Читать книгу Baby for the Tycoon - Emily McKay - Страница 9

Having never before asked a woman to marry him, Jonathon wasn’t quite sure what reaction he expected, but it wasn’t Wendy’s blank-faced confusion. Or maybe that was a perfectly normal reaction under the circumstances. After all, it wasn’t every day a man proposed to his assistant for such transparently selfish reasons.

For a long moment, she merely stared at him, her blue-violet eyes wide, her perfect bow mouth gaping open in surprise.

She wasn’t just surprised. She was disconcerted. His proposal had shocked her. Maybe even offended her. On some deeply intimate level, the thought of marriage to him horrified her.

Not that he could really blame her. Despite his wealth, he was no prize.

She was going to say no, and he couldn’t let her do it. He needed her. Quite desperately, if the past seven days had been any indication.

“I’m not proposing a romantic relationship,” he reassured her, hoping to make his proposal seem as benign as possible.

“Obviously,” she muttered. Still holding the baby in her arms, she sank to the edge of the desk. She dipped her head, nuzzling the tuft of dark hair on Peyton’s head.

“This would be strictly a business arrangement.” He argued more vehemently as he felt her slipping away. “We’ll stay married as long as it takes to convince your family that we’re suitable parents. We won’t even have to live together. I’ll grant you an annulment as soon as we’ve convinced them.”

“No,” she said softly.

He felt a pang in his chest at her response. Then he saw it. Her letter of resignation. Signed, dated and ready to be handed over. As official as an order for his execution.

This past week had been a premonition of his future without her. He could envision an endless parade of incompetent temps. Countless hours of interviewing assistants, all of whom would fail to live up to the precedent set by Wendy. This government contract would slip through his fingers, just as the Olson deal had. FMJ had lost millions on that one. Which was nothing compared to what they’d miss if they didn’t secure this contract. He could feel the stepping-stone slipping out from under him, the future he’d planned out for the company dissolving before his very eyes.

Panic mounting, he kept talking. “If you’re worried about sex, don’t be. I certainly wouldn’t expect to sleep with you.”

Her gaze darted to his as she bolted to her feet. “No.” Then she squeezed her eyes closed for an instant. “What I meant was…” She drew in a deep breath. “… a fast annulment wouldn’t work.”

Just as quickly, her eyes shifted away from his. In that moment, a powerful, unspoken message passed between them.

Not once in all the years they’d worked together had they talked about sex. They had shared countless other intimacies. Eaten meals late at night. Sat beside each other on long plane flights. He’d had her fall asleep with her head on his shoulder somewhere over the Atlantic Ocean. They had slept in hotel rooms with walls so thin he’d heard the sound of her rolling over in her bed. And yet despite all that, neither of them had ever broached the subject of sex.

But now that the word had been said aloud, it was there between them. The image of her, sprawled naked on a bed before him, was permanently lodged in his brain.

He found himself oddly pleased by the faint blush that crept into her cheeks as she couldn’t quite meet his gaze.

“If we’re going to do this—” she shot him a look from under her lashes as if she were trying to assess his commitment “—then we have to go all in.”

He raised his eyebrows, speculatively. She wasn’t saying no. She was making a counteroffer. He felt a grin split his face. Just when he thought he knew her, she always managed to surprise him.

“We can’t get an annulment in three or even six months,” she said. “My family will see right through that. In a year, maybe two, we’ll have to get divorced. Simply pretend the marriage didn’t work out.”

“I see.”

She shook her head. “I don’t think you do. I’m committed to fighting for Peyton. I’ll do whatever I have to. But I can’t ask you to do the same.”

“You’re not asking,” he pointed out. “I’m offering. And just so we’re clear, I’m not doing this out of the goodness of my heart.” The last thing he needed right now was her developing some starry-eyed notion about his motives. “I’m doing this to keep you working for FMJ. You’re the best damn assistant I’ve ever had.”

She threw up her hand to interrupt him. “This is ridiculous. Just hire another assistant. I’ll even help you find one. There are plenty of other competent people in the city.”

“But none of them are you. I need you,” he argued. “None of them know the company the way you do. None of them would care about what FMJ does the way you do.”

She seemed to be considering for a moment, then admitted,

“Well, that’s true.”

“Besides. I don’t have the time or energy to train someone new. My motives are very selfish.”

“Trust me, I wasn’t about to swoon from the romanticism of the moment.” Her lips twisted in a wry smile. “I just want to make sure you know what you’re getting into. If my family suspects what we’re up to—”

“Then we’ll convince them that our marriage has nothing to do with Peyton.”

Her eyebrows shot up. “Convince them we’re in love?”

“Exactly.”

Wendy gave a snort of laughter. Baby Peyton squirmed in response. She turned her head and gave Jonathon a look of annoyance. If a baby could be annoyed. Obviously she wasn’t going back to sleep. Pressing her tiny palms to Wendy’s chest, she pushed away as if she wanted to be set free.

Wendy crossed to a diaper bag sitting on her desk. He hadn’t even noticed it before, but when Wendy tried to unzip it with one hand, he moved to help her. He brushed her fingers aside and unzipped the bag. “What do you need?”

“The blanket. That pink one there. Spread it out on the floor.”

Once the blanket was out, she situated the baby on her belly in the center of it.

The sight of a baby in the middle of FMJ’s executive offices was so incongruous he could barely remember what they’d been talking about. Oh, right. She’d been snorting with laughter over the idea of them being in love. Nice to know he’d amused her.

“So you don’t think we can convince your family we’re romantically involved?”

Wendy was back at the diaper bag now, pulling out an array of brightly colored toys. “No offense, Jonathon, but in the five years I’ve been here, I don’t think I’ve ever seen you romantically involved.”

“That’s ridiculous. I—”

She held up her hands to ward off his protests. “With anyone. Oh, I know you’ve dated plenty of women.” She stressed “plenty” as if it was an insult. “But romance is not your strong suit.”

Dropping to her knees, she strategically placed the toys in an arc in front of the baby. By now, Peyton had wedged herself up on her elbows.

“You think I can’t be romantic?” he asked.

“I think you approach your love life with all the warmth and spontaneity of a long-term strategic planning committee.”

“You’re saying… what? That I’m a cold fish?” His voice came out tight and strained.

There was something very matter-of-fact about her tone. As if she were stating the obvious. As if it hadn’t even occurred to her that this might insult him.

“Not really.” She tilted her head to the side, her attention focused on Peyton. She nudged a stuffed elephant closer to the baby. He didn’t know if the topic made her uncomfortable or if infant toys were really just that fascinating. “More that you keep your emotions tightly under control.” Apparently satisfied with the arrangement of toys, she stood, dusting her hands off. “You’re a dispassionate man. There’s nothing wrong with—”

Okay, he’d had enough. He strode toward her, pulled her into his arms and kissed her.

He didn’t know what pushed him over the edge. Whether it was her unending lecture about how dispassionate he was. Or the fact that ever since he’d said the word “sex” aloud a few minutes ago he hadn’t been able to get it out of his head. Or maybe it was that tempting bit of shoulder her shirt kept exposing. Or hell, maybe it was even the hot-pink strap.

Whatever it was, his restraint snapped and he had to kiss her. And then, he couldn’t stop.

Wendy had not seen it coming. One minute, she was trying to calm Peyton down, keep her distracted enough so she could keep talking to Jonathon. Because frankly, Wendy was having enough trouble concentrating on the logistics of the conversation without Peyton breaking out into all-out fussiness.

And then, a second later, her body was pressed against Jonathon’s and his mouth was moving over hers in a kiss heaven made to knock her socks off.

One hand cradled her jaw, his fingertips rough against the sensitive skin of her cheek. The other was wrapped firmly around her waist, his hand strong against her back, pressing her so close to him she could feel the buttons of his shirt through the thin cotton of her T-shirt.

His kiss was completely unexpected. When he had crossed the room to her, the lines of his face taut, his expression so full of intent, it had never occurred to her that he was going kiss her.

Sure, in the past, she’d imagined what it might be like to kiss him. After all, they’d worked side by side for years. Just because she had a modicum of restraint didn’t mean she was dead. Despite the pure perfection of his exterior, she’d always imagined that in the bedroom Jonathon was very much how he was in the boardroom. Analytical. Logical. In control. Dispassionate.

Holy guacamole, had she been wrong.

His lips didn’t just kiss hers. They devoured her.

She felt his tongue in her mouth, stroking hers, coaxing a response, all but demanding she participate, until she found herself rising up onto her toes and wrapping her arms around his neck, brushing her palm against the bristle of soft hair on the back of his head.

The kiss was hot and endless. He tasted faintly of coffee and fresh minty toothpaste and deeply buried longing. He stirred feelings within her that she’d never even imagined. And she could just not get close enough to him.

He backed her up a step. And then another. She felt the edge of her desk bump against the back of her legs. And still he pressed into her, bending her so her back arched.

An image flashed through her mind of him sweeping the desk clear, pressing her down onto her desk and taking her right there. The idea came to her so completely, it was as though it had been right there in the back of her mind for years. Just waiting for his kiss to pull it out of her.

There was no one else in the building. Why shouldn’t they give in to this thing between them? She couldn’t think of a single reason not to.

She still hadn’t thought of one a moment later when he pulled his mouth from hers and stepped away. He cleared his throat, then tugged down the hem of his jacket to straighten it.

He left her aching for him. Missing the warmth of his body, even though he was only a foot away. Wishing she had some idea of why he’d kissed her. Why he’d stopped…

Peyton.

Oh, crap. Peyton!

Wendy looked past Jonathon to where Peyton still lay on her belly on the floor.

Holy guacamole, indeed! She’d been a mother for less than four days and she’d already abandoned her daughter on the floor to make out with her boss. Maybe her family was right. Maybe she really was unfit to be Peyton’s mother.

Her gaze sought Jonathon. He’d crossed to the other side of the room so that Peyton lay between them like a landmine.

He ran a hand across his jaw, then shoved his hand deep in his pocket. She’d never seen him look quite so disconcerted. Though he still looked less shaken than she felt.

“Well,” he began, then swallowed visibly. “I think we can both agree that if I need to I can convince your family that I am more than your boss.”

“Yeah. I think so.” Then she paused for a beat while his words sank in. “That’s what this was about?” For a second, confusion swirled through her, muddling her thoughts even further. “You kissed me merely to make a point?”

“I—” He shrugged, apparently at a loss for words.

Indignation pushed past her embarrassment. “I was seconds away from dropping my panties to the floor and you were making a point?”

For an instant, his gaze fell to her feet as if imagining her panties lying there. He swallowed again as he dragged his gaze back to hers, then ran a hand down his face.

Well, at least she wasn’t the only one whose world had been rocked.

“It seemed a prudent move,” he said stiffly.

She nearly snorted her derision. Prudent? The kiss that had curled her toes all the way up to her kneecaps had seemed prudent to him?

“Oh, that is wrong in so many ways, I don’t even know where to start.”

He tried to interrupt her. “Actually—”

But she cut him off with a wag of her finger. “No, wait a second. I do know where to start. If you think offering to marry me for Peyton’s sake gives you an all-access pass to this—” she waved her hand in front of her body “—then you have another think coming.” He looked as if he might say something in protest, but she didn’t give him a chance. “And secondly, you have no business kissing me merely to make a point.”

And then—because she realized that was practically an invitation to kiss her for other reasons—she added, “In fact you have no business kissing me at all. If we’re going to do this pretend-marriage thing, we need to set some boundaries. And thirdly… well, I have no idea what thirdly is yet, but I’m sure it will come to me eventually.”

For a long moment, Jonathon merely stared at her, one eyebrow slightly arched, his lips curved to just hint at his amusement. “Are you done?”

She clamped her lips together, painfully aware of how cool and collected he seemed when she’d just been rambling like an idiot. A surefire sign that her emotional state was neither cool nor calm.

Maybe she was wrong about the kiss affecting him as much as it did her. And wouldn’t that just suck. Didn’t she have enough on her plate just now? This was so not the time for her to be nursing a crush on her boss. Or her husband.

When had her life gotten so complicated?

On the floor between them, Peyton wedged her tiny hands under her to push up onto her forearms. She let out an excited squeal of pride.

Right. This was when her life had gotten complicated. Approximately five days ago in her grandfather’s study when the lawyer dropped Bitsy’s will on her like a bomb.

Wendy let loose a sigh of frustration. “I’m sorry,” she said. “None of this is your fault. I shouldn’t take it out on you. I just—”

“I agree we need boundaries,” he said abruptly, cutting her off before she could bumble further into the apology. His tone was stiff, as if he was searching for the most diplomatic way to broach the subject. “Keeping sex out of this is a good idea. However, kissing you now seemed prudent because we will have to kiss again at some point.”

“We will?” she asked weakly, her gaze dropping to his mouth.

“Naturally.”

She felt a curious heat stirring deep inside at the idea. He was going to kiss her again. Soon? She hoped so. Even if it was a very bad idea, she hoped so.

“If we’re going to convince people we’re in love and getting married, people will expect certain displays of affection.”

“Oh, I hadn’t thought…” Obviously, there was a lot she hadn’t considered about this idea. She didn’t know whether or not to be thankful that Jonathon’s brain worked so much faster than her own. Was it a good thing he was around to consider things she hadn’t? Or was it merely annoying to always be one step behind?

“The people who know us best will be hardest to convince. Luckily Ford and Matt will both be out of town for another few weeks. We’ll have to get used to the idea ourselves before see them.”

“Ford and Matt? Surely we don’t need to lie to them?” Jonathon had been best friends with Ford and Matt since they were kids.

He leveled a steady gaze at her. There was no hesitation. No doubt. “Yes, we do. If your family decides to fight us on this, it could mean a court battle. I can’t ask either of them to lie for us.”

“Oh.” Feeling suddenly weak, she sank back to the edge of the desk.

Of course they couldn’t ask Ford and Matt to lie for them. In the five years she’d worked with FMJ, she’d served as executive assistant for all three men equally.

They worked so closely together they’d decided long ago it was easier to share one assistant among the three of them. Undoubtedly that was why they’d gone through so many assistants before she’d come along. Managing the schedules and needs of three such disparate men was no easy task. In short, she was a miracle worker.

If the thought of lying to them was this difficult for her, then how must Jonathon feel about the matter?

She propelled herself away from the desk and crossed to stand in front of him. Gazing up into his mossy-green eyes, she studied him. “This is a crazy and ridiculous plan. Are you sure you want to do this?”

His lips curved into a slight smile. His eyes lit with a reckless gleam as they crinkled at the corners, giving her the distinct impression that he was enjoying this. “Yeah. I’m sure. If there’s one thing I know, it’s how to make the strategic risk pay off.”

The resolve in his gaze was as clear as the doubt probably was in her own. Then she looked down at where Peyton lay on the floor. She scooped up the precious little girl and held her close. This moment felt profound. As though she and Jonathon were striking a bargain that was going to change all of their lives. It seemed only right that Peyton be a part of it as well. “Okay,” she said. “Let’s do this.”

Jonathon’s face broke into a full grin. He gave a brisk nod then spun on his heel, moving toward his office as he started barking orders, back into full boss mode.

“First off, email Ford and Matt and schedule another teleconference for later in the day. Then call Judge Eckhart and see if he has time in his schedule to perform the ceremony next Friday. Clear my schedule and yours for the following two weeks.”

Wendy was used to having Jonathon rattle off a to-do list like this. Even trying to juggle Peyton, she kept up pretty well. Until he got to the last item on the list.

“Wait a second. Clear our schedules? What are we going to be doing? And what about the government contract?”

“We’ll work on that this week. And we’ll have another couple of weeks after we get back. It’ll be tight, but I have no doubt we’ll get it done.”

“Get back? Get back from where?”

He paused by his desk and looked up at her, that cocky smile still on his face. “From our honeymoon.”

“Our honeymoon?” Surprise pitched her voice high.

“Don’t get too excited. We’re just going to Texas. If we’re going to win this battle with your family, we need to go on the offensive. That means taking the fight to them.”