The Baby Deal

by Alison Kelly

  Her breath came out in a rush as he reduced the distance between them with slow, determined strides.

  Her words came out as a moan as his fingers ploughed into her hair and tilted her head back.

  And her response came out as a gratified groan as his arousal pressed against her belly…

  The intensity of their combined heat caused her vision to haze, but she met his gaze without blinking.

  ‘How much of that night do you remember?’ he demanded, his voice rasping.

  The underlying desperation in his voice dragged the truth from her. ‘Too much for me to deal with then.’

  ‘How much?’ he pushed, one hand palming her buttocks to draw her nearer.

  ‘All of it,’ she whispered, arching into him. ‘I remember all of it…’

  Uttering a murmured prayer, he swooped on her mouth, claiming it with a fevered passion that both matched and increased Amanda-Jayne’s own. Long moments later, he scooped her into his arms and carried her to the bedroom.

  Not trusting his desire-weakened knees to keep him upright a second longer, Reb lowered her to the ground inside the door and turned to lock it. His breath caught as her knuckles slowly grazed the indentation of his spine from the base of his neck to the towel riding his hips. With nothing more than a light tug it fell to his ankles.

  He spun around in time to catch the surprise of her action still reflected in her own eyes, but it was superseded so quickly by a look of such pure feminine appreciation that Reb almost choked on his ego.

  ‘You’re beautiful.’

  Her words were a shy, breathy whisper, but the touch of her fingers low on his belly jolted him from his bemused stupor. Seizing the hem of her T-shirt with both hands, he pulled it off and tossed it aside in one motion.

  ‘So,’ he said roughly, in a voice he didn’t recognise as his own, ‘are you.’

  Amanda-Jayne shivered with a curious blend of fear, pleasure and anticipation as he placed the heel of his hand at the base of her sternum, before gently gliding it downwards. Conscious that her stomach was no longer flat, she immediately tried to suck it in.

  ‘Don’t,’ he said, his voice as firm as his touch was light, his eyes swimming with desire. ‘I want you exactly as you are now.’

  It was as much the effect of the evocative admission as the request itself that had her breath gushing from her and her hands grabbing at his forearms to keep her steady, as his hand continued its downward caress and his eyes continued to bore into hers.

  ‘I want to make love to the mother of my child,’ he went on, his voice and hands both getting hypnotically lower. ‘And know she’s not resentful of that child. Or of me.’

  ‘I’m not!’ Passion and truth mangled her voice into a throaty cry. He smiled, but he gave no chance for further avowal.

  ‘I want,’ he said, his fingers delving through the tangle of curls towards the damp heat he had created—a heat which continued to build with every word he uttered, every movement of his hand, every brush of his lips against her throat— ‘I want,’ he repeated raggedly, ‘to know that you want me as much as I want you…’

  His fingers continued to torture her mind by insidiously dallying at the feminine heart of her with a promise it cruelly refused to deliver. A promise of the one thing which would bring the release she craved.

  ‘Tell me, babe,’ he cajoled, against her ear, his other hand massaging her buttocks. ‘I want to know how much you want me.’

  More than my next breath, her body screamed, but the affirmation stalled in her throat at the thought of how much power she was giving him; how much of her emotions she was exposing. She was suddenly unsure of herself, her desire fighting with her pride; a sob rose in her throat and she buried her face in his shoulder to muffle it. But in that instant that the realisation registered his body was trembling more fiercely than her own, banishing her fears and replacing them with a heady joy.

  It wasn’t some macho power play that was prompting Reb to demand verbal declarations of her desire for him…it wasn’t ego. It was disbelief. He didn’t just want to hear her admit to the sexual attraction he held for her, he needed to hear it!

  That knowledge simultaneously made her feel more vulnerable and yet stronger and more confident than anything else ever could have. Spurred on by a heady sense of sensual freedom she’d only ever felt with him but subsequently had pushed from her mind out of a misplaced sense of shame, she seized his head in her hands and claimed his mouth in a sizzling kiss. She wanted to test out her new confidence, to make him tell her exactly how much he wanted her…

  But somewhere along the way she lost focus of her objective, got caught up in the flavour that was uniquely him, became distracted by the tiny sparks that the touch of his hand against her breasts sent showering into her belly. The tiny mews of delight he elicited from her as his tongue mated with hers, his throaty growls as her teeth tested the texture of his muscular shoulders, knitted with their erratic breathing pattern to form the most erotic symphony she’d ever heard.

  Under his skilful handling, her arousal spiralled higher and higher, her internal organs growing hotter and hotter until she was slicked with sweat inside and out. Passion fogged her thoughts, desire and lust clouded her memory and she forgot everything but the ‘Bad Boy’ in her arms. The man who’d fulfilled her beyond her wildest imaginings; the man who’d given her the child she’d thought she’d never have.

  Reb gave up trying to stay in control. He hadn’t been able to that night in Sydney and he knew he didn’t have a hope now. This woman held a power he couldn’t rise above. With all except her he’d been able to maintain his sense of self, the knowledge that his desire wasn’t ungovernable, the certainty that when the mutual lust was spent nothing in his life would be changed. He’d been Amanda-Jayne’s lover for just a few hours yet in that time his entire future had been re-routed. Now she was his wife and the mother of his child… To love her again was, he suspected, to put his heart, perhaps his very soul, at risk. But God help him…he didn’t give a damn!

  Though his emotional strength was all but gone, physically it was no effort to lift her against him, yet as her legs wrapped around him the shudder his body gave made him grateful for the support of the door against his shoulders. It was then, in that indefinable space of time between settling her damp core against him and taking what at this moment he needed more than life itself, that she lifted her head to stare at him through desire-smoky eyes and whispered something that lit his inner uncertainty with a spark of hope…

  ‘I want you, Reb… Only you…’

  Amanda-Jayne supposed that the total absence of ‘morning after’ awkwardness she felt as Reb stirred to wakefulness beside her was due partly to the fact that it was after midday and partly because of the passion and intimacy of their lovemaking. Then again, she thought wryly, considering she’d just discovered a wonderful new flexibility she hadn’t guessed she possessed it was probably only logical ‘awkward’ was the last word she’d be apt to apply to herself or should expect to be feeling.

  So what was she feeling? Bemused? Stunned? Amazed? Satiated beyond her wildest dreams?

  Well, yes. All of those things. But she was also feeling that maybe her marriage had a brighter future than she would have credited to it as recently as this morning. It wasn’t just the incredible sex they’d shared which had her thinking along these lines, although Lord knew Reb’s prowess in that department could turn a woman’s head inside out! No, what had really surprised her was the intangible…well, the intangible connection, she supposed, that she’d experienced in his arms.

  It would have been easy to attribute that to a bond provided by their unborn child, but to do so would have been to lie to herself again. The connection she’d felt with Reb today had been exactly the same one which had sent her fleeing from his bed under the cover of darkness four months ago. Now, however, the bed they shared was flooded in sunlight and the consequences of that long-ago night prevented her from running from the situati
on. In fact she wasn’t sure she’d have run even if she could have, or indeed had somewhere to go.

  What woman in her right mind would leave a man who not only was the most incredible lover she’d ever had, but who showed her more tenderness and consideration than anyone she’d ever known? Reb’s constant enquiries as to what gave her pleasure, what was and wasn’t safe for the baby, had revealed a thoughtfulness and concern she’d never expected. All her life she’d been told she was special, but no one—at least no one who didn’t have anything to gain financially from her or her family—had ever treated her that way. Until Reb Browne.

  The dreamy sigh that escaped her was unintentional but loud enough to have the man beside her up on one elbow and giving her a smug, teasing smile.

  ‘You sound and look very well satisfied. Any particular reason?’

  She grinned. ‘I could say the exact same of you,’ she said, feeling immensely proud that she was capable of not just exciting but satisfying a man like him. ‘What’s got you looking so wonderfully cheerful?’

  ‘Oh, just that it’s occurred to me that my petrol expenditure is going to be greatly reduced from now on.’

  Now there was a reality check! Talk about pride going before the fall!

  ‘Oh,’ she said, now having to force her smile. ‘That’s nice.’

  ‘Mmm,’ he agreed. ‘That pampered blue toy you call a car won’t go through near as much juice now that you’ll have other things to do in the middle of the night when you can’t sleep, instead of taking those long, aimless drives alone.’

  Amanda-Jayne’s world immediately shifted back into its perfect place and took her heart with it.

  ‘You know,’ he continued in a conversational tone, ‘I reckon it’s a toss-up whether those nocturnal excursions have cost me more in lost sleep and worry or in dollars.’

  ‘Well, then, I’ve got an idea as to how to solve the problem of your worry. We could take those drives together. You’d still be out of pocket and short of sleep,’ she said, drawing a fingernail lightly across his jaw, ‘but I’ve always been curious about what it would be like to make love in a car.’

  ‘Witch!’ Reb groaned, and rolled onto his back, taking her with him. ‘But I’m sorry, you’ll just have to stay curious,’ he murmured against her mouth. ‘Cos a lady like you deserves a whole lot better than that.’

  Amanda-Jayne wanted to argue the point, but not as much as she wanted to continue kissing him…

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  ‘GEE, Reb, did you leave the cat any cream? I’ve never seen you so happy about changing a head gasket.’

  ‘We don’t have a cat, Savvy.’

  ‘We don’t have much in the way of a pantry any more either,’ his cousin replied, handing him the spanner he wordlessly requested with nothing more than an outstretched hand. ‘I think you need to tell your wife that, while we appreciate her cordon-bleu cooking, groceries don’t replenish themselves.’

  Reb straightened from his bent position over the engine, worried that the fragile truce A.J. and Savvy seemed to have established in the last few weeks was in danger of shattering at his feet. Since the consummation of their marriage, A.J. seemed to be a lot more relaxed and tolerant towards everything and everyone, but particularly his young cousin. Reb had to admit that he wasn’t finding it a whole lot of hardship being married to Amanda-Jayne Vaughan; she was talented in the kitchen, even more so in the bedroom, and creative in both. When a man had his two biggest appetites so well nourished he’d be greedy to ask for anything else.

  Wouldn’t he?

  Uncomfortable with the wandering direction of his thoughts, he shifted them to his cousin.

  ‘I thought you both just came back from shopping,’ he said.

  Savannah rolled her eyes, the action causing Reb to notice her make-up was noticeably underdone compared to her usual standards.

  ‘We did,’ she said. ‘But A.J.’s idea of grocery shopping is so frugal I figure the Vaughans made all their money starving themselves! I mean it, Reb,’ she said when he laughed. ‘I put two packets of chocolate biscuits into the trolley and she took them out, saying they weren’t a necessity.’

  ‘Obviously she hasn’t noticed the link between you, PMS and chocolate withdrawal,’ he teased.

  ‘Well, I hope you hang onto your sense of humour when you find yourself drinking powdered orange juice in the morning instead of the real thing. And when you discover the tomato sauce you’ve smothered your sausages in is that cheap generic brand you hate.’

  ‘Sausages? Aw, Savvy, I loathe sausages, you know that!’

  ‘According to A.J. that’s only because you haven’t tasted hers.’ She shrugged. ‘Personally I’ll eat just about anything so long as I can have my supply of my chocolate bickies, but I have to warn you…things could get ugly if I suddenly have to go cold turkey on them. And—’ Three sharp blasts of a car horn had her turning towards the entrance of the workshop. ‘Oh, gosh, Kara and her mum are here; gotta go!’

  Reb frowned even as he recognised the car. ‘Go where, exactly?’

  Again he was treated to the rolling-eyes routine. ‘To Kara’s sister Michelle’s place. We’re baby-sitting while she’s studying at tech, remember?’

  ‘Oh, right. How are you getting home?’

  ‘I’m not. I’m staying the night.’

  ‘At Kara’s?’

  ‘At her sister’s. Geez, Reb, I told you this once already. Where has A.J. got you keeping your mind these days?’

  Reb ignored the leading question. ‘What about your homework?’

  ‘It’s in the bag!’ Grinning, she patted her shoulder satchel. ‘See ya!’

  Satisfied there was no reason to say she couldn’t go, he grunted approval, adding to her rapidly departing back, ‘Be careful. And phone if there’s a crisis.’

  ‘Yeah, phone anyone but Reb,’ Debbie tossed in, crossing from the office. ‘His idea of getting a kid to stop cryin’ and co-operate is to bribe them with sugar.’

  ‘There’s no law that says a man can’t buy treats for his goddaughter occasionally,’ he said in his defence, pulling a cigarette pack from the chest pocket of his overalls. ‘Matter of fact I think it’s mandatory.’

  ‘Married life must be gettin’ to you,’ Debbie said dryly. ‘You’re smokin’ more than ever these days.’

  ‘No, I’m smoking less,’ he said, bypassing the solitary cigarette in the packet and extracting a foil of nicotine gum from beside it. He unwrapped it and popped it into his mouth, grinning smugly. ‘A.J. asked me not to smoke upstairs on account of the effects of passive smoking on the baby so if I am desperate the only chance I get to light up is when I’m down here.’

  ‘Well, whoopee for Saint A.J.! My smokin’ never did Alanna any harm.’ The aggressive tone of the response set Reb’s teeth on edge.

  ‘As I recall, Debbie,’ he said tightly, ‘New Year’s Eve you claimed Alanna was the reason you were determined to kick the habit this time. So by rights you should be applauding A.J.’s actions, not sneering at them.’

  The blonde head dipped to the invoices she held. ‘About these bills—’

  ‘Forget the bills for the time being,’ he said. ‘I want to know why you’re having such a hard time accepting A.J. Gunna seems to be getting on with her well enough.’

  ‘Gunna, like most men, thinks with his—’

  ‘Do not go there, Debbie!’ he cut in harshly. ‘This is my wife we’re speaking about here. And, I might add, your partner.’

  The petite blonde had the grace to look shamefaced.

  ‘Now, how about you tell me what your real problem with A.J. is? ’Cos it’s getting way too hard for me to ignore it any longer.’

  ‘I don’t— No, damn it! If you must know, I think she’s the greatest snob on two legs! I think she’s suckered you big time and that even though you’re in sex heaven right now in the end she’s going to break your heart.’

  Reb sighed, debating how to respond. He had his own theories on the heart
break bit, but since he’d avoided examining them too closely himself he sure wasn’t going to air them publicly. As for who’d suckered whom… He was the one keeping secrets. A.J. had at least taken him at face value, whereas he’d hired an investigator to probe her personal and financial life. But that was something only he and A.J. knew about and, while he’d had his reasons for doing what he did, these days he was sufficiently ashamed of his actions not to want anyone else to know. So where did that leave him…?

  ‘Of course A.J. is a snob,’ he heard himself say. ‘Her father spent a fortune sending her to expensive schools and deportment and elocution classes that mastered in snobbery. In fact she has scads of certificates to prove she’s a snob…’ He couldn’t stifle a smile as he paraphrased A.J.’s words to him. Although he doubted he’d looked quite as surprised hearing them from A.J. as Debbie did when they sprouted from him.

  ‘As for her legs…’ He winked. ‘I’d argue they’re the best you’d find anywhere.’

  Debbie despairingly shook her head. ‘I swear, Reb, I’d be less worried about you if someone produced proof your body had been taken over by aliens.’

  ‘Trouble with you, Deb, is you read too much Stephen King. But how about you do me a favour…? Lighten up on A.J., okay?’

  The muscles at the side of her mouth momentarily pinched before she said, ‘Fine. As long as you keep her out of my office. I’ll take orders from you, but I’ll quit before I take them from her, because your certified snob doesn’t know a spark plug from a fan belt.’

  Reb grinned. ‘I know that. Trust me, I’m not going to suddenly make her head mechanic.’

  ‘Maybe not, but you haven’t done anything to discourage her from coming in here every day with her “Can I do anything to help you, Debbie?” act.’

  Reb couldn’t deny being aware of the fact that A.J. had started venturing into the garage more often of late. Truth be told, he was so constantly aware of her whenever she was in the garage, his pulse practically logged her time of arrival to the second, the number of breaths she took while she was here and the precise time she left! But he hadn’t known she’d been offering to help out around the place. He wasn’t sure what to make of that, but he doubted she had any sinister intent to take over.