"Let's go wake your mom. I certainly can't feed you," Alex said to Jacob with a little chuckle. He stepped into her room with the light softly shining in from the hallway. His breath was taken away by her unguarded, peaceful expression. In sleep she seemed so young and innocent. She didn't look like she could possibly be old enough to be a mother.
Jacob started wiggling in his arms, reminding him that it was time to eat. That snapped Alex out of his trance. He walked over to the bed and sat down. The movement woke Jessica and she sat upright. "What's wrong?" she asked in a panic, getting ready to jump up.
"It's okay," Alex said, while placing a hand on her shoulder in reassurance. "Jacob woke up and he's hungry. I already changed him, so if you feed him, then I will burp him and put him back to bed," he explained.
Jessica was still disoriented but held her arms out for her child. "You don't need to stay. We do this every night," she pled. She really didn't want him there with her body exposed. In the middle of the night it would be so much harder to not throw herself at Alex. She didn't need to show him how much he still affected her.
"I want to be with him. If you got some of that bottle stuff then I could take over the night feedings," he said hopefully. Jessica had to smile a bit at his lack of knowledge over the name, formula.
"No, I like our nighttimes," she said simply. She figured it was dark enough she could feed her baby without having to cover him up. She liked to watch his precious face as he ate. She could gently caress his head and sooth him. He liked it too and would fall asleep quickly after he burped. When Jacob made a little growling noise followed by gulping sounds, Alex let out a quiet laugh, making Jacob jump. Surprisingly he stayed latched on and slurped away.
"My son likes his food," Alex stated proudly.
Jessica smiled at Alex for the first time in the dim room. Her face had lost the guarded expression. He couldn't help himself; he needed to have physical contact with both her and his son. He scooted a little closer on the bed so his shoulder was pressing against hers, then reached his hand up and brushed the soft strands of hair on his son's head.
Their eyes were still locked together and he couldn't resist reaching towards her. He gently touched his lips to hers. Her taste was exquisite and pleasure shot all through his overheated body. He wanted her so badly. He most likely would've taken her if his son wouldn't have been attached to her.
She pulled back, her breathing uneven and looked down at Jacob's head. His hand was still resting there and the edge of his thumb was touching her breast. She sucked in another sharp intake of air and twisted, so his hand would have to drop.
She pulled Jacob to her shoulder and quickly covered herself as she started to burp him. "Let me do that," he said, while he gently took Jacob and placed him over his own shoulder. Jacob gave a loud burp and started rooting at his shoulder, looking for more food.
Alex knew there wasn't any way he could sit and watch her feed his son. He wanted her far too much to sit next to her in the bed any longer. "I'll let you finish up," he muttered as he left the room. Two more nights, he told himself as he prepared for a restless night. He would be lucky to get even another few minutes of sleep with the way his body was on fire.
Jessica breathed a sigh of relief as she watched Alex leave the room. She still had tingles zipping through her body where he'd pressed up against her. She knew he was simply trying to be a part of everything but she didn't think she had the willpower to resist him. She'd been so lonely and so in need of affection.
She would be glad when the newness of the baby wore off and he backed off a bit. If he kept coming into her room in the middle of the night she would end up grabbing him and having a repeat performance of their night in the elevator.
How could one night with a man imprint him so deeply into her soul? She looked at their son and sighed. But Jessica had to be honest with herself and knew it was about so much more than just their son. Alex was dynamic in a way no other man even came close to being. He was intriguing and gorgeous beyond what any man should be gifted. He'd made her laugh and burn in only a few hours' time.
She finished feeding Jacob, placed him in bed and fell into a much needed deep sleep.
Chapter Three
Jessica was exhausted. Alex had been back for three days and he refused to leave the house. He'd been amazing with their son though, so she had to give him credit for that. He'd even gotten up in the middle of the night so he could change and burp Jacob once she was done feeding him.
After the first night he'd maintained his distance, thankfully because she didn't think she could handle anymore late night touching. Every time she was within breathing distance of Alex, her insides twisted into knots and all she wanted to do was reach out to him. She fully blamed the post partum baby hormones.
Today was the day of her wedding and she felt like she was going to have a panic attack. She had to keep telling herself it would all work out for the best. She went through her morning routine with Jacob, then she was whisked away to the wedding site.
"I'll take Jacob for you so your mother can help you finish getting ready," Joseph offered her.
Jessica jumped at the sound of Joseph's voice. She hadn't heard him walk up. The man sure moved quietly for a guy his size, she thought.
"I would appreciate that, Joseph. He's had his breakfast so he should be in a good mood for a while," she said.
"You look beautiful," Joseph told her and then bent down and placed a kiss on her cheek before heading out of the room.
Jessica's mother came in and put the finishing touches on her before they got into position. The walk down the aisle went by in a blur and the next thing she knew the preacher was speaking.
She was standing at the altar, next to a man she barely knew and was closer to having a panic attack than she'd ever been in her life. He looked so handsome and yet so aloof. She was wishing for some divine intervention to stop the whole circus. Maybe he'd come to his senses and tell her he couldn't go through with it, or maybe her father would stand up and free her of the obligation.
None of that happened. Suddenly, the preacher was pronouncing them man and wife. Alex then took her into his arms. The rest of the world disappeared as his mouth fastened onto hers. She'd expected a chaste kiss but she was wrong. He coaxed her mouth open and then slipped his tongue inside.
Her knees went to jelly and she would've slid to the floor if it hadn't been for his arms supporting her. When there was laughter from the guests and a lot of throat clearing he finally pulled away and she was left to stand with one of his arms around her, staring blankly at the mass of people.
"You have plenty of time for the honeymoon later," she heard someone call out.
"Share that pretty bride of yours. I'm calling the first dance after my brother," another voice hollered with a chuckle.
"You can back off and find your own wife Mark," Alex said, with jealousy in his tone.
"Doesn't feel so good to be on this side of the ribbing, huh little brother," Lucas said and then thumped him on the back.
Alex knew he deserved the teasing. He'd given Lucas hell, not that long ago when his big brother started dating Amy. Lucas had been trying to fight his attraction towards Amy, so Mark and he had decided to push their brother's buttons. They'd both planted a kiss on her in front of Lucas and flirted. She'd known they were kidding, trying to get a rise out of their brother but now Alex felt bad for what he'd put Lucas through because he sure as hell wanted to punch out Mark at that moment.
A shudder ran through Jessica's body as she watched the interplay between the brothers. They were all so virile and appealing. She only had eyes for Alex though. He was the sexiest man she'd ever been around and in any other circumstance she would've been swooning to be held and kissed by him.
Jessica glanced over to where her father was laughing at something Joseph said. She tried to stay mad at both men for manipulating the whole situation but she really did love them. She knew they only wanted what they deemed best for her and her son. She just didn't like the methods they took to get their own way.
As if the men knew she was thinking about them, they both turned and gave her a smile. She was too frazzled at the moment to even pretend to smile back so she turned away and let her thoughts continue to run.
Things could be a lot worse, she decided. Alex was a sexy, incredible man and it was obvious he was already in love with his son. She could've been forced into a marriage where the man not only resented her but her son as well. She knew no matter how Alex felt about her, he would always love Jacob.
"Time for photographs," she heard a voice call. She grimaced until Alex looked at her, with their precious son resting in his arms. For one moment they shared a real smile. Her mask fell away. The love she had for her son and the love starting to grow for Alex was shining through her expression. His breath seemed to catch and he was about to say something, when the camera flash snapped them both out of the moment.