trying to understand why she already felt better.

  Chance pulled back his laughter to ask, “Is that why you were so upset when I got here?”

  “Not entirely. It all just seemed to be too much, and then the dishwasher…,” she trailed off.

  “You’ve had quite the day, haven’t you?” Chance asked with kindness and sympathy in his voice.

  “You could say that again.” When the babies started fussing again, she walked to the playpen and retrieved both of them, startled to find Chance at her elbow offering to take one of the babies for her.

  “Are you sure?”

  “Let me have him.” Taking the closest baby from her grasp, he held him up so they were eye-level and said, “We haven’t been formally introduced. I’m Chance.”

  Rachel watched the big strong man in wonder as he gently held her son and talked to him. His hands were huge, yet they held her son with such gentleness. She busied herself with collecting diapers and wipes to avoid watching any longer. It reminded her too much of how those same hands had held her only minutes before and how much she had missed the touch of a man.

  Shutting down her imagination, she firmly told herself to keep focused on the task at hand. While her body might yearn for a man’s touch, her heart couldn’t handle being ripped apart again. Sam’s dying had destroyed the fragile world she had built around herself; so much that without Chelsea she would have flown apart months earlier. Her husband had been her world and while she had been sad when he deployed overseas, she had looked forward to the homecoming and future they would have upon his return.

  She had never dreamed that return would include a flag draped casket and a military funeral. Sam hadn’t known she was pregnant when he had left the states, and every time she thought about the two little boys who would grow up without the influence of a fantastic father, she fell into a depression.

  “Rachel?” Chance asked once again. She had drifted off to another world in her mind and he had called her name three times already without a response.

  Hearing her name called, she jerked herself out of her morose thoughts to see Chance looking at her in concern. “I’m sorry. I must be more tired than I thought. What did you say?”

  “I asked you what this little guy’s name was.”

  Rachel glanced at the little man in question to see him gnawing furiously on the large knuckle of Chance’s right hand. “Uhm.. that’s Tony. See the little red mark at the base of his skull? That’s how I tell them apart.”

  Chance looked at the mark and grinned down into the baby’s eyes. “So Tony, my man, how about some dry britches? You wouldn’t be the reason for your mama’s recent pain, would you?” he whispered to the baby.

  Rachel overheard the conversation, handing both diaper and wipes to Chance, “He won’t admit it, but he most definitely was the culprit.” She said it with so much love in her voice; Chance knew these little guys were darn lucky to have such a wonderful mother.

  Chapter 3

  Rachel watched Chance lay the baby down and deftly take care of the wet diaper situation. She handled the other baby, keeping one eye on Chance the entire time.

  “So, this is Tony. Who’s that you’ve got there?”

  “This little guy is David.” Rachel finished wrapping the wet diaper up and then tossed it into the wastebasket nearby. “Speaking of introductions, you’ve never told me your name.”

  Chance blushed as he realized that she was right. “Sorry. I’m Chance Jacobsen. I’d shake hands but this little guy doesn’t seem inclined to let go of my knuckle anytime soon.”

  Rachel smiled, “Would you mind keeping them both occupied for a minute while I heat up some bottles?”

  Chance looked up at her, “Bottles? I thought you said he bit you…”

  Rachel blushed, but didn’t look away, “I’m still breastfeeding them, but it became pretty obvious once we came home from the hospital that I couldn’t continue to feed them both. That’s all I would ever get done during the day.” She felt the heat intensify in her face as Chance’s eyes dropped to her chest. Forging ahead, she continued, “I trade off giving them bottles or feeding them, and then at night, I mix a little cereal into their bottle so they sleep longer.”

  Chance raised his eyes from her ample chest with difficulty. At the mention of her breastfeeding the babies, his thoughts had gone rampant and images of what that must look like clouded his brain. Shaking his head at his lack of contro
l, he informed her with a wave of his free hand, “Go ahead. Me and these guys will get better acquainted.”

  Rachel headed into the kitchen, groaning when she saw the soaked floor once again. Chance heard her groan and called to her, “Don’t worry about the water. After these guys are fed and settled, I help you deal with the dishwasher.”

  Rachel closed her eyes and sent up a silent prayer to whoever was responsible for the man sitting in her living room. She hurriedly fixed two bottles, returning with the bouncy seats, preparing to feed the twins as she always did at night – at the same time.

  Seeing Rachel struggle with the bottles and bouncy seats, Chance jumped to his feet and took the chairs from her, “What are these for?”

  “Feeding them. They’re getting too big to hold at the same time so I put them in these, use my feet to keep them bouncing and hold the bottles with my hands.”

  Chance liked her ingenuity, but offered a better suggestion, “Do you mind if I feed one of them?”

  Rachel looked at him suspiciously, “Really?”

  “Yeah. I used to work for the FBI. One of my first assignments was working undercover in a preschool.”

  “So that’s where you learned to change a diaper.”

  Chance nodded, “That among other things.”

  Rachel handed him a bottle and watched him settle on the couch. When he looked at her and then gestured to the empty spot beside him with his head, she carried David over and settled herself as well.

  “So, I hate to ask, but are you here in an official capacity, like this morning?”

  Chance glanced at her and shook his head, “I quit the FBI a while back. I work with my brother and his partner in a private security firm now. I was here this morning because Brianna Coldwell’s baby was stolen from the hospital and we believed your sister had been hired to care for the newborn.”

  “Are you back because they still don’t know where the baby is?”

  Chance smiled at her, “The baby is fine. Your sister knew something wasn’t right and when my brother showed up she willingly helped him return the baby to the parents.”

  Rachel smiled, happy knowing that her sister had played a part in returning the infant to Brianna Coldwell. “I still don’t understand why she isn’t home.”

  Chance looked at her and then decided to lay it all out on the table for her, “She and my brother kind of hit it off. I wouldn’t be surprised if you don’t find her spending lots of time with him from here on out.”

  “Really? But they just met!” Rachel exclaimed, stunned to find out that her spinster sister might actually be getting some. “You don’t think…?”

  Chance grinned at her and nodded, “Oh, yeah. I most definitely think.”

  “But, she’s…,” Rachel paused, not quite sure how to say what was on her mind.

  “Inexperienced? Seth knows. Don’t worry; he’ll take good care of her.”

  Rachel thought about that for a minute and then a smile appeared on her face. Chelsea had finally found someone! She immediately sobered as the reality of her own situation came rushing back. If Chelsea were in a relationship, would she move out? How on earth was she going to take care of the twins day-in and day-out without some sort of relief?

  Her happiness vanished like smoke on a windy day. She wanted to be happy for her sister, but she couldn’t quit thinking about what life would be like without her help.

  Chance watched the play of emotions roll over her face. She was on open book; an exhausted open book. Deciding to take matters into his own hands, he set down the empty bottle before saying softly, “Where should I lay this little guy down?”

  Rachel took the empty bottle from David and slowly stood up with him, stifling the groan that wanted to burst forth. Her entire body ached for sleep. “Follow me,” she softly commanded, leading the way down the hall to the twin’s bedroom.

  After seeing that the babies were sleeping comfortably, Chance placed a hand on her arm and directed her back to the hallway. “You look like you’re ready to fall asleep on your feet. Why don’t you get ready for bed while I see what can be done about the dishwasher?”

  Rachel covered a yawn with her hand, “I would rather go soak in the tub for a few minutes. I ache everywhere.”

  Chance immediately turned his brain off from imaging her lush body, covered in bubbles and water. “That sounds like a good idea. Go ahead. Come on out to the living room when you’re through and I’ll finish telling you about your sister.”

  Rachel nodded, yawning again and headed towards the bathroom connected to her bedroom. She ran the water nice and hot and slipped her stained t-shirt and lounge pants off, dropping them on the bedroom floor as she went, before sinking down in the blistering heat. A loud sigh erupted from her mouth as her body melted into the tub. This was just what she needed.

  Rachel leaned back against the tub and closed her eyes for a moment, letting the stress of the day slip away. When her consciousness attempted to do the same, she fought it for several minutes before finally succumbing to the sleep of sheer exhaustion.

  Chance heard the water turn off just as he was finishing wiping up the water from the kitchen floor. He had used paper towels to remove the excess dish soap from the soap tray in the dishwasher and had just restarted the machine. Making sure that no more catastrophes were about to erupt in the form of white soapy bubbles, he finished cleaning up the bottle making supplies and placed the two used bottles in the sterilizer before turning it on.

  When he next glanced at the clock, he found that almost an hour had gone by and still Rachel had not returned. Slipping down the hall, he checked on the babies, smiling to see them both still sound asleep.

  Knocking on Rachel’s bedroom door, he waited for her to answer. When that didn’t occur, he gently opened the door, “Rachel?” he asked softly.

  When she didn’t reply, he pushed the door open and took in the bedroom décor. Bright, vibrant colors were everywhere. The four-poster bed was covered with a comforter of quilted fabrics in every brilliant hue of red, brown and orange he could imagine. The dark chocolate color on the opposing wall gave the room a warm feel. He spied the closed bathroom door and headed in that direction, stepping around the discarded clothing she had worn earlier.

  Tapping lightly on the door, he waited for a response. When none came, he gently tried to handle, pleased to see that it was unlocked. He opened the door and peered through the steam to see Rachel lying in the tub, bubbles covering her to her neck, her head pillowed on a rolled up towel. She was sound asleep.

  He approached the tub, taking in the gorgeous woman before him and wishing that he had the right to pluck her from the warmth of the tub and snuggle against her body. Dipping his fingers into the water, he noted that the water was beginning to cool off. Time for sleeping beauty to get out of the tub.

  Chapter 4

  He gently placed a hand on her shoulder to awaken her, “Rachel? Time to wake up.”

  Rachel felt like she was being pulled from a big fluffy cloud. Someone was calling her name; a man. It wasn’t Sam; she had quit dreaming about him several months after his death. The sleeping pills had been partially to blame for that, but the doctor had insisted she sleep. Chelsea had watched over the twins on the occasions when she had used them and she had been careful not to feed the twins herself until her body had a chance to metabolize the medication.

  Feeling a cool touch on her shoulder, she lifted her eyes, sitting up in the tub in alarm to see Chance leaning over her. “What?!”

  “Easy, you fell asleep in the tub. Your water’s cooling off. Can you get out by yourself?”

  Rachel nodded, not meeting his eyes, and trying to cover as much of her body beneath the water and suds as possible. She had always liked her body, before having twins. Now instead of the lithe body of a fit young woman, she was carrying twenty extra pounds, had stretch marks all over her stomach, sagging breasts and the beginnings of cellulite trying to show themselves on her thighs. She hadn’t been to th
e gym in over seven months and her body was telling on her.

  “Rachel? Are you okay to get out of the tub by yourself?”

  Embarrassed and only wanting him to leave, she nodded, “I’m okay. I’ll be out in a minute.”

  Chance gave her another glance, noting the blush staining her cheeks and quietly left the bathroom. He dug through her drawers until he found a soft t-shirt and a pair of boy shorts in a soft cotton fabric. Locating her underwear, he laid it all out on the bed for her before turning down the covers. Next, he gathered up all of the dirty clothes on the floor, tossing them in the laundry basket sitting in the corner.

  When Rachel opened the bathroom door only moments later, wrapped in a big fluffy towel, Chance had to remind himself that he was only here to help. Taking a breath, he informed her, “Hey, it looks like you’ve got it covered here. I’m going to camp out on the couch tonight just in case the boys wake up. You head to bed and I’ll see you in the morning.”

  Chance quickly exited the bedroom, not trusting himself if he stayed any longer. She looked good enough to eat, standing with the bathroom light behind her, wrapped in a towel, her skin, and hair damp from the bathwater. When a drop of water had run down her neck to disappear beneath the towel, Chance had wanted to trace its path with his tongue in the worst way.

  What was it about this woman that got to him? His self-control was in danger of disappearing around her. He grabbed a blanket off the back of the couch and settled himself down. Maybe after a good night’s sleep he would be more in control of himself.

  Rachel watched him leave and shut the door. Part of her wished he would stay through the night and hold her close. She yearned for his touch, but it was too soon. It would always be too soon. She was a mother now. Her husband was dead and her entire focus had to be on the two little boys sleeping in the next room. That’s just the way it had to be.