Layers Peeled (2 page)

I lowered my
hand to my belly, rubbing it gently, and whimpered quietly, “It’s
Betty, or Barney. Hopefully not Puss. Here.” I pointed to my
stomach.

“You’re
pregnant?” He braced himself against the cherry wood desk.

I nodded,
biting my lip, and just in case he doubted where I was going with
the booties, I added in a whisper, “It’s yours.”

For a moment I
wondered whether I’d need to find a paper bag so he wouldn’t
hyperventilate. But Tristan seemed calmer than a sloth. The slight
twitch of his upper lip, the scarred one that I found irresistibly
sexy, confused me. Part of me, the deprived part, wanted to take
that mouth and kiss it, but the wary part wondered what was going
on in Tristan’s mind.

The next thing
I knew I was up in the air, being spun around at what seemed like a
million miles per hour as Tristan twirled us both in the middle of
his office. My legs flew back. I held my arms tightly around his
neck, pressing myself to his body, holding on as if for one last
time. And everything inside me tightened as I wished for him to
never let go. His hardened chest molded against mine and I held on
to his neck wishing to never break our connection again. I didn’t
want him to leave me. I wanted us together – with Betty, or Barney,
or Puss. It didn’t matter as long as Tristan wanted us both.

Happiness
swelled inside me and I didn’t know whether to cry or laugh.
Unfortunately, my body decided all on its own what it wanted to do.
An odd sensation swirled in my belly, and I squeezed Tristan’s
shoulders to stop the spinning. He set me down on the plush rug,
and I rushed to the side of his desk. My small breakfast emptied
itself into Tristan’s garbage can. Crouching, I waited until the
room stopped moving and the cold sweats passed. I looked up at
Tristan.

He stood in
that same spot, his expression a mix of shock, fear, confusion, and
joy; I figured my news had just pressed the reality button in his
brain.

“It figures
the moment I tell you I’m pregnant my morning sickness decides to
show up.”

“We’re
pregnant?” Still in shock, he pointed at me with his shaking
finger. “This is for real?”

Tristan Cross
was not a man who could be easily surprised. Would he be able to
deal with this as well as I had? Pregnancy hadn’t been anywhere
near the top of my ‘to do’ list; in fact, my only priority in life
before I met Tristan had been keeping my mother safe and getting
revenge on David Wright, the man who’d ruined our lives. But
Tristan had taken care of the bastard for me, and had kept both my
mother and me safe. And now, after keeping this secret from him for
three long weeks, after building up the courage to tell him, I felt
free. Like a huge weight had been lifted off my shoulders. Yeah, I
know. You’d think someone like me, an ex-cop and a fearless karate
champ, would have had the guts to break this news to Tristan
earlier. But a man who had been scarred layers deep needed to be
told at the right time. The last thing I wanted was to scare him
into a commitment, like Kendra had tried to.

“Yes, it’s
still early. Just over a month, but it’s certain.” I stood up and
felt a cautious smile creep to the corners of my mouth, watching a
glow begin to develop behind his eyes.

“And you think
I just fired you?”

“You did just
fire me.” I stepped from one foot to another. My hands clasped the
sides of my suit, fingers begging to be cracked.

Tristan rushed
to my side, handing me a box of Kleenex. I wiped my mouth.

“I need to
wash up.” I headed toward what I assumed was his bathroom. The
excited shuffle of his feet behind me made me nervous. Would he
change his mind now that he knew I was carrying his child? Was he
putting on a brave face because he’d fired me? I didn’t want a pity
job, but as much as I tried to convince myself I could raise this
baby on my own, the prospect of a family – Tristan and me – ignited
inside me like a volcano. Could we possibly have the same kind of
family Tristan had? The kind I’d always wanted but had been robbed
of by David Wright.

“You
misunderstood. I fired you because I need to offer you another job,
at this company. And Laura too. Both of you will lead the human
trafficking department. Since it’s technically part of a foundation
I set up to free kidnapped victims, it’s not part of official Cross
Enterprises business, but all our resources are at your
disposal.”

I whipped
around to face him, my voice barely a whisper. “What?” He’d do that
for me? Tristan would help me rescue the women I’d seen sexually
abused and mistreated? His offer had to be too good to be true.
Things like this didn’t happen to people like me. My heart ached at
the memory of the women I’d seen who had no hope. If we could help
even one, it would be worth it.

And had my
best friend known about this all the time and not told me? Could I
blame her? Once Tristan Cross asked someone to keep a secret, well,
they had to keep their mouth closed. I had a feeling our dinner
date before the sting had been more of a business deal, one he’d
set up a few weeks back.

“James would
be working with us as well?” I asked. He had been there on a secret
assignment that day we saved Kendra, probably trying to rescue
someone.

“Yes, I’ve
recruited him. He’ll be one of your resources.”

Feeling my
eyes sting, I shook my head. This man I’d met a month and a half
ago was not only a handsome hunk straight off the periodic chart of
Greek gods, but also was more caring and compassionate than Mother
Teresa.

He took my
hands in his and lowered his gaze to find mine. The hazel eyes I
loved so much brightened.

“You’d have
your own department, here at the headquarters. Lead your team to
save the women we couldn’t at the hotel, and anyone else who needs
help. I thought you’d like that much better than getting dull
undercover assignments. And honestly, you’d get bored as a body
guard or staking out a joint for hours at a time. This way you get
to do what you wanted. Your instinct as a cop is a bonus for this.
It’s a perfect fit, and your office is just next door.” He pointed
to one of the side walls.

I somewhat
remembered looking at a set of doors leading from inside Tristan’s
office, though I’d never asked him where they led.

“Really?” I
couldn’t believe what I was hearing. He didn’t fire me. Tristan
wanted us to work together and had formed this department just for
me. And for the girls we hadn’t been able to save before.

“You’re
pregnant?” he repeated, reaching toward my belly.

I nodded,
feeling my smile stretch wider. The tips of Tristan’s fingers
touched below my navel, and slowly his full palm came to rest on my
stomach. The warmth from his hand spread over my body to all the
right places, and I felt those appetizing tingles revive between my
legs. His other hand traveled to my hip, pulling me closer to him.
He was looking at my belly, mesmerized.

“Yes. I’m
pregnant.” I lowered my hand on top of his, holding it there,
afraid to believe this moment was actually a happy one; just the
way I’d envisioned. Tristan wasn’t running, and beyond his stunned
response I saw a spark in his eyes I’d never seen before.

“We’re going
to have a baby?” he asked again, crouching in front of me on his
knees.

“Yes,” I said,
feeling my eyes well up.

He lifted my
shirt and kissed my stomach around the navel. At first, the tender
kisses were sweet and loving. As he traced my skin lower in uneven
patterns, the heat of his mouth on my skin intensified. His hands
held my hips steady. The hunger of his touch on my flesh deepened.
His hot lips traced around my belly, pressing gently with more
yearning each moment, and I knew Tristan was as famished as I had
been.

I closed my
eyes. I’d missed the dance of Tristan’s lips on my body. The three
weeks without his touch felt like forever. I couldn’t even remember
the last time we’d had sex, and part of me began feeling like a
virgin again. His hot breath still at my belly grazed upward,
meandering through the valley of my breasts as he stood to face me.
My bottom pressed against the sink as I braced my entire weight
there.

A button
popped open on my tightening shirt. My breasts had grown the last
few weeks, and most of my wardrobe seemed to be shrinking in the
chest area.

“I missed
you,” he said.

Another button
loosened and Tristan kissed my neck. I leaned my head to the side,
allowing him greater access, and whispered, “I missed you too.”

Tugging on his
shirt, I yanked it out of his pants. “You have no idea how much I
want you.”

“I can
imagine.” Tristan nibbled on my ear and swept along my chin toward
my mouth. He spread my lips with a longing that had been denied for
too long. The delicious scar on his upper lip rippled against my
mouth, his tongue controlling me like it wanted to learn the shape
of my lips all over again. I moaned into him and his response
hardened in his pants.

By this time I
was done with his buttons, and I smoothed my hands along his naked
chest. Somehow we’d been walking and ended up by his desk again. I
didn’t remember the details. All that mattered was that my skin was
connected with his. His hands were all over me, exploring, tracing,
fumbling with my bra until I felt my breasts loosen.

“And I missed
these as well,” he said against my mouth, while molding the twins,
one in each hand.

My hands
roamed his chest and stomach. I couldn’t decide where to touch
next, and I wanted to feel him, all of him, all at once. Oh, how
I’d missed the field of muscles on his abs! I slid my palms over
his lean torso. The white scar over his heart, where Kendra had
stabbed him, rippled under my fingers. For the first time Tristan
didn’t flinch. He let me caress and smooth over the healed wound,
all the while exploring my mouth. The kiss became more fevered and
so did my response. I didn’t recognize the desire burning inside
me. I had never felt this needy. I mean, I’d always wanted him, and
the sex held the gold medal in awesomeness, but this greed aching
in my nipples and between my legs was definitely something new.

I craved
Tristan’s whole body as if it was on the menu as my last meal. His
erection poked against my belly. I wanted him inside me, yearning
to feel his stretch and warmth. The painful longing begging me to
part my legs and let Tristan do as he pleased pounded in a sweet
tantalizing rhythm.

The phone
rang. He pulled away from my mouth and pressed the intercom button,
saying, “I’m not in for the rest of the day.” Tristan didn’t wait
for whoever called to reply, but just hung up. Another click, and
the lock on his double door twisted and blinds lowered over the
windows.

I took the
moment of distraction to devour his body and made a plan as to how
I would lick every inch of the curve poking through his pants. My
hands flew to his zipper, and I quickly removed the slacks.

Sweeping his
hand over his desk, he cleared the few papers there and lifted me
to sit on the surface. The wood felt cool against my ass, yet not
enough to extinguish my cravings. The polished desktop smelled of
lemon and pine.

He froze and
took a step back. “Will this be okay for the baby? Because I really
need to be inside you, like right now.”

I grabbed onto
the edge of the desk and reached forward to pull him back in.
“Technically it’s not a baby just yet. And if the mommy feels good,
the baby feels even better. And mommy wants
this
.” I grabbed
his crotch and squeezed the hardened growth, massaging him in my
hand. Tristan was ready to pop out of his boxers.

He unfastened
my pants and removed them in one swift pull. How did he do that so
well while I was sitting? I tugged at his boxers. He sprang out,
all stiff and ready and hot. I grasped him in my hand, my mouth
open like a teenager’s who’d never seen a dick before. Staring, I’d
really forgotten how big he was. A shudder of delight rolled over
me and I imagined squeezing around his hard cock.

A low growl
vibrated from his throat as Tristan forced me to lie back on the
cold surface. He bent my knees and yanked my soaking panties off my
hips. Lifting my feet to the desk’s edge, he exposed me for his
eyes to feast on. And with one gentle prod he buried himself inside
me and stayed there. I felt myself tighten around him. Tristan’s
chest heaved and I shut my eyes, feeling the firm stretch of his
cock against my inner walls.

“God, how I’ve
missed being inside you!”

The swell and
heat of a desperate need for him to begin his thrusts invaded me.
The profound yearning pushed my hips towards him. My mind searched
for the right words to tell him what this meant, but I couldn’t
concentrate on anything beyond his body.

I lifted
myself, using his arms to pull me up to him. My hands slid to his
tight buttocks, guiding him deeper. My legs slapped against the
side of the desk, allowing his pubic bone to touch my clit, and I
circled my hips, back and forth, feeling the exquisite rub. His
forehead pressed against me, our heavy breaths blending into
one.

“This won’t
take long.” He crushed his mouth to mine and wrapped his arms
around me. His ass tightened with each prod as he propelled his
hips back and forth in an arousing rhythm.

No, this would
definitely not take long. I’d been waiting for this moment for too
many days, thousands of hours and millions of minutes. That tingle
born in my belly now roamed my pussy, spreading and intensifying
with his every advance. The throbs swelled my folds, increasing the
friction between us.

The slick
moisture lubricated my opening like never before, squishing. I
could already imagine the spasm that would soon consume me. I could
taste it on the tip of my tongue and feel it build with mischievous
force.