SEALed With A Kiss(2)

“I’ve told you not to do that!” Ophelia scolded. “A woman needs her privacy.”

“I could tell you weren’t on the toilet. What’s going on?” he demanded.

She rolled her eyes. “Why do you think something’s going on?”

He just looked at her in that intent, all-seeing way of his that made her toes curl inside of her high heeled shoes. “You just agreed to Thanksgiving at my mother’s,” he pointed out.

She strove for an innocent look. “Yes, I did.”

Vinny’s eyes narrowed, conveying utter skepticism. Ophelia never could resist those eyes. Rimmed with lush lashes, they sloped just enough that, combined with his hooked nose, they made him resemble a young Al Pacino. “Then you’ve forgiven her for her remark about your skinny hips?”

Ophelia forced a negligent shrug even though the reminder reawakened her resentment. “What’s to forgive? She was upset that she’d missed our wedding. It’s only natural that she would lash out about it. Any mother would be upset about missing her only son’s wedding.”

“True.” Vinny nodded, his gaze still watchful. “But she said some pretty hurtful things,” he acknowledged.

Rose’s exact words had been that it was time she quit her job, put some meat on her skinny hips, and start being the wife that Vinny deserved. “She wants grandbabies,” Ophelia reminded him with just a stitch of resentment left. “Who can blame her?” Guilt pinched her anew as she considered that she could now make Rose’s dreams come true. But she had no intention of sharing that happy news—not yet, anyway.

Vinny’s gentle smile did nothing to ease her conscience as he waded deeper into the bathroom, his arms outstretched. “Yeah, maybe we can work on that before you go to work this morning,” he suggested in a husky voice, pulling her into his embrace. The musky sweat that clung to his T-shirt from his morning run prompted Ophelia to squirm free.

“You’re going to soil my work clothes,” she protested.

“Just a kiss then,” he pleaded, catching her jaw in his hand and turning her head toward his. One touch of his warm, supple lips and Ophelia forgot about escaping.

Goosebumps played tag along her skin as his clever tongue coaxed her lips to part so he could offer her a glimpse of what she’d be missing. By the time he lifted his head, the floor seemed to be tilting and she was seriously considering getting undressed to join him in the shower. She grabbed his wrist to read his watch. “Oh, shoot, I’m late.”

“You’re always late,” he pointed out. “What’s another half hour?”

“No, seriously, I have to go. My new boss is making us sign in.”

“The prick,” Vinny exclaimed.

“Tell me about it.” On the verge of slipping under his arm and out of the room, Ophelia pressed a heartfelt kiss on Vinny’s cheek. “I love you,” she told him, surprised to feel tears sting her eyes.

His dark eyebrows quirked. “I love you, too,” he said.

She fled before he could question her. Vinny knew her like nobody else did, even better than her sister. If he guessed her circumstances, if he knew that their child was growing in her womb, he would move heaven and earth to get her to quit her job and stay at home, where their baby would be safe.

Over my dead body, Ophelia thought, exiting the bathroom swiftly and collecting her purse and jacket from the hall closet. Being the lead investigative reporter was the one thing she did well. It gave her the self-respect she desperately craved. Before her career in journalism, she’d been living with her sister because she couldn’t support herself waitressing and indulging in pastimes that were self-destructive.

And then Vinny De Innocentis had come along. He might have been four years her junior, but he was so totally with-it, with a sound work-ethic, a career in the Navy, and a long-term goal of becoming a doctor. He’d inspired her to improve herself. Finally, she felt like she was worthy of him, but only because of her job.

If and when he found out she was pregnant, that would change—not just because Vinny would insist that she alter her priorities but also because being pregnant would ruin her career.

Maybe she wouldn’t tell Vinny. The thought sneaked into her brain as she backed out of their single-car garage, executing a U-turn next to Vinny’s Honda Civic. She could visit a clinic somewhere and quietly abort—oh, God, no. She dismissed the notion the instant it occurred to her. She could never do that to Vinny or their baby. Not when she already knew what a terrific father he would make. Not when he let her park her car in their one-car garage so she didn’t have to run in and out of the weather. He deserved way better than that. He deserved better than her.