JakesWildBride

by Lisa Alder

  He could think of only one way to distract her. He leaned closer, until he was a fraction of an inch from her mouth. “I want to kiss you.”

  Her eyes widened. He watched her mouth form the words, Oh my.

  Jake suppressed a grin.

  Then she licked her lips, and he tamped down the urge to follow through with his statement. Jake leaned closer, forgetting why this was a bad idea.

  “We’re in a public place.” Miss Priss straightened her back. “With half the town here.”

  Damn if he wasn’t starting to seriously like Miss Priss. “You’re right,” he said gravely.

  “I am?” The wistful tone in Lilah’s voice surprised him. Then she straightened again. “I am.”

  “How about we take a walk?” Jake pulled her to her feet and ignored all the interested stares they were attracting. He didn’t want Lilah to feel self-conscious.

  Jake kept Lilah’s hand firmly clasped in his. He liked the feel of it. The smoothness of her palm, the softness of her skin and how small and fragile her hand felt in his.

  Jake rolled his eyes. He was losing it.

  As they passed Peggy’s hospital room, they heard her swearing at her husband. Lilah stopped mid-saunter. “Oh my gosh.”

  That made Jake think about him and Lilah and sex. And Jake relaxed. Thinking about sex was okay. It was normal. Fine.

  “That was Peggy.” Lilah’s eyes rounded at the language coming from her best friend’s mouth.

  Jake grinned. He sure didn’t envy the beleaguered Peter. “Yes it is.”

  Peggy started maligning Peter’s parentage.

  “Oh my gosh.”

  Jake started to sweat. He loved it when Lilah talked dirty. They had better start walking faster or he was going to lose it.

  Jake tugged Lilah along at a good pace. They zipped around the hallways, the smell of antiseptic and baby lotion drifting in the air. He spoke before thinking. “This smell reminds me of my father’s office.”

  “Oh.” She turned toward him. “Did you spend a lot of time there?”

  He could count on two hands the number of times he’d been in the good doctor’s office. “I was a healthy kid.”

  “Didn’t spend much time there, hmm?”

  “Uh, no.”

  “Would you rather not be here?”

  Trust Lilah to pick up on all that he didn’t say and be worried about him. It made Jake smile. “I’m fine.”

  Lilah bit her bottom lip. “But if it’s a bad memory—” Her eyes widened. And he knew exactly what she was thinking about. So was he. The last bad memory she’d helped him dispel was new powerful memory of its own.

  Jake groaned. How was he supposed to ignore this temptation? How was he supposed to ignore this need inside of him to show her how much her worry for him meant? He only knew one way to show her.

  Not in public. Jake opened the door to a storage closet and yanked Lilah inside. Before the door was even completely shut, he had her pressed up against the shelving as he devoured her mouth with his.

  Lilah sagged against the shelving and clutched his shoulders. “Oh, Jake,” she breathed.

  Jake dug his fingers into her hair, anchoring himself to her, as if he held onto her everything would be okay. The feelings inside him so huge, so overwhelming.

  His mouth gentled on hers. Jake smoothed his hands over her shoulders and down her curved waist. She was wearing another dress. This one was lavender with white and yellow daisies. He should hate it. But even the way she dressed was growing on him.

  And then another thought struck him. Jake pulled away from her and staggered back against the other set of shelves. Christ. He was in love with her.

  “Jake?” She reached out to touch him and he jumped back.

  No. He had to be wrong. He didn’t want to be in love with her. Jake stared at Lilah like he’d never seen her before.

  “Oh my gosh.” Lilah’s hands went to her hair and she started shoving pins back in to try to put her hair back together. “I can’t believe we just did that.”

  Even her shocked tone couldn’t budge him. He stood rooted to the floor, still trying to absorb the idea that he was in love with her. In love was a bad idea. A very bad idea. He liked Lilah. And everyone he’d ever thought he’d loved, had left.

  She stopped her muttering and stared straight at him. “Are you okay?”

  “Fine. I’m fine.” But he wasn’t fine. He needed to get out of here. But that would have to wait he couldn’t leave Lilah alone at the hospital.

  Jake edged open the door and peered out into the hallway. “Coast is clear. Let’s get out of here.” Jake slid out the door and kept watch while Lilah did the same.

  He wiped at his mouth to make sure none of Lilah’s clear lip gloss decorated his lips.

  As the door clicked shut, Tom rounded the corner. He took one look at them and scowled.

  Jake scowled back. If Tom said one word to embarrass Lilah, he would deck him. Minister or not. Friend or not.

  Fortunately, Tom didn’t say anything. After exchanging a few comments on Peggy’s condition, Lilah excused herself. “I think I’ll go freshen up.”

  Lilah scuttled toward the restroom. Jake watched her walk away, his heart still beating in overdrive from his discovery. He loved her. What was he going to do about it?

  “Walk with me, Jake,” Tom said affably, but Jake recognized the tone. It wasn’t a request.

  “Sure. How’s it going, Tommy?”

  They walked toward a large picture window.

  “I’m worried about….”

  Jake waited for the condemnation, knowing it would hurt. He wouldn’t ever hurt Lilah, but obviously Tom didn’t think so.

  “You.”

  “Me?” Jake stopped abruptly. “Why are you worried about me?”

  “Do you have any idea what you’re doing?”

  None. He didn’t want to look at his old friend, so he stared through the window and his heart blipped when he saw a room full of babies. Christ. He didn’t know anything about babies. He didn’t want to know.

  “They’re so tiny.” Defenseless. Helpless. Jake tapped the glass, and wondered about babies. He would never expose a child of his to the kind of upbringing he had. “What I’m doing?”

  “With Lilah,” Tom answered patiently.

  Lilah who wanted this baby. Lilah who still cried for a baby she lost years ago. He didn’t want to be a father. He couldn’t be a good father. He absolutely wouldn’t make the same mistakes his parents had made.

  There was only one solution. He had to leave. “I have something to confess,” Jake said.

  That startled Tom. “What?”

  “You don’t need to worry about Lilah being married to me.”

  “Jake, that’s not what I—”

  Jake interrupted and told him. He told him about the fake marriage, and that they were getting divorced. And that he was leaving. He would make sure Lilah had plenty of money to live comfortably. After all, what was he going to do with all the cash from the sale of his company? She and the…baby could have it.

  He would take care of her, and the baby, the best way he knew how. By leaving her alone.

  By leaving her.

  How was he going to tell her?

  Jake focused on that and ignored the way his heart was breaking.

  FIFTEEN

  Jake was gone.

  Lilah leaned against the cold porcelain bowl and rehashed last night.

  The phone had woken her. Lilah had rubbed the sleep from her eyes, and picked up the clock. The red numbers glowed one thirty in the early morning darkness. And then a soft knock at her door woke her completely.

  “Lilah?” Jake whispered, as he bent over her.

  The phone in the middle of the night. Something bad had happened. Lilah bolted upright and grabbed Jake. “Is it Peggy? The baby? Is the baby okay?”

  Jake sat on the edge of the bed and cradled her in his arms. “Shhh. They’re fine. Sorry I scared you.”

 
Lilah slumped, clutching at his very bare chest. “They’re okay?”

  “They’re fine.” He stroked a hand down her hair and pressed her head in the curve of his shoulder.

  “Thank goodness.” Suddenly the reality of their position struck her. She was in bed with Jake next to her, nearly naked.

  She inhaled his scent and let her hands wander over the warm skin of his back. He felt so good.

  “Then what was the phone call about?”

  “I have to go to California for a few days.”

  Jake pressed a gentle kiss into her hair. The bed covers slid down the silky material of her short baby doll nightie. Ordered online from Victoria’s Secret, they were her one indulgence. And bed was the one place where she dressed exactly as she wanted.

  Jake groaned. “That’s what you wear to bed?”

  Lilah smiled at the sheer longing in his voice. “Yes.”

  “Christ. I would have pegged you for long flannel dresses.”

  Lilah skimmed her mouth over the corded muscles of his shoulder. “Ummm. Nope.” Lilah delicately licked at the curve of his neck.

  “You’re trying to kill me, aren’t you?” Jake’s mouth found hers with unerring precision as he pressed her back against a mountain of pillows. His hands slid up to cup her breasts through the silky material and he groaned as her nipples peaked against his palms.

  Lilah slid her hands down to meet the tented material of his cotton boxers.

  “On second thought. What a way to go.”

  And he’d loved her. It had been slow, beautiful love.

  But now he was gone.

  Back to California. Oh, he said he’d be back, as he left her bed with a long lingering kiss. But, Lilah couldn’t depend on him. The only one she could depend on was herself. So, she wiped her mouth, brushed her teeth and started to take control of her life. She had plans to make.

  ***

  Lilah took a deep breath and knocked on her boss’s door.

  Rita opened the door to her office with a guarded smile. “How are you doin’?”

  Lilah twisted her hands together. “Can I come in?” Now she was here, she wasn’t quite sure what to say.

  “‘Course.” Rita walked back around her desk to sit in the ergonomic chair. “So tell me about Jake.”

  Lilah sank into a seat across from Rita and thought about lying for all of sixty seconds. But she couldn’t do it. “We’re married.”

  “I gathered that from the other day. How’d it happen?”

  And Lilah told her. Start to finish. Even about the baby. “I don’t want to lose my job.”

  “Sugar,” Rita said softly. “Even if it weren’t against the law, how could I fire you for following your heart?”

  “My heart?”

  Rita smiled benevolently and said nothing.

  “But what about the girls? What kind of example am I setting?”

  Rita leaned back in her chair and crossed her arms over her ample chest. “You’ll find the right way. I have faith in you.”

  Lilah sought Rita’s advice. They spoke for awhile before she voiced the one fear she hadn’t been able to say aloud. “I don’t know if Jake will stay.”

  “It will all work out.”

  “I’ve made plans.” But Lilah knew there had been something missing from her plans. The something was Jake. Rita’s words came back to her. She had followed her heart. And her heart was his. She broke out in a tentative smile.

  Rita smiled back at her. “Why don’t you go enjoy the rest of your honeymoon. I’ll see you in the office on Monday.”

  ***

  Lilah bounded up the steps to Jake’s house and ran smack into Tom. “Uh, Tom, hi. What are you doing here?”

  Tom shifted, looking uncomfortable. “How are you?”

  “I’m fine.” Lilah frowned. She couldn’t believe Jake would have told Tom about the baby. Could he? “Is everything okay?”

  “I feel like this whole thing is my fault.”

  Lilah watched Tom pace and thought, irreverently, he should be wringing his hands.

  All the way home, she’d thought about Rita’s words. Lilah had followed her heart. Now she just had to figure out how to keep what she’d found. “What whole thing?”

  “Jake, you, the fake marriage.”

  “Oh, so Jake told you.” Lilah sat down in the porch swing. She wasn’t sure what that meant, but she could see from the misery in Tom’s eyes, he felt responsible.

  Lilah patted the green cushion next to her. “Come sit.”

  “I’m sorry.”

  “Why should you be? I’m not.” Lilah felt better for saying it. She wasn’t sorry. She wasn’t sure how this was going to end, but she refused to be sorry about the time she and Jake shared together.

  “You’re not?” Tom frowned.

  “No.” Jake was the best thing she’d let happen to herself. And she would shout it out in church if she thought it would help. Now all she had to do was convince him they should stay together.

  Lilah took Tom’s hand in hers and patted it gently. “I am okay. Please don’t worry about me.”

  She was okay. She was. She was going to convince Jake that they should stay together for them. Not because of a baby. Not for her job. For each other.

  “I feel like I need to offer you my support.”

  “Tom, you are a dear, dear friend.” Lilah bussed his cheek. “And I’m fine.”

  Tom slumped. “Oh, good. Because I see how you look at him and when Jake told me he was leaving, I was worried about you. If you need money or a place to stay, please ask me. I feel as if this is my fault.”

  “Money? No, I’m fine. Wait a minute.” Lilah’s grip on Tom’s hand loosened. “He told you he was leaving?”

  “Well, yeah.”

  Jake had only gotten the call from his company very late last night and flown out early this morning. When could he have told Tom? “When?”

  “Yesterday at the hospital when Peggy was in labor.”

  And with those words, her world crashed in. Jake had known he was leaving. He had made beautiful love to her. And it had been goodbye. She understood enough of his past to realize that Jake wasn’t coming back.

  Lilah could feel this huge aching gap in her body, a soul deep emptiness that she couldn’t fill up.

  Her stomach revolted.

  “I have to go.” Lilah fumbled for the key. She had to get back inside before she embarrassed herself in front of Tom. “Thanks for coming over, I appreciate it.”

  “Lilah.” Tom reached out a hand as if to help her.

  Lilah slammed the door in Tom’s face and ran for the bathroom.

  ***

  Three days later, Jake closed the door softly and leaned against the polished mahogany. He was tired. But he was here. At least for a little while.

  More of a sigh than a word, he heard his name. “Jake?”

  He walked toward Lilah’s voice which was coming from his father’s office. He didn’t even hesitate to cross the threshold.

  Lilah, sleepy and rumpled, rose from the leather sofa. Her hair was down, tumbled around her face like a white nimbus. She peered through bleary eyes, and he could tell the exact moment she saw him, really saw him.

  He rounded the sofa.

  Lilah launched herself into his arms, her soft body cushioned him, welcomed him home. She was wearing another of those slinky nightgowns. His heart stopped. Christ, she was beautiful. Jake couldn’t resist the temptation of her mouth and he greeted her with a tender kiss.

  “You came back,” she breathed.

  His arms came around her and hugged her close. This was coming home. A sense of rightness enveloped him.

  “I told you I would,” he answered softly. He’d been tempted to just stay in California. To leave the boxing of his father’s house to someone else. To send Lilah a giant check and a ‘Thank You’ card and never come back. But he just couldn’t do it.

  And he would have missed this.

  Her arms squeezed him closer. �
�I’m glad you’re home.”

  “I’m glad I’m home, too.” Her arms were home.

  “I didn’t know when you’d be back.”

  He wondered if he imagined her hesitation over the word when. Jake cleared his throat. “I probably should have called.” He’d wanted to. He’d wanted to hear the sound of her voice, so badly he’d lose the thread of the discussion going on, just thinking about her.

  “How did it go?”

  “Good. We finished negotiations late yesterday. Or early today depending on your point of view.” Jake dropped his suit coat onto the leather ottoman, not letting her go. “Crisis averted.”

  “So that’s good?”

  “It’s fine. The final official exchange will be in about a month.”

  She hesitated again. “Are you sorry?”

  “Not really.” And he wasn’t. He’d made the decision to sell for all the wrong reasons, but it was right now. He didn’t like having all those people depend on him for their livelihood. “I didn’t ever get involved in the technical side anymore. I spent all my time on operations and making executive decisions.”

  She nodded, the silk of her hair brushing his chin.

  “Now I’ve got time to figure out what I want to do next.”

  “So you don’t have to go back to work right away?”

  Jake smiled. “Didn’t Tom tell you?”

  Her startled gaze shot to his, eyes wide with some emotion. “Tell me what?”

  “I’ll make enough money from the sale that I don’t have to go back to work for years.”

  “Oh. Well. That’s great for you.” The tone of her voice was casual, but the tension in her body was not. “So what’s next?”

  He’d made some decisions and he wanted to share them with her. He’d figured out what they should do. He wasn’t going to run away this time. “We have to talk.”

  “Right.” Lilah pulled away from him, looking at the doorway.

  “Lilah, wait.” Jake made a grab for her but she had already neatly stepped out of his range. Jake felt the lack of her in his arms keenly. He wanted to pull her back, and hold on to the sense of home he’d felt so briefly.

  “Let me go put some clothes on.” Lilah fumbled with the satin robe that went with the sensuous nightgown, then ran lightly up the stairs.

  “Okay.” Jake watched her go and wondered what he’d said to make her run away.