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He was taking so long to answer that she gave him a puzzled look. “Don’t you think you want a family?”
“I do. I know that I do – now. When I was younger, in my twenties, I thought it was a given that I’d get married and have kids. But … I had a serious girlfriend in my twenties, everyone thought that we would settle down together – everyone including me. But then, when my parents died, that relationship fell apart. I withdrew from pretty much everything and everyone. The only thing I was interested in was the business. My parents were gone but the business was still here, it felt like it was all we had left of them, and I had to keep it alive. To keep it strong. Since then, I haven’t really thought about having a family. I haven’t thought about – haven’t wanted to find – someone to settle down with and have children with.”
He gave her a rueful smile. “From the way you asked how long I usually see people, I imagine that you know my reputation. There are women who like to date men like me – or no, that’s not right. It’s more like you said. It’s not about the person I am, more about my circumstances. There’s no way to not be blunt about it. Some women like to date rich men. And that made it easy for me. Easy because they weren’t really interested in me as a person, any more than I was interested in them – for anything real.”
He blew out a sigh. He was making himself sound like a pig.
“And now?” Becca’s big, green eyes were watching him closely. It dawned on him for the first time that he didn’t know if she wanted a family. He assumed that she did. She was that kind of person. She loved the kids she worked with. She was so good with them. She was a born nurturer and … he needed to answer her question, even if his answer wasn’t what she wanted to hear.
“Now, I know that I do want a family. I’ve left it a bit late, but I want nothing more than to marry a woman I adore and have babies with her and raise our family together in a home full of love and laughter.”
Some of the tension left his shoulders when her face relaxed into a smile.
“What about you?”
She nodded. “I’ve always wanted a family. You know I love kids. I can’t wait to have my own.” Her cheeks turned bright red. “You had me worried for a minute there. I’m trying to wrap my head around this whole deal – you saying that you want me to stay here, and even imagining that we might …” She shook her head and looked away. “It feels crazy to even think about it so soon. But at the same time, there’d be no point in thinking or talking about it at all if you didn’t want to have children.” She rolled her eyes at him. “This really is freaking crazy! Are we seriously talking about the possibility of having children together?”
He nodded solemnly. “We are. And it’s not crazy, Becca. I know it’s not all that romantic – and I apologize for that – but it’s … necessary. I think you know that I’m falling for you. That surprises me more than you can imagine. But at the same time, I’m still me. I still need to be realistic. We need to know that we’re on the same page so that we can keep moving forward.”
She let out a short laugh. “I get that, but can you see how – to me – it doesn’t feel very realistic to even be here sitting on your bed, in your big house, let alone talking about the possibility of a future together?”
“I can see it, but I hope that you can get past it?”
“I’m trying.”
He tightened his arm around her shoulders and drew her closer. “One step at a time, right?”
She looked up into his eyes and nodded.
He brushed his lips over hers and smiled. “And I seem to remember you saying that the next step was for you to spend the night with me.” He kissed her again, loving the way she softened in his arms.
“I didn’t say that in so many words.”
“But it’s true, isn’t it?”
He watched her breasts rise and fall as she sucked in a deep breath and slowly blew it out before she nodded.
He turned toward her and rested his other hand on her waist, letting his thumb stroke back and forth, teasing the underside of her breast.
“And I seem to remember telling you that I was looking forward to the challenge of making sure that the one night you are prepared to spend with me is so good that you won’t want to leave.”
Her eyes shone as they looked up into his, and she nodded. “I remember.”
“Good,” he breathed before he claimed her mouth in a deep, slow kiss that soon had her making little noises and pressing herself against him.
There was no question that he was up for the challenge.
~ ~ ~
Becca’s mind was reeling. She was finding it hard enough to take in that she was here in his bedroom – here on his bed! But had they seriously just had a conversation where he’d said that he wanted to marry a woman he adored – to have babies with her and fill their home with love and laughter? And had he seriously said that he needed her to be on the same page with him? She knew she wasn’t imagining it but … damn! Of course, she wanted the same things, but with him?! On the one hand? Holy crap, yes! But on the other? He was right when he’d said that they came from different worlds.
The chatter in her mind faded away when he claimed her mouth in one of his panty-melting kisses. She couldn’t hold on to a single thought. All she could do was give herself up to him, give in to the way he made her feel. His hand at her waist felt as though it might burn right through her clothes. The way his thumb caressed the underside of her breast made her writhe and moan. She arched her back, pressing into his hands, needing more.
His lips left hers as he kissed his way along her jaw until they were next to her ear. “Do you want this?” he breathed.
“Yes! I’ve never wanted anything more in my life.”
He didn’t need telling twice. He claimed her mouth again, but this time, his hands moved with purpose. They unfastened her jeans and started to tug them down. She wriggled out of them and then sat back to watch as he tugged his T-shirt up and off.
