Beyond the Breaking Point (19 page)

Cassidy lay utterly still next to him. Too still. “Cassidy?”

“Yeah, Max?”

“I meant what I said earlier. If it’s mine, I’ll take care of both you and the baby,” he said, hoping to put her mind at ease.

“I know. You’re a good man. I don’t think it is, though. The odds are against it.”

Don’t think, or don’t want to think it might be his, Max wondered.

“Max, do you ever think about the night we…”

“Slept together?” he completed for her when she seemed to struggle for the appropriate words. More than I want, he thought, but said, “Yes.”

“Was I…did I…?”

He waited, and then waited some more. Then prompted, “Did you…what?”

She sighed. “Never mind. It was a stupid question.”

“Cassidy, there are no stupid questions. Not between us.”

“When we had sex…was I…? I mean, did you find me…lacking…in any way? Sexually, that is?”

“What?” He sat up and reached for the lamp switch so he could see her face. She rolled when he moved so that she now faced him. “Run that by me again?”

She bit her lower lip, something he noticed she did whenever she was nervous, but repeated her question. “Did you find me inadequate in the sex department?”

“That’s what I thought you said,” he muttered. “Cassidy, we had sex five times in one night. What does that tell you?”

“It was revenge sex.”

“Sweetheart, the first time was about revenge. The other four times were because we couldn’t keep our hands off each other.”

“I thought it was the alcohol,” she mumbled.

Or she’d convinced herself that’s what it was. “Let’s see, shall we?”

He lowered his head and brushed his lips against hers, tasting, teasing, and testing her response. Gradually she opened to him like flower petals to the sun. Max took his time, savoring her. He slid lower in the bed so their bodies lined up. As he slanted his mouth over hers, deepening the kiss, he ran his hand down her side to her waist, and then below. All Cassidy wore was the T-shirt he’d given her and it stopped at mid-thigh. It was such an easy thing to glide his hand along the silky length of thigh and then reverse directions, groaning when he realized she was naked underneath.

He came to full and instant hardness. Dimly he realized his little experiment was getting out of hand. Cassidy was kissing him with the same sensual hunger she’d shown their first night together. The kind that threw gasoline on his desire and sent it flaming out of control.

Max, she’s not herself tonight
.

The reminder caused him to withdraw, breaking the kiss. He rolled onto his back, gulping air. Unfortunately for his good intentions, Cassidy rolled with him, landing on top. She caught his face between her hands and angled her mouth over his for another cock-tightening, libido- stirring kiss. As her legs fell to the outside of his and she rubbed her sex against him, Max forgot why this wasn’t a good idea.

He cupped her butt and arched into her, guiding the motion of her hips. Her creamy slickness dampened the fly of his pajama bottoms and soon the silky material was hot and slick, just as he knew Cassidy would be if he slid inside her.

Cassidy left him to work her way down his body, covering his chest and abdomen with nibbling bites and flicks of her tongue. She tugged on his waistband and soon her hot breath caressed his cock. His mind screamed a warning.

Gathering all his strength, Max wrenched her away from his penis and into his arms, holding her tight until he could gain some control. “Wait, Cassidy, wait. This is wrong.”

“What?” She sounded bewildered, disbelieving.

“Honey, I want nothing more than to make love with you. Have thought about nothing else for weeks now, but not tonight under these circumstances when you’re upset and tired. I’d hate myself in the morning. Worse, you’d hate me too.”

“But…”

“I know, sweetheart, I know.” He shuddered. “God, do I know. Let me hold you until we’ve both calmed. In the morning, if you still want me, I’m your man. And to answer your question, no I don’t find a damn thing about you lacking, woman. You’re the sexiest, most alluringly sensual woman it’s ever been my fortune to be with. Our night together was the best sex of my adult life. I’m only sorry it happened under those circumstances, but I don’t regret one minute of it.”

At his words, her tense body relaxed on his. She still breathed heavily, letting him know she’d been just as affected as he by the strong chemistry between them. “Thanks, Max.”

“Not a problem. It’s the truth. One day you’ll tell me what put those doubts in your head, but not tonight. Tonight, sex is the last thing either one of us needs to be thinking about.”

“Okay.”

Max reached up and flicked off the light. He rolled them both to their sides and she snuggled into him. She lay quiet for a long time before saying in a low voice, “Phillip’s probably pissed.”

“Do you care?”

There was a slight pause. “No, not really. He’s going to fight me on the divorce. He’s insisting we go to counseling, and that’s without him knowing about the baby. Once he finds out, I’ll never be rid of him.”

Her statement reminded him. “Cassidy, when you tell Phillip about me, I want to be there.”

She stirred restlessly. “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

“It’s the only thing that makes sense. You don’t know how he’ll react to the knowledge that he might not be the father, especially when he’s wanted a child for so long. Or don’t you plan to tell him?”

“Of course I’m going to tell him. I wouldn’t deliberately keep something like this from him. I simply don’t think you should be there when I do. It might make things worse. I don’t think he’d hurt me.” But she didn’t sound sure.

“I don’t think he’d intentionally hurt you either, but that’s not a risk I’m willing to take. Promise me,” he demanded.

“I’ll handle the situation in the manner I think best. If you’re really concerned, I’ll make sure we’re not alone but out somewhere public, like a restaurant, when I tell him. I can’t promise you any more than that.”

He didn’t like her answer. “At least promise you’ll call and warn me as soon as you’ve told him.”  Because if he knew Phillip, once he finished with Cassidy, his former friend would make a beeline for him.

“I will. Don’t worry. I’ll be careful.”

Max knew Cassidy would be, but what he didn’t know was if it would be enough.

Phillip sat in his car outside of Cassidy’s apartment. After leaving his mom’s, he’d called every hour, and then as the hour approached midnight, every half hour and then every fifteen minutes. Not only wasn’t she answering, she’d turned off her phone.

She never said what this mysterious appointment was. Briefly he wondered if she’d gone out with another man. Then he dismissed the thought. Cassidy was too honest, too prudish to cheat on him. Besides, she loved him. As long as he had her love, he had her fidelity. She was like his mother, who’d been faithful to his father even though she knew he’d been running around on her. After seeing his mother suffer, he’d promised himself he’d never be like his father who had women and children all over the place.

Maybe the hospital called. It wouldn’t be the first time this had happened. He’d give her a few more minutes. If she weren’t here by a quarter after, he’d head home and see her tomorrow.

If she’d given him a key, he wouldn’t have to sit outside waiting. If she were home where she belonged, he’d know exactly where she was. Soon, he counseled himself. He had to be patient. She was softening toward him. A little while longer and she would agree to counseling and then, well,
then
they’d see.

Chapter Eleven

When Cassidy woke, the green light of the LED clock said it was a little after five a.m. Her shirt was around her waist and her naked bottom cozied up to Max’s morning erection. The details of the night before came instantly to mind. She was grateful to Max for not allowing things to go any further, but at the same time, admitted to a smidgen of disappointment. Max was a great lover, something she’d tried very hard to forget over the last weeks.

For Max’s sake, she hoped the baby wasn’t his. The last thing he needed was to be dragged into more of her and Phillip’s drama. He’d already lost his almost fiancée. Max deserved a good woman, a loving one. Someone who would love him and treat him the way a good man deserved to be treated. Not another woman like Amber.

Her being pregnant with his child would only complicate matters. What sane woman wanted to deal with baby-momma drama? Having a man’s child gave a woman a certain claim to his time and money. Some women abused it. Not that she would if the baby were Max’s, but his potential female would have no way of knowing that.

Then there was the whole non-relationship thing. How did you explain to a potential mate that your child was the result of a drunken one-night stand and she didn’t have to fear a repeat?

Remembering the kiss last night, Cassidy knew that wasn’t exactly true. There was strong sexual chemistry between her and Max. All the more reason not to complicate matters between them with sex.

Things were complicated enough. She still loved her husband. However hurt she might have been by his actions, those feelings weren’t going away overnight. And she was sure Max still loved Amber, despite his not saying so. Turning to each other for comfort and to heal their wounds would be a major mistake because the relationship wouldn’t last. Rebound relationships never did. The last thing her wounded heart needed was a flaming affair that would eventually burn itself out, leaving her worse off than before.

Discovering she was pregnant had thrown her for a loop but now that she’d rested, she had a better handle on her emotions. Yes, raising a child as a single parent would be rough, but she was capable. It might mean reducing her hours, but she could do it. Whatever it took to raise a healthy, happy, well-adjusted child was what she would do.

Staying married to Phillip was not an option. Not even for the sake of their child. In the long run, joint custody and shared parental responsibilities would be better than maintaining a sham of a marriage. Now she just needed to convince Phillip.

Sighing at the thought, Cassidy slowly and carefully shifted positions until she lay facing Max, who continued to sleep deeply. In the dim light, she traced his features with her gaze. He really was a gorgeous man, even with a five o’clock shadow and his mouth slightly gape. Max got to her on a visceral, purely physical level. She’d read and studied about such attractions but never experienced one until now, which made Max doubly dangerous to her because he also affected her on an emotional level.