Christmas Baby for the Billionaire (South Shore Billionaires 1)

Seeing the ultrasound picture that now lay tucked in his wallet, remembering the steady flicker of the heartbeat on the monitor as they watched... That had changed everything. As had feeling him or her kick against his hand. It had turned an idea into something utterly tangible.

“Likewise,” she responded, her gaze soft. “You’ve been so understanding. Way more than I gave you credit for. I should have told you from the beginning.”

“It doesn’t matter. It really doesn’t. Let’s just keep looking forward.”

“Deal.” She took a sip of tea, then looked out the window for a few moments before turning back to him. “And what about...well...us?”

It was a tough question. He couldn’t lie and say he was in love with her. He wasn’t. They got along well and enjoyed being together, didn’t they? And there was attraction on both sides. There was certainly more warmth between them than had ever been between his parents, obviously, or his mom and stepdad. He wasn’t sure he even believed in a burning passion that lasted forever. Hell, his brother was an aficionado of everlasting love and had believed in it so strongly he’d tried it...three times.

So he was as honest as he dared to be. “Tori, you’re beautiful, and smart, and you make me laugh. You have this way of lifting one eyebrow that literally makes me hear you say ‘Really, Jeremy?’ in my mind. You light up when you talk about the baby. Your staff loves you and you love them... And that doesn’t often happen with management. It wasn’t an accident we connected last summer. And all the things I liked about you then I still like about you now.”

She twisted her hands in her lap, as if his declaration made her uncomfortable. She gave an odd laugh and shrugged. “The things you liked about me then? I’m afraid I definitely don’t look as good in a bikini as I did last summer.”

He remembered, all right. She’d had a red one that seemed to be held together by strings, and then a black one that tied around her neck and made her breasts look—

He clenched his jaw. The image that flooded his brain now was of her in that same bikini, only with the gentle swell of their child curving her stomach. It was no less sexy in his mind.

“I’m not sure about that.”

“Oh, I am. My boobs are bigger and wouldn’t even fit in those cups—”

“I’m not seeing the problem here.”

She stared at him, and then started to giggle. “Oh, I suppose not. But thanks for the laugh.”

He wasn’t exactly laughing. In fact, he had to shift in his seat to be a little more comfortable.

Gerry reappeared. “Sir, we’re going to start our descent soon. In another five minutes or so, you’ll need to fasten your seat belts.”

“So soon?” Tori looked up with a smile. “Thank you. I think I’ll freshen up before I have to get buckled in.”

She rose from her seat and made her way to the bathroom. Jeremy ran his finger over his lower lip and tried to get the image of Tori in her bikini out of his mind, but he couldn’t.

They’d shared a few relatively chaste kisses in the last week, but clearly the summer had been a lot more heated; the pregnancy was evidence enough of that. He had to admit to himself, at least, that he’d wondered about a sexual relationship with her again. They’d been incredibly compatible...

The more he thought about it, the more he realized that she was near perfect for him. Kind, funny, sexually compatible, she’d be a great mother. Smart and intuitive...there really wasn’t anything he didn’t like about her.

She checked all his boxes, and a few he hadn’t realized he had.

When she returned from the bathroom, he smiled and waited for her to resume her seat and get buckled in. Then, as they approached, he pointed out landmarks through the window, half watching the v

iew and half watching her.

That was it. He’d pull out all the stops. And make her see how perfect their life could be. Her, him and, most important of all, their baby.

CHAPTER EIGHT

TORI’S FIRST IMPRESSION of New York was of noise and traffic. She’d never seen anything like it, and on the drive from La Guardia to the Upper East Side, she’d basically kept her nose pressed against the window of the luxury car that had been waiting for them when they arrived. Not a stretch limo or anything, thank goodness, but a bona fide car service and driver. Surreal didn’t even begin to cover what she’d already experienced today.

They were dropped off outside Jeremy’s building. It didn’t look like anything overly special from the outside, but inside was a different story. They took an elevator to his floor, and when he opened the door to his home, she nearly gasped.

What she did immediately was remove her leather boots and place them by the door. There was no way she would track on these floors.

The floor of the foyer gleamed like glass, and just beyond was a kitchen to the left. White cupboards, stainless state-of-the-art appliances, a slate-gray butcher block in the center and an enormous bouquet of fresh flowers made it look more like one of his real estate showings than a home. The concept was open, but a partial wall separated the working part of the kitchen—which looked as if it had never been used—from a dining room. A long table with upholstered chairs was the centerpiece of the space, with a long, silver runner down the middle and a bowl of more flowers sitting in its center. The table had seating for eight, and Tori could almost imagine a dinner party around such a table, with the clink of silverware and tinkle of crystal.

Yep. Definitely out of her league.

“Over here is the living room,” Jeremy said from behind her, and she turned to see him holding out an arm. She followed close behind and was bathed in sunlight from the windows. “You can see the park from here,” he offered, taking her hand and pulling her forward. She looked out the window... Indeed, there was lots of city around them, but also the huge expanse of Central Park, now covered with an inch of snow, looking cold but a little magical, too.