Читать книгу The Greek's Nine-Month Surprise - Jennifer Faye - Страница 11

CHAPTER THREE

“THAT KISS...IT CAN’T happen again.” Sofia met his confused gaze.

Best to get this over with.

The sooner, the better.

Her palms moistened, and her mouth grew dry. She had no idea how much longer she could stand to be so close to him and yet so far away. Because she knew her secret would drive a permanent wedge between them. Nothing would ever be the same.

His expression hardened. “Then what exactly did you want to talk about?”

The time had come. Her stomach took another nervous lurch. And the words that she’d rehearsed over and over again utterly fled her mind.

“Sofia?”

It wasn’t as if she’d gotten into this position by herself. And though it was the truth, it didn’t settle her nerves. Why did this have to be so hard? Because he’d blame her. His eyes would grow dark and cold, shutting her out.

Niko made a point of glancing at his Rolex watch. “I don’t have much time. Maybe we should talk later—”

“No!” When he frowned, she realized her response had been a bit too exuberant.

He arched a dark brow. “It’s that important?”

She nodded, not trusting her mouth.

“Then come back inside.”

She did as he asked. It was just two words—I’m pregnant. Why did she have to make such a production of this?

Just say the words and leave. Easy. Peasy. Not!

He moved to the minibar. “Can I get you something to drink? A mimosa?”

She shook her head. She couldn’t drink in her condition. Instead of taking advantage of the opening, she said, “I can’t. I’m still working. Some water would be nice.”

In no time at all, he was handing her a glass of ice water. “Now, what did you need to talk about?”

She sipped at the water, needing it to wet her dry mouth. Once she set it aside, she clenched her hands and faced him. “I’m pregnant.”

For a moment, nothing moved. It was as if time were suspended. As the seconds ticked by, the color leached from Niko’s face.

At last he spoke in a strangled voice. “It...it’s mine?”

“Of course it’s yours. You surely don’t think I have sex with every man I meet.”

He raked his fingers through his hair. “How should I know?”

She glared at him. “That doesn’t say much for you.”

“You’re right. I’m sorry. I’m not thinking clearly.” He started to pace back and forth. “I just never thought.” He stopped and stared at her as though expecting an answer. “But how could this happen?”

She frowned at him. Was their night so forgettable? Her face warmed at the memory. Did she really have to recount the evening in detail for him?

He shook his head. “Never mind. It was a stupid question. I...I’m just shocked. We took precaution.”

“And it failed somewhere along the way. But analyzing the how of it isn’t going to change the fact. What is done is done.”

His face grew even paler. “Things did get pretty out of hand that night.”

That was the understatement of the century. She’d never thought she’d ever have a one-night stand in her life, but that was before she met Niko. He was a mixture of hotness, sweetness and power wrapped up in a really cute package.

Funnily enough, telling him the news of the baby had a calming effect on her. She had not been expecting that. Perhaps it was because she was no longer harboring a huge, life-changing secret. With the truth out in the open, they could make whatever decisions were necessary.

“You’re sure about this?” He gazed at her with one last bit of hope glimmering in his eyes.

She nodded. “I went to the doctor this week. He confirmed what I suspected.”

Niko’s shoulders slumped. “Oh.”

She felt bad for him. He obviously wasn’t looking to start a family anytime soon, and she had blindsided him with this news. She hadn’t known any other way to tell him. She knew it wouldn’t be unreasonable to expect him to step up and take responsibility. But that wasn’t why she’d told him. As the father he had a right to know.

“Listen, I know this isn’t what you want.”

His head snapped around to face her. His dark brows rose high as his gaze searched hers. “And it’s what you want?”

She wasn’t about to get into what she did and didn’t want. Ideally she wanted to be in love with the father of her baby, and even though they’d shared an incredibly intense attraction, she refused to let herself believe in love at first sight. Whatever she’d felt for Niko at the wedding had been an intense attraction. Nothing more.

She stared deep into his eyes and swallowed hard. “I’m keeping the baby if that’s what you mean.”

His expression didn’t give away his thoughts. “I’ll need some time to digest this.”

“That’s fair.” There was one more thing she hadn’t told him. “How much time are we talking?”

He raked his fingers through his hair. “I don’t know. Why?”

“I’m leaving in two weeks.”

“Leaving?”

She nodded. “I’d appreciate it if you didn’t tell anyone, as I haven’t turned in my notice yet.”

“Leaving and going where?”

“Home. Back to New York. I want my baby—”

“Our baby.”

She sighed. “Our baby to grow up around family.”

His mouth opened, but before he could utter a word, her phone chimed. It was the ringtone she’d assigned to her boss. Although this was a bad time for a phone call, she couldn’t ignore it, either.

Her gaze met Niko’s. “It’s my supervisor.”

Niko’s lips pressed together as he waved at her to go ahead and answer it. Was it her imagination or was he relieved by the distraction? There was no time for her to contemplate it as the phone chimed again.

She pressed the button, knowing her absence had been noticed and she didn’t have a good excuse. Or at least not one that she was willing to share.

She moved to the porch for some privacy. “Hello.”

* * *

This can’t be happening.

Alone now, Niko paced back and forth. Sofia had appeared more than relieved to be summoned back to work. He glanced down at the scrap of paper where she’d jotted down her phone number and told him to call her when he was ready to talk.

Talk? He couldn’t think straight much less string together a bunch of coherent sentences. Not so long ago, he’d had his life planned out. But in a matter of weeks, twelve to be exact, it’d all gone off course.

First, his grandfather unexpectedly passed away and now he was about to become a father. A father. The words sounded so off to him. He wasn’t ready to be a father. What did he even know about being a parent? Nothing. Zip. Zilch. And nada.

And to think that not so long ago this news would have been the answer to so many of his problems with his grandfather. The thought of not being able to share this news with him sent a fresh wave of sorrow washing over Niko. His hands balled up at his sides as he struggled to control his rising emotions.

His cell phone rang, but he ignored it—something he rarely did. He wasn’t in any frame of mind to talk business. He wasn’t sure how it felt to be in shock, but he’d hazard a guess it was what he was experiencing now.

The truth was he wasn’t ready to be a family man.

He had too much to do...like restructuring the numerous divisions to eliminate overlap of personnel and continuing to overhaul his outdated company with new human resources policies. Even though he’d faced employee pushback in the face of change, he refused to let that stop him. He wasn’t the boss in order to win friends. He’d been groomed to lead the company into the future. To do that, change must be a part of his plan.

But how was he supposed to fit a baby into that plan?

He accepted that someday he’d need an heir or two to hand down the family business. That was in his plan—his long-range plan. But a family didn’t fit in his agenda now.

Still, there was a baby on the way. That couldn’t be changed. Nor could he turn his back on his own flesh and blood. For the first time in his life, he didn’t know which way to turn. The stakes were just too high.

His grandfather’s solution would have been to have a wedding—quick and simple. He imagined how his grandfather would pat him on the back, pleased that he was carrying on the Stravos line. But would his parents have been just as pleased? Or would they have been disappointed in him? The thought weighed heavily on him. He missed them, especially at a time like this.

So what options did that leave him? To marry Sofia? But was it the right decision? Could Sofia be his convenient bride? Would she accept an unconventional marriage?

He recalled her contagious laughter at the wedding—the way she’d turned his head. She’d been like a breath of fresh air, and he’d been unable to get enough of her.

Could they ever get back to that happy place? He’d like to think once the shock wore away that they could smile and laugh again—together. So maybe the idea of marriage had come much sooner than he expected. He and Sofia had hit it off. He may not want a romantic entanglement, but he would like them to be on friendly terms when they wed. And the fact they were compatible in bed was a definite bonus.

Would Sofia jump at the offer? Or would she rebuff his proposal? The one thing he’d learned about Sofia was that she could be unpredictable, which made her quite intriguing. But it also left him uncertain when it came to his proposition of a marriage in name only.

Certain that he was on to something, he called Cristo. Luckily, his friend had just wrapped up a meeting. He was available to have coffee and a chat. Though Cristo asked him repeatedly if there was a problem, Niko was reluctant to get into it over the phone. This delicate conversation needed to be handled in person. And even then Niko was hesitant to share the full details—only what was necessary to bring his quickly evolving plan to fruition.