Expecting the Boss's Baby by Leanne Banks

with it at the same time. Frowning, he dismissed the sensations and turned his attention back to Kate.
    He carefully lifted the book from her stomach and set it on the nightstand. She rolled over onto her side, causing her nightshirt to gap slightly. The sight of her dusky nipple reminded him how shehad felt in his hands, how she had tasted in his mouth. So incredibly responsive. He remembered how soft her inner thighs had felt when he’d coaxed them apart, and her femininity softer still as he’d slid inside her.
    He wasn’t exactly sure how she did it, but her combination of head and heart reminded him he was a man instead of a machine. She reminded him of needs and desires he’d made a habit of turning off like a faucet. He liked the way she looked in his bed, he thought, but he’d like it better still when they would share it. Soon.
     
    The following morning, Kate rose early with the intention of getting back to her duplex. She’d spent the entire day yesterday trying to add small touches of comfort to Michael’s apartment. She had so wanted to surprise and please him. Although he hadn’t known she’d prepared a meal for him, she wished she had known he would be late so her feelings weren’t so squashed.
    As she nibbled a cracker and dressed, she told herself her feelings should not be hurt. If she kept repeating it, maybe she would believe it.
    She took a deep breath as she left the bedroom and smelled coffee brewing. Michael was up and dressed already. No surprise, there, she thought with true envy. The man required far less sleep than normal humans, especially this pregnant human.
    “I’m sorry I missed dinner,” he said, glancing up from his coffee.
    “No big deal. It was just a thank you for giving me and Parkay a place to land.”
    “You went to a lot of trouble. I think my refrigerator is in shock from having something other than beer and soda in it.”
    She felt a sliver of amusement. “I think both of you may be in shock. I hope you’ll get a chance to enjoy it. You can reheat small portions of it in the microwave here or at the office. I appreciate you sharing your apartment, but I’ll get out of your hair now. I’m going back to the duplex today to air it out, and I’m hoping it will be livable by tonight.”
    Michael frowned. “I don’t think you should go back.”
    “The gas problem is repaired and I’ve been given the all-clear sign.”
    “Move in here,” he said. “We’re going to be married in less than two weeks.”
    Butterflies danced in her stomach at the thought. “My parents will be here in a few days, and my mother will want to be a part of the wedding planning. In fact I’m going to let her plan most of it. I still can’t believe I’m doing this,” she murmured.
    “Why?”
    “It’s just not what I envisioned for myself.”
    “You didn’t envision getting pregnant,” he said.
    “Not before the wedding,” she said. “And not by my boss.”
    “What did you envision?”
    Uncomfortable beneath his scrutiny, Kate glanced away. “I don’t know. In my mind, I guess I thought I would date someone for a while, and there would be a courtship, and then he would propose.” She shook her head. “You and I have it backwards. We haven’t even been on a date. There’s so much we don’t know about each other. What if we get married and don’t like each other?”
    Hearing the frantic edge to her voice, Michael took her arms and looked into her eyes. “That’s not going to happen. You’re panicking, but you believe it’s the right thing to do.”
    She moved her head in a circle. “Kinda.”
    “Kate…” he said, searching for a way to reason with her.
    “I’m not sure how to explain this, but it’s like a merger. Usually you learn everything about the company you’re merging with, you court them and negotiate differences. But you and I, we’re signing the contract first,” Kate mused.
    As far as Michael was concerned, the sooner they married, the better.