The Baby Proposal

by Andrea Laurence

  Lana took a deep breath and dismissed all those thoughts. She’d promised Kal that this would be a simple arrangement for the sole purpose of getting guardianship of her niece. There wasn’t supposed to be any kind of entanglements, physical or emotional. Physical entanglements were a problem almost immediately, but she knew she had to hold back when it came to her emotions. Getting attached to Kal was a recipe for heartache.

  As she clung to him, Kal leaned in to plant a kiss on Akela’s forehead and then one on Lana’s lips. He looked down at her with an excited smile and a light in his eyes and Lana knew instantly that it was too late.

  She had made the mistake of falling in love with her husband.

  Nine

  Kal had spent the last three Christmas Eves with Lana. It was their unofficial tradition, although this year would be decidedly different from the previous ones. The twists would be the addition of his family and Akela. The constants would be Lana and sushi. Traditions had to mean something.

  He and Mano drove up the coast to pick up the large order of sushi from the same place where he’d celebrated his wedding day with Lana. The big, traditional Hawaiian Christmas meal would be tomorrow, courtesy of the hotel cooks. Lana and Paige had spent part of the morning working on a couple fun desserts that they wouldn’t tell the men about. Honestly Kal would be just as happy to find another container of those chocolate chip cookies that he’d missed, but he was curious to see what the ladies would come up with, too. Paige had more American ideas about the holiday, so maybe there would be a treat he’d never tried before that could rival the cookies.

  As they pulled back up at the house, Mano reached for Kal’s arm to halt him from getting out of the car. “Hey,” he said. “I want to tell you something before we go inside.”

  Kal killed the engine and sat back in the seat. “Sure. What is it?”

  His brother’s expression was almost sheepish, a look he almost never—if ever—saw on him. “I wanted to apologize to you. You were right, I came down here just to see what kind of angle you were playing with the marriage bomb you dropped. I thought maybe the whole wedding scheme was just about getting the baby or that maybe Lana was from another country and trying not to get deported or something. I really wasn’t sure. But spending the past few days with the two of you has convinced me that I was wrong to doubt you.”

  Kal stiffened. He needed to stop his brother from apologizing when he was right all along. “Mano—”

  “No,” Mano insisted. “I need to say it. You two really are amazing together. What’s better than marrying your best friend, after all? You’re happier than I remember you being since Mom and Dad died. You and Lana seem to really be in love and happy together, and I’m so glad for you.”

  Kal didn’t know what to say. His brother was one of the most perceptive people he knew. He picked up on the little things. He was damn near a human lie detector test. But he was all wrong about him and Lana. That baffled him. Certainly they weren’t good enough actors to pull the wool over Mano’s eyes, but he truly believed that they were in love. What did his brother sense between them that Kal didn’t?

  He watched as his brother’s expression grew more serious. “You were never the same after our folks died, Kal. It was like you were afraid to let someone get close just to lose her again. I did the same thing, but for different reasons, and now I know it’s no way to live your life. You can’t let fear rule you. I’m so glad that both of us figured that out before we ended up spending our lives all alone.”

  Kal couldn’t respond to that, because this time it was painfully accurate. His brother had nailed the issue on the head and made him feel foolish for it. “We’ve got some great things ahead of us,” he replied instead.

  Mano smiled. “We do. Let’s get in there and eat some sushi. That stuff smells amazing. I’m starving.”

  They went into the house together and laid out platters on the dining room table. There were California rolls, spicy tuna rolls, unagi eel rolls, crunchy tempura and smoked salmon rolls and an assortment of nigari, all artfully arranged by the itamae, or head sushi chef, at Sansei. They also had bowls of edamame, fried tofu, a cucumber salad and some teriyaki chicken for Paige.

  Looking down at it all, Kal realized he shouldn’t order sushi when he was hungry. It was a shame that Nanny Sonia was spending the next two days with her family. The four of them had their work cut out for them.

  They gathered at the table with Akela in her high chair. Lana poured warm sake into cups, with a specially requested Sprite for Paige.

  “Wow,” Paige said as she took in the spread of food in front of her. “I don’t even know what half of this is, but it all looks wonderful. I think sushi for Christmas is a fun tradition, even if I can’t eat much of it this year. It’s different. I’m excited to try this.”

  “Do you want to steal it for our own?” Mano asked. “Make it a true Bishop family Christmas Eve tradition?”

  “I think so. There’s only so much turkey a girl can eat around the holidays.”

  “Turkey?” Mano frowned at her.

  Lana laughed and turned to Paige. “We don’t really do turkey for Christmas here,” she explained. “It’s all about the pork and seafood dishes.”

  Kal sat back and watched his new family chat while they ate. He’d really begun to like Paige, and the change in his brother was night and day. Lana fit right in, joking and laughing. It was something he never really expected to have, much less to enjoy. He’d always imagined himself and Mano as lone wolves—the Bishop Bachelors. Now there were wives and babies, holidays and gatherings. It was like he imagined things would’ve been if their parents hadn’t died and derailed their lives. They’d almost gotten back on track.

  Almost, if his relationship with Lana was more than temporary. Kal presumed he would enjoy time with his brother and Paige even when Lana was no longer his wife, but things would be different. Unbalanced. She would be off living her own life, Akela would be back with her mother, and Kal would be alone again.

  For the first time in ten years, Kal balked at the idea of being alone. He was surprised at how quickly he’d gotten used to all this. What did he do with his evenings before he was having dinner with Lana and bathing Akela before bed? He was working all the time. He didn’t miss that at all. The hotel was running just fine without him hovering over his staff every moment.

  Kal shoved a spicy tuna roll in his mouth and chewed thoughtfully while the others continued to talk and eat. He didn’t want to return to being a workaholic. He wasn’t sure that the idea of marriage and family really suited him, but this marriage and this family were perfect in the moment.

  That was the problem, he supposed. He liked it too much.

  The holidays were drawing them all together in a way he hadn’t anticipated, but he’d have to make a bigger effort to keep emotional distance from Lana when they were over. If his brother was picking up on some kind of connection between them, it meant that more was happening than they’d agreed to. That would have to be squashed before it got worse and feelings got hurt. Whether it was his feelings or hers, he wasn’t sure.

  “So, do we get to open presents tonight or in the morning?” Paige asked after they’d all stuffed themselves.

  “We’ve always exchanged gifts on Christmas Eve,” Lana said. “Is that okay with you?”

  Paige nodded eagerly. “I don’t think I can wait until morning. I’m like a kid when it comes to Christmas.”

  “Well, let’s clean up and I’ll get Akela ready for bed,” Kal said as he stood up. “Then we can have some of the top-secret dessert you all made today and open a few gifts.”

  Kal scooped up the baby and took her into the bathroom for her nightly lavender bath. Fed, clean and in a pair of Christmas pajamas Lana had purchased with snowmen on them, he put her down for the night with promises of Santa coming in the morning—not that she really understood, of course.

  By the time he returned to the living room, everyone had gathered there. The ladi
es presented their desserts—a tall red velvet cake with cream cheese icing and homemade peppermint marshmallows dipped in chocolate. Kal opted to put his marshmallow in his coffee, which was heavenly with the cake. He’d never had red velvet before and it was definitely a Christmas indulgence.

  Paige went over to the tree first, sorting through the wrapped gifts and picking out a select few for everyone. Kal and Lana had made an emergency run the day after his brother arrived to get gifts for their unexpected guests. They’d shown up with a big bag of wrapped presents even though Kal and Mano rarely exchanged gifts. It had to be Paige’s influence on him.

  After a few minutes of frantic unwrapping, it was done for the night. Lana had gotten Kal a nice pair of ruby and gold cuff links and a bottle of his favorite scotch. Mano and Paige gave him a set of his favorite action movies on Blu-ray disc, a remote control drone and an ugly Christmas sweater with Santa on it.

  Paige squealed so loudly over the emerald and diamond tennis bracelet that Mano bought her that Kal never did find out what she bought him. Eleu’s birthstone would be an emerald unless she came early, and each stone in the bracelet was at least a carat. Kal would probably have squealed, too.

  When it was all done, Kal turned to where Lana was sitting on the couch, pouting. “What’s the matter?” he asked, knowing full well that she was mad he hadn’t gotten her anything.

  “Nothing,” she said, not meeting his gaze.

  “Did you think I forgot you?” he asked.

  “Maybe. Of course, you’ve done a lot for me lately, so it’s fine.”

  Kal reached into his back pocket and pulled out a set of car keys. He dangled them in front of her face, giving her a moment to process that they weren’t the keys to his Jaguar or the rental Lexus. There was an unmistakable Mercedes logo on it.

  Lana frowned at the keys for a moment. Then he watched it all click into place on her face. Her dark brown eyes grew wide; then she looked in panic from him, to the keys and back to him. “Are you messing with me?” she asked.

  Kal dropped the keys into her hand. “Why don’t you go look in the garage and see?”

  Lana leaped up from the couch and dashed through the kitchen and laundry room to the garage door. They normally parked out front, so the garage was reserved for tools and the boat he never took out. But parked in the far bay was a sapphire-blue four-door Mercedes SUV.

  “I thought I could return the Lexus to the rental place after Christmas,” he said with his hands buried casually in his pockets.

  Lana ran to the car, opening the door and sliding inside. The interior smelled of leather and new car, one of the best scents she could imagine. She ran her hands over the steering wheel and caressed the dashboard. “This is really mine?”

  “Yes.”

  “It’s not a lease? I don’t have to take over payments?”

  That would be cruel. “No, it’s all yours, free and clear. Now you can drive Akela around in your own car and not get wet when it rains.”

  She just shook her head in disbelief. Finally she stepped out of the car and looked over Kal’s shoulder to the doorway. “Do you two mind watching Akela while I take Kal for a spin?”

  Paige grinned. “Not at all. You two have fun. Don’t run over any reindeer out there.”

  * * *

  Lana’s heart was racing a mile a minute as she started the car and opened the garage door. She backed the SUV out of the driveway at a crawl, afraid that somehow she would ruin her new toy almost immediately. She couldn’t believe a car this nice could really be hers.

  She took her time getting a feel for the Mercedes as they drove around the resort property, and then she turned out onto the highway. They drove south along the western coast of Maui, past Lahaina toward the central part of the island. She finally pulled over at a high overlook where tourists usually stood with cameras and binoculars to watch the humpback whales. No one was out there this late on Christmas Eve, however.

  “Do you like it?” Kal asked.

  “Do I like it?” Lana repeated as she turned off the car. “Of course I like it. But it’s too much, Kal. You’ve done so much for me lately, I didn’t need to get a single thing for Christmas. The wedding, the nursery, the lawyer’s fees, the rental car...”

  “No more than you deserve.”

  She shook her head. She didn’t feel like she deserved all this. She felt naughty knowing she had broken the rules of their arrangement and he just didn’t know it yet. What would he say when he found out she’d gone and fallen in love with him after he told her not to? Lana didn’t need a luxury SUV, she needed a reality check.

  Could anyone blame her, though? Whether or not Kal meant to, he was doing everything in his power to make her fall in love with him. She couldn’t resist his charms. He’d gone from being her playboy best friend to a thoughtful and caring husband and father. When he was with Akela, her heart swelled with emotions watching them together. He was a skilled and tender lover, and a romantic at heart, even if he didn’t know it or admit it to himself.

  She was doomed.

  Lana wasn’t sure how she would ever be able to repay Kal for everything he’d done for her. Somehow the cuff links didn’t seem like enough. She wanted to give him more, but she only had a few things to offer—her heart, her body and her soul. She’d gladly give him all three, although she knew he’d rather just have the body part. So she’d give him that, and he just wouldn’t know he was getting the whole package.

  Putting on the emergency brake, Lana turned to him. “While we’re out here alone, I wanted to say thank you.” Then she slipped her red cashmere sweater over her head and tossed it in the backseat.

  Kal looked around the deserted highway for a moment with concern, then turned back to her. His gaze flickered over her red lace bra and then he licked his lips. “You’re very welcome.”

  Lana tugged her skirt up her thighs, then crawled over her new console to straddle his lap. The spacious leather seats provided enough room for her to sit there comfortably and wrap her arms around his neck.

  Her lips met his without hesitation. She enjoyed kissing him more than almost anything else. He knew just how to kiss her without overwhelming her like some men did. His kisses were erotic and sweet, arousing her and bringing every possible nerve ending to attention. Tonight, the tastes of peppermint and cream cheese icing still lingered on his tongue, as though he were a second helping of their decadent dessert.

  She put her everything into the kiss, pouring her disbelief, her gratitude, her love and her need for him into her touch. Kal’s fingers gripped her hips, tugging the skirt higher until he had handfuls of bare flesh. He bit at his lip and groaned as she shifted her weight and made contact with the firm heat of his desire for her.

  He tore his lips away from hers at last so he could bury his face in her cleavage. Kal licked at her nipples through the lace, teasing them with the rough fabric. Then he tugged the cups down until her breasts spilled out. He drew one nipple, then the other, into his mouth, teasing with his tongue until she gasped aloud. In the small cabin of the car, every noise seemed incredibly loud, but with just the two of them out here, she could make as much noise as she wanted to. No babies would wake up and no nannies or brothers would overhear.

  “You are so beautiful,” he murmured against her skin before he planted kisses on the inner curves of her breasts. “I don’t know how I managed to resist you for the last three years.” Kal’s hand cupped one breast and squeezed it gently. “How in the hell am I supposed to just stop wanting you when all this is over?”

  That was a good question. It was one Lana wasn’t able to answer. If she knew how to flip off her emotions like a light switch, she would feel a lot better about her feelings for Kal. It wasn’t going to be that easy, though. He might want her, but she was in love with him. That would be far harder to overcome. Like with all his other relationships, he would move on and forget about her in the arms of another woman. She didn’t think that would work very well for her. Dating
was a far-off prospect once the divorce was final.

  “You’ll find someone else to warm your bed,” she whispered as she reached down and stroked him through his trousers. “Someone prettier or smarter or more interesting will distract you and then you’ll wonder why you were attracted to me.”

  Kal stiffened beneath her touch, eventually reaching for her wrist and pulling her hand away. “Why would you say that?” he asked.

  Lana looked at him and sighed. “Because it’s true. It might not be the sexiest thing to say in the moment, but you and I both know that you’ll move on from this like you always do. Me...this marriage...it will all become a fuzzy memory after a while. I recommend you do your best to study my body while you have the chance.” She ground her hips into his lap, making his eyes roll back and a growl form in his throat.

  “I might move on, but there’s no way I’ll forget you, Lana. I already know every curve of your body like the back of my hand. I know how you like to be touched. What makes you squirm. What makes you scream. That’s ingrained in my brain for always.”

  Hearing those words from him was like a dream and a nightmare all at once. How could he say things like that, want her the way he did, but not have any feelings for her? Those were the kinds of things you said to a woman you wanted to be yours for always, but he had no intention of keeping her in his bed forever.

  Lana would make herself crazy if she overthought this. She just needed to treasure the moment, treasure tonight, so she would have it in her memory long after he’d moved on without her. “Then make me scream now,” she said.

  Kal’s jaw clenched and he exhaled loudly in response. Reaching down, he hit the button to recline the passenger seat. Lana moved back with him. The incline was just enough to lift her hips. He slipped his hands up under her skirt and felt for her panties. He clenched the fabric in his fist and gave a tug, ripping them from her hips.