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Boston tipped his beer back slow and deliberate, barely controlling the urge to break things. Soft twilight bathed the swanky hotel room with a pale glow but he made no move to turn on a lamp. He’d chosen to return to the hotel rather than stay at the resort with Julianna. He didn’t trust himself not to bang on her door and scream at the top of his lungs like a spoiled child or worse, a deranged stalker. Everything had deteriorated to shit in the space of heartbeats. What was wrong with him? He could’ve made it all better by apologizing, for begging her to forgive him instead of the other way around. Of course, she’d been pissed. His Julianna wasn’t a delicate flower easily crushed under his boot. It’s what he found so incredibly sexy about her. She’s not yours. She doesn’t want you. Something hot and anguished threatened to incinerate his heart and he didn’t know how to handle the pain.
How did they come to this place in their relationship? Things had been so good. He’d been on top of the world. He wouldn’t blame the baby. That baby was a fucking miracle. He was desperate to know more about his child. When is the due date? How soon can a person find out the gender? He didn’t have a preference — just a healthy child. Ten fingers, ten toes. And whatever else babies are supposed to have. What if it was a daughter? A little girl to spoil and lavish every red cent he owned; a son to pass on his legacy. Tears sprung to his eyes and he didn’t know if he was about to bawl because he was pissed drunk or because he was terrified of losing the one thing he’d been warned he’d never have. Or maybe because he was near crazy with fear that Julianna would never come back to him unless he twisted her arm so far behind her back that it broke from the strain. And then she’d really hate him.
She signed the contract, a voice reminded him, make her stand by her word.
How? And maybe that was the worst thing to do. Forcing Julianna was a mixed bag. She didn’t take kindly to being coerced. Even if it worked in the short term. Threaten to pull the plug on her brother’s therapy. If she cares so much about her crippled brother, use that to your advantage.
Holy shit. Was he going insane? Was there a devil crouched on his shoulder, whispering terrible schemes in his ear? What the hell? Had someone slipped absinthe into his beer? He was definitely drunk off his ass and starting to hallucinate voices that weren’t being helpful at all.
Did he love Julianna? Love…a concept he’d rejected after his experience with Gigi. Nobody truly loved another human being. It was a chemical process in the brain. So with that understanding, he had to accept that in order to gain the upper hand in this negotiation, he had to stop being a pussy and make Julianna come to heel. She might hate him for it, but that was tough shit. She created this storm, she’d just have to deal with the damage.
He was Boston Kincaid. No one pushed him around. Not even the mother of his child.
#
Julianna rose early, eyes gritty from crying most of the night, and wandered into the kitchen to grab a bottled water and something to nibble, her thoughts still lingering on Boston’s unexpected appearance. She hugged herself, still able to feel his fingers on her skin. Why couldn’t he just be a normal guy for once and drop the emotionally constipated Alpha Badass routine? Julianna shuddered in spite of herself. She couldn’t deny that when he took control, literally bending her to his touch, there was absolutely no stopping the pleasure that rippled down her spine, pooling in her belly and spreading like a hungry flame. He had a way with her body that defied explanation. When pressed together, tongues tangling and hands grasping, they created an orgasmic symphony that was hard to ignore.
But forget all that! Because whether or not he could medal in gold between the sheets, paled against the stark reality that Boston Kincaid was a raging asshole.
And he’d knocked her up.
Ugh. Julianna downed her water and grabbed her towel. She was going to take a morning swim and try to forget that she was stuck in a really bad situation with no end in sight.
#
Miles had just finished his morning swim and was treading water, enjoying the peace that only came from spending time in the ocean, when he saw Julianna heading for the beach. She dropped her towel and he sucked a wild breath at her sweet, soft curves that he could dream about when he closed his eyes at night. There was something so tantalizing about Julianna that beckoned, causing him to ignore that small voice of reason that kept insisting that he take a step back. Clearly, she was on the rebound. Rebound girls were toxic. He didn’t want anything to do with a woman who still had feelings for someone else. But when Miles thought of Julianna, he melted just a little.