His hands slid down her to rest on each side of her hips, gripping them, sinking his fingers into her flesh through the oh, so thin fabric of her dress pants, and kissed her once more. He spoke his response against her lips. “Tell me anything, Farren.”
She basked in the blissful sensations of his fingers pressing into her flesh in such a sensitive area, and she inched forward to press against him, chest to chest. She wrapped her arms around his waist and just held him close to her, resting her head against his chest, and hearing his heart pounding. She wished she could freeze time and stay right here in this nearness to him for as long as she dared.
He wrapped his arms around her in response, pulling her in tight, then he looked down into her eyes, giving her permission to say what she needed to get off her chest.
“I wanted to tell you that… I’m-”
She was cut off by the sound of the front entrance door opening. Her eyes went wide, realizing that no one could see them in such a compromising position, and she wasn’t surprised when he took a step back, taking her by the hand and pulling her to stand from the table.
He had no sooner let her hand go than a woman appeared in the door to his office. A beautiful woman with silky, smooth strands of dark blonde hair and rich, brown eyes that went straight to Rogan, then to Farren, before she opened her Cupid ’s bow lips to speak.
“Oh! I’m sorry, was I interrupting something?” she asked.
Farren was so mortified and so deeply wounded by the appearance of yet another one of Rayner’s lustful beauties that she took the opportunity to create herself an out.
“Not at all,” Farren answered before Rayner had a chance to say anything. “I was just telling Mr. Rayner I was finished for the evening and was heading out the door.”
Farren turned her head back toward him and gave a quick wave. “Goodnight, sir. Enjoy the rest of your night,” she said as she darted out the side door to her own office to gather her things and leave in a hurry.
Once they heard her quick footsteps retreating down the hall to leave, Rogan turned to the woman with a concerned expression.
“Elaina, what is it? Is everything okay?” he asked, thinking to himself this had better be good. If it wasn’t, he had every intention of going after Farren. What had she been about to tell him?
Elaina shook her head. “It’s Dallas. I don’t know what he’s up to, but I know it can’t be good.”
TWENTY
“Farren, are you okay, hon?” Rita asked with concern from the other side of the bathroom stall.
“I’m fine, Rita. I just have a weak stomach. I’ll be okay,” Farren called back to her, hoping Rita would leave her to vomit in peace, but of course, no such luck.
Rita leaned against the stall door next to Farren’s. “You’ve had a weak stomach an awful lot here lately.” The skepticism was evident in her tone. “Is there something you’re not tellin’ me?”
The loud flushing sound echoed off the tiled walls, and Farren opened the stall, wiping her mouth as she creeped out toward the sink.
“Like what?” Farren asked, playing dumb. She liked Rita, and they had become pretty friendly in the time she’d been here, but she wasn’t that close to her yet that she would tell her the big secret that was becoming harder and harder to keep, as often as her morning sickness had been coming on. She hoped that phase would pass soon, and that she wouldn’t be one of the few people that dealt with morning sickness past the first trimester, like some of the pregnancy books she’d been reading had told her.
“Now don’t play coy with me, little missy. You know what I’m
getting at,” Rita teased, following Farren to the sink.
Farren was quiet, and when Rita came around to look at Farren, her face became serious.
“Farren, darlin’, is everything all right? Really?”
Farren tried to laugh it off. “I’m fine, really. You don’t have to worry about me. Everything is the same old - same old,” she lied, but kept a smile on her face doing it.
Rita wasn’t buying it. “Okay, I’m just going to say it. You’re pregnant, aren’t you?”
Stunned, Farren stood stock still with her eyes wide, panicking. If Rita had figured it out, surely others had, too, and that meant trouble.
“Is it that obvious?” Farren asked, hoping against all hope that the answer would be no.
“Well, maybe not to all these boys around here, but I’ve had three kids. I’d recognize the signs from a mile away.”
“Please don’t tell anyone, Rita. Please?” she begged. “I’m not ready to share the news with anyone yet. I haven’t told anyone.”
Farren knew how much of a talker Rita was. She could only hope Rita would just this once respect her wishes and keep this news to herself.