The Pregnancy Proposition

“That doesn’t sound good. Are there problems with the baby’s father?” he asked. “There must be if you’re here with me.”

“You could say that. Long story short, you don’t need to worry about him. What happens between us won’t be some kind of torrid affair. He’s out of the picture. Permanently.” Paige struggled to keep the sound of tears out of her voice as she told the truth about Wyatt, but the look of concern on Mano’s face was enough for her to know she’d failed.

“Does he know about the baby?”

Paige wished he hadn’t asked that question. She’d wrestled with that since she found out. She didn’t know how to tell him, or if Wyatt would even care. He was with Piper now. The kind of man who would dump one sister for the other was not likely to be candidate for father of the year. She would tell him. Maybe when she got back from Hawaii. But she didn’t expect the conversation to go well.

“Not yet,” she admitted. “Like I said, it’s complicated. I’m not going to bore you with my sob story, but no matter what, I’m not going back to him. That’s the important part. I just wanted to tell you the truth so you knew I wasn’t trying to pull a fast one on you and play it off as yours or something else foolish. But at the same time, I hope it really doesn’t change things for us.” She held her breath, waiting for his response.

“I beg to differ,” Mano argued. “It does change things. For example, I’m certainly not going to send you parasailing or windsurfing now that I know you’re pregnant.”

Paige laughed at his protective response, relieved that he was joking about the whole thing instead of escorting her out of his suite. “I’m not fragile, I’m just pregnant.”

“You’re housing a life inside you, pulelehua. Enjoy yourself, but there’s no need to be reckless.”

Paige let out the breath she’d been holding, although her muscles were still tense. He seemed to take the news well, but she couldn’t be sure. Would he handle her with kid gloves now? Send her back to her suite for a good night’s rest without the sound bedding she’d hoped for? She didn’t want to know, so she changed the subject by asking the question that had been bothering her for days.

“You keep calling me that Hawaiian word—pulesomething. What does it mean?”

“Pulelehua,” he repeated the complicated sounding word as though it simply rolled off his tongue. “It means ‘butterfly.’”

Butterfly? Paige gasped aloud. Was this guy for real? He was like something out of a novel—the dashing romantic hero who says the right things and knows just how to touch a woman to make her melt with desire. She could feel the heat inside of her building and he hadn’t even touched her yet. He was the kind of guy a girl like her would never have outside the pages of a book. And yet here he was with her, moments from the bedroom.

?

?That’s sweet of you,” she said, “but I feel more like a caterpillar most days.”

Mano stood and reached for her hand. When she offered it, he pulled up her up and wrapped his arms around her waist. Paige relished the way her body fit so snugly against his. The press of her small and sensitive breasts against his chest created a sensation that made it almost hard to breathe, yet she wouldn’t pull away. She couldn’t. Her knees were so soft with desire that she’d melt to the floor if he let her go.

“You are no caterpillar, Paige, although sometimes I think you’re still hiding in your cocoon, afraid to come out and spread your wings. You have challenges ahead of you, but I don’t want you to think about them while you’re here. This is your vacation getaway, and our fling is just the thing you need to get your mind off things. I don’t want you to be afraid with me. I don’t want you holding back. Especially not tonight.”

She was holding back, but she had good reason not to leap into his arms and kiss him senseless. What if he wasn’t there to catch her? “How can I not be afraid? You’re like a dream I’m going to wake up from any moment now. I don’t know why you chose me, but I’m on eggshells waiting for you to change your mind.”

“I’m a very decisive man. I’m not the kind to change my mind. Especially not when I want you as badly as I do. So it’s a very simple thing. Do you want me, pulelehua?”

Paige couldn’t help the rush of air that purged from her lungs at the question. She didn’t answer right away, instead reaching up to pull off his glasses. He didn’t stop her, letting Paige gaze into his beautiful brown eyes, thankful she could see all of him. “I absolutely do. I’m scared to death, but I’ve never wanted a man more in my whole life.”

Mano smiled and brushed the back of his hand across her cheek. His knuckles grazed her skin, leaving a trail of fire in their wake. “Good. Let’s go back inside.”

Six

Mano led Paige down the length of his balcony to the second set of doors that opened into his master suite. He circled behind her and drew her back until her bare shoulder blades pressed into his chest. He let his palms run up her arms from her wrists to her shoulders, stopping at her neck when he found the tie of her dress. Her hair was up tonight, out of his way, so he had full access to the bare skin he’d hungered over on the yacht.

His fingers pulled gently at the fabric as he leaned in to leave a trail of kisses on the side of her neck and along her shoulders. When the knot finally came undone, he let go to see how far the fabric pooled. He felt down her sides, finding her bare waist, then hips, then thighs. The dress had simply slipped all the way to the floor.

“Thank you,” he murmured into the sensitive hollow under her ear.

“Thank you for what?” she asked, her voice near breathless.

“Thank you for wearing a dress that was easy for me to take off. I don’t have the patience to fuss with a lot of buttons and fasteners tonight. I was afraid I might have to tear the dress and buy you a new one.”

Paige gasped, but he wasn’t certain if it was the words or his hands reaching around her to cup her breasts. They were small, but firm, with nipples that hardened instantly to his touch. He massaged them gently, squeezing the tips until he could feel Paige shiver against him. She arched her back and pressed her hips into his raging desire, making him groan aloud against her neck.

“Oh, Paige,” he whispered as he held one breast and let his other hand travel down her stomach. He detected the faintest roundness to her belly that ended just as he reached the lacy trim of her panties. His fingers dipped below the fabric and gently stroked between her thighs.

Paige writhed in his arms, her body wracked with the sensations of his touch. Encouraged, he stroked harder, teasing her in slow circles until she was panting and desperately clinging to the fabric of his suit coat. He hadn’t intended to take this so far before they’d even reached the bed—he was still fully clothed, after all—but he couldn’t bear to tease her. He wasn’t about to let go of her until she was screaming his name.

Mano stroked at her moist flesh. Paige’s knees buckled beneath her and she leaned back against him for support, which he gladly provided. It gave him an even better angle to her body. He took immediate advantage of it, letting a finger slip inside of her. She was so tight, he could feel her muscles clamp down around him as she whimpered with need.