* * *
The knock came on the door just after seven the next morning.
Saffie, attempting to remain completely still in a bid to quiet her roiling stomach, called out a weak, ‘Come in,’ expecting the butler or another member of the suite staff.
Joao strode in with a large sterling-silver tray in hand.
She gasped, sat up a little too hurriedly and triggered a strong protest in her stomach. Her fingers flew to her mouth, and she sent a fervent prayer to not disgrace herself.
Halfway across the floor, he froze. ‘Are you all right?’
She took several deep breaths. ‘Sudden movements aren’t conducive to holding morning sickness at bay, I’m finding.’
He nodded. ‘I’m told it’s to be expected.’
She eyed him as he strolled forward, brimming with mouth-watering vitality while she felt like several paler versions of herself. ‘What are you doing here?’ she asked when he simply looked down at her.
He deposited the tray across her lap. ‘It’s recommended that you have something to eat before you get out of bed, is it not?’
Glancing down, she saw the tray contained a pot of tea, a few condiments and a brand of crackers she’d only ever seen in one place. ‘These crackers are sold exclusively at Winthrop’s in New York.’ She knew because she’d purchased them as part of Oliviera’s senior executives’ Christmas hamper last year.
‘Sim, they are. I contacted your assistants and they informed me these were the best. I had
them flown in overnight.’
Her mouth dropped open. ‘You had a box of crackers flown in?’
‘Several boxes to see you through this phase of your pregnancy. You need them to combat your condition. It’s no big deal, Saffie.’
Not to him, obviously. The richest man in the world only needed to click his fingers for his every whim to be fulfilled.
And you’re carrying his children.
If she was honest with herself, that hooded, claiming look in his eyes had kept her tossing and turning last night. Because if there was one thing she knew well, it was how relentless Joao could be when he pursued a business deal.
And this was way more than a business deal.
She’d given herself a night’s grace. She couldn’t afford to bury her head in the sand any longer.
Her hand moved towards the teapot as she contemplated how to tackle the subject. But it froze when she realised Joao was staring at her. Specifically, at her hair.
‘Something wrong?’ she asked a little tartly because she knew she didn’t look her best.
His gaze stayed on her hair for another second before meeting hers. ‘I’ve never seen you with your hair down,’ he said, a low throb in his voice.
Her fingers flew up, self-consciously curling around a long strand of hair. ‘Oh.’
The atmosphere thickened, enveloping them in a heavy, sensual bubble as he freed the strand and wrapped it around his own fingers. ‘E lindo,’ he murmured.
She knew what that meant. Beautiful.
Against the brush of her satin and lace nightie, her breasts, suddenly ultra-sensitive, grew heavy, their peaks hardening in reaction to his voice, his scent, his caress.
Joao’s gaze dropped to the visible signs of her arousal, his Adam’s apple moving in a thick swallow as he deepened the caress, his fingers gently threading through her hair in a hypnotic caress.
The tray in her lap forgotten, Saffie leaned into his touch, cravings heightened and firing between her thighs. But when a moan surged up her throat, she realised what she was doing, how easily she was falling under his spell.
She pulled herself back, one hand dragging up the sheet to cover her chest.