LITMIR.BIZ

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suite.”

      “Exactly,” she said. “Which makes me convenient, that’s all.”

      “That’s not what I meant.” He swept his hands through his hair in frustration. “I’m saying all the wrong damn things. Let’s start over. I believe you, Julia. Jake is mine. I know you weren’t lying. And I want you. I desire you. You. Not some woman sleeping in my suite.”

      She stared up at him, searching his face for answers.

      “I want you, too,” she said finally. “And I’m glad you believe me. But I know you have your rules. I know that once we leave here, you won’t want me anymore. And I can’t go through that. I won’t. Not again.”

      Staring back at her, he saw the resolve. He also saw that if he continued his tender assault, he could melt away her reserve. But at what price? It wouldn’t be what she wanted, what she needed right now. With great reluctance, he stepped back. “You’re wrong, sweetheart. But I’m not going to convince you of that tonight, am I?”

      She slowly shook her head. “I’m sorry.” “You and me, both.” He couldn’t help but lean over and kiss her full, ripe mouth once more. “Sweet dreams, Julia.”

      Five

      His freaking rules.

      Talk about being hoisted by his own … whatever. Cameron punched his pillow, knowing once again that he wouldn’t get much sleep tonight. It was just as well, because he needed to spend some quality time mentally kicking himself. And he really needed to rethink a few things. Like those rules of his. It’s not that he would change them because, frankly, they worked. But he certainly wasn’t going to talk about them anymore. Especially not to a woman who might’ve been lying in his bed this very minute, were it not for him and his big mouth.

      Screw the rules, he wanted Julia.

      How could he convince her that he believed her? He should’ve told her immediately that he knew Jake was his son. He’d known it almost from the first minute he’d seen the handsome little kid. But hell, that wasn’t even Julia’s point, was it? He smacked the mattress in disgust.

      Whatever her point was, he still wanted her. Rules be damned. But if he tried to tell her that, she would think he was just saying it to get into her pants. And while that may be true … no, damn it, it wasn’t.

      He liked her. He liked her mind, and her sense of humor, and her integrity. Okay, he liked her pants, too, and everything inside them. Nothing wrong with that.

      And besides, she was the mother of his child, so they’d be seeing each other at least once or twice a week for the foreseeable future. And since he’d be coming by to see Jake all the time anyway, why shouldn’t they have a … a what? A relationship? An understanding? A regularly scheduled booty call?

      Sounded good to him.

      Oh, right, he thought. Even Cameron was smart enough to know she would kick his ass into next week if he suggested that scenario.

      But she wouldn’t keep him from seeing Jake. No way. Cameron would let her know in the morning they would need to work out a custody arrangement.

      And now that he thought about it, he would have to make sure his house was baby-proofed. He made a mental note to call Housekeeping the next day and tell them to take care of it.

      But just baby-proofing the house wouldn’t make it a home for Jake. He would have to transform one of the bedrooms into a room for the little guy. A bed shaped like a race car. A computer. And toys. A football.

      He would put up a fence around the pool immediately, but he would also teach Jake to swim as soon as possible. His son would be a champion swimmer.

      He would build a super-deluxe swing set on the side of the house, with a slide and monkey bars to play on. And Jake would need a dog. A big one.

      Cameron was just beginning to doze off when it occurred to him that the thought of Jake visiting once every few weeks didn’t appeal at all. Maybe Julia and Jake should simply move into his sprawling home on the cliffs overlooking the bay. The place had six bedrooms. There was plenty of room for all of them and the kitchen was big enough for Julia’s baking stuff.

      Whoa. In a flash, Cameron threw off the covers and sat on the edge of the bed. “Am I insane?”

      What was he thinking? He wasn’t fit to be a father. And he had no business inviting Julia to move in with him. Hadn’t he been through this before? Had he forgotten about Martina?

      Years ago, long after the fiasco with his high school girlfriend Wendy, he’d left the marines and gone to work with his brothers to start up their development company. Through business acquaintances he met the very attractive Martina Moran. He thought he’d learned his lesson where love and women were concerned, but once he met Martina, his good sense flew out the window. She came on strong, and almost as a test of his own will he began dating her.

      Their relationship flourished and he thought he might be falling for her. Anxious to prove he’d grown as a man and was no longer subject to his father’s cruel legacy, he proposed, and Martina said yes. Cameron thought he might be able to finally relax and looked forward to many happy years of married life.

      He had been young, stupid and oh, so wrong.

      It turned out that Martina had been using Cameron to make another man jealous. Her scheme worked and that man, trust-fund baby Andrew Gray, had begged Martina to marry him. She walked out on Cameron as fast as her Jimmy Choo shoes could carry her.

      Cameron had taken Martina’s betrayal as a message from the fates. His birthright could no longer be ignored and he had to force himself to accept that he was, indeed, a bad risk, a loser and irretrievably flawed. It was a hard lesson to learn, but it was for the best that he’d vowed never to give in to love again. It could end only in disaster.

      He was older now, but was he any smarter? Could he actually make this work with Jake and Julia? Did he really have any choice in the matter? Jake was his son and Julia was Jake’s mother. He was determined to make it work. Julia would have to understand that it was all for Jake. As long as they both had Jake’s best interests in mind, everything would be fine.

      He lay back down and as he drifted into sleep, a plan began to form in Cameron’s mind.

      It was an effort just to slide the key card into the door slot, Julia admitted the following evening. She was exhausted. She hadn’t slept well the night before and she’d just spent one of the most grueling conference days ever. She was looking forward to a glass of wine and a long soak in the tub after she got Jake settled for the night.

      But as she stepped into the foyer of the suite, she was instantly assailed by the sounds of controlled madness. Music was playing and people were laughing and talking. Was Cameron having a party? Where was Jake?

      Julia had just spent ten long hours working the conference. She was not in the mood for a party. Could she possibly get away with sneaking straight through to the hall and disappearing into the back bedroom?

      But that would be a spineless act of cowardice. Julia considered the alternatives and decided she was okay with that.

      Before she could make her move, though, a woman about her age walked into the living room and spied Julia lurking in the foyer.

      “You must be Julia,” she said with a smile. “Cameron’s told us all about you.”

      And what was that supposed to mean? Julia wondered.

      “Hello,” Julia said, trying not to eye the other woman with too much suspicion. Not only was she drop-dead gorgeous and tall, with thick brown hair and perfect skin, but she looked really nice and friendly.

      Was Cameron dating her? Not that she would blame him; the woman was lovely. But did he have to rub Julia’s nose in it? Had he invited his friends over for a party? Julia was more convinced than ever that slinking off to the back bedroom was the way to go. She had no place here among Cameron’s friends.

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