How dare he tell her what she would and wouldn't do! He wasn't her boss. Yes, he'd strong-armed her into a marriage for the sake of their son and their families but she wouldn't be at his beck and call.
Alex was enjoying the light of temper entering her passionate eyes. She was so easy to read and he could see she was ready to explode. The desire in him was growing. It was going to take all he had to walk from the room. He didn't want to take her in anger. He respected her far too much for that.
Jessica walked up to him and slapped him hard across the face. He stood there, too stunned to move for a moment. When she saw the anger light his face, she backed up quickly, realizing she most likely had made a huge mistake.
He caught her arm and whipped her back around to face him, "if you slap me again, you will feel my wrath," he snarled.
"You will not tell me what to do or how to be a wife. Our marriage doesn't give you power over me. It doesn't mean I will be sharing your bed. I make my own choices and decisions. No one makes them for me," she said, with far more bravado than she actually felt.
Alex smiled at her with his normal confidence. "You want me just as badly as I want you. I won't make you have sex with me, you'll be begging me for it." He then kissed her quickly and walked to the door. "I'll give you tonight, alone, so you can miss me. Tomorrow and every night after, we'll sleep in the same bed. The sex will be entirely up to you."
With those words he walked out the door, leaving Jessica standing there, angry because she feared he was right. He barely left and she wanted to call him back to her. She sighed, knowing it was going to be a long night alone in the empty bed.
Chapter Four
Jessica walked down the stairs with Jacob in her arms. She was cranky and exhausted. Sleep had been elusive the previous night and it showed. After the parting kiss from Alex, she'd stirred in bed thinking about him, with her body on fire. To top that off, when she'd finally started to drift into a restless sleep Jacob woke and decided after he ate he wanted to stay awake for a while and play.
Alex stayed away from her for the night like he'd promised. By the second hour she'd walked the floors with Jacob she was thinking her decision for him to stay away may have been made a bit too hastily.
She knew she had circles under her eyes. She didn't bother with any make-up and was wearing old sweats and a baggy t-shirt. She didn't even care if she looked like something the cat had drug in. She just wanted some hot coffee and about twelve hours of uninterrupted sleep.
"Good morning Mrs. Anderson. Would you like me to take Jacob so you can eat some breakfast," asked Tina, while she placed a cup of wonderful smelling coffee in front of her?
Jessica almost replied no, as she was so used to taking care of her son on her own but the aromas coming from the kitchen had her changing her mind. "That would be wonderful, if you don't mind," she finally replied.
"My husband Edward and I, weren't blessed with children of our own. I will really enjoy having a baby in the house. I'm looking forward to spoiling him rotten," Tina said with a wink and a smile. Tina took Jacob in her arms and when he smiled at her she laughed with real joy, making him smile even more.
Jessica relaxed, knowing her son was in good hands. "I will have Maria bring your breakfast out. Enjoy your meal," Tina said, then walked into the kitchen with Jacob in her arms. Jessica ate her meal in silence and felt her eyes start to droop.
She couldn't believe how tired she was all the time. She would really like to sleep for eight full hours straight, a luxury every new mother wanted. It was worth more than any amount of money in the world.
"Good morning, I hope you slept well," said Alex, sounding far too happy. Jessica snapped fully awake at once. He didn't look as if he'd lost any sleep, she thought accusingly. In fact, he looked as if he'd never lost a night of sleep in his life. She was a little envious of him right then.
"I slept great," she lied. She refused to look up and make eye contact with him.
Alex sat down across from her and Maria placed his coffee and food in front of him. "Thank you Maria," he said. The conversation halted, while he dug into his breakfast.
Alex was surprised by the punch of lust he was feeling. Jessica looked exhausted, obviously she hadn't slept well. For that matter, he hadn't slept well either. He was just hiding it a lot better than her. Even with circles under her eyes and dressed in such baggy clothes, she looked far sexier than any woman he'd ever seen. She had a natural appeal about her.
Alex leaned over her to grab the salt and saw her eyes widen. Jessica almost gasped out loud. She wasn't happy when she saw the knowing look come into his eyes. He knew how he affected her and he was already far too full of himself. She wouldn't stroke his ego even more by letting him know how deeply he affected her.
They ate in an awkward silence, while Jessica tried to regain her composure. She didn't like how her world always seemed to stop turning whenever he was around her. She would bet objects would just naturally fall from the sky and land at his feet, if he commanded them to do so.
"I have some work to do here in the home office. If you need anything, you can come and get me," he finally spoke after several moments.
Jessica simply nodded her head. She then rose from the table and headed toward the kitchen. There was a basinet off in the corner and her son was sleeping soundly. She smiled down at her precious baby.
"Mrs. Anderson, if you'd like to lie down for a while, I would be more than happy to keep an eye on Jacob. You have several bottles already pumped if he wakes up hungry," Tina said kindly.
Jessica's initial reaction was to refuse. But she wouldn't be any good to him if she didn't get some rest. There was a houseful of people more than willing and happy to help her. It wasn't selfish to get a bit more rest.
"Thank you Tina, I'll take you up on your offer. Please wake me if you need anything." Jessica placed a kiss on her son's head and then headed back up the stairs. She climbed into bed and quickly fell into an exhausted sleep. She didn't stir for four hours.
When she woke, she felt disoriented. She wasn't used to taking long naps and she panicked for a moment when she noticed the time. She quickly relaxed, knowing if there'd been any problems someone would've woken her.
She climbed into the shower and washed the sleep away. Taking long showers was another luxury new mothers had to give up. She was always so paranoid Jacob would need her while she was showering and wouldn't hear him. This was actually absurd, considering she knew how loud her son could get when unhappy about something.
She got dressed and headed back down the stairs. She found Jacob in the living room with Alex. Her son was wide awake, making little grumbling noises at his father. Alex seemed to be transfixed. She watched them for a few minutes. The unguarded way her husband interacted with his son was something special to see. She knew she'd made the right choice in marrying him. He obviously loved Jacob immensely.
She made a noise and he looked up to see her standing in the doorway. He quickly guarded his expression and she felt a bit let down. Their relationship wasn't going to get any easier, anytime soon.
"You have great timing," Alex began, "our son was just telling me he wanted some food." He smiled, as his eyes once again went to their son. Jessica walked closer to them and when Jacob noticed her, his noises escalated and his legs kicked out. He knew food was nearby and he was letting his mom know he wanted it.
Jessica smiled, while bending down to pick Jacob up. Her hand brushed against Alex's lap and their eyes locked for a moment. He quickly inhaled and his eyes darkened in desire. He needed his wife and the sooner he had her, the better.
Jessica quickly gathered the baby and sat down on the far end of the couch. Her fingertips were tingling, where they'd brushed him. She had no idea how she was supposed to continue to fight the desire she had for the man. He was potent. She wanted him far more than she'd ever wanted another man. She hadn't been with anyone since her night with him in the elevator and her body was aching to be taken.
"I'm going to feed him here," she finally said to him. He usually left her in privacy to feed their son but apparently he wasn't willing to this time.
"Go ahead, I'm going to catch the end of the game," he replied.
There were no blankets nearby and Jacob was getting ready to throw a full blown fit any minute, as he started rooting around on the outside of her blouse. Jessica turned slightly away from Alex, trying to give herself some semblance of privacy and quickly latched her son on. He greedily started to eat and Jessica relaxed and watched the game with Alex, without saying anything else.