"You okay?" Sally sounded suspicious. But maybe pregnant women could recognize each other, some sort of pheromone thing. God, she hoped not.
"Why?"
Sally grinned. "Well, you were banging your head against the desk. Anything the matter?"
"Just clearing my mind," she muttered. "You looking for Dave?"
"I just saw him. He's finishing up, said he would meet me in here. I thought I'd come for a little chat."
She liked Sally; she'd met her a few times at company parties. She was always cheerful, and today she was positively blooming. Pregnancy agreed with her.
"So how are things going with you and Jake?" Sally perched on the edge of the desk.
Kim shot her a wary glance. "There is no me and Jake."
"That's not what Dave says."
"Did Dave put you up to this little chat?"
"Maybe. He's worried about Jake."
"So now, just because Dave's wallowing in domestic bliss, he wants everyone else to do the same."
Sally laughed. "I guess. But he is. Wallowing, I mean, and he wants to spread the happiness."
"Aw, how sweet." But it was in a way. "So are you excited about the baby?"
"We were trying for years before it happened. Now it's hard to believe in a few months we'll be a proper family."
Her happiness was so obviously genuine that Kim shoved aside her skepticism and let Sally chatter away about the preparations for the baby. How Dave was fixing up the nursery in his spare time. Her face lit up every time she mentioned Dave. Who would have thought it? She had a momentary flash of jealousy. What would it be like to feel so loved and secure?
Dave appeared ten minutes later. "You two having a nice little chat?"
"Wonderful," Kim murmured. "You know, someone told me recently that there's a bet going on in the office about whether Jake and I will get together. I can guess where Dave's put his money."
He laughed. "You're a cynic."
"Oh, yeah. But it's nice to see that the two of you aren't. I'm happy for you both. And he or she"-she pointed at Sally's bump-" is a very lucky baby."
"Not tempted to try it yourself?" Sally asked. "Jake would make a dreamy father."
"I don't think so." Kim resisted the urge to touch her stomach. Instead, she crossed her fingers under the desk, as an image of a blue-eyed baby flashed up in her mind. Never going to happen. But the image lingered. "And, I told you, there's nothing like that with me and Jake."
The phone beside her rang, and she picked it up. It was Margie.
"Jake says he's delayed. Go home, pick up your things, and he'll meet you on the roof at seven."
"Meet him on the roof? Why?" The roof sounded an odd place to meet.
"Apparently, you're going wherever it is you're going by helicopter."
"Scotland. And it's a job."
"Of course it is," Margie replied smoothly.
She put down the phone and looked up into Dave's grinning face.
"It's a job," she snapped.
"Of course it is."
…
"Oomph."
Jake had tightened her harness.
"Too tight?"
Kim wriggled about and found she could still breathe. Besides, she wanted to be locked in tight and safe-she was afraid of heights, though she'd never admitted that to Jake. "I'm good."
He sat back and surveyed her. "I like you all strapped in … at my mercy."
"In your dreams." But a frisson of sensation shivered down to settle in her belly.
"Oh, it is." His gaze ran over her, and the frisson sank even lower. She squirmed in her seat. "Have I mentioned I like the outfit?" He frowned. "I don't think I've ever seen you in a skirt before."
She was wearing clothes she'd bought for the kick-ass-chick makeover. She might as well get some use out of them, even though she'd decided the whole kick-ass-chick image was way too much work.
The skirt was short, black, and made of soft, supple leather. She wore it with stockings and her four-inch stilettos-she had no plans to walk anywhere tonight. She'd been totally gratified by Jake's expression when he'd caught sight of her. He'd hustled her into the helicopter as though he couldn't waste a moment. But now that he had her strapped in, some of his urgency seemed to leave him. He laid a hand against her knee then pushed it up between her legs to rest on her inner thigh. She shifted in her seat but couldn't move with the harness holding her so tight. A mere inch higher and he'd be touching her where she needed him the most.
But in a helicopter?
He leaned in and kissed her mouth. Her lips opened, and her thighs parted. She moaned low in her throat as he slid his tongue inside to caress hers and his fingers grazed the black lace at the junction of her thighs.
Heat stole through her body, desire blossomed into a heavy weight in her belly, an ache in her core. She was wet, and she knew he must be able to feel how much she wanted him through the thin material. She jerked her hips to encourage him to move his fingers higher. Instead, he drew away.
"Something to think about during the flight."
Then he sat back and strapped himself into the pilot's seat.
She sat there, unable to say a word. She had a few she'd planned to say, but they didn't seem important when all she could think about was the incessant throb of need between her thighs.
They flew high above the city for a while and then left the crowded buildings behind and headed into the open country. For the duration of the flight, she was aware of his muscular thigh close to hers, his long, elegant hands on the instruments.
Despite her fear of heights, she relaxed. She felt safe. She always felt safe with Jake.
Their destination was up in the Highlands, north of Rannoch Moor. The flight took just over three hours, including a brief landing at a small airport just north of the border to refuel, and the sun was starting to sink below the horizon as Jake landed the helicopter on the roof of the castle.
Kim unfastened her harness while Jake undid his, but she waited until the whirl of the blades slowed and he opened the doors. She climbed down and tottered to the edge of the rooftop. They were on top of a tower, high above the main building, but protected by a low wall, complete with battlements, that enclosed the area. A fabulous view spread out below her, south over Rannoch Moor and north to the mountains. The air was cool and fresh after the city, and she inhaled deeply.
She sensed Jake's approach. He'd collected their bags from the helicopter, but he dropped them and came up beside her.
"What do you think?"
"It's perfect."
"Well, why don't you admire the view, while I take care of a pressing problem?"
"A pressing problem?"
He took her hand and placed it against his groin so she could feel the steely hardness of his erection. He was fully aroused, and moist heat welled between her thighs. Resting his hands on her shoulders, he turned her gently so she faced the wall.
"What are you doing?" She sounded breathless.
"Trust me." He positioned her palms on the warm rock of the wall. She had to bend slightly to reach and realized what he was about to do. He stroked her ass through the leather of her skirt, then shifted his hands lower to her stocking-clad thighs and dragged the skirt up until it bunched around her waist.
Jake hooked a finger in her panties at either hip, and tugged so the lace rubbed against her sex, arousing her clit, starting a fluttering low down in her belly. Then he slid the thong down her legs. "Lift up." She raised each foot in turn, and he slipped her underwear off and tossed it over the wall. "You won't need them again."
She watched the scrap of black float down to the treetops below.
"Holy shit," Jake said. "That is like all my fantasies come true. Well, maybe not all, but a good few." His voice held the rough edge of desire, and without conscious thought, she bent slightly so her ass pointed up higher, then widened her stance.
One warm hand came down on her buttock. He squeezed, then teased down the line between to delve into the hot wetness of her sex. He pushed one finger inside, then withdrew and slicked her juices over her clit. Pleasure rolled through her as he massaged the sensitive nub.
"Oh God, Jake."
"You like?"
She shook, and he soothed her ass with his other hand.
Aching with need, she pushed against him. This time he thrust two fingers inside her and stroked her inner walls, then back to her clit until she thought she'd scream.
He withdrew his hand, and she moaned, then heard the rasp of his zipper and the tear of a foil wrapper.
"This is where we were interrupted last time," he said. "And I feel like I've been hard ever since."
His hand returned to her sex, parting the drenched folds, then his cock was nudging at her opening, and she held her breath. His big body curved around hers, and his breath feathered her throat. He nuzzled her for a moment. "What's the chance of my mother turning up now?" he whispered.
"Jake, shut up."
He chuckled, then flexed his hips and filled her with one fluid move. He was big, and the sensation bordered on pain.
He stilled for a moment while she became accustomed to the size of him. "Okay?"
She nodded, and he moved slowly, pulling free of her. Her muscles tightened around him as if to keep him inside. Then he shoved in again. Her inner walls tingled, and the heavy weight in her belly built.