Page 56 of Hidden By His Side

Organization was her strength, and Ramiro appreciated it. Over the years, she’d taken on more and more responsibilities for the office. He had a business email set up for the various legitimate things he handled: from real estate to stocks to security requests. Each document or response she took on gave her anxiety at first, but once she’d successfully completed it, she received a burst of satisfaction.

Summer was happy to be able to help Ramiro, even a little.

Being back in the office felt so… comfortable. Maybe she really could hold on to that feeling forever.

For lunch, she ordered his favorite sandwich. He always loved the one with toasted bread and melted cheese and heated meat. She added a simple turkey sandwich on rye with Swiss cheese for herself, but when the delivery arrived, she set it aside on her desk, more focused on bringing him his food.

Ramiro was on the phone but nodded at her when she peeked inside. When she placed his sandwich on his desk, he smiled.

“You’re always so good to me, Summer,” he said.

Heat crawled up her neck. She loved when he said that, even if it wasn’t true.

His smile fell as he listened to the phone. “Shut up, Diego,” he muttered.

The mention of his friend reminded her of the toddler Ramiro had taken care of the other day. He’d looked sweet with a little girl in his arms.

She’d started to think of the baby growing in her belly as a “she.” It was too early to know for sure, but using that pronoun sounded better than “it” anyway.

Summer left him to his call and headed back to the reception area.

She sat behind her desk and reached for her own food. Normally she was fine with turkey, but when she unwrapped the sandwich, her stomach churned from the smell. As she pushed it away, she saw Ramiro leaving his office with his own sandwich.Her nausea twisted into a harder knot. “Is something wrong with yours?”

He shook his head. “What did you order for yourself, baby girl?”

When he called her that, everything inside of her melted. “Turkey and Swiss.”

“Cooked turkey?” he asked, a frown spreading on his face. “I read that you shouldn’t eat lunch meat unless it’s heated. Deli meat can have bacteria that’s not good for the baby.”

Summer stared at him. “You were researching the pregnancy again?”

“Of course.” He said it so simply, as if it was natural. Knowing that he was researching things just for her made her chest tighten. Ramiro didn’t like children. He couldn’t like thinking about pregnancy either.

He took her sandwich. “I’ll trade with you.”

Her eyes widened as he placed his sandwich on her desk instead. “No, I’ll just—”

“No arguments. You need something in your stomach, or the baby will riot.”

Her sandwich looked so small in his hand. She stared at the much bigger wrapped sub. “I got that for you.”

“And I want you to have it.” He leaned down, kissing her on the top of her head. He’d been doing that more lately. She wondered if the constant butterflies it caused in her stomach were really good for the baby, but she’d never ask him to stop.

“I can’t eat all that,” she protested instead.

Ramiro unwrapped it. He lifted half, bringing it to her face. The thing was huge. “Take a bite.”

She managed it, barely. Italian sauce leaked out with the bite and smeared oil on her chin.

Ramiro’s smile was so soft while he watched her chew. “Feeding you during this pregnancy is going to become an addiction.”

When the drip on her chin threatened to fall, she wiped at it with her fingers, and his smile fell, his eyes looking darker despite the fluorescent lighting above them. He put down the sandwich and reached for her hand. When he popped her fingers into his mouth and sucked off the sauce, she let out a gasp at the sensation. His tongue swiped at her, making her pant. He slid her fingers out, and the dampness left behind made her wish he’d suck on them all over again.

“Fuck.” He said it so low, she would have thought she made it up if she hadn’t seen his lips move. He released her hand and reached for the unbitten half of the sandwich. “I’ll eat this half.”

He escaped back to his office like he was running from temptation. No, that was the way she wanted to see it. She wanted him to be tempted by her. She wanted him to want her, even if it would never be as much as she wanted him.

The daydream made every bite of his sandwich taste even better.

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