Tessa Radley - Expecting His Child - The Pregnancy Plot / Staking His Claim / A Tricky Proposition

AJ broke his gaze and focused on her plate instead.

They finished their meals and the waitress arrived to take their plates. “Would you like to see the dessert menu?” she asked, stacking everything expertly on one hand.

Matt raised an eyebrow at AJ in silent question. She shook her head. The meal had dragged on long enough and her nerves were at breaking point.

“Coffee?”

She shook her head again, but Matt said, “An espresso would be good.”

She glared at him as the waitress left but he just smiled. “Always in a rush, Angel. I remember that about you.”

She leaned back in her chair and huffed out a breath. “You’re doing this on purpose.”

“Doing what?”

“Making me...” Impatient. Aroused. Frustrated. She clenched her teeth. “You know, you can be irritating sometimes, Matthew Cooper.”

He leaned in. “I can be irritating? Let’s see. I remember one particular night in my pool—”

“Stop.”

“—when you performed a particularly frustrating striptease for me and—”

“Stop!” she hissed through her teeth. “Are you trying to embarrass me?”

“Ah, Angel. The fine art of teasing was never your strong point. At least,” he added, his eyes glinting, “not verbally, anyway.”

What could she say to that?

“I’m going to the bathroom.” She grabbed her clutch and rose.

Teasing? I’ll give him teasing. She deliberately put a sway in her hips, knowing Matt was watching every step she took.

Serves him right.

* * *

She pushed open the door to the ladies’ room with an exasperated huff. Was he punishing her—was that it? But why? Because she’d asked him to father her child? Because he was attracted to her and...what, he was angry about that?

Or was it something deeper? Something older...maybe ten years old?

AJ strode over to the long vanity and paused in front of the mirror. With one expert finger she smoothed her eyeliner, then dug around in her bag for her lipstick. He’d broken up with her. He’d moved on, gotten married.

Her reflection blinked back at her. If he could compartmentalize this, so could she.

Her heart contracted as she swept the Revlon lipstick across her mouth, then pressed her lips together. He’d not only gone through a demanding childhood, but he’d also had to deal with the death of his brother, turning that loss into the motivation for creating GEM, a major global rescue company. Drive and determination were two qualities that defined Matthew Cooper, no matter what he did in life. He wanted something, so he pursued it; his medical degree and GEM were proof of that.

Well, she was determined, too.

AJ capped the lipstick, smoothed her hair down, then scrunched the ends to boost the curl. “Time to move this thing along,” she murmured, taking one last look at her vampy reflection before turning to the door.

She strode back across the crowded dining floor, ignoring the handful of men watching her progress. Only one guy was in her sights right now, and he was downing his coffee with the smooth efficiency of someone impatient to be somewhere else.

Alrighty, then.

When she stopped at their table, Matt glanced up.

“Are you ready to go?” she said. He took her in for only a second, maybe more, but it was enough to send a shiver over her skin.

“Yes.” He abruptly stood, and she had to take a quick step back as he invaded her personal space. Then he reached for her hand, linking his fingers through hers, and her insides sent up a little cheer.

This was it. The moment she’d been waiting for all night.

She was ready.

Nine

They barely made it to the car before he pushed her against the passenger door and kissed her.

The cool metal seared through her dress, a stark contrast to the warm hardness of eager male. He was in her senses, her every breath, her very blood. His kiss was so good, so hot. She had missed this, missed the familiarity of his touch, the way he boldly took control. She’d spent too many years controlling herself and having the chance to release that burden—even for a brief time—was such a welcome relief. And yes, he knew exactly what he was doing, from his hands cupping her bottom, to his mouth sliding across hers, to his questing tongue parting her lips and diving deep inside.

She moaned. Yes. Yes. So very good. So good she could hardly take the time to breathe for fear she’d miss something.

“Let’s do this in the car,” she whispered against his mouth.

He groaned. “Angel. We can’t—”

“Of course we can,” she said. Her hands went to his belt then crept lower, and she gasped when she encountered the hard bulge.

With an oath he wrenched his mouth from hers. “Not here.”

“Why not?”

He sighed, gently placing his forehead on hers. “Because it’s a public place and I don’t want to get arrested.”

Oh, yeah. She grinned. “Then let’s go.”

“Hello, Matt. Are you coming or going?”

AJ couldn’t miss the way Matt’s entire body suddenly tensed.

Then he inhaled, deliberately relaxed and turned. “Hi, Katrina. We’re just leaving, actually.”

Katrina. His ex-wife. AJ glanced past Matt, taking in the Amazonian ice blonde with amazing cheekbones. She was all legs, flat stomach and slim boyish hips, dressed in an oyster-colored knit dress and matching shoes, setting off her tan and thin arms to graceful perfection. Her bright green eyes returned AJ’s stare.

She wondered what the other woman could see, whether she felt as gauche as AJ suddenly did.

Highly doubtful. She didn’t appear to have a single unsure bone in her body as she stood there on the sidewalk.

“Who’s your friend?” Katrina said now, offering a long-fingered hand. Soft skin, firm handshake, AJ noticed.

“AJ Reynolds, this is Katrina Mills.”

“Nice to meet you,” AJ lied smoothly, suddenly feeling way too loud and dramatic next to this elegant vision.

“Same here. Well.” Her smile returned to Matt. “I have a date. Have a nice night.”

“You, too.” He nodded, watching her go with his hands deep in his pockets.

Finally, he turned back to AJ. “Sorry about that. I honestly didn’t know she’d be here.”

AJ shrugged, going for nonchalance. “It doesn’t bother me. You said you were over, right? So you’ve got nothing to apologize for.” She glanced back at Katrina as the woman disappeared into the restaurant. “She’s gorgeous. I can see why you married her.”

“Hmm.”

What kind of answer was that? Stung, AJ slid into the passenger seat without a word, the mood well and truly broken.

They drove back to Matt’s apartment, faint music from the radio filling the silence.

This was awkward. Way more than awkward—excruciating. Was he thinking about Katrina? Was that why he’d suddenly gone from white-hot to cold? Worse, was he comparing them? And if so, did she come out the winner or the loser?

Matt jabbed a button on the radio and the music changed to some crazy club tune, heavy on the bass and light on originality. AJ stared out the window, her thoughts becoming grimmer.

When they finally drove into the parking garage, AJ turned to him. “What’s wrong?”

He turned off the engine. “Nothing. Why?”

“Do you usually drive around in ominous, brooding silence? I’m a pretty good judge of mood, and you, Matthew Cooper, are in a pissy one. Is it your ex-wife?”

He swung open the door and threw a look over his shoulder just before he got out. Bingo. She followed suit, slamming the door and rounding the front of the car. “So it wasn’t an amicable split?”

He clicked on the car alarm before turning to the elevators. AJ hurried to match his stride. “Oh, it was perfectly amicable.” He sighed, punching the button. “Katrina is all about appearance, and our divorce was nothing if not polite and quick.”