LITMIR.BIZ

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enough by the hand of grief to last a lifetime and she wasn’t looking for more.

      * * *

      Graham knew she’d fallen asleep within the first ten minutes of the movie. Her hand had gone lax beneath his and she even began to snore quietly. He found himself watching her and smiling. Okay, this little plan of his had backfired in a major way.

      He’d come here for one reason—to start his plan of seduction. Getting her to trust him, to maybe even develop stronger feelings for him, was a must for making sure they came to a mutual understanding where their child was concerned. And when he asked her to be his wife, he was determined that she’d say yes.

      Graham refused to get into a tug-of-war with her over the baby. He refused to allow his child to be a pawn in any family feud, let alone between him and Eve.

      But the second she’d opened the door and let him in, he’d seen just how tired she was. She was struggling to keep her eyes open. Was she not sleeping well at night? Was she not feeling well because of morning sickness? Was she working too hard?

      Knowing Eve, she’d put 110 percent into her day as usual and then dragged herself home to rest in private. He knew she was trying to figure out what he was doing here, why he’d shown up and hadn’t stripped her and made love to her right away. Every part of him wanted nothing more than to peel her out of her T-shirt and leggings. She’d looked damn good dressed down.

      And that was a problem. Seeing Eve in an evening gown was heart-stopping. The way a killer suit hugged her hips nearly had him begging. But when she was just herself, makeup-free and wearing casual clothes, she was the most dangerous. He wanted to think this side of Eve was only for him, that she didn’t expose this part of herself to anyone.

      He shouldn’t want to get more deeply involved with her, but he was a selfish bastard. He wanted all of her. She was the mother of his child and she was his. He didn’t give up on anything he wanted, and he’d never wanted anything more than to be a father.

      This realization hit him hard. Never before had he thought about having a child, yet now he could think of little else. He may not have had a father figure growing up, but he knew the love of a parent. He knew how to put his own needs aside to care for a child and make sure they had a secure life.

      The movie had ended, and the room got dark. Graham turned off the TV, sliding the screen back into the island. Silence filled the room, save for Eve’s soft snores. Pale light from the hall lamp gave enough of a glow for him to see. Graham reached across the bed and smoothed the silken strands of hair from her face. Instantly Eve startled awake. Her heavy-lidded eyes locked onto his.

      “Sorry,” he murmured. “I didn’t mean to wake you.”

      Eve blinked and sat straight up against her mound of pillows. “I never make it through a movie on a good day, let alone when I’m already tired.”

      “Are you not sleeping well?” Concern had him scooting a bit closer. There was too much space between them, literally and figuratively.

      “I’m sleeping fine. That’s the problem. I want to sleep all the time. The doctor said that was normal in the first trimester.”

      A wave of relief washed over him. He knew absolutely nothing about pregnancies, so hearing any morsel of doctor’s advice was comforting. He needed to start reading anything and everything he could get his hands on about this. He wanted to be able to connect with her, to comfort her, and somehow show her that he was there and she wouldn’t be doing this alone.

      “Maybe you should cut back a bit each day at work until this trimester passes.” Her bored glare was all the answer he needed. Not that he thought she’d readily agree, but still. “You’ve only got a few more weeks. Then, when you’re feeling better, you can add those hours back on.”

      “Can I?” she asked, her tone mocking. “I’m so glad to have your permission.”

      Raking a hand through his hair, Graham came to his feet and rounded the bed. “That’s not what I meant and you know it. I’m worried about you.”

      “About the baby,” she corrected.

      “Fine. I’m worried for both of you.” And he was. Only a total jerk would ignore the mother’s needs. “I want what’s best for both of you.”

      Eve stared up at him. A red crease mark from her pillow marred the right side of her cheek, but her eyes were actually refreshed. Her ponytail had slid to one side of her head, random strands had escaped and hung down one side. Yeah, he knew nobody got this view of her, and part of him puffed up with conceit that he was the one here with her.

      “I can’t do this with you.”

      Confused, Graham lost focus on her sexy, disheveled look. “Excuse me?”

      She waved a hand in the air. “This...whatever this is. Your attempt to get to know me or vie for some affection. I don’t know what you’re doing, but I’m not playing games now, Graham. We’re having a baby—that doesn’t mean we have to be a couple.”

      Why did those words feel like a slice to his...what? Heart? His heart wasn’t supposed to be involved. But he sure as hell didn’t like that she was so quick to put him on the back burner. That wouldn’t work with his plan, not one bit. But he wasn’t about to give up. He’d barely gotten started.

      “Maybe I want to make sure we stay on the same track,” he retorted. “Perhaps I want to stay friends with the mother of my baby so we can make this child’s life as amazing as possible without turmoil.”

      “Are we friends?” she asked. “Seriously. We have amazing sex and we’re both workaholics. That’s about all we have in common. Can a friendship be built on that?”

      Graham shrugged. “I’ve had friendships built on less.”

      Eve seemed to study him for a moment before her eyes darted down to her lap where she toyed with the hem of her oversize tee. “It’s getting late,” she whispered.

      If she thought he’d take that as a cue to leave, she didn’t know him. Obviously that was the entire point of his being here. Why did this seem so forced? Why had everything seemed so easy up until very recently?

      Because sex was easy. It was all the emotions that made the struggle real.

      “Do you want me to go?” he asked, needing to hear her say it, but refusing to beg for anything. He eased a hip onto the bed next to her. “Do you want me to leave you alone and simply wait for texts about our child? Because you have to know that’s not my style. I’m not a man who waits for anything. When I want something, I take it.”

      Her mesmerizing eyes slowly came up to his. “And what is it you want? The baby, I know. But we’re a package, Graham. Don’t you see that? I don’t even know how we’re going to make this work. You and I aren’t together, our families hate each other and your brother is so angry and hurt, he’s ready to destroy my father given any opportunity.”

      Tears welled up in her eyes and the sight was something Graham wished he never had to see. “Right now, all that matters is this child. Not your father, not my brother and not this fight. I don’t want you worrying about this, Eve. It’s not good for the baby.”

      She burst into tears. Full-on, hands-over-her-face sobbing. What had he said? Obviously the wrong thing when he was only trying to help. No wonder men and women never seemed to be on the same page. They weren’t even in the same book.

      Clearly words were getting him nowhere and he wasn’t about to leave when she was so upset. Wrapping an arm around her, he pulled her against his chest as she continued to cry. Stroking her back, he attempted some comforting words, but he doubted she could hear them.

      Moments passed and Graham had to wonder if there was something else that was upsetting her. Surely this wasn’t just him. But with all the weight of everything coming down on her, she was bound to break. He didn’t want her broken, but if she had to lean on someone, he wanted it to be him. No other man would be coming

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