Andrea Laurence - More Than He Expected

Sabine with the purple hair quickly grew bored with the sight of an operating gas grill and came to sit in the shade with Gwen. They hadn’t spoken much since she’d arrived. She was sure the woman was perfectly nice—Adrienne was a good judge of people—but Gwen just didn’t know what they had in common to discuss.

“When are you due?” Sabine asked before taking a sip from her beer.

“Mid-October,” Gwen said, although watching the other woman made her think the day couldn’t come soon enough. Of all the lifestyle changes she’d had to make, the hardest had been giving up her favorite beer. She didn’t drink much, but there was just something soothing about popping the top on a cold one after a long shift, plopping onto the couch and watching a few hours of reality television on her DVR.

“My son will be two in October, so I understand where you’re at. Do you know what you’re having yet?”

Gwen tried not to look too surprised to learn Sabine was a mother. Imagining her own mother with purple hair was just impossible. “A little girl. I had the ultrasound last week.”

Susan and Robert had been over the moon in the doctor’s office. It was hard to see the fuzzy image on the screen from her vantage point, but she tried not to be too disappointed. This was their baby after all, not hers. They did give her a copy of the latest ultrasound picture to show off. Unfortunately, it was in her purse on her bed when she needed it.

“Do you have any names picked out yet?”

The more pregnant Gwen became, the more of these questions she had to field. It had been easy when no one could tell she was pregnant. Now, unless it was just a quick comment from a stranger on the subway, it was best to tell them about her situation before they pressed on.

“No, actually, I’m a surrogate, so the baby technically isn’t mine to name. I think her parents are considering Caroline Joy and Abigail Rose. Every time I talk to them they’ve changed it again. For now I just call her Peanut, because that’s what she looked like on the first sonogram.”

Sabine’s eyes had grown wider as Gwen talked. Apparently dropping a detail like that and carrying on without pause had thrown her off her guard. “A surrogate? Wow. I don’t think I could ever do that,” she finally said.

“Why is that?”

“Being pregnant is such a life-changing experience. Whether or not the child is yours, you’re going to bond with it. To go through months with that baby inside you and then to give it away … I just couldn’t do it.”

Gwen tried not to frown at Sabine. She probably didn’t realize how her words would affect her. But they struck a chord. Gwen had never been interested in having a family of her own. She’d spent too much of her childhood being pushed aside by her mother when a new man came into her life. She wasn’t about to do that to a child of her own. Acting as a surrogate seemed like an intriguing opportunity. Since she’d never thought she’d have kids, she’d never thought she would experience pregnancy.

Never once did she consider that she’d form an emotional attachment to another person’s child. But Sabine was right. She’d underestimated what it was like to have life growing inside her. The moment she’d felt the first flutter in her stomach, Peanut had become a real person to her. She’d gotten in the habit of talking to the baby when she was alone in her apartment. She was the one who helped Gwen pick out what she would have for lunch. The silent child had become her main companion when her crowd of bar-hopping friends didn’t know how to act around her anymore.

Gwen hadn’t really realized it until that moment, but she had bonded with the baby. With four more months to go, how much worse would it get? She didn’t even want to think about it. She was too prone to getting emotional lately.

Confused, she turned away from Sabine and found Alex watching her from across the patio. He was leaning casually against one of the white wooden posts, while either Jack or Wade, she couldn’t be sure, talked to him. But he wasn’t looking at them or even pretending to. He was looking at her. There was an intensity in his hazel eyes, but there was something different there than the desire he’d directed at her in the past. It almost felt like admiration, although she had no idea why Alex would look at her that way. She was pregnant, broke and overworked. That was no condition to admire.

“He is one sexy piece of man,” Sabine commented, still oblivious to the effect her words had on Gwen.

The comment startled Gwen into turning back to the woman beside her. Sabine’s gaze was focused exactly in Alex’s direction. Gwen had no claim to him, but the thought of him and Sabine together brought on a surge of jealousy that chased away the last of her confusing emotions. She opted to play dumb. “Who? Wade?”

“No, the guy who came late. Alex.”

“Ahh,” Gwen said, not trusting herself to comment further without sounding either bitter or jealous to the other woman’s ears.

“Pity for me, but I think he’s into you.”

That perked Gwen’s attention. Her head snapped toward him, but he had returned to his conversation. “Why would you say that?”

“Because he keeps watching you.”

“Maybe I’m just funny-looking.” She sighed.

“Nope,” Sabine said with certainty. “When you’re not watching, he’s looking at you like you’re the sweetest strawberry tart in the bakery window. He definitely wants a taste.”

Gwen subconsciously stroked her rounded stomach and shook her head. “I appreciate you thinking so, but somehow I doubt he wants to take a bite out of this.”

At that, Sabine cracked a crooked, knowing grin. “Oh, he does,” she assured.

“Well, even if that were true, my life is a little complicated right now. I’m not interested.”

Sabine laughed and shook her head. “I hardly think that matters. I’ve had my share of experience with those rich, cocky types. They get what they want, and they don’t care who they have to roll over in the process. If I were you, I’d let him have his way with you. And let me tell you something if you don’t already know. Between all the hormones and the increased blood flow, sex in the second trimester can be absolutely mind-blowing. I bet that in the experienced hands of a man like Alex, you can multiply that by ten at least.”

Gwen’s jaw dropped open, but she didn’t have the words to respond. Instead, she shifted her gaze back to Alex. This time he was watching her, and his obvious, heated appraisal was enough to send a surprising surge of desire down her spine.

Well, hell. She hadn’t counted on him still being attracted to her. That certainly complicated things.

Willpower, she reminded herself as she sucked in a deep breath and began fidgeting with her bracelet. She was on a man-break, and Alex was just the kind of man who had necessitated the break to begin with. Her attraction to him was nothing more than hormones and months of celibacy conspiring against her. But she could fight it. She had to. It didn’t matter what Alex wanted. He couldn’t just snap his fingers and get his way.

And yet, as she looked at him across the patio, Gwen was fairly certain her celibacy streak was on the verge of coming to a wild, passionate end.

By the time Gwen had taken the last bite of her dinner, she thought she might literally burst. She’d recently regained her appetite, and everything tasted so good, she couldn’t help herself. She’d had a grilled chicken breast and a cheeseburger in addition to the array of sides Adrienne had prepared. She was stuffed.

At least for an hour or so.

Given that Alex was watching her with his predatory gaze the whole time, she probably should’ve curbed her ravenous appetite and picked delicately at her food, but Peanut would have her way. After a rough first trimester living on saltines and lemon-lime soda, the hunger and the ability to keep it down were welcome. Even if the extra pounds were not. The doctor said she was right on track with her weight gain, but after a lifetime of trying to get smaller, not bigger, it was hard to change how she thought about things.