Millionaire in Command(12)

His  face hardened for the first time since she'd met him. "You think  I'm  BS-ing you? I may have a lot of flaws, but I do not lie."

"You  really expect me to believe you're going to be celibate for the  entire  marriage? For a whole year?" She wondered how long he really  expected  that to last? Did he have plans to walk away that she didn't  know about?

"Aren't you? What makes you think I have less self-control than you do?"

She  opened her mouth-and closed it again. She didn't have an answer to   that. And truth be told, as much as she cautioned herself against being   gullible, she believed him on this one. Phoebe nudged aside her soup  and  stabbed the steak.

He swirled his merlot in his glass, watching her. "Celibacy doesn't make for much of a wedding night."

"I  don't know about that." Although just the mention filled her mind  with  what the night could have held. Had he chosen his words with that   intent? "Nina is safe for now. That means the world to me."

He finished off his merlot. "What about when Bianca shows up again?"

The  bite of steak palled in her mouth. She swallowed thickly. "I only  want  the best thing for Nina. That would be to have her parents' love  and  want to take care of her."

"Even if that means giving her up?"

Her fork clattered against her plate. "Are you threatening to take her away?"                       
       
           



       

His  one-sided smile returned with a dry twist. "Hardly. You're a  terrific  mother. But me? Ask anyone and they'll tell you I'm a crappy  candidate  for fatherhood."

Curiosity nipped.

"You say you're always honest, so tell me. What do you have against children?"

"Why would you say that?" he asked evasively. "Marianna and Sebastian have never voiced any complaints about me with kids."

"You  pick Nina up, you carry her, even play with her, but you're always   holding something of yourself back. I know it's early yet, but it  seems  like you distance yourself from her."

Kyle attacked the rest of his steak. "That's just your imagination."

She  reached across the table and touched his wrist, stilling his hand.   "I've heard too much about acting from Bianca over the years not to  have  picked up something. You're good, but you can't fool me."

He  stared at her fingers for two crashes of the waves before setting  aside  his fork. "Little Edward isn't my brother's first child. They had  a baby  girl before Edward, but lost her before her first birthday."

She  gasped. "How awful." Her heart ached for the lovely woman who'd  been so  kind to her. "I can't imagine how devastated I would be if  something  happened to Nina."

"Sophie didn't die." But his face still  creased with pain. "They'd  tried for years to get pregnant, then decided  to adopt. Four months  after Sophie was placed with them, the birth  mother changed her mind.  They went through hell."

She'd assumed  the extra portraits of children that didn't look like  Landises were the  grandchildren of Ginger's second husband. Now she  realized one of the  little-girl images must have been that adopted  daughter. So that's why  Marianna had noticed she loved Nina as much as  any biological mother  could. "I'm so sorry for what they went through."

"The birth mother sends them periodic updates and Sophie looks happy."

As  she studied his pained expression, she realized it wasn't totally  about  hurting for his brother. He'd loved the little girl, too, and  grieved  when she was taken away. She stayed silent so he could just  talk.

"My  brother and his wife may be happy now, but after all they went   through … " He shook his head slowly. "They even divorced at one point. My   brother is a steady sort, good marriage material. Me? Not so much,  even  on a good day."

His line of logic wasn't going where she'd expected. She struggled to follow. "You're afraid of letting your family down?"

"I  would do what I have to, but I saw from my sister-in-law, from my   mother, too, how much more is needed to make a marriage and family work.   I'm not cut out for that."

She almost blurted out her disbelief  at his assumption, told him that  he was copping out, but held the words  back at the last second. He said  he didn't lie to people, and maybe  strictly that was true. But she  suspected he was lying to himself. Men  weren't always great at  admitting their fears, especially if one fear  involved turning his  heart over to a child. "You're really content to  live your life alone?"

"I have a big family around me, and a satisfying career. I have a good life."

"You seem to be forgetting one thing."

"I'm  sure you'll tell me." At least his smile returned. He held her  gaze  over the candlelight, the flame flickering inside the hurricane  globe  and casting flecks in his beautiful blue eyes.

She touched his  wrist again, lingering, feeling his pulse throb against  her thumb. "You  can't escape the fact that you're already a father."

His eyes locked on hers. Intense. Inscrutable. Her fingers stroked along his wrist when she'd meant to let him go.

"And you're a wife."

He stood slightly, leaned across the small table and she knew what was coming but couldn't find words to stop him from-

Kissing her.

His  mouth fit over hers, more familiar this time, but the tingle  showering  along her nerves was still surprising in its intensity. She'd  hoped her  reaction at the courthouse had been an anomaly, some kind of  mixed-up  reaction to memories from her first marriage, but damn, she  fit her  mouth against his and wanted. More.                       
       
           



       

She parted her lips and he  growled his approval until she could taste  the rich bouquet of his  merlot. His hands stayed on the table, her  fingers around his wrist. He  only touched her with his mouth, his  tongue. The spicy soap scent of him  stirred around her in the breeze,  reminding her of the moment when  she'd first met him and his voice  stroked her senses as, temptingly, his  mouth moved on hers.

She should pull away, prove she was strong  and resolute the way she'd  planned this afternoon. Phoebe lifted her  hands to push against his  shoulders.

But he pulled away first.

Her  head swam and she couldn't even blame it on the drink, because he  had  honored her request to stick with one glass. Her only consolation  came  from watching his chest rise and fall as rapidly as her own. She  needed  to get her head together. She refused to let him win her over  easily as  he must have done with women in the past, like Bianca and  Lucy.

Phoebe drained half her water goblet while he reclaimed his seat. She had to think. Focus on what was important.

She  had to keep her head clear and her wits about her at all times. She   hoped this dinner would be over soon so she could start figuring out  how  to deal with her desire. "Um, when do you report back to your  base?"

"I've already finished up all the paperwork." He watched her, his chest still pumping. "It'll be official next week."

"So  you're on vacation." And when would that vacation end? She wasn't  even  sure where his base was. She was married to a stranger, a totally  hot  stranger who turned her inside out with his kisses. The mere  thought  rattled her, leaving her feeling disloyal to her ex. "Rest is a  good  idea after such a long deployment."

"I'm not on vacation." He  straightened in his chair, his eyes  narrowing. "I've turned in my papers  now that I've fulfilled my  commitment to the air force. We were going  to announce it after the  party. But then you showed up with Nina, and  we've been distracted  since then."

A roar started in her ears, her pulse louder than the waves rushing in with inevitability. "What exactly does this mean?"


"As  of today, I'm no longer in the military. I'm taking over a branch  of  the Landis Foundation." He spread his hands wide. "As of now, I'm   totally at your disposal."



An hour later, Phoebe stood in  Nina's new nursery, toying with the  decorative silk slippers tacked to  the wall. Control slipped away as  fast as the tears down her cheeks.

What had she gotten herself into?

Swiping  the back of her wrist under her eyes, she looked into Nina's  crib at  the sweet baby she loved so much. Phoebe adjusted the light  blanket,  smoothed back a dark curl … saw Kyle's one-sided smile as the  infant  grinned in her sleep.