Taming Eric
Page 41
“Alex, I have to leave the office for the rest of the day. Reschedule anything that needs to be, ok? Will you be alright without me here? I know you haven’t been my PA all that long and I’m throwing you in the deep end but I have an urgent matter to attend to.”
Alex smiled at him. “Please Mr Rothman, I mean Eric.” When Eric frowned at him for calling him Mr Rothman. “You go and do whatever you need to do.”
Eric gathered up his laptop and wallet and shot out the door, heading for the elevator. He called Henry, his limo driver to come and get him which wouldn’t take long since Henry’s job was as his driver and a lot of his time was spent sitting around doing nothing until he instructed him to take him somewhere. It was probably boring as hell trying to kill hours at a time until Eric needed him again, but he paid Henry well to do just that.
* * *
When he got home Alice rushed to greet him, her expression showing how worried she was about Natasha. “Is she home yet?” He asked and she shook her head.
Damn, where the fuck was she? She’d told him she was heading straight back. He was going to throttle her at this rate if she didn’t at least try and comply with the few simple requests he made of her.
He tried calling her mobile phone but it only went to voice mail and he stopped leaving messages in case she refused to come home if she heard the anger and frustration in his voice. Where the fuck was she? He was going to strangle her when she finally got back. His stomach turned over with nervous tension as worry that something might have happened to her started to consume him. What if she’d had an accident?
It was about an hour later that he finally heard her car pull up in the carport. He shot out the front door and waited while she got out of the car. When she looked at him he saw her swallow nervously before she pulled herself upright and a stubborn look settled on her face. “What are you doing home?” She asked him.
He snorted at her. He would have thought it was obvious why he was home? “I’m home because you not only went out without letting Alice know, you told me you were on your way home and then you didn’t turn up. I tried to ring you but you weren’t answering your phone and Alice was concerned enough to ring me to let me know you weren’t back. So that’s why I’m home. I had to leave the office for you Natasha and you’d better have a damned good excuse for causing me to have to walk out in the middle of a meeting.” His voice was soft but there was an undercurrent of the anger that simmered in him noticeable in his tone. He didn’t really leave during a meeting but he wanted to try and make her feel some guilt for having Alice and himself worried about her.
She was looking at him with nervous tension showing in her stunning eyes. “I went shopping, see?” She held up the bags in her hand to show him but he didn’t shift his eyes from hers.
“You went shopping. So why did you have to sneak off without telling Alice? She would have driven you anywhere you wanted to go or if you really have to shop alone, Henry would drive you.”
She gaped at him before giving him one of her not so lady like snorts. “Oh for crying out loud Eric, I don’t need Alice babysitting me and I don’t need your limo driver either, I can drive myself. Let me enjoy that much at least before I end up too big to fit behind the damned steering wheel.” She snapped at him. She tightened her grip on her bags and brushed past him. “I’m not standing out here all day arguing with you. You can go back to work now.”
He reached out grabbing her arm and she spun around until she was facing him, looking like she was ready to hit him but he simply took her bags from her and followed her into the house.
Alice rushed forward, relief on her face. “Oh thank god Natasha, you’re back. Why did you run off like that? I could have taken you out if you needed a change of scenery dear. There was no need for you to drive yourself.”
He saw Natasha attempt to smile politely at Alice. “I’m sorry Alice for worrying you and I hope I don’t get you in trouble with Mr Grumpy here.” She gestured at him and he sucked in a deep breath. This woman was going to drive him insane with her smart mouth and constant need to battle him and defy him. When he looked over at Alice he had to fight not to smile himself when he saw her desperately trying not to laugh at Natasha’s new name for him. He wasn’t normally grumpy but she had a way of stirring him up all the time. She drove him crazy but fuck he loved her. It was never dull with her around.
“It’s alright Alice at least Natasha is back now.” He smiled reassuringly at the older woman. “Natasha come with me.” He walked to the lift still carrying her bags and she followed him which surprised him since he’d half expected her to fight him.
They were both silent on the way up in the lift and he walked into the bedroom shutting the door behind them once Natasha was in the room. He dropped her bags on the bed and turned to face her. “I’m still waiting for an explanation Natasha as to why you couldn’t let someone know where you were going today.”
“Seriously Eric, if you think I’m going to make excuses for what I did to you, you’re going to be waiting a long time. I’m not a child. I don’t need to get permission to go out and I don’t need to explain my actions to you or Alice.”
Her failure to answer him started to annoy him again. “So what was so bloody important that you had to go out alone?”
“I just needed some time out on my own Eric. I wanted to see something besides the inside of this house. You’re at work a lot, we don’t go anywhere anymore because you’re too focused on treating me like I’m going to break in half if I do the slightest thing and if you want to know what I did while I was out, look in the damned bags yourself.” She shouted before storming off and locking herself in the ensuite.
He waited for a couple of minutes, but she didn’t come back out so he decided to get changed since he was still in his suit. He stripped naked, hanging up his pants and jacket before throwing the shirt in the laundry chute and pulled a pair of jeans off the hanger. He was just stepping into them when he sensed Natasha was near and when he lifted his head she was watching him, her eyes moving up and down the length of him. Hastily he turned his back on her and pulled up his jeans before she could see his body’s immediate response to her presence. Fuck but he so badly needed to get laid, but she never made any effort to come on to him. She didn’t want him like that anymore, he had to accept that.
Once he’d done up his jeans he turned to face her again and she was still staring at him with what looked almost like hunger in her eyes but it was wishful thinking on his part thinking she might have been hungry for him. He groaned and pulled down a t-shirt, hastily dragging it on.
“Why aren’t you going back to work?” She asked him and he explained he’d rescheduled his meeting for tomorrow. He wasn’t lying at least about that part, he did have a meeting for tomorrow.
“I’m still waiting to hear where you went today Natasha.”
“I told you to look in the bags Eric if you want to know where I went.” She brushed past him and started emptying the bags out over the bed. He walked over to see what she had. There were several tiny garments. She’d bought baby clothes? She had to be all stealthy and secretive about baby clothes? What the fuck? Maybe they were just a cover for whatever she’d really been doing?
“You went baby shopping? I thought we could go soon, together and start shopping for what we need for the nursery.”
“That’s the problem though, where is the nursery going to be? This is not my home Eric and once the babies are born, there will be no need for me to stay here anymore.”
“Aren’t you happy living here?” He asked although terrified of the answer.
“It’s not a question of whether I’m happy or not. I’m here because you and my Mother decided I would be better off here while I’m pregnant but once the babies are born, there’s no reason why I can’t go home.”
They weren’t the words he wanted to hear but they’d never discussed what wou
ld happen after she had the babies. He didn’t want her going back to her home though, he wanted her to stay with him. He wanted her to live with him permanently and they could both raise the twins, together, like a real family.
“I don’t want you to leave here Natasha. I like having you in my home and if you and our babies are here, then I can help take care of you all. I can’t do that so easily if you go back to your place.”
“So what are you saying Eric? Are you asking me to move in with you?”
He started to pace the room as he realised that yes, that’s what he was asking. He stopped and met her eyes. “I don’t expect an answer right away, but think about it at least. It’s the most sensible thing to do, for us to live together.”
Something flashed in her eyes but he couldn’t read her expression. He grabbed her shoulders. “I mean it Natasha, think about what I’m saying.”
She nodded. “I don’t think you’re thinking this through properly Eric. What about if one of us gets tired of the living arrangements and wants to move on, start dating?”
Eric’s heart skipped a beat at her words. He didn’t want to think of another man being with her, touching her, making love to her and possibly helping to raise his children. No fucking way!
“Dammit Natasha, haven’t I already proved to you that I don’t want anyone else? I would do anything to protect you and our babies and yet you constantly question me? Maybe it’s you who doesn’t want me anymore?” He ground out.
She snorted at him. “I’m not the problem Eric. You don’t want me. Maybe the sight of my baby bump puts you off, but you don’t want me sexually anymore. You aren’t attracted to me and dammit I’m pregnant, not dead.” She suddenly rounded on him, her eyes flashing her anger at him. “This pregnancy is making me fucking horny you stupid bastard and yet no matter what I try you won’t fucking well make love to me, so screw you. Either let me go home and you find someone else or I’m going to take care of the problem myself.”
While Eric listened to her tirade, his heart started to thump in his chest, a burst of happiness surging through him. She wanted him, fuck, she wanted him. As he watched her a slow grin lit up his face and he saw dark colour flood her cheeks and horror in her eyes when she must have suddenly realised what she’d just said.
“Are you laughing at me, well fuck you Eric.” She stormed over to the bed and reached into another one of her bags and pulled out… FUCK! It was a large colourful vibrator. A vibrator? She bought a fucking vibrator when he’d happily fuck her as often as she wanted it?
She was still going off at him though but he was having trouble focusing on her when he couldn’t take his eyes off that damned vibrator.
“Since you don’t want me anymore. I’ve bought something that will. It’s the Jack Rabbit. Apparently once I’ve had that, I’ll never want anything else, not even you.” She snapped slapping it into his hands and finally her words dragged his attention back to her and away from that fucking vibrator.
What the hell made her think he didn’t want her? She hadn’t wanted him. She’d told him there wasn’t going to be any sex and fuck it, he’d done as she’d asked and not touched her and now here she was acting like the whole damned thing was his fault?
“Why would you feel you need to buy this?” He asked, his eyes returning to the purple vibrator in his hand.
“Fuck it Eric, I just told you why. You obviously don’t want me anymore. We haven’t had sex in weeks. Either my growing stomach repulses you or you’ve got someone else.” Her voice cracked slightly and his eyes shifted to hers.
“Why would you think I have someone else Natasha? When have I had time for anyone else? If I’m not here, I’m at the office.”
“That doesn’t mean much. You told me you have an apartment close to your office. You could be meeting up with someone there.”
Eric couldn’t believe this conversation. How the fuck could she think he didn’t want her. He’d kissed her numerous times and she had to have felt his erection. He had no damned control over his cock anymore when he was around her. He tossed the vibrator on the bed. “Why can’t you get it through your head that I don’t want anyone else? You’re the only woman I want, the only woman I’m ever likely to want.”
“Well you have a funny way of showing it. I’ve tried to get you to show some interest in me but nothing. I don’t understand. If you’re not making love to me, who are you making love to Eric? You have a high sex drive and we haven’t had sex since the morning after the seafood restaurant.”
“You could have just told me you wanted to have sex.” He thought but instead he pointed out. “You’re the one who made it clear you weren’t going to sleep with me Natasha. That one time we made love and you got sick after it was a one off deal. Afterwards you again made it clear that I wasn’t to assume that we were going to resume the same level of sex we had in the hotel and then you got sick dammit. Remember? You scared the hell out of me. I’m not going to take advantage of you while you’re recovering from such severe morning sickness. It’s my fault you got sick in the first place. If you weren’t carrying my babies it would never have happened.”
She groaned. “Dammit Eric, will you stop this crap? It’s not your fault I got sick. I’m not the first woman to get morning sickness bad enough to put me in hospital and I sure as hell won’t be the last. It’s got nothing to do with the fact that I’m carrying your babies. It could have happened regardless of who the Father was.”
He stared at her torn. He so badly wanted to make love to her, but he was scared. Scared of making her ill, scared of hurting her or harming their babies.
She threw her hands up in the air at his facial expression. “Oh for fuck sakes Eric. Stop twisting this around. You don’t want me, that’s obvious. I’ve tried to tease you into wanting me, but nothing. All you ever do is turn away or go and have a bloody shower.”
He stared at her. Fuck she was driving him crazy. This conversation was crazy. “For starters Natasha, you’re the one who made it perfectly clear you weren’t going to sleep with me. You wanted me to prove that I wanted you in my life, not just to have sex with you and have you ever wondered why the hell I have so many fucking showers?” He found himself yelling at her with his frustration. He didn’t give her a chance to answer. “It’s because I get so tired of walking around with a permanent damned hard on and the only fucking relief I can get is to take care of it sometimes in the shower, ok? I fucking well jack off in the shower.”
He turned away from her and began to pace the room again. “So are you happy now? I want you alright. I want you so fucking much my body aches all damned day and night but I’m trying to do as you requested and I don’t want to fucking hurt you ok? You got sick, sick enough to end up in hospital. What sort of animal would I be if I tried to have sex with you after what you’ve been through? You’ve accused me of rape once already. I won’t put myself in that position again dammit.” His voice cracked.
Her eyes widened in shock at his emotional outburst. “I’m sorry Eric, I should never have said that to you. I was just upset and we’d been fighting. I hated that I could respond even just a little after what was happening to us. Maybe I should have just come out and told you I wanted us to make love, but I don’t have that kind of confidence, I’m no good at seducing you, I don’t even know how. I thought if I tried to tease you with glimpses of my breasts and bent over in front of you that you would get the message.”
Eric silently groaned. So much wasted time. She’d been doing that teasing act for weeks and he thought she just wanted to punish him. If only she’d just made what she wanted clear to him. “Dammit Natasha, I thought you were just trying to make me suffer for what I’d done to you. So now we’ve established that I want you and you want me but that doesn’t change anything. I won’t put your health or the health of our babies at risk.”
She walked over to him and placed her hands on his chest. Just
one light touch from her and his cock leapt to attention. “Eric, stop being such a fool. I’m not sick anymore. Women can have sex while they’re pregnant and before I left the hospital I asked the doctor about it and he said there was no reason why we couldn’t have sex if I wasn’t feeling sick. So now it’s up to you. Will it be you or the Jack Rabbit?” Her eyes searched his.
What he wanted to do and the little voice in his head that warned him not to harm her battled within him as he stared down at her. Finally she pulled away from him and walked away. “Well, while you’re thinking about it, I need the bathroom.”
Eric watched her as she headed into the ensuite and closed the door behind her. He closed his eyes, his mind racing with her words. Fuck, she did want him. He wanted her too so damned much. His cock pressing hard against the fly of his jeans reminded him how much but fear still clawed at his stomach. He couldn’t handle it if he hurt her or their babies. What if she got sick again? As he stood waiting for her to come back out, he worked on a list of pros and cons in his mind. He didn’t know what to do but he did know that the woman he loved was going to drive him completely and irrevocably insane.
CHAPTER 19
The minutes ticked by and Eric finally gave up waiting for Natasha to come back out of the bathroom and he went out onto the verandah, staring over the rail but not really seeing the view. His mind was too busy going over the conversation he’d just had with the woman hiding out in the ensuite who managed to infuriate, frustrate and drive him crazy with desire. What the hell was she doing? Had she decided to have a shower or something? Nothing would surprise him. She was a woman and he was beginning to realise, no matter how old he got, he was never going to understand them.
What he didn’t know was what he was going to do when she finally came out of the bathroom. God he wanted her and she’d made it perfectly clear that she wanted him, but the image of her collapsing from dehydration kept flashing through his mind and he was scared, scared of hurting her, scared that sex after her having been so ill might be too much for her.