Chapter Thirteen
Joaquin had goneback to the office after her scan, dropping Siobhan at the spa so she could have her hair done for the LVG Christmas party tonight.
After an afternoon of pampering that included a nap on the massage table, she arrived home to find him asleep on the bed, ankles crossed, arms folded, still dressed in his shirt and trousers from the office.
She softened her step as she crossed to the closet, not wanting to wake him when neither of them had been sleeping well since she’d moved in, but he’d shown her such concern, she’d melted every time.
More tender feelings had accosted her today when he’d revealed so much of himself. He’d pulledherheart from her chest as she recognized how much loss he’d suffered and how very hard it was for him to open himself as a result. It made her want to show him it was safe to let down his guard.
Even though letting her own guard down meant risking her heart even further.
“Siobhan?” He cleared the gruffness from his voice.
“Yes. I’m here.” She poked her head out of the closet.
“Blond.” He turned his head on the pillow, mouth quirking in a hint of a smile.
“Yes.” She pulled a kimono over the bra and underwear she’d just changed into and came out to do a small twirl, showing him the way her hair had been styled half-up, half-down. “When I made the appointment, I was planning to have my roots touchedup, but now that I’m pregnant, I don’t want the chemicals on my scalp. This was foils and won’t be so obvious when the color grows out.”
“It’s pretty. You are.”
“You haven’t seen my dress yet.”
“I’m enjoying the lack of one, if I’m honest.” He tucked his arm beneath his head and let his gaze track to where her legs were revealed by her short robe.
They hadn’t talked about sex since the night he’d slept at her flat. She’d been sick and he’d been very chivalrous. It was all very Victorian.
But the doctor’s endorsement had been heavy on her mind all afternoon, intertwining with her desire to feel closer to him. She did feel a lot better today, having skipped the troublesome vitamin.
Very tentatively, she slid one lapel of the robe off her shoulder, revealing the strap of her cranberry-red bra. “Any chance you’re feeling festive?”
“Are you?” He didn’t move, but his voice deepened. A watchful tension came over him. “I thought you preferred we keep things platonic.”
She had been sincere when she said she was afraid she would fall in love with him, but she was already halfway there. And how could she convince him it was safe to love if she wasn’t willing to let it happen to her?
“I also said sex would probably happen if I moved in,” she said wryly, drawing the robe back onto her shoulder. “But if you don’t want to…”
“I do,” he said firmly. “Badly. I think about it a lot. But once we’re down that road, it will be hard to go back.”
“I know.” She moved a little closer to the edge of the bed. “But I keep thinking that we’re living together and starting a family and presenting ourselves as a couple. Shouldn’t we try to be one?I mean…” Her smile turned itself upside down. “Fate must be wondering how many more messages it has to send.”
“If we do this, it’s because we’re making that choice. You know that, right?”
“Yes. Sound mind and body,” she said with a small eye roll.
“And you want to make that choice?” He held out his hand.
Very much.
Her heart turned over as she walked closer to the bed, shedding the kimono as she went.
His breath hissed in and his laser-focused gaze practically seared her skin as he took in the underwear that formed a V across her hips.
“But can you make love to me without ruining my hair and makeup?” she challenged as he guided her to sling one leg over his hips. She pinched her elbows together, using her upper arms to mash her breasts together, leaning forward so he had a good view of them threatening to spill from the tops of her bra cups. “Because I paid a lot of money to look this good.”
“Worth every centimos,” he said in a thick voice. His hands bracketed her hips. He dragged his gaze up to hers. “Mi cielo, I am certain you are about to ruin me. I’m looking forward to it.”
She smiled, wallowing in a sense of feminine power as she opened his shirt buttons, starting at his waist and working her way up. As she shifted, his erection pressed beneath her.
