A Baby for the Billionaire(19)

Shaking her head, she walked around his chair and headed for the windows  that lined one wall of the penthouse. Pressing a palm to the cool  glass, she gazed out over the twinkling city. One of the things she  loved best about this place was the view at night. She could almost  imagine she drifted above the city, free of all the cares that usually  plagued her.

One of which rose to his feet behind her.

She watched him in the window that acted like a dark mirror as he walked  up to her. He didn't touch her but stood close enough that she felt the  heat of his body along her back.

"Diane will be glad to know it all worked out."

"I'll have to thank her," she said, watching his reflection rather than  the city spread out below them. "Maybe return the favor at some point."

"Going to set her up with some eligible bachelor?"

"If I can find one. You're the most eligible single I know," she tried to joke.

But his reflection didn't crack a smile. "I'm not interested in her."

She turned then, her back pressing up against the window. "Then who are you interested in?"

Those bright blue eyes darkened as he looked down at her. "Million-dollar question."

"You can afford it," she breathed.

"That's not the cost I'm worried about paying."

Had he moved closer or was it just her imagination that was making it  harder to breath? Her heart thundered in her ears even as she told  herself she should slip away. Say she was tired and head off to bed.  Alone.

She held still, waiting with bated breath to see what came next.

"It's not like you to worry about consequences."

"Ouch," he mocked, sliding close enough that his clothing brushed hers.

"Am I wrong?"

"No." His fingers ghosted along her jaw and down the long column of her throat. "Maybe I'm growing up."         

     



 

"I didn't think you had it in you."

"You have a way of making a man reevaluate his priorities."

She blinked. "I never have before."

"Then you weren't paying close enough attention, Ms. Reporter."

His lips claimed hers before she could respond.





Chapter Twelve


The retort on the tip of her tongue died as she melted into his arms.  Why oh why did he have to feel so damned good? Her hands slid up his  chest, feeling the planes of hard muscles beneath her fingers. She  itched to push the material up and run her hands along his hot, bare  skin. Heat ignited inside her. What would it be like to push him  backward on a bed and straddle his hips? She wanted him beneath her as  she leaned down to lap at his bronzed skin.

She inhaled his personal blend of sandalwood and something uniquely  Walker. It didn't provide the clarity she'd wanted. No, if anything it  made her head swim even more. What was it about this man that made her  crave him like a drug? She'd spent so many years with him, doing  everything in her power not to think about him sexually. And now it was  like they'd both mutually gone insane and thrown all logic to the wind.

But why now? Was this just his way of getting a little stress relief without having to leave the comfort of his own home?

The thought had her tearing her mouth from his with a hoarse cry.  Pushing him away, she stumbled over to the couch and gripped the edge of  it for support.

"Clara … "

Straightening, she cut him off with a slash of her hand. "Stress again?"  she demanded. "Must be just another slip you'll write off in the  morning. I must tell you, I can't be as casual about this as you clearly  can. I can't kiss my best friend and then pretend it was meaningless."

"I can't either," he said, taking a step toward her. "And I don't want to try."

"Then what is this?" she demanded. "What's happening?"

He closed the distance between them with careful steps. "Do we have to define it? Can't we just enjoy the moment?"

She shook her head. "This will change everything."

His eyes were on her mouth. "Is that such a bad thing?"

"We're too different," she tried. "You view relationships as a prison and I … "

"You want more."

"Yes."

He nodded. "All that's true. But on the other hand … "

He pulled her back into his arms.

Dammit, she cursed as his lips touched hers. She knew this was a mistake, and yet her body clearly hadn't received the memo.

"This is crazy," she whispered against his mouth.

"A very bad idea," he agreed.

"You're good at those."

"Yes. But it doesn't change the fact that I can't stop thinking about you."

"Thinking of me how?"

He reached out to tug a piece of hair behind her ear, his fingers  brushing gently against her cheek. "In a way, I promised myself I never  would."

"Why would you make a promise like that?"

"Because I can't lose you. Not ever."

Her heart skipped a beat. "You won't lose me," she vowed, running her hands up his arms.

"You don't know that," he replied as he wrapped his arms around her  waist. "We've worked very hard to keep our relationship platonic." He  leaned forward until his lips brushed her ear. "And what I want to do to  you has nothing to do with friendship."

She shivered. "You're not the only one who's been thinking about crossing lines."

"No?" he murmured when she drew back enough to face him.

"No," she agreed. Raising a hand, she ran a finger over his lips,  touching him more intimately than she'd ever dared. "You may have always  viewed me as sexless, but I can't help the way I feel about you."

"Sexless is the last word I'd use to describe you," he replied, pressing  a tiny kiss to her questing fingertips. "I've never met any woman as  hard to forget about as you are. You drive me crazy, Clara. Seeing you  in my home every day, watching you with Hunter, dreaming of you every  night. It's driving me insane."

"Sounds like you should do something about it, then," she whispered.

"That's the conclusion I came to as well."

"Makes sense."

"Right?" His lips hung a breath away from hers. "But I need to be clear.  If we go down this road, I can't make any promises. Not right now. Not  with Hunter and everything going crazy in my life. Can you handle that?"         

     



 

Could she?

She drew in a shuddering breath. "I don't want to lose you. And I don't  want to be with anyone else. This might be a moment we regret for the  rest of our lives, but I don't want to walk away."

The hands on her body tightened. "I don't want to walk away either. I can't. Even if it's the right thing to do."

"You never do the right thing," she teased. "Don't start now."

"Good advice." His hands ran up higher, sliding against the sides of her breasts. "Be sure, Clara."

She cupped his face, looking up into eyes she'd loved in one way or another for most of her adult life.

"You're the only thing I've ever been sure of," she said.

The need on his face softened as he gazed down at her with a tenderness that took her breath away.

"And you never make mistakes," he murmured.

"No, I don't."

"Good."

He kissed her again.

Clara moaned as she wrapped her arms around his shoulders. Their kisses  before had been fiery, stolen. But this one was infinitely gentle and  more devastating. He touched her as if she were the most important thing  in the world to him.

Tunneling her fingers into his hair, she took charge and deepened the  kiss. He might think she was made of glass, but she wanted to show him  nothing was further from the truth. She was more than capable of giving  as good as she got, and the idea of proving that to him made her breath  quicken.

"Where's Hunter?" she whispered.

"Asleep in the crib in my room. I've got the baby monitor on," he said, pointing to the receiver on the coffee table.

"Then we have nothing to worry about." With a hand on his chest, she pushed him backward toward the couch.

"No interruptions," he agreed, falling onto the cushions.

She straddled him, her fingers running through his hair. "No turning back."

His hands rose to her thighs to steady her as she leaned down to kiss  him. Electricity shot through her. Finally, after all these years she  could touch him the way she'd always wanted to. There was nothing to  hold her back. Who knew what the morning would bring, but wasn't one  night with him better than wondering if she'd missed out for the rest of  her life?

Tonight, she could indulge in her every fantasy, and she wasn't going to miss this chance.

With a growl, he tumbled her backward onto the couch and rose over her.  One hand gripped her thigh as the other slid up her body. She shifted  beneath him, parting her legs to make enough room for him on the couch  that suddenly seemed smaller than it had a moment before.

"Gorgeous," he murmured, running his lips down her throat. "You are utterly gorgeous."

"Sweet talk, hmm?" She angled her head back to give him better access. "Love it."