He pulled up in front of her apartment. He looked at the building and felt an edge of panic attack. Damn, when was the last time he had felt this was way about a woman. He couldn't remember.
He got out of the car, closed the door behind him, then remembered the flowers. A moment later, daffodils in hand, he walked up the stairs.
He knocked on the door and seconds later he heard movements inside. No one opened the door, and he rang the bell. A moment later, the door opened and he saw Karen. There was no smile on her face as she pulled open the door. He understood. He had hurt her best friend. She probably hated him too.
"Hi Daniel" she said.
"Hi, Karen" he said. He saw her eyes go to the bunch of flowers in his hand. He shifted his feet, awkward suddenly as an unwanted suitor.
"I have come to see Emma" he managed to say. "Is she in?" he asked.
"No she is not" Karen said, then she add
Anger blazed from him. "Being independently wealthy does not give you the right to keep me in ignorance of my own flesh and blood.”“I was going to tell you, Daniel,” she said.“When?” he bored in."I don't know" Emma said, she was staring to get angry. The last thing she needed right now was to argue with him. "Maybe... After the baby was born. When it was a real child.” she said.“A real child?” His voice rose in incredulity. His gaze went to her stomach again.”You don’t think that’s real?”When she didn't reply, he added. "Didn’t it ever occur to you that I might want to provide every care to ensure that my child is safely born?"No, it hadn’t. She’d had no experience of men caring to that degree. It was women who did the looking after. And she had honestly believed he wouldn't want the baby. He was the one who took off when things started to get a bit serious between them. He di
And now she was pregnant. And he was threatening to take away her baby. He seemed to be looking for new ways to make her life miserable. Like he hadn't done enough.She rubbed her forehead tiredly, willing the ache to go away. She was tired, and in no position to defend herself from whatever onslaught Daniel was preparing.Her fingers tightened and anger penetrated the haze. Why the hell was she sitting on a park bench hiding? She wasn’t in the wrong. Daniel couldn’t make her do anything he wanted; and, furthermore, he would leave her apartment or she would get a restraining order against him. He had no power over her.She breathed in deeply, steadying her shot nerves. Yeah, he had caught her off guard. She hadn’t been prepared to see him... Or prepared to hear him say what he had said. But that didn’t mean she was going to let him mow over her.Even as she made that resolution, nervous fear fluttered in her chest a
To his utter surprise, she slumped down onto one of the chairs and buried her face in her hands.To his further dismay, her shoulders shook and quiet sobs erupted from her bowed head.For a moment he stood there, unsure what to do. He couldn't stand seeing her cry. An uncomfortable feeling settled in his stomach and he dropped down to one knee to gently pry her hands from her face.She looked away, seemingly discomfited by the fact he was witnessing her breakdown.“What’s wrong, Emma?” he asked gently.“I'm so tired...and scared". She whipped her head up, her eyes flashing. “But this is none of your business. I can handle myself, Daniel. I don't need your help. You walked away before so please just leave again. Your presence isn't making me feel better at all. Just give me my keys and go away please.”He stared incredulously at her. “Do you honestly expect me to just walk away now?” He shoved
It was the only word he could grasp as he looked at the tiny life on the screen. A whole new life, created from nothing but the urgent, overwhelming desire between the both of them.And seeing that miracle, and the one on Emma's face as she saw it, too, the undisguised incredulity and rush of happiness, he couldn’t help but be deliriously happy with her.It wasn’t that he wasn’t stomach churningly terrified still, he just realised that that fear didn’t have to be all consuming. He could be worried to his bones about what effect this little child would have on his life, but still be absolutely, unbelievably happy that they’d made their baby.He squeezed Emma's hand a little harder, and she turned her face towards him, her eyes and cheeks lit with happiness and wet with tears.Her lips widened into a smile. “She’s beautiful!”“Y
Weeks passed.They barely saw each other after that, not that Emma wanted to. It hadn't been easy telling him she fell in love with him. And he had ignored it and left like it didn't matter. And it didn't. She told herself over and over again. She had more important things to think about right now.The few times they saw each other at the office, they only spoke about work. It was like they were pretending that everything was the same..That nothing had changed. And Emma didn't know if she should be mad at him or grateful that he kept his word not to bother her.Most people at Kay Corp knew she and Daniel were in some kind of affair. And she was able to ignore her the rumors and whispers. But for some reason it was harder now, especially since she was starting to show.But office rumors were the least of her problems. She felt horrid, sick all the time, exhausted, and worried. And she was miserable because no
He looked contrite and gorgeous. As always. Apparently he was coming over to see her... Or maybe Frank. She stood staring at him, her hands on the door knob.Monica and Karen looked at her and smiled.“Speaking of the devil” Karen said, then she wishpered “Be nice”And with that they were running down the stairs and out the door, leaving Emma and Daniel standing there, silent, staring at each other."Hi" he said finally."Hello"“look,” he began. “I know you said you wanted me to leave you alone, and I know I said I would. But I was sitting home alone, trying to figure out what to do with myself, and I realized the only thing I wanted was to see you. This is crazy, we have to find a way to get along. I know you keep saying you are okay, but I'm worried about you and I just.... I just wanna check on you... And the baby"Emma stared at him. She wanted to play it cool,
He draped a blanket over her, then sat on the edge of the bed, staring at her pale lips and the bruised circles under her eyes. He picked up a cool lock of her hair, not wanting to wake her, but needing to touch her, even if it was only a silky tress wound around his finger.He missed her. And he hated that she wouldn't accept his help. He hadn’t meant to put such a schism between them. How was he going to make her understand that he cared. When she wouldn't even let him say anything or make a suggestion without fighting him.His concentration at work had been shot. Since that day she announced she loved him... Or used to love him. He wasn't sure she still did. Not after he had been a jerk...He hadn't even known what to say. Except that the urge to take care of her and protect her was stronger than ever.He remembered that look in her eyes when he called things off in her office. He squeezed his eyes shut. Bowing his head, he didn’t
“Breakfast is ready. I was waiting on you to eat.” he said.Wordlessly, she followed him into the kitchen where she saw a table set for two. Taking a platter off the warmer, he carried it over to the table and began spooning healthy portions of eggs, toast and ham onto their plates.As she sat down, she was forced to admit that she felt better than she had in weeks. She had certainly gotten more rest in the past hours than she had in a long time.“How are you feeling this morning?” he asked as he took a seat across from her. "Did you sleep well?"“I'm fine. Thank you,” she mumbled around a mouthful of egg. "This is delicious".Daniel smiled.Her appetite was coming back and she concentrated on the delicious food in front of her. This whole thing was weird. The ultra politeness. The cozy breakfast for two. It was so awkward that she wanted to go back to the bedroom and crawl back int
Emma stood in front of the bathroom mirror and looked at her reflection.She had a towel around her. After she had breastfed and put Jack to sleep, she and Daniel had returned to their bedroom. And right now, Emma couldn't remember if she had ever been this happy in her life.... She couldn't believe how amazing everything had turned out.When she opened the door and stepped into the bedroom, Daniel was on the bed, his chest bare, reading something on his phone... Which he dropped when she came out of the bathroom.Damn, he thought. She'd never stop being sexy to him. She always and would always have that effect on him.Emma blushed at his reaction, then she went to get dressed. She put on the sexy nightie Karen had given her as a gift for her wedding night.When she turned, Daniel was still watching her. Not bothering to hide the desire in his eyes."Come here" he said. Tapping the
The door opened and Jared walked into the room. They hadn't really talked since he arrived but he had been nicer, smiled more and very warm towards her... And especially to little Jack.He wasn't so so terribly intimidating anymore. He had turned out to be surprisingly charming. And he loved Jack. His new nephew. He’d perch Jack on his big, broad chest while he read, informing the baby of any interesting movement on the share market.“This boy is a Rohan indeed,” he’d declared one day. "Can’t start learning too soon.”But right now, as he walked into the room and asked Karen and Monica to excuse them so they could talk in private, Emma wasn't sure of what he had to say. After they left, he turned to her and Emma waited for him to speak."You look very beautiful, Emma" Jared said. "My brother is very lucky to have you"Emma smiled sweetly at him
"So I know this probably isn't what I should be talking about right now... But how about we push the wedding forward and get married in three weeks? If you agree of course" Daniel asked.Emma stared up at him."Yeah" Daniel continued. "All three of us are family already. Why wait any longer? There's no reason to. Your mom is going to be here to see the baby, why not invite our families to come see the baby and attend our wedding at once"Emma smiled at him. "Yes. Let's do it" she said. "I gotta say, I like this loving, caring, soft side of you"Daniel simply grinned and leaned down to kiss her again. As he did, the door opened and Karen, Frank, Tom and Monica came into the room."Hey, Daniel" Karen said playfully as they moved closer. "Let my girl rest a bit before you get her pregnant again"Everyone laughed at Karen's joke...including Daniel. "Oh, he's so cute" Karen murmured as t
Dr Davis also treated him with considerable deference as he monitored Emma's labour, assuring them both that everything was proceeding normally.The contractions were coming fast. She barely had time to catch her breath in between the waves of pain. Daniel sat beside her, watching anxiously, giving her his hand to grip, repeating what the doctor said—head engaged, won’t be long, bearing down soon—as though she couldn’t hear for herself, or he needed to assure himself that this agony had a short time limit.Emma didn’t try to speak. Wanting to remember everything about having this baby. Her entire concentration was focussed on willing her baby to make a safe journey from her womb, imagining every pain as a positive step forward. The urge to push came suddenly and was almost uncontrollable.“Not too hard, Emma,” the doctor instructed. "Slow it down if you can, a nice, gentle passage, no tearing. Yes, that’s good…coming now…head in my
"Are you going to the office?" Emma asked as she walked into Daniel's room the next day.Daniel turned to look at her as he unbuttoned his shirt. "No I'm not. I can't leave you here alone. I have a meeting though. But I will be doing it via video call" he replied."You can leave if you have to" Emma said. "Apparently, this baby isn't ready to be born yet"Daniel smiled at her. I'm sorry that you're uncomfortable, baby." He said. " But when the baby comes, you will be so happy that all of this won't matter. You are going to have someone you are gonna love more than anything on the world. Infact I gotta say, I'm little jealous of all the love our baby is going to be getting. I'm so used to having you all to myself now"Emma laughed and her body shook. "Relax" she said. "I'm going to love the heck out of the both of you. Infact i—"She stopped suddenly in her attempt to walk towards him. Pain... Anguis
"Oh my God" Emma said to Karen and Monica as she returned to the living room from the bathroom. "That must have been the tenth time I've been to the bathroom in the last two hours""It's also been the tenth time since you have told us" Karen said sarcastically and Monica giggled. They had come to visit Emma at Daniel's house.Emma rolled her eyes. "Yeah, it must be really hard for you to hear" she said.Daniel was in the room too. He sat at another table working on his laptop. But he was clearly listening to them because he giggled at Karen's comment.Emma turned to him and rolled her eyes, which made him laugh."Hey honey" he said to Emma, while smiling. "Is there anything you need me to do for you?""Yeah right. Like you haven't done enough" Emma said, jokingly pointing at her stomach. Daniel simply exchanged glances with Monica and Karen and they laughed again. Emma smiled too.
“How about breakfast in bed?” Daniel asked.“Mmm, that sounds nice. I don’t think I can move and I’m suddenly feeling lazy.” Emma replied.He smiled because he couldn’t imagine anything better than the two of them sharing an intimate meal in bed. Hell, if he had his way they wouldn’t leave the bedroom for the rest of the day.“Let me go fix something up for the both of us " He said. "You stay here and get comfortable. I’ll be right back.”He kissed her nose and then carefully disentangled himself from the warm clasp of her body. He eased her onto her side, pulled the rumpled sheet over her and rolled toward the nightstand, sitting up and putting his legs over the edge of the bed.He glanced back to see that she’d immediately commandeered his pillow, which made him chuckle, because it was exactly what she’d done in the past."What?" Emma asked as she watched him. "Why are you smiling
His breath escaped in a long hiss and then she slid down, resheathing him all over again.“You drive me crazy,” he muttered.She smiled, clearly satisfied with his admission.He savored the feel of her much smaller hands engulfed by his. They held on tightly as she began a slow, rhythmic ride. Their gazes locked. They never looked away, never broke eye contact as she made love to him, driving him closer and closer to ultimate release.Emma expelled a pent up breath as he stretched her, as the sweet burning of her body molding to him became the single thought on her mind.He reached for her breasts and she covered his hands with hers as he massaged her breasts, and she continued rocking her hips in a steady rhythm, tossing her hair over one shoulder, it became a curtain over their hands, over her breast.He loved her hair, she knew that, and he still did, because he took a chunk of it and roped
It was easy to forget all that had happened between them now. It was easy to forget the weeks of pain and loneliness. It was easy to imagine that they’d never been apart and that they had always been together, home in bed, just waking in Daniel's place—their home.This was the healing they needed. Emma smiled into his neck.------------------------------Daniel lay there, Emma in his arms, thinking about what had just happened. On the surface it had been a very quick, very hot sexual interlude. One of the best he’d ever had.But it went deeper. It wasn’t just sex. It wasn't like all the other times they had been together. If it was just sex, his heart wouldn’t feel as though it was going to burst out of his chest. He wouldn’t be so overwhelmed that he had no idea how to process what he felt.It was… It was more intense than sex had ever been between them. They had been a study in hot, flirty, fun in