Page 38 of Baby Nanny

“I need this . Idon’t think I can survive without it. Not anymore.”

“I’m here,” she whispered in her siren’s song. “I’m not going anywhere.”

“No, you’re not.” Somehow it didn’t come out as an agreement, but more as a warning. “You’re mine now, and I protect and hold what’s mine.”

Amusement glittered in her witch gold eyes. “We’re not possessive, are we?”

“Only with some things.” He swept a hand from breast to thigh. Mine, his touch seemed to say. He couldn’t seem to help it, his need to cleave to her had grown beyond his capacity to control. He tried to explain how he felt, fumbling over the unfamiliar words. “Now that I’ve found you , Idon’t want to lose you. Now that I’ve had you , Idon’t think I can go back to how it was before you were part of my life.”

“Then don’t.”

There was so much more he longed to say. To explain. But he no longer possessed the ability. So he told her without words. He knew what she liked, what brought her the most pleasure. And he gave it to her. Each caress built, one on the other, and she clung to him as though she’d never let himgo.

She trembled beneath his questing hand—the elegant line of her spine, the velveteen swell of her breast, the sweet curve of her thigh. He cupped the downy center of her passion, feeling the gathering tension and delicate quaking of a woman teetering on the verge. He drew her legs around his waist and drove slowly into her, losing himself in the delicious warmth. Her sigh of pleasure slid over him, sank deep inside to the very core of him, to that final place of coldness. With each ebb and flow, they moved ever closer, until the eruption came, more powerful and overwhelming than any before.

He took her. Made her his. Let go of the final fragments of his control. When he did, the last sliver of ice melted. And in its place came love , alove he’d never anticipated or asked for. Never even thought possible.

But come it did.

Chapter 9

Naturally, Mrs. Lockechose the worst possible time to arrive on their doorstep, descending six weeks after the birth of the puppies.

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 oflove.

Somehow she’d created a magical circle , abountiful 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 experienced 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 . Iwant a wife . Apermanent 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 ? Arare panic swept through him and he clamped down on it, replacing it with every bit of strength and business acumen he typically brought to thetable 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 hisarms.

“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 box 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. He didn’t understand. Why did she find 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.”

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