The Things I Do for You (The Alexanders 2)

He looked at her finally. “I believe you.”

“Good. Now, as to the reason we’re here, I think we should stay in tonight.”

“All night?” When she nodded, Nick whistled.

“Damn, girl. Not that I mind at all but were you going to let me out of the bed to eat?”

“Nick! Stop teasing me.”

“We have to go out sometime. So it might as well be to a show that you want to see.” He pulled her into his lap. “I don’t mind making love to you before and after the show.”

He reached into the bag in his lap. Raina hadn’t even noticed he carried something. “I brought you a croissant and some coffee. We can go downstairs and get something else if you want. Or we could order room service.” He fed her a small bite of the croissant. Raina sighed as it melted on her tongue like butter.

“Why are you being so accommodating? I feel like you must have an ulterior motive.”

“I do have an ulterior motive.” Nick broke off another piece of the pastry and held it to her lips. “My ulterior motive is to get you to fall in love with me. Because being in love all on your own isn’t nearly as much fun.”

Raina almost choked on the bite she’d just taken. After a few swallows, she sat back and glared at him. “Not fair.”

“It’s not fair to tell my wife I’m in love with her?” he asked quietly.

Raina pushed away and looked him in the face. “Oh my God. I thought you were just saying that to get a reaction. You’re serious.”

“I told you I loved you last night. Over and over again, if I recall correctly.”

“That was pillow talk,” Raina stammered. “Everyone knows you don’t trust what a man says in bed.”

Nick stared at his hands. “I always say what I mean. Even in bed.”

Raina stood up and faced the window. “Nick, I know things got a little… intense last night but my feelings haven’t changed. Well, they have changed. I’ve seen a different side of you. One I like a lot. But I don’t want any more than that. This is why I wanted to keep emotion out of it. It’s too easy for us to forget why we’re here. If you don’t feel you can stick to our original agreement, then we should stop this now before it goes any further.”

She held her breath, waiting for his reply. What if he decided to renege? Technically, she could already be pregnant with his child. What a mess. The seconds that passed before he answered seemed to take eons.

“No, I don’t want to stop this.”

She didn’t turn as he walked away. A moment later, the door shut with a decisive click.

She whirled around, shocked to see that he’d actually left the hotel room. Her shoulders sagged and she sat on the floor right where she stood.

Way to be sensitive, Raina.

Hurting him had never been her intention. She was trying to prevent either of them from being hurt by getting too involved. It was better if she went into this without any unreasonable expectations. What he thought was love was more than likely just the novelty of finally hooking up with one of the few women who’d ever turned him down. She imagined he wasn’t used to being denied.

Which made protecting her heart even more essential.

Nick was gorgeous and brilliant, but he was also immature and selfish. He didn’t mean any harm but he had the power to crush her whether he meant for it to happen or not. When he was tired of her, Nick would move on to the next available woman. Raina would be left heartbroken, raising their baby alone. Something she couldn’t let happen.

Nicholas Alexander could love any woman he wanted, except for her.

* * * * *

NICK SCRUBBED HIS hands over his hair and blinked through the curtain of water in his face before picking up one of the tiny bottles of shampoo provided by the hotel. He dumped a glob in his hand and soaped his hair. After he rinsed it out, he used some of the conditioner. He was contemplating using the conditioner again—anything to prolong the shower—before he finally shut the water off.

He’d been in the shower so long his skin was starting to prune up, but it was preferable to what was waiting for him on the other side of the bathroom door.

Another dose of Raina telling him that she didn’t want his love, just his sperm.

“Damn it all to hell.”