Baby for the Billionaire(93)
The morning started out perfectly, with Annalise in his arms still soft and trembling from the aftermath of their lovemaking. She wrapped him up in a tangle of arms and legs that held him close to the urgent beat of her heart. Though she never actually said the words, every lingering touch, every golden look, every whispered sigh, spoke of love.
Somehow she’d created a magical circle, a bountiful place more comfortable and spacious and exquisite than all the rooms in his family home combined. And in that circle she’d seeded a fertile garden where Isabella thrived. It was a place where he could loosen his grip on the chains of his restraint and reserve and simply let go. In that magical place, Madam romped and Isabella would soon speak and he belonged as he’d never belonged before.
For the first time, Jack felt hope. For the first time in more years than he could count, he’d found his way home, and he had no intention of ever losing his way again. He thrust his fingers deep into Annalise’s silken curls and combed them back from her face. She smiled up at him, the words he longed to hear glittering in the brilliance of her eyes and trembling on the rose-petal softness of her lips, hovering so close he could practically hear the whisper of them on each exhalation of her breath. And yet, they remained unspoken.
It was time to take matters into his own hands.
“I want to change the parameters of our agreement,” he stated bluntly.
Confusion clouded her gaze and a wariness settled over her. “You what?”
“I want to fire you.”
She shoved at his chest and sat up, snatching the sheet to her chest. “Fire me,” she repeated in patent disbelief. “Have you lost your mind? What about Isabella? What about CPS?”
His mouth set into a stubborn line. He reached beneath the covers and caught one silken bare leg. He gave it a sharp tug, sending her sliding back under him. “I want our marriage to be real. I want a wife. A permanent one, not a temp who’s going to leave us in two years. Isabella needs a mother, and not any mother. She needs you.”
For a brief instant she burned with happiness. The next instant it winked out of existence. “I can’t promise you that,” she stated categorically.
Had he misread her feelings? A rare panic swept through him and he clamped down on it, replacing it with every bit of strength and business acumen that he typically brought to the table whenever a deal threatened to go sour. He could handle Annalise. He’d handle her the same way he handled an unruly business transaction. He’d devastate her defenses with logic, boxing her in until she had nowhere to go other than straight into his arms.
“What’s wrong with making our marriage a real one?” he demanded. “Aren’t you happy?”
“I’m happier than I’ve ever been in my life,” she conceded. “But our relationship is still new and untested. You don’t know everything about me.”
He settled on top of her, pressing her into the mattress. “That’s the nice part about marriage. You have all those years to spend unwrapping each and every layer.”
If anything his comment alarmed her even more. So much for boxing her in. One glimpse of the opening and she shied away. “What if you don’t like what you find when all the wrapping paper’s off?”
Was she kidding? “That’s not possible,” he stated quite definitely.
“Yes, Jack. It is.” She moistened her lips and he could see her agile mind marshalling her counterarguments. What he didn’t understand was why she found it necessary. “What happens if CPS decides to remove Isabella?”
Did she have any doubt? “We fight to get her back,” he answered promptly. “To prove to them—no matter how long it takes—that we love her and will do whatever we must to give her the best possible home.”
A small frown formed between her brows. “I mean … What happens to us? The entire reason we married was to provide your niece with a stable home. But what happens to our marriage if Isabella isn’t in the picture?”
“Do you think I’ll stop wanting you?”
“Yes,” she replied bluntly.
He shook his head. “That won’t happen.”
Her breath caught and she searched his face. “Are you serious? If they took Isabella away, you’d want our marriage to continue?”
“Isn’t that what you want, too?”
He could see the naked longing in her gaze, but it was tempered with caution … and something else. Something that had haunted her from the first time they’d met. Before she could reply, the door banged open and Isabella charged into the room with Madam. A tumble of puppies followed close behind. Jack glanced over his shoulder and stopped the entire menagerie in their tracks.