Page 20 of The Maid's Pregnancy Bombshell

‘Go upstairs and wait for me in the master bedroom,’ he murmured huskily as he lifted her carefully back off the table again.

So, she didn’t care about his humble beginnings. She wasn’t thinking it through though, still wasn’t seeing him for what he was. But just how far was he supposed to go in keeping her at a safe distance? He wanted her, she wanted him, so far, so simple, only a male of his ilk knew it wouldn’t be that simple. Even so, with his zip biting into his erection, Ares was in no mood to waste time quibbling. He wasn’t her knight on a white charger and he never would be, and sooner or later she would wake up and realise that she could have so much more with another man. Unfortunately, the thought of Alana with the younger, more idealistic male who would be a better fit for her made Ares grit his teeth together in sudden rage.

Her cheeks red as fire, Alana glanced up at him, uncertain, charmingly disconcerted and still so innocent. Andhis. Hisfor the moment, Ares qualified, satisfied with that amendment. The prospect of having Alana under him again momentarily struck him as all the Christmases he had never benefited from coming at once, turning his head with crazy glitz, potential and anticipation. He would reconsider the contract, have it adjusted to reflect their new agreement, but the instant that idea came to him, he discarded it again. For once, he would keep the lawyers out of it, run that risk and accept that self-indulgence always came with a price. And there was nothing more self-indulgent than Alana in his bed for the foreseeable future.

Encountering a burning glance from eyes that shimmered like gold ingots, Alana only hesitated for a split second before turning on her heel and leaving the room.Wait for me in the bedroom?That was so hot that it made her feel flushed all over and breathless. Why had nobody ever warned her that the desire for sex could reduce her to a mindless puddle of longing?

She walked upstairs. He had tried to push her away again by telling her a little bit of the ugly truth he hid from the world. But she had told the truth back. She didn’t care what he came from, who his parents had been, how he had spent his early years or even his later ones. But she wouldn’t tell him thathistruth had almost made her cry with hurt on his behalf or that she was keen to learn more to understand what had made him so wary of other people and emotion of any kind.

Ares wouldn’t want to hear any of that. It would hurt his pride. He would interpret her interest as pity or crude curiosity. He wouldn’t want to know that she was falling in love with him either because he wasn’t ready to offer love back. And maybe he never would be, she acknowledged ruefully. She had to be realistic too. In the bedroom, she peeled off her pants and crop top and walked into the bathroom. Heavens, she looked a mess, hair in a tangle, not even a scrap of make-up. He had to be sex-starved to still want her when she was so unadorned. And maybe he was, she considered, when there was no mistress in his life. All she had to do now was persuade him that a wife could be a lot more entertaining.

And she wouldn’t achieve that goal by telling him now that she suspected that she could be pregnant. That would be a step too far at this early stage of their relationship. That would shock Ares, make him batten down the hatches as he saw the threat of serious complications cloud his horizon. No, she didn’t want Ares to feel pushed into what he didn’t want, so she would stay quiet for now and not forewarn him, let their relationship develop without that limitation.

Ares strode into the bedroom and wondered where he would sleep that night. He would use the room next door, he decided, his intent gaze welded to the slight bump Alana made in the big bed. He liked that she was there already, that for once she had done exactly as he asked, that she had grasped that he wasn’t in the mood for any kind of game. He stripped off his jacket, wrenched loose his tie, kicked off his shoes. He had never undressed at such speed, never wanted any woman with the fierce hunger that she inspired. And for once, he wasn’t overthinking his reactions. He was going with the flow, no matter how much that went against his nature.

Ares wrenched the sheet back and slid in beside her, stark naked, bronzed and muscular and hugely aroused. When he simply grabbed her, Alana crumpled into helpless giggles.

‘What’s so funny?’ he demanded.

‘You missed me?’ she teased.

‘Yes, I missedthis. I only had you once and it wasn’t enough, could never be enough,’ he husked against the ripe promise of her soft lips. ‘I hope you’re ready to spend the rest of the day in bed.’

‘My...you’ve got that much stamina?’

‘Try me,’ Ares challenged.

‘Oh, I intend to,’ Alana confirmed, wriggling out from under him to push him back against the pillows. ‘And there’s to be none of that growly “you’re a virgin and I’m in charge” stuff this time. This is my show this afternoon.’

Wildly disconcerted, Ares looked up at her with a frown, thickly lashed dark eyes narrowing. Her golden hair was tumbled round her slight shoulders and her green eyes danced with mischief and warmth. In a sudden movement, he kicked back the duvet and lay back again, his big powerful body relaxed and yet tense with arousal. ‘Make yourself at home,’ he urged thickly.

‘Tell me anything you don’t like. Can I tie you up?’

‘No...well, at least not this time,’ Ares breathed in a driven undertone, not wishing to squash her aspirations even though he could never ever see himself agreeing to trust anyone to that extent. ‘Would you let me tie you up?’

Alana grinned. ‘I think that could be something I might like to explore eventually,’ she confided, small hands spreading to glance up over his ribs, a possessive vibe lancing through her as his hips surged, telling her exactly what he wanted. ‘There’s a lot I’d like to try, if you think you’d be up for it—’

‘I’d be up for it,’ Ares growled as strands of blonde hair trailed enticingly across his powerful hair-roughened thighs. ‘Experiment all you like.’

‘You’re not going to get bored,’ Alana promised, exploring warm little fingers stroking, shaping, making his flat stomach contract, sending an unmistakeable shiver through his big body. ‘But you’re not allowed to interfere unless I do something you don’t like...’

And then she proceeded to tease and torment with a confident sensuality that was totally unexpected. It was the most erotic experience of Ares’s life.

CHAPTER SEVEN

‘WELL,THAT’STHATCOVERED,’ Alana pronounced as the last slivers of satisfaction pulsed through Ares.

His ridiculously long sooty lashes lifted. ‘Is there a checkbox you have to tick?’

She grinned. ‘There could be, but that’s for me to know and you to wonder.’

Ares reached up and dragged her down to him. ‘Now it’s my turn,’ he told her thickly. ‘And I may have a checklist too...’

He flipped her over and claimed her reddened lips in a passionate kiss, revelling in the responsive rise of her slender body below his. He shaped her straining nipples and a little whimper of sound escaped her. His tousled silvery head came up. ‘Too delicate?’

‘It’s near that time of the month,’ she muttered. ‘They’re always more sensitive.’

And it was true, perfectly true, she reminded herself, because her breasts were often swollen and tender coming up to a period. That there could be another explanation this time was her business until she had done that pregnancy test and she was determined not to do it too soon and risk a false result. A few days and then she would know one way or another.

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