Page 31 of His to Love
His smile made my heart feel as if it bled inside my chest. I wanted this to be real so badly that I didn’t know what to do. I had to make him fall in love with me, the way I’d fallen in love with him.
It had been so easy to fall for the man. He was perfect and wonderful. Thoughtful, kind, considerate, and above all of that, he was as selfless as anyone could be.
But it’s all fake.
“Come, I will teach you how to make empanadas, my angel. That way you can make them for my grandchildren. I know you two will make the most gorgeous grandchildren for me and your father. And we will adore each and every one of them.” She pulled a bowl out from under the cabinet. “I wonder if God will give you more children than he gave me.” She giggled like a little girl. “I hope so. I want so many of them that I can spoil rotten.”
“You don’t know how happy it makes me to see you happy about this baby, Mamma.” I wasn’t lying about that. Taking her hands, I looked into her eyes, eyes that I hoped I would get to look into for many more years to come. “I love you.”
“And I love you.” She kissed my cheek. “Now, come. Let us make a feast for our family, so you can tell them all the good news.”
My father and Patton joined us in the kitchen. Patton came up behind me, wrapping his arms around me and resting his hands on my stomach. “Should I go start up the barbeque pit? I overheard you two talking about a feast to celebrate our happy news.”
I ran my hand along his firm jaw, loving the way it felt to be held by him. “That would be nice, mi amor. Some juicy ribs sound yummy to me.”
“I’ll go to the store to get the meat,” my father said. “There’s wood and charcoal in the shed in back, son. You know where everything is. Get the fire going, and by the time I get back we can season it all up and get it cooking.”
“It feels good to be back home,” Patton said then kissed the top of my head before letting me go. “I’ll be out back if you need me, babe.”
I spotted some fresh lemons. “I’ll make some lemonade and bring it out to you soon.”
His dark brows raised as he licked his lips before disappearing out the backdoor. My mother’s hand on my shoulder took me out of the daze I’d been in since he first wrapped his arms around me. “You two are lucky to have found such a great love.”
“I think so too.” It wasn’t exactly a lie. I thought we did have something growing between us. I felt a bond with Patton. I wasn’t sure if it came from knowing him my whole life or what he was doing for me, but I felt a connection that held us together.
Before I knew it, my extended family filled the house and the backyard. Everyone congratulated us on the marriage and the baby. I had to show several of my cousins the photo album my mother had made for us. And looking at those pictures made something click inside of me.
This can’t be fake.
Patton had to have feelings for me. And I knew I had them for him.
The night was long, but eventually everyone left and it was time to get to bed. Mamma led us down the hallway. “I’ve redone your old bedroom, Alexa. Since you have your own home now, I know you’re never coming back to live here. So, all the pink is gone, and this is a guest room now.”
She opened the door and I saw that my twin bed was gone. A large bed sat in its place, and curtains blew in the breeze. The cool air swirled around me, drawing me into the room. “Goodnight. I’ll see you in the morning. We’ll go down to Georgie’s for breakfast tacos and coffee.”
Patton took my hand, leading me into the room. “Sounds good, Mamma.”
She closed the door, leaving us alone as I looked at the bed. There wasn’t any other furniture in the room. “Looks like we’re going to have to sleep together tonight.” I wasn’t the least bit sorry about that. We’d each brought one overnight bag with a change of clothes in it, but we’d planned on staying at a hotel, in two different rooms. I’d gotten used to sleeping in the nude, as I didn’t like the constriction of clothing while I slept. I didn’t know how Patton slept.
“I’ll sleep on top of the blanket and you can sleep underneath it.” He turned his back to me and began taking off his shirt.
I couldn’t stop staring at him as he undressed. His muscles made magnificent shadows on his body as the light from the lamp hit him in all the right ways. “I hope my family wasn’t too much for you today.” A lot of them had joined us, and we weren’t exactly a quiet bunch. It might’ve been overwhelming at times for him—not that he’d ever shown it.
He turned to face me, his abs making it hard for me to look him in the eyes, but I didn’t want to get caught checking him out. “Alexa, I know all of them. I have been around your family for many years. You should know by now that nothing about you or your family is too much for me.”
Fingering the top button of my shirt, I nodded. “Yeah.” My mouth watered, begging to taste him in ways I’d only dreamed of. “You know, if it’s going to be too hard for you to sleep with me, I can make a pallet on the floor.”
“Like I’d let you do that.” He chuckled, the sound deep and probably a lot sexier than he’d meant it to sound. “And I don’t want to sleep on a cold, hard floor either. It’ll be fine.”
Unbuttoning my shirt, I thought he should know what he was up against. “I thought we’d be staying in a hotel. I’ve been sleeping without anything on for the last couple of months. And I didn’t bring anything to sleep in. So, I’ll just be in my bra and panties.”
He dropped his jeans, stepped out of them, then laid on top of the blanket, wearing only tight boxer briefs that left nothing to the imagination. “I won’t look, if that’s what you’re afraid of. I am, above all else, a gentleman.”
My heart broke a little at that. If he found it so easy to ignore me while I was literally half naked in front of him, then he must not be attracted to me at all.
With a silent sigh, I started getting ready for bed.
