LITMIR.BIZ

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he would be happy for her. “I hadn’t heard. Congratulations.”

      She looked at him funny, then said, “I’m four months.”

      Four months? He counted back and realized that their night together had been almost exactly—

      Sam’s gut tightened.

      “Yes, it’s yours,” she said.

      He really hadn’t seen that coming. “You’re sure?”

      She nodded. “There hasn’t been anyone else. Not after, and not a long time before.”

      “I thought you said you had it covered.”

      “I guess nothing is one hundred percent guaranteed.”

      Apparently not.

      “If you require a DNA test—”

      “No,” he said. “I trust your word.” What reason did she have to lie?

      They were going to have a baby. He and the princess. He was going to be a father.

      He had always planned to have a family someday, but not until he was a bit more established in his career. And not until he met the right woman.

      “You’re probably wondering why I waited so long to tell you,” she said.

      Among other things. “Why did you?”

      “I just … I didn’t want to burden you with this. I didn’t want you to feel … obligated. Which I realize now was totally unfair of me. And I apologize. I just want you to know that I don’t expect anything from you. I’m fully prepared to raise this baby on my own. Whether or not you want to be a part of its life is your choice entirely.”

      What kind of man did she take him to be? “Let’s get one thing perfectly clear,” he told her. “This is my child, and I’m going to be a part of it’s life.”

      “Of course,” she said softly. “I wasn’t sure. Some men—”

      “I am not some men,” he told her firmly. “I hope that won’t be a problem for you or your family.”

      She shook her head. “No, of course not. I think it’s wonderful. A child should have both its parents.”

      He leaned back in the chair, shaking his head. “I’m. wow. This is quite a surprise.”

      “I can relate, believe me. This was not the way I imagined starting a family.”

      “I suppose some sort of announcement will have to be made.” He could just imagine what his friends would say. For weeks after the ball they had tried to bully him into explaining his and the princess’s sudden absence from the party, but he’d refused to say a word. Now everyone would know. Not that he was embarrassed or ashamed of what he’d done. “You know that the press will be brutal.”

      “I know. When they learn you’re the father and that we’re not … together, they won’t leave us alone.”

      If that was some sort of hint as to the future direction of their relationship, he hated to disappoint her, but he was not about to give up everything he had worked so hard for, his lifelong dream, for a one-night stand.

      He cared for Anne, lusted after her even, but a marriage was absolutely out of the question.

      Three

      “The press will just have to get used to the idea of us being friends,” Sam told her.

      “I hope we can be, for the baby’s sake.”

      “And your family? How do they feel about this?”

      “So far only my siblings know. They were surprised, but very supportive. My father’s health is particularly fragile right now, so we’ve decided to wait to tell him and my mother. I have to admit that you’re taking this much better than I expected. I thought you would be angry.”

      “It was an accident. What right would I have to be angry? You didn’t force me.”

      “Didn’t I?”

      He wouldn’t deny that she had started it, and she had been quite … aggressive. But he had been a willing participant. “Anne, we share equal responsibility.”

      “Not all men would feel that way.”

      “Yes, well, I’m not all men.”

      There was a short period of awkward silence, so he asked, “Everything is okay? With the pregnancy, I mean. You and the baby are healthy? “

      “Oh yes,” she said, instinctively touching a hand to her belly. “Everything’s fine. I’m right on schedule.”

      “Do you know the sex of the baby?”

      “Not for another month, at my next ultrasound.” She paused, then said, “You could go, too. If you’d like.”

      “I would. Are you showing yet?”

      “I have a little bump. Want to see?” She surprised him by lifting up the hem of her top and showing him her bare tummy. But why would she be shy when he had seen a lot more than just her stomach?

      Her tummy had indeed swelled and was quite prominent considering how thin she was. He wasn’t sure what possessed him, but he asked, “Can I touch it?”

      “Of course,” she said, gesturing him over.

      He moved to the settee beside her and she took his hand, laying it on her belly. She was warm and soft there, and the familiar scent of her skin seemed to eat up all of the breathable air. His hand was so large that his fingers spanned the top of her bump all the way down to the top edge of her panties.

      Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea. Knowing they couldn’t be together didn’t make him want her any less. And knowing that it was his baby growing inside her gave him an almost irrational desire to protect her, to claim her as his own.

      And hadn’t he felt the same way the night they had made love?

      “Have you felt it move?”

      “Flutters mostly. No actual kicks yet. But press right here,” she said, pushing his fingers more firmly against her belly, until he hit something firm and unyielding. She looked up at him and smiled, her mouth inches from his own. “You feel it?”

      Did he ever, and it took all of his restraint not to lean in and capture her lips. He breathed in the scent of her hair, her skin, longing to taste her again, to … take her. But a sexual relationship at this stage, with her all hormones and emotions, could spell disaster.

      She seemed to sense what he was thinking, because color suddenly flooded her cheeks and he could see the flutter of her pulse at the base of her neck. Without realizing it, he had started to lean in, and her chin had begun to lift, like the pull of a magnet drawing them together. But thank goodness he came to his senses at the last second and turned away. He pulled his hand from her belly and rose to his feet. His heart was hammering and she’d gone from looking pale and shaky to flushed and feverish.

      “This is not a good idea,” he said.

      “You’re right,” she agreed, nodding vigorously. “I wasn’t thinking.”

      “It would be in our best interest to keep this relationship platonic. Otherwise things could get confusing.”

      “Very confusing.”

      “Which could be a challenge,” he admitted. Total honesty at this point only seemed fair, as she had been forthcoming with him. “It’s obvious that I’m quite attracted to you.”

      “There does seem to be some sort of … connection.”

      That was putting it mildly. It was taking every bit of restraint he could gather to stop himself from taking her, right there in his office. Pregnant or not,

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