Christmas Baby for the Billionaire (South Shore Billionaires 1)

She was no Realtor but she knew that location was everything. And that he had paid a lot of money for this particular location. She’d looked up his address on the internet, looked at a street view. He was close to the Met, to Central Park, Broadway...

It was nearly overwhelming.

“What do you think?”

She turned to face him and found his face expectant. She glanced around at the impeccably decorated living room. To be honest, it was beautiful but it was missing something. It seriously felt like one of his listings, staged for a potential buyer, made to look wonderful without revealing the personality of the person who lived within.

There wasn’t much of Jeremy here. But clearly he was proud of it, so she smiled. “It’s gorgeous.”

His answering grin made her glad she’d answered as she did. “Come on, let me show you the rest.”

The rest included a powder room, plus two more full bathrooms—one main bathroom between two bedrooms and then a luxurious en suite bathroom off the master. The guest rooms were impeccable, of course, and the master bedroom housed a king-size bed with a black leather headboard and a thick silver duvet. The top was turned down to reveal the ends of the sheets beneath, and they were black silk. Chrome-and-black bedside tables held a docking station for electronics and a lamp, and he pulled the drapes aside to reveal another breathtaking view.

He looked at her and smiled again. Were they going to smile their way through the next week? “Whichever bedroom you’d like as yours is fine. The other bathroom is yours, as well.”

At least he didn’t assume they’d be sharing a room. Not that she’d expected that, but she’d gotten a little nervous on the plane after his bikini comment. As much as the idea of him still finding her attractive was exciting, she needed space and time to figure out if they truly could move forward as a couple. It felt like they kept taking steps that way, and then retreated into the safety of a relationship of utility and co-parenting.

Neither bedroom was overly welcoming. Beautiful, yes, but not...warm. That was it. The grayscale was trendy and definitely classy and elegant, but it was missing warmth.

“The one across the hall will be fine.” She knew it had a queen-size bed and the bedding looked thicker and softer there. Like something she could curl up in.

“Great.” He clapped his hands together. “I’ll put your bag in your room so you can unpack. And then maybe we can go for a walk in the park.”

A walk in the park was the perfect way to spend the afternoon. The air was crisp without being frigid, the sky a clear blue, and Jeremy reached down and held her hand as they wandered along. When she said she wanted a hot dog from a street vendor, he obliged, and they sat on a cold bench with cold noses, biting into hot dogs with sweet ketchup and sharp mustard. They wound their way around the paths and he showed her The Plaza, and she told him about one of her favorite children’s book characters, Eloise. They had coffee in a little shop to warm their toes and fingers, and then when she looked longingly at the horse-drawn carriages, he obliged and they went on a carriage ride, which he said was eye-rollingly touristy but didn’t complain when she got cold and leaned against him, prompting him to put his arm around her and cuddle her close.

The afternoon darkened and it was time to go home. It had been a marvelous first introduction to the Big Apple, and when Jeremy suggested she take a nap before dinner, she didn’t put up any fight. She’d been up since five and the fresh air and walking had done its work.

After an hour he woke her and said that dinner was ready. He didn’t let her in the kitchen, but seated her at the dining table, where he’d put two place settings at corners to each other, and lit a couple of candles. “Did you have a good nap?”

“The best. I woke up and forgot where I was.”

He chuckled. “It’s the fresh air. Plus you were up super early this morning.”

“And I nap very easily these days,” she admitted. “This growing-another-human thing takes some energy.”

He disappeared into the kitchen and returned with a plate. “Which is why you need this. You’ve only had a hot dog and a latte since this morning.”

The meal was simple. Chicken, asparagus and pasta were tossed in a white sauce, with a green salad on the side. But it was delicious and Tori ate up every bite on her plate.

“You’re a decent cook. Where did you learn?”

“I can’t take the credit. I eat out a lot and I have a housekeeper come in once a week. She also brings in a variety of meals and puts them in the fridge with instructions for reheating. I literally just had to put this in the oven, and voilà.”

“Oh. Well, my compliments to the chef, whoever she may be.” Jeremy was not the domestic type. It was more and more obvious as the day wore on. His apartment...condo...whatever barely looked lived in. There certainly weren’t bits that jumped out as being “Jeremy.” But he’d fed her and it had been scrumptious, so she patted her belly and said, “There. The baby’s happy.”

“Is he?” Jeremy’s gaze met hers and held. “Is he happy?”

“Maybe it’s a she.”

“Of course. How about...are they happy?”

“I think so. At least it seems as if they’re doing a jig in there.”

His gaze deepened, and she thought she caught a glimpse of vulnerability. “May I feel?”

It was sweet of him to ask, lovely of him to want to. “Of course,” she replied. She pushed her chair out a little, and so did he, and then slid to the edge of his seat so they bumped knees. He put his hand on her belly, his palm wide and warm. But the ripple of feeling was in a different spot, so she put her hand on his wrist and guided him to the left a little. Whether it was arms or legs or somersaults, it didn’t take long and the movement thudded against his hand, little taps and rolls.

“Wow,” he breathed, staring at his hand, then up at her. “I can’t get over that. How does it feel, you know, on the inside?”