He watched her flounder, so many emotions flitting across her face, it was impossible to decipher what she was thinking. Dimitri decided it didn’t matter.
The only important end to this conversation was to give the child she was carrying—his child—the kind of security every child deserved to have.
"Look!" she finally pleaded. "I did something stupid…I should have been careful and I wasn't…"
"We’re all guilty of rash acts from time to time, Kelly. And the relationship was my idea" he said sympathetically.
"I’m responsible for the consequences, not you, Dimitri" she shot back at him.
"That’s beside the point. Whether planned or not, I’m the father of this child," he stated simply.
"It doesn’t mean you have to marry me." Kelly said. Wild pride in her eyes. She couldn't even believe that he was making this suggestio
He turned to face her again. "You father? Is that what you are really wanting worried about, or yourself? Have you stopped to think of what your father wants…instead of what you want?" "He won't accept your help or your money" she insisted. He pounced on that statement, inflamed by her antagonism towards him. "I'm sure he will when I talk to him, especially with the current situation right now... And the baby too. He and I may have had our differences, but we have worked together for a long time. I'm sure we can come up with something. You are the one who is being unnecessarily stubborn. So why do you refuse my help?" he challenged. Intriguing to watch the flush come again, sweeping into her cheeks with blazing heat. She dropped her gaze and fiercely claimed,"I can manage on my own. With the mortgage reduced, I can…" "What if you can’t? Why risk it?" He paused, sure now in h
He shook his head. The absurdity was…she was the only woman he wanted... The one woman in his world. They hadn't been in a committed relationship, but he hadn't been seeing anyone else. Nevertheless, the realisation finally dawned that Kelly was not only worried about her father and the company, but she was also consumed by an intense sense of vulnerability, fighting him to keep herself and their child on the only secure ground she knew."There is no competition," he said gently, wanting to erase her fears.Rank disbelief stared back at him. It propelled him forward, his hands spread in an openly inviting gesture. "You can trust me, Kelly. As my wife, you’ll have my absolute commitment and loyalty." Still the rigid stance, arms folded in stubborn resistance, but there was a wavering in her eyes, perhaps a wanting to believe that couldn’t quite be suppressed.He curved his hands over the tense muscles o
"No... No... No" Raymond replied, realized how hurt his daughter was, and how terribly he had responded. He knew that she was right. He had been selfish....always focused on his company that he had forgotten what mattered most. His family. He had neglected her. Made her quit things she loved... Made her do things she didn't want to do. And now he had lost it all. Had lost his company, and he felt like he was loosing her too.He pulled her into his arms, hugging her tightly. "I'm so sorry, baby" he whispered, "I have been a terrible father. Chasing after things that didn't really matter. Put my relationship with you on hold. I guess I always told myself there was still time to make up for it, but I was wrong, and I'm sorry. I'm so worried about you too. Is this really what you want?"Kelly wasn't quite sure. She cared about Dimitri. She liked him... A lot... Maybe even loved him. Although she wasn't quite sure how he felt about he
Pleasure in her appearance, yes. Also a flash of triumphant satisfaction, possibly in having carried through what he’d decided was right, even to holding off having any intimate connection with her until their wedding night. But mostly, she saw a simmering desire, revelling in the promise that she was his, to have and to hold from this day forth.Sweet relief. At least he did want sex with her. At least they had this attraction to each other.He kissed her with a slow, seductive sensuality, his mouth certainly seeming to suggest that passion was just lying in wait for the privacy of their honeymoon.No problems in bed, Kelly assured herself. Maybe her pregnancy actually made her more desirable to him. She hoped so, acutely conscious of the more rounded tummy hidden by the clever design of her wedding gown.He steered her to the table where they were to sign the marriage certificate.
He found her in the balcony, leaning on the rails. She was wearing a short pink nightwear. And she looked so damn sexy. Dimitri swallowed hard. She looked lost in her thoughts that she didn't even notice him standing there, so he moved a little closer."Kelly" he said softly, and she turned immediately, looking startled."Gosh. Why do you always do that, Dimitri" she asked, as her hand lifted to her chest."I'm sorry. I didn't mean to startle you" Dimitri said, "You weren't in the bedroom so I came looking for you. Are you alright?"She couldn't meet his gaze, so she turned away from him and continued to look out."I'm fine, Dimitri" she replied.Dimitri took a few steps closer, "Look, Kelly. You don't have to.. We don't have to... Do anything tonight if you don't want to. I totally understand, and I'm willing to wait until
Reaching for steady purchase to cling to in the erotic maelstrom, she dug her fingernails into his shoulder. And held on.“Come here,” he murmured, his hand dropping to grab hers, and began to lead her out of the balcony.He was heading for the bedroom, but Kelly had no such patience. As soon as they got to the living room, she took over and pulled him towards the couch. Dimitri followed her. He loved it whenever she took charge.She sat down and her fingers shook only slightly as she grabbed the waist of his pyjamas. He took another step closer and Kelly pushed the pants down past his hips. She didn’t bother pushing the boxers down, but instead reached her hand inside the opening and grabbed his dick.“That’s it, baby. Take what you want.” Dimitri murmured.His words were raspy and sounded dirty.She liked them. Kelly scoote
Switching to the other mound, he rubbed the wet tip, but slid his free hand down her torso, over her stomach and between her legs. Her audible catch of breath echoed in the room, and she stilled as his fingers slipped down there, resting on top of her sex.Lifting his head, he met her gaze. “Yes or no?” he asked softly.Desire burned in his mismatched eyes, but so did resolve. His stare assured her that he wanted her. He was teasing her and she knew it....and she liked it too.“Yes,” she said, the answer firm and sure.She wanted his touch. Him. Releasing her hand from his hair, she dipped it between her legs as well, covering his fingers with hers. “Yes,” she repeated.She tilted her hips, and their combined touch glided over her flesh. Twin thick groans saturated the air, and she couldn’t contain the cry that slipped from her lips.
She knew though, instinctively, that giving into the salty tang of tears would be a bad idea. Even while she was part mad with pleasure, she didn’t want to show how completely he shifted something inside her, nor how much this meant to her....Because Kelly felt a surge of feminine power and it was instantaneous and went beyond words. She didn’t think she was ready to tell him how much this meant to her.... That she was in love with him. She felt it and that was enough.She had never met anyone who made her feel this way. Made her feel precious. No one had ever looked at her like he did.... as though he would die if he didn’t kiss her.... as though the push and pull of their chemistry was robbing him of sense.Dimitri did.He moved his body and he stared into her eyes and she felt a cascade of emotions from him to her, then he pulled out of her, ignoring her protest.&n
"You are being ridiculous..."His mouth moved closer to hers. "Do you really think that? You think what we share is ridiculous?""What we share is just sex, Dimitri. That's what this entire relationship has been built on. And I'm not prepared to stay with you until you get bored with me""Bored?" he laughed In genuine amusement. "Bored? I would give much for the opportunity to become bored by your company, Kelly. You tell me exactly how you feel.... I doubt you will ever learn to filter what happens between your brain and your mouth and you you are reliably unpredictable. There are many words to describe our relationship, but boring is certainly not one of them."He released her then and turned and paced back across the room, a weary look on his face. "I'm sorry" he said quietly. "I have been wanting to talk to you but you wouldn't give me the opportunity to do so"&nbs
She felt the force of him deep inside her as he took her with barely contained violence and she moved her hips and clung to him as excitement surged through her body, caring for nothing except the need which grew and grew from deep within. He came into her hard and fast and Kelly welcomed the union with as much savage satisfaction as he took in it, a tumultuous fever of possession gripping both of them.He thrust deep and he did it again and again until her vision blurred and her entire body exploded in a shower of sensation so exquisitely perfect that for a moment she ceased to breath. She felt him shudder as he reached his own desperate climax and then there was only the slow descent back to normality. The unsteady breathing. The sudden intrusion of the outside world into their private space. The scattered bed spread....Dazed and disoriented, it was only as he gently moved to the side that Kelly realized that, although she was
Kelly didn't let him finish."I'm fine, Dimitri" she snapped. "I was just tired and I lost track of time... Like I said before. Don't act like you care"Dimitri sighed. "You are my wife, Kelly. You are carrying my baby... Of course I care""Well not really" She pulled a face and turned away from him to fix the bed sheets. Anything to stop herself from looking at him. He was spectacular, she thought weakly. Stunning. Gorgeous. Virile. Masculine. Ignoring the slow curl of heat low in her pelvis, she closed her eyes briefly and talked sense into herself. "You married the company. And I sort of came along too, which must have been pretty inconvenient for you you"With a harsh expletive that she didn't understand, he crossed the bedroom and pulled her away from bed. "Enough, Kelly" his voice was a low, throaty growl as he powered her gently against the wall and trapped her there with the
He dropped the shirt on the floor, his eyes still locked on hers. "Why deny yourself what you know you want? The chemistry between us is all that matters right now" he said.The sight of his bronzed muscular chest was almost enough to make her believe him. Almost, but not quite."Yes, well, it would make it very convenient for you if I believed that. You think that everything can be solved by sex, but it can't" she muttered, ignoring the banging of her heart and the buzz in her ears.She couldn't do this right now, she reminded herself as she dragged her gaze away from the fascinating sight of dark, masculine body hair that followed a trail down his body and disappeared temptingly beneath the waistband of his trousers. Neverland, she thought to herself. She should never have gone there.As he reached for the button on his trousers she felt her blood heat and knew that urgent action was necessar
It occurred to her that she had never seen him look anything less than suave and well groomed. But tonight he looked anything but. He was dressed in the same suit he had worn for his meeting, but the jacket and tie had long since been discarded and what had started life as a crisp white shirt was now crumpled and dirtied. She wondered what he had been doing and where he went to."When I came back and couldn't find you inside, I got worried" he frowned slightly, as if that confession was as much of a surprise to him as it was to her."Worried about your investment, you mean. But it wouldn't have mattered if I had had an accident, would it, Dimitri? You've gotten what you want. There's no need to pretend to care anymore"He sucked in a breath. "Whatever you may think, this is not about the company""Of course it is" Kelly retorted.He dragged a hand through his gl
And neither did she, she realized miserably. Even when her dignity and common sense told her to leave the room.... Leave him... A tiny, stupid part of her wanted to hurl herself into his arms and lie there safe and warm while he used his diplomatic skills to talk his way out of this vile situation and made it possible for her to forgive him."I want to go home, Dimitri" she said, hanging on to the last of her dignity. "I want to leave""This is your home. You are my wife. You are carrying my child and you are not going anywhere" he replied angrily.One glance at the rigid set of his hard, handsome features told her that argument was useless. He wanted her here for some reason. His baby maybe. And she didn't have to be a genius to know what the other reason was.The sparks in his eyes. The sexual awareness that even now pulsed between them, all gave her the answer to that quest
"But that's because you are the reason why my plans never work. You were always there... Always at the right time to ruin it. You did it the first time and I let it go because you apologized. Turns out you never meant it"His firm hold on her was the only thing preventing her ignominious descent on to the smooth floor and perhaps he realized that because she felt his grip tighten.The way the sunlight came through the window made Kelly’s hair look like it was on fire. Her hair was red normally, but in the sun, like this? It looked like somebody wove each strand from molten rock. Kelly lifted her hand and tucked some of the locks behind her ears to get them out of her way as she glared at him. Dimitri had to stop himself from thinking about tucking those locks of hair behind her ears for her. He was sure she would slap his hand away if he tried anything like that. She hated him right now, he knew that just by looking at her
Torn in two by the agony of his betrayal and the effort of holding on to her steadily collapsing emotind, she walked across the room and stared out the window. Then she trun, her voice little more than a whisper. "You bastard"Something flickered across his faceHe had the look of a man who knew he was under attack but so far hadn't managed to identify the enemy."Kelly...." he began, but she didn't let him finish."I thought you cared. I really thought you cared about me. And what sort of a fool does that make me? You lied to me"He rose to his feet in a fluid movement, his hands on the table. "I didn't lie. Kelly, We need to....""All those things we did together. All that time we spent together" she lifted a hand to her forehead and rubbed. "All those things you said to me. And you didn't mean any of them""That's
Not once did he speak of loving her, and Kelly could not bring herself to admit to the feelings had about him. She was the mother of his child. That was what their marriage was based on. And Dimitri certainly did his best to be a husband she could be happy with.And she was happy for the most part. When they returned home, she moved to Dimitri's place. Dimitri threw himself into work, coming home to her each evening with the air of a man well satisfied with jobs done. Sometimes he even worked from home so he could help her, especially when she was a little sick, he tired his best to be there for her.She couldn’t fault his commitment to their partnership. Things seemed to be going well, and Kelly hoped that it would continue to be that way. That even if he didn't love her, he understood her and wanted the best for her and her baby. But her hopes were short lived when she checked her email one afternoon.