Page 14 of Baby Daddy Protector

Then, just as I was about to duck back into the safety of the study, Z stopped and faced me, leaning in to whisper closer to my ear, “Smile. You look beautiful, princess.”

His warm words made me shiver with awareness, and as I took my seat on the leather sofa to prepare for my upcoming meetings, I couldn’t wipe the besotted grin off my face.

I also couldn’t ignore the niggling concern that perhaps not falling for Z might be more difficult than I’d anticipated.

NINE

After a busy day of escorting Es around to various press junkets and interviews in DC, I was feeling a bit more confident in my situation, but just a bit. In truth, the previous night with Es had shaken me. I’d gone into this thinking it would be easy to keep my emotions separate from the physical act, to do my duty—so to speak—and move on. To hit it and quit it.

Unfortunately, that wasn’t as easy as I’d expected.

I’d tried to brush my lingering feelings off as going too long between bed partners, but honestly, the part that had knocked me off-kilter the most was afterward, lying together, still intimately connected. Es had claimed it was for the sake of conception, and yeah. Okay. I supposed I could go with that. Biologically speaking, it probably did make sense to keep still for a while to give my swimmers the best chance of crossing the finish line.

But emotionally, the intensity of that moment lingered.

Nothing I’d done today had lessened my emotions either—not work, not focusing on the upcoming state dinner at the White House, not even taking matters into my own hands by planning a nice, quiet meal for us at the townhouse to try and get a read on how Es was feeling about it all.

If I was honest with myself, I’d allowed my libido to get out of control the previous night, allowed my senses to be overrun with her taste, her scent, the feel of her soft curves pressed against me. And sure, the sex had been good—incredible, even—but that was no reason to go overboard and get all mushy. I’d done that once, let my heart become involved in a relationship where it should have been strictly physical, and it had landed me in a world of heartache. Since then, I’d done the sensible thing and kept my feelings out of the bedroom. Not that I didn’t love sex. I did. I just went for the casual flings instead of anything more.

That’s why this gig should’ve been perfect.

So, why did it feel anything but at present?

The limo pulled up in front of the Colonial-style townhouse, and I climbed out first, scanning the area for any suspicious parties before opening the door to help Es from the rear of the vehicle. There were a few paparazzi nearby, snapping photos, and I did my best to shield her with my body as we climbed the front steps. Through my Bluetooth headset, I ordered the rest of my team to their usual stations around the perimeter to guard the townhouse, then followed Es inside. Some of the glow and energy she’d had earlier had dissipated, and her normally creamy complexion had gone a bit gray with fatigue. I felt the unaccountable urge to carry her into the library where we’d made love the night before and lay her down on that huge leather sofa. To slip off those sexy stilettos of hers and massage her feet until she went all limp and relaxed beneath my hands. To slowly work my way up those long, toned legs of hers, inching that pretty pink sweater of hers higher and higher and higher with my fingers until…

“What is that delectable smell?” Es sniffed the air, her eyes closing and her expression going dreamy with delight. “Did you call ahead for dinner?”

I shook away my erotic thoughts and forced a smile. “I did. It’s been a long day, and I thought it might be nice to stay in and relax tonight.”

She toed off her shoes and sighed. The sound zinged straight to my groin before I tamped it down. There’d be time enough for that later if she wanted me again. But first, we needed to eat. She was too thin as it was, and I was starving. My stomach growled in confirmation that she’d been right, the food smelled amazing. I led her into the formal dining room where the food had been laid out at one end, making things a bit homier since it was just the two of us.

“Aw, this is lovely,” Es said, taking a seat while I held the chair for her. “Thank you for thinking of this. It was very kind.”

“Lady’s got to eat.” I removed my suit jacket and loosened my tie, then took the chair beside her, grinning. “Help yourself. It’s nothing fancy, just citrus shrimp with sugar snap peas over organic brown rice, a spinach salad with eggs and mandarin orange slices, and coconut water to drink.”

“Hmm.” She dug into the food, making the cutest little sounds of approval as she ate. After swallowing a large bite of salad, she smiled at me. “Delicious. But no wine tonight, huh?”

“Nope.” I gave her a little wink, feeling some of my earlier tension ease. “All of this is healthy stuff, chef-approved for the baby.”

“I’m impressed. You’ve done your homework.”

“Of course.” I devoured several mouthfuls of sweet and tangy shrimp and rice, the snap peas the perfect, crunchy accompaniment. “Between check-ins with my team, I did some Internet research. I take my work seriously.”

The minute those last words were out of my mouth, I regretted them. Her sweet smile fell slightly, and she looked away, but not before I spotted the flicker of hurt in her eyes. Yeah, we had a contract, and yes, this was essentially a job. That didn’t mean I needed to rub that in her face, though. That knot of stress between my shoulder blades tightened once more.

Smooth move, idiot.

The situation was awkward enough without me adding to it. I chewed without tasting my food, then swallowed a large gulp of coconut water to wash it down. To break the stifling silence, I said, “So, your meetings today went well?”

“As well as expected.” She toyed with the food on her plate with her fork. “They originally planned on my father being there, but we muddled through. It wasn’t anything formal anyway. What about you? Things with your team going well?”

“Yep.” I rolled my tense shoulders and winced slightly. I’d missed my usual workout with my SEAL bud and could tell the difference.

“Everything okay?” She looked up at me through her lashes.

“Fine. I’m used to my daily workouts and didn’t have time to get one in today yet, so I’m stiff is all.”

“I’ve heard you talking to someone down in the basement sometimes. Do you Facetime?”

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