One Night with Gael (Rival Brothers 2)

‘Do I? A few things have changed, granted, but are you seriously expecting me to turn my life upside down because—?’

His hand slashing through the air chopped off her words.

‘Everything has changed, Goldie. Accept that now, before we exchange further words.’

About to contradict him, she stopped. Because he was right. So right.

For one thing, once their child was born this man who stood brimming with fury and power before her would be connected with her for ever. And if he chose to take an interest—and judging by the look on his face he already was—he would have a say in her child’s welfare.

The thought sent a shiver through her. Weirdly, it wasn’t a shiver of terror. More a dread of the unknown. Because suddenly another factor loomed large in her brain. This child wasn’t hers and hers alone. It also belonged to Gael Aguilar.

The thought was unsettling enough to make her words tumble out. ‘Gael... I... It was just a walk. A swim.’

‘And what if something had happened to you?’ he rasped.

‘The beach is safe. Nothing would have happened.’

He gritted his teeth for a few tense seconds, before his gaze flicked to the torrent of water cascading down her body. ‘Are you done?’

She nodded and turned off the shower. ‘Yes.’

Glancing round, he spotted a pile of towels and grabbed the largest one. Goldie reached up to smooth back her wet hair, then froze when she caught his eyes on her.

Slowly, Gael advanced, his hot scrutiny rushing down her body and returning on a slower trajectory. ‘How could you not have known you were pregnant?’ he scythed in a heated voice barely above a guttural whisper.

Her breath knotted in her lungs. ‘Excuse me?’

Light hazel eyes reached her breasts, lingered for a long moment. ‘Your body is already changing. How do you expect me to believe you didn’t know?’

‘There was so much going on. I... I wasn’t paying attention. Gael, I didn’t know—I swear.’

His mouth tightened, but he handed over the towel without acknowledging her words. ‘Come inside when you’re done here. We need to have that talk.’

She watched him walk away, his strong, shorts-clad legs taking him from her view in seconds. She took her time to dab the excess moisture from her body, even though it didn’t buy her any more time to formulate her thoughts.

Simple reason was, she had no idea what was coming with regard to Gael.

When she walked into the living room he was pacing, the phone pressed to his ear. He stopped, his gaze fixated on her as he spoke. ‘Work it out, Ethan, and let me know.’

The hairs on her nape prickled as she watched him hang up and toss the phone onto the dining table. ‘What was that about?’

He gave a tight, mirthless smile. ‘Setting out contingencies.’

‘What does that mean?’

He prowled to where she stood. Scrutinised her face and body one more time. ‘First things first, guapa. How do you feel?’

The question was solicitous, caring. The emotions bristling from his body and eyes told a different story.

She sidestepped. ‘Why are you asking?’

‘You were up during the night. I have a doctor on standby—’

‘I don’t need a doctor. I feel fine.’

A tic manifested at his temple. ‘You found out you’re pregnant last night. Don’t you want to know immediately how best to take care of yourself?’

She frowned, knowing she’d walked into that. ‘I... Of course.’