A Bundle of Joy 1: Baby Wanted (BWWM Interracial Romance) (3 page)

He traced her spine with his fingers and this time, when he reached the top, he didn’t pause, but swirled his fingers over the fabric of her dress and onto her sun-warmed skin. She twitched, but didn’t stiffen, so he kept going. His fingers brushed the soft hair at her nape and he nearly moaned. He needed to stop right now or he was going to roll her over into the grass and kiss her. His thumb pressed into the tight muscles of her neck and he gently massaged the cords.

“That feels nice,” she purred.

That was it! He’d either passed into another dimension or this was absolutely a dream. Since he had nothing to lose with either of those scenarios, he brazenly stroked her skin, then wrapped his other arm around her and rolled them over so she lay on her back. She gasped and her arms flew up to hold him.

Angled up on his elbows, he stared into the warmth of her dark brown eyes. He could lose himself there and never have another care in the world. She smiled and he brushed his knuckles across the satin skin of her cheek. Her eyes explored his features, and when they got hung up on his lips, Sean lowered them to hers.

She smelled like daisies and springtime and she tasted like spicy summer. Her lips were as soft and warm as he’d imagined and he pressed delicately against them, waiting for the slap to the side of his head, but when Heather lifted her hand, she curled it into his hair. Sean couldn’t stop himself. His tongue darted out and swished lightly against her lips. When they parted for him, he wondered if maybe this wasn’t a dream, but that he’d actually died in his sleep and this was heaven. Tentatively he explored her mouth, touching her tongue and gently probing against her teeth.

Heather’s tongue swirled around his and he bit back the moan that would surely terrify her. A kiss shouldn’t be making him this aroused, but he wanted nothing more than to roam across her entire body with his mouth. She tilted her head and he deepened the kiss, pushing deeper into her mouth with a need to claim her as his.

She’d always been his.

She would always be his.

Sean quickly ended the kiss, startling himself with the declaration and terrified that he wouldn’t be able to stop kissing her. He pressed another gentle kiss against her lips and lifted his head. Heather’s eyes slowly opened and she stared dreamily into his.

This was the best day of his life.

“Should we go get that ice cream?”

Chapter Three

Heather was still baffled by what had just happened. One minute she was sitting casually with Sean and then next he’d planted a wallop of a kiss on her. His embrace and the tingle of his lips had felt so good that for a minute she’d forgotten where she was or who she was with. Gosh, she needed to make sure that didn’t happen again. One time after their wedding ceremony seemed fine.

Sean helped her to her feet, and while he brushed the seat of his pants, she dusted off and straightened her own skirt. What a crazy day so far. She’d planned on doing the wedding over her lunch and then heading back to work. A smile tugged at her lips. It would be pretty fantastic to be able to call her boss and tell her that she was taking the rest of the day off for her honeymoon.

“What’s that smile for?”

“Just thinking about my boss’s reaction when I tell her where I am.”

“Does that mean you’re going to spend the rest of the afternoon with me?” He extended his hand, palm up. She wanted to play hooky with him. It wasn’t like the world would be impacted by her not being at her desk today. Heather highly doubted anyone would even notice.

She held up a finger for him to wait,
then dug around in her purse. She flipped open her phone and dialed her boss’s number. When her voicemail picked up, Heather lied for the first time ever and said she’d come down with a wicked case of the flu. Sean’s face lit up and he stifled a laugh. Heather caught his spirit and embellished, adding that the doctor had told her she’d be contagious for several days, so she wouldn’t be in until Monday and she was so terribly sorry for the inconvenience. She hung up before she laughed and gave herself away.

Sean grinned and grabbed a hold of her hand as she put her phone away. “If that’s the case, I think we should take off for a few days.” He winked. “To ensure you heal up properly.”

A startled excitement raced through Heather. She’d gone on plenty of trips with Sean, but there was something very different about going together as a married couple.

“Like where?”

He shrugged and led her toward his car in the parking lot. “What if we just get in the car and drive until we find somewhere we want to stop?”

The thought was so exciting and spontaneous and completely out of character for Heather that she immediately latched onto the idea. A warm breeze ruffled the hair at her nape. “Well, why not?”

He opened her door for her. “Why not, indeed.”

Heather slid into the car. “But I don’t have any clothes.”

Sean closed the door gently, but not before muttering something that sounded suspiciously like, “Exactly.”

They drove over verdant hills and through tiny towns until they crested a hill and headed into a town that just “felt right.” Sean looked at Heather the exact moment she started to say, “This is the one.”

He pulled off the highway and they slowly drove down the small main drag. At the end, a quaint bed and breakfast seemed to call out for them to stop. Sean turned in and came around to open Heather’s door.

They walked arm in arm into the lobby and a small elderly woman greeted them. “Good afternoon. Aren’t you a lovely
couple.”

Heather didn’t bother to counter. And really, what could she say that would make any sense. To the rest of the world, they looked married—and she was—for a year. Sean settled their room and got a key, then held out his hand to her.

A thousand unasked questions lived in that simple gesture. He was going to give her a baby, and that meant that sometime over the next couple of days they were probably going to have sex.

She was going to have baby-making sex.

With her best friend.

Heather hadn’t really thought through the actual part about making the baby, only that she needed one. Everything else had been such a minor detail.

Her hand trembled.

Heather jerked her gaze to Sean’
s face. His smile was strained at the corners like he was nervous too. Her hesitation fled and she slipped her hand into his and let him lead her to their room. The B&B smelled like giant bouquets of flowers and Heather inhaled deeply to try to control her quivering stomach.

Their room was beautiful and homey.
Far homier than even her apartment—or Sean’s. Despite her fears and apprehension, this was going to be the perfect place to begin this strange alliance.
And
that would keep it from being weird when she was home without him, and he without her. Their personal spaces would stay their own. She relaxed. Oh, this just kept getting better and better. If they could keep their sexy-sex time confined to places like this nothing would have to change.

Heather turned a big circle in the room and settled on the edge of a chair. Sean sat heavily on the bed and bounced up and down a few times. He smoothed the bedspread with his palms. “This will do just fine.”

Heather laughed at how over-the-top he was acting. If there was one thing Sean had always managed, it was making her laugh no matter how dire her situation seemed. She was glad she’d decided to spend a couple of days with him. Going back to work after her faux-wedding would have been strange and awful.

He patted the bed beside him. “You sure you don’t want to come check it out?”

Did she? The bed got her one step closer to a baby. A thousand bubbles erupted in her belly. Sean’s gaze slid across her cheeks, held on her lips, then drifted across her shoulders and down, leaving a warm feeling like a sunbeam gliding across her skin. Heather stood and slipped off her shoes, then sank her toes into the plush carpet. Sean loosened his tie and took his jacket off.

Emboldened by his appreciation of her and acknowledging that this wasn’t a dalliance with a stranger, but an extension of a friendship, Heather crossed to the bed. She paused at the foot and stood between Sean’s legs. He eased forward and settled his warm, strong hands just below the hem of her skirt, his fingers curling inward to stroke the sensitive spots at the back of her knees. His touch tickled, but in a good way. He kissed her belly button through her shirt and
lay his cheek against her stomach.

Heather’s hands drifted to the top of his head. “Thank you for doing this.”

“Shh. Let’s not talk about it, okay?”

His hands slid up the backs of her thighs, setting off a tingle of warmth. He rose, and his fingers slid up her body, caressing the curves of her legs, the small of her
back, and upward until he cupped her face.

Heather wasn’t sure how to read his features, but she’d never seen him look quite like that before. He looked happy, but there was something else. His gaze drifted lazily across her face, warming each spot as he caressed her with his eyes. Then his lips dusted kisses on the spots he’d just traveled. Heather’s lids dropped closed and she lost herself to the feel of another human’s touch—but not just anyone’s…that touch belonged to someone she
genuinely cared about. It had been so long…there just hadn’t been time in her life for this kind of thing. As Sean’s lips sent small firecrackers across her skin, she realized how much she’d missed it.

Her hands rested lightly on his shoulders and she moved them down his arms. The stiff fabric felt cool beneath the pads of her fingers. She let them drift across his broad back. His
muscles jumped and bunched beneath her wanderings.

His lips were soft on her face. They brushed over her cheekbones, the tip of her nose, then ever so gently over her lips. Heather opened her eyes. Sean was watching her, gauging her reaction. Hopefully what he saw encouraged him to continue, because she was thoroughly enjoying the attention. She pressed her lips to his and let them part. She wanted this, wanted Sean’s baby.

His tongue darted out and swept across her lips, and then he deepened the kiss. His fingers pressed gently against the base of her skull and Heather leaned into him. He felt so good. She’d had no idea that there would be any chemistry between them.

Liar
.

She knew there would be chemistry.

She’d always known.

Her hands slid over his back and down to his waistband. She wanted to touch his skin, but hesitated, worried that parts of this were going to be awkward. His tongue swirled around hers and some of her hesitation fled.

Sean moaned as she slid her fingers beneath his belt and tugged the shirt free. She gasped as her fingers brushed the unexpected warmth of his skin. Her hand flattened against his spine, feeling the thick ridges of his muscles and traveling higher in exploration. In all the time they’d spent together, she’d tried not to notice any of these muscles, but now that her palms were full of his broad back she was captivated by her intense desire to touch and feel each one.

Sean turned their bodies until the mattress pressed into the backs of her knees, then lowered her gently to the bed and eased beside her. Heather’s hands slipped from his back and she touched his hair, his eyebrows, stroked his jaw. Their baby would be beautiful.

And strong.

And kind.

A fullness expanded her heart and she was overcome by the emotion of the moment. She was finally,
finally
getting what she’d craved for so long. Finally a baby to hold, someone to love unconditionally, who would love her that way in return. Everything was perfect. Tears sprang to her eyes and she blinked them away while Sean trailed a finger over the seam of her shirt, tracing each button but not testing them just yet.

He seemed almost hesitant and she wondered if she should remind him that she was a sure thing. The silliness of the thought eased her emotional overload about how momentous this was and she relaxed in his arms.

With one elbow propped beneath him, his fingers stroked her arms and grazed the side of her breast.

“You’re so sweet, Heather.
So sweet.”

Sean bent closer and trailed kisses over her neck,
then sucked her earlobe. Heat missiles streaked across her body, tightening her nipples and making her belly quiver.

Heather arched her neck so he could plant kisses all the way to her collarbone. His fingers brushed the buttons of her shirt and her stomach muscles jerked and flexed. This wasn’t her first time, but something about doing it with Sean made it seem innocent and almost virginal. They’d been friends for so long, and they’d never ever crossed this line, not even that one night when they’d been so drunk.

What a crazy night that had been. Heather had just broken up with a bad boyfriend in a long string of jerks and she’d been drowning herself in a bottle of wine when Sean had found her. Without comment, he’d grabbed a glass and popped the cork on a second bottle, and proceeded to listen intently as she poured out her heart. She’d been wasted and no matter how she’d flirted and begged for Sean to give her some loving that she’d thought she so desperately wanted, he’d resisted, knowing they’d both regret it in the morning. His valiant refusal had earned him a place in her heart forever. Funny that now they’d come to this point and she was again turning to him for something she desperately wanted.

His fingers brushed her stomach, jolting her back to the present as he parted the halves of her shirt. Heather opened her eyes again but Sean was riveted on her naked skin and soft pearl bra. She’d splurged on underwear because it had seemed so bride-like. He lowered his face to her stomach and trailed more soft kisses across her skin. Zings of heat raced across Heather’s body. He was making her very horny. She’d been worried that this entire thing was going to be incredibly awkward, but Sean was a fantastic lover. He almost made her feel like he was really cherishing her body. His tongue darted out to swirl over her nipples and Heather moaned. Her nipple tightened instantly and Sean’s fingers teased the other one to a bud. He sucked her through the lace of her bra and the sensation sent off another wave of desire straight to her core. The warm feelings she’d been experiencing ratcheted up to an eight and the heat of her arousal threatened to light things on fire.

Sean’s hands worked around to the clasp of her bra, freeing her breasts. He lifted her shoulders and tugged her shirt and bra off.

“You are so beautiful,” he whispered before lowering his lips to her cleavage.

Heather’s head fell back and she clasped the side of his head as he moved over the swell of her breast and took her nipple in his mouth again. Free of the bra, he swirled his tongue lightly around the tight bud, then drew it deeper into his mouth. Heat bloomed in Heather’s belly and she felt a rush of wetness slick her thighs. Sean teased her other nipple with his fingers and cupped her entire breast gently in his palm, kneading and caressing her. His hand moved constantly, sweeping low over her belly, then back up the curve of her waist to her breast. Heather’s entire body quivered beneath him in anticipation of where his fingertips would brush against her next.

While he trailed more kisses across her shoulders, Heather worked on the buttons of his shirt. She only got three unbuttoned before Sean grabbed the collar and yanked the entire shirt over his head.

Heather blinked.

Holy crap!

He was stunning.

Just like with the suit, she’d only seen Sean without a shirt a handful of times. She didn’t remember it being noteworthy, but then again, it had been easy to ignore everything about his physicality because he was just a buddy.