Only Love

We exited the building, and since night had fallen, I threw caution to the wind and sped up to walk next to her. I placed my hand on her lower back and guided her toward the space where my Audi was parked. Walking her to the passenger side, I used my thumbprint to unlock the door. Then I helped her into her seat and buckled her in before swinging the door shut and loping around to the driver’s side.

Once I’d gotten settled in my seat, I pushed the start button and backed out of the space. London was still silent as I drove toward our home, but the house wasn’t far, so we were pulling into the driveway a few minutes later. I pressed the button on the steering wheel to open the garage, and as it ascended, London gasped. “This is where you live?”

I swallowed the impulse to correct her that this was our house, but I’d sensed that her silence was an indication she was absorbing and trying to work through everything that had happened so far.

A smile creased my face as I shifted the car into park. “I think you’ll like it,” I predicted. “It’s the perfect house for raising a family, and there’s plenty of space for your—” I broke off a second before I revealed how much I knew about her. She’d wonder how I knew about her dream to create baby clothes. I figured that the smart play was to ease her into the fact that I’d invaded her privacy, stalked her, and was generally obsessed with her. More than that, I wasn’t in the least bit sorry and had zero regrets about the lengths I’d gone to for her. The truth was, I’d have crossed every line, broken every rule, done anything it took to make her mine.

“How about I show you around, and then I’ll make us some dinner?” I suggested before exiting the car. By the time I’d reached her, she’d unbuckled herself but hadn’t made a move to open the door. She seemed torn on what to do next, so I opened the door, bent down, and scooped her into my arms. Problem solved.

I carried her into the house and up the stairs to the first level where we entered the kitchen. “I’ll grab us something to drink, then I’ll show you around,” I told her softly before kissing the top of her head and setting her in one of the high-backed chairs at the large island in the center of the room. I grabbed two bottles of water from the refrigerator, twisted the cap off one, and handed it to London.

She took a long drink and even the movement of her throat as she swallowed made my body buzz with desire. I gulped down my whole bottle, but the cold water did nothing to cool my ardor. “Are you ready?” I grunted. I adjusted myself, not bothering to hide it from London. She might as well see what she did to me. It wasn’t as though she wasn’t familiar with my size. And she’d taken all of me like a fucking champ.

London hopped down from her seat, and I was pleased when she didn’t hesitate to take the hand I held out to her. We didn’t go through the entire house because I didn’t have the patience to wait that long, but I showed her the highlights, the rooms we would spend the most time in as a family. Throughout the tour, her eyes had widened so big they were practically taking up her whole face. When we reached the rooftop garden on the sixth floor, she exhaled long and slow as she took in the open space. “This house has to be worth at least fifty million dollars.” It wasn’t what I expected her to say, and her accusatory tone threw me for a loop.

“That’s about right,” I agreed cautiously. I was startled by her accuracy until I remembered that her sister, Charlotte, worked for a real estate tycoon, and with her parents’ net worth, it made sense that she would be familiar with housing costs in New York City.

She finished her perusal and faced me, her hands on her curvy hips and her green eyes flashing with anger, followed closely by hurt. “You lied to me. Who are you? Because you clearly aren’t a humble professor making a living at a state university.”

“I never claimed to be,” I reminded her. Her reaction to my wealth wasn’t at all what I’d been expecting.

“Did you lure me here in the hopes of getting something from my dad? Or uncles?” She glanced around quickly. “I can’t imagine you need ransom money. So, why do you need me?” Her eyes dropped to the ground, and she whispered, “What could you possibly want that required you to…to have sex with me?” A tear slipped down her cheek. “Or to take my virginity? Or was that just a perk?” Her hands flew to her cheeks, and she stared at the ground as she sputtered, “Oh, crap. What if I really am pregnant?”