The Pregnancy Test (NY Girlfriends #1)(24)
Author: Erin McCarthy

The outrage on her face made him chuckle, even as his body screamed its own protest with quivering jerks inside her. "I told you only two minutes. I think I went over."

Her brown eyes went wide with shock. Then she pinched his waist, hard. "Oh, my God. Finish me now, Damien, or I won’t be responsible for my actions."

Oh, he would finish her. And himself in the process.

Bracing one hand on the wall over her head and the other on the bed, Damien gave one, two last strokes. As Mandy cried out and bucked behind him as she came, he let it all go and poured himself into her with a muffled roar.

He pulsed and throbbed on and on in a delicious surrender that sent a rapturous shudder through him. And when his moans petered off and his legs relaxed and a great exhalation of air shot out of his lungs, Damien felt empty of everything for the first time in three years.

Anger, frustration, pain – it all washed away and he was just left feeling very, very satisfied.

Chapter 10

Mandy breathed in the warm night air from Damien’s balcony and gave a lusty sigh of contentment.

"Do you want something to drink? I’m going to raid the minibar." Damien stood in the doorway, wearing his pants and a sardonic smile.

Damn, he was really quite fabulous. Mandy was feeling pleased with the whole world, but especially with Damien. He had no idea how much it meant to her that now, when she was feeling scared and lonely and unattractive, he had chosen her to end his celibacy.

And he’d done such a nice job of it, too, my goodness.

Her body still felt flushed and relaxed from that second orgasm, and she crossed her ankles as she leaned over the railing, in her dress but with nothing underneath it. "I am thirsty, but minibars are notoriously expensive, Damien. I’d feel guilty drinking an eight-dollar bottle of water, even if work is paying for it."

"The minibar is free, Mandy. The trip is all-inclusive, which includes the minibar."

That got her attention. "You must be joking."

"No."

"Damn, I’ve been ignoring that bag of chocies then for no reason. You’d better bring them to me, quick."

"Chocies?"

"The chocolates." Mandy pulled back a little, away from the railing bar pressing her stomach. She knew the baby was nicely cushioned, but she still rubbed a protective hand over the bump. "I’ve been eyeing them for two days, telling myself that since they probably cost twelve dollars and my backside doesn’t need chocolate anyway, I should resist them. But forget it now, I want them."

She’d hardly gained any weight, thanks to the morning sickness. One little bag of chocolates wouldn’t hurt. They weren’t bad for the baby, just not good for the baby. And she was on holiday and entitled to indulge.

Damien reappeared with water and the chocolates. She was definitely indulging, and in more than the chocolates.

Strange, she didn’t feel the slightest bit guilty or ashamed of herself on either account.

He sat down on the plastic deck chair and popped the top off one of the waters. He handed it to her, then opened the little box of chocolates and held them out for her to make a selection.

She took one that looked like a caramel filled and settled into the chair next to him, scooting it closer so she could rest her feet on his thighs. "Do you mind?" she asked, licking the edge of the chocolate.

Shaking his head, he dropped his hand on her ankle, caressing her bare skin. Making sure her dress was tucked under her so she wasn’t flashing Damien or anyone walking by on the path below, she sighed and relaxed back into her chair.

"Comfy?" he asked. His pants were still cuffed a little from their walk on the beach, and he looked sexy and rumpled, his bare chest gleaming a bit in the muted shadows of the balcony.

"Very comfy. I feel boneless." She popped the whole candy in her mouth and closed her eyes in appreciation. "Oh, that’s good."

He was massaging the bottom of her foot, and Mandy decided nothing could get better than this. A half-naked, gorgeous man rubbing her feet while she floated in chocolate and post-orgasm endorphins. "How about you? Are you comfy?" she murmured, her voice sounding throaty and sensual even to her own ears.

"Very." His mouth was smiling, but his eyes were serious. "I haven’t been this relaxed in a long time."

She was about to ask him to tell her, to let her share that burden, to confess what caused those deep shadows in his eyes, what drew him to work so hard all the time. But he startled her by asking, "When’s the baby due?"

His fingers roamed up her leg as if he were going to touch her stomach, but he stopped at her knee. Mandy wished he would touch her belly and wasn’t sure why. But she seemed to be feeling a lot of strange things and wasn’t sure why.

"October eighteenth. Give or take." It seemed so far away, yet just around the corner, and she was so unprepared, so nervous.

"And everything’s okay? The doctor did one of those ultrasound things?"

Taking a sip of water, she reached for the box of chocolates resting in his lap. She wanted – no, needed – another one. "It’s a bit early for an ultrasound. If a woman is healthy, they only like to do one at about eighteen to twenty weeks so I haven’t had mine yet. But the doctor has reassured me every step of the way that I’m healthy and the baby is progressing normally."

He stroked lightly across her kneecap. "I’m glad to hear it." His voice was thoughtful, his head turned away from her as he watched the ocean. "I think it would terrify me to know I had a kid on the way, but you seem really in control."

God, if he only knew. She actually laughed. "Damien, I am absolutely terrified, trust me. I never expected to be having a baby this soon in life, and there are all these books and manuals and rules about how to do this. I have a huge textbook sitting in my beach bag that I’m trying to convince myself to read, but whenever I pick it up I have a panic attack. It’s overwhelming."

He smiled. "If you approach motherhood the way you do your job, you’ll have that kid whipped into shape in no time."

The laugh she knew he wanted stuck in her throat. She hated the way she felt so uncertain, so needy, but she couldn’t stop herself from asking, "Am I good at my job? Truly?"

The water bottle he’d had poised at his lips descended back into his lap. "Are you serious? You’re awesome at it. You’re my ASS, remember? Asshole’s awesome assistant, that’s you."