Read What If I'm Pregnant...? Online

Authors: Carla Cassidy

What If I'm Pregnant...? (4 page)

BOOK: What If I'm Pregnant...?
3.13Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
ads

“Like you, it's difficult to find the time.”

Colette grinned teasingly. “That's not what Gina says. She said you don't have a girlfriend because you're too mean and stubborn. I believe her exact term was ‘cursedly stubborn.'”

He laughed, a deep rumbling sound that was pleasant. “She's probably right. I've been known to be pretty bullheaded. Still, it seems a shame that a pretty girl like you spends all her time on business. How are you going to find Mr. Right if you don't date?” Again his eyes were filled with a light that unsettled her yet shot a streak of heat through her.

“Finding Mr. Right has never been a priority of mine,” she replied.

With his million-dollar smile warming her, and his overwhelmingly masculine presence filling the office, Colette felt a sudden need to escape.

She looked at her watch and stood. “It's time for me to open up the shop,” she said, although it was still earlier than her usual opening time. “You're welcome to stay here and finish your bagel and coffee or whatever. As I told you earlier, Gina doesn't come in until noon.”

She was aware of his gaze sweeping the length of her as she headed for the door that led out into the shop. “If you don't mind, I'll just finish up my coffee back here,” he said.

Nodding, she fled the office, grateful to get some distance from him. Although she had certainly admired his attractiveness and charm the night before, she hadn't felt the utter magnitude of his sexual appeal the way she had this morning.

She unlocked the front door and flipped the Closed sign to Open, then walked over to the chair behind the small counter that held the cash register.

She had the distinct impression that he'd been subtly flirting with her when he'd spoken about her dating habits, and her pulse had accelerated to an uncomfortable pace.

As she greeted her first customer of the day, she remembered Gina's words of warning about Tanner. She'd warned Colette not to be fooled by his charm, and Colette realized she would do well to take heed.

She did find Tanner charming, and although she had never felt herself particularly susceptible to any man's charm, she had a feeling if she allowed it, Tanner Rothman could definitely be a threat to the carefully controlled, safe life she'd built for herself.

 

Tanner knew she'd expected him to leave after he finished his coffee and to return later when Gina arrived for work, but instead he rinsed out the cup, then joined her at the counter out front.

He leaned against a back wall, watching as she took care of a pregnant woman who looked about ready to burst open like a ripe watermelon.

Tanner had never thought much about having children of his own. At the time when most men began thinking of having families, he'd been busy raising Gina. Now, at thirty-two years old, he almost felt as if it were too late to think about babies of his own.

He redirected his gaze to Colette. Again this morning she was dressed in a three-piece suit. The deep gray jacket was short and fitted over a crisp white blouse, and the skirt was pencil thin and short enough to display her long, slender but shapely legs.

It hadn't taken long into their conversation for his suspicions about Colette Carson to be confirmed. She was certainly not the kind of woman he wanted as a role model for his impressionable sister.

Despite the fact she had dynamite legs and the longest, darkest eyelashes he'd ever seen. In spite of the fact that she had the sweet features of an angel and a body that would make most red-blooded men think of sin, he had the feeling she was a cold, heartless woman driven by ambition.

He'd been vaguely disappointed when she'd told him why she'd decided to open a shop selling baby items. Although it appeared to have been a smart decision, he was disappointed that the decision was made strictly from a business perspective.

Gina had lacked a female role model in her life. There had been no aunts, no godmother, nobody to step into the void the loss of their mother had created in Gina's life.

Colette was a distinctive threat to all that he wanted for Gina's future. He certainly didn't want Gina to emulate a hard-driven ambitious woman who, he suspected, didn't have much of a heart.

Still, he couldn't help but feel a grudging admiration for Colette as he watched her working with the customers who came in…and there was a steady stream of customers.

She was courteous, respectful and infinitely patient with every shopper. He also couldn't help but admire the natural grace with which she moved as she guided customers from display to display.

He could tell she was surprised that he was hanging around. As she attended to her customers, her gaze continually sought him.

Maybe by hanging around long enough he'd irritate her and she would decide that Gina was more trouble than she was worth. Then she'd join him in the war to get Gina to return home.

“I never knew there could be so many expectant parents in one city,” he said when there was a lull in the customers.

She smiled and straightened the blankets in one of the cribs on display. “Not everyone who comes in is expecting a baby. Friends and relatives of expectant or new parents come in to find a gift for the birth or for a shower.”

She gave the blanket a final pat, then straightened. “But this has all got to be terribly boring for you.”

“Not at all. Is Gina as good a salesman as you are?”

Colette smiled and Tanner felt a renewed tug of attraction. “She's a great salesclerk.”

“Is Gina your only employee?” It would require ridiculously long hours for only two people to run the store.

“I have two other women who work for me on a part-time basis,” she replied. “But Gina is my only full-time worker.” She smiled and excused herself as another customer came through the door.

Tanner resumed his position against the back wall, surprised when a few minutes later Gina came through the shop door. He was shocked to realize he'd been standing around and watching Colette work for the past several hours.

“How long have you been here?” Gina asked suspiciously.

“Why?” he countered.

She set her purse behind the counter and looked over to where Colette was showing a couple of expectant parents the variety of cribs she carried.

“I was wondering how long you've had to try to get Colette on your side.”

He grinned. “I got here before she opened the store and we shared bagels and coffee. And I'll have you know we didn't even discuss you.”

Gina looked surprised. “Then what did you talk about?”

“This and that,” he replied.

Gina's eyes narrowed. “I know you, Tanner Rothman. You never do anything without a reason. Colette is my friend and my roommate, and you just leave her out of this.”

“Gina.” Tanner took one of his sister's hands in his. “Come home. You were less than a year away from your teaching degree. Come home and finish up college, stay at the ranch until you get married and have a family of your own. You don't want to be a store clerk for the rest of your life.”

“I don't want to go back to Foxrun. I like it here,” she protested. “And I'm not going to be a store clerk for the rest of my life. Colette is starting to train me as a manager and a buyer.” She pulled her hand out of his and went to greet a customer who had just come through the front door.

Tanner sighed in frustration and looked back over to Colette. As he gazed at her, Gina's words replayed in his mind. “She's my friend and my roommate, and you just leave her out of this.”

He couldn't very well leave Colette out of it. She was smack-dab in the middle, making promises to Gina that undermined what Tanner wanted.

As lovely as she was, as desirable as he found her, he couldn't forget that she was the enemy. And what he intended to do was seduce the enemy and bring her to his side of the war.

Chapter Three

T
o say that Tanner Rothman was a distraction was a vast understatement. His overwhelming presence filled the store, and no matter where she stood, she thought she could smell his evocative scent.

He was too tall, his shoulders far too broad, and his utter masculinity and sexiness made it difficult for Colette to focus on work.

Between customers he visited with both Gina and her, charming Colette with his funny stories of ranch life and tidbits from Gina's childhood.

Even Gina seemed to loosen up as her brother regaled them with charming stories of small-town life. The love between brother and sister was palpable in the air, and Colette found herself wishing she'd had somebody like Tanner Rothman in her life. And the
more appealing she found Tanner Rothman, the more uncomfortable she felt.

By the time six o'clock came and Linda Craig, one of the part-time workers, came to relieve Colette, she was more than ready to get away from Tanner.

She wasn't sure why he affected her on such a physical level. She didn't understand why his nearness made her breath catch in her chest and turned her palms slightly sweaty.

She'd been intensely aware of his midnight-blue gaze lingering on her often throughout the day. Each time she'd been aware of his gaze, her insides had quivered.

She'd been intimate with one man in her life. She'd dated Mike Covington for three months before she'd finally slept with him. The experience hadn't been particularly overwhelming, and that's why she didn't understand her almost primal response to Tanner.

Sex had never been important to her, but Tanner made her think of sex…of tangled sheets and hot slick bodies, and of slightly callused hands running down the length of her body. He made her think thoughts she rarely entertained.

Stepping out of the store, she drew a deep breath. It had been a good sales day, and she had evening plans of sitting down with a catalog and picking out the baby items she wanted for the baby she might be carrying at this very moment.

She figured Gina would only be with her for a cou
ple of months and would then find her own place, leaving Gina's bedroom as a nursery. Colette intended to make it a showcase of a room, a place where dreams could be nurtured.

She'd only taken two or three steps away from the shop when the door flew open and Tanner joined her on the sidewalk. “Thought I'd walk you home,” he said as he fell into step at her side. “It doesn't seem right to let a pretty lady walk home on the mean streets of the city all alone.” He gestured toward the stack of catalogs in her arms. “What me to carry your books home from school?”

She laughed, her pulse quickening. “No, but thanks anyway. And I've been walking the mean city streets alone for the past ten years, ever since I was eighteen years old.”

“Well, while I'm in town, you aren't going to be doing it anymore,” he replied.

“Aren't you the gallant one,” she said teasingly.

“Gina would call it overly protective,” he said with a half scowl.

Colette laughed, surprised to discover she was glad he'd decided to walk her home. “Gina is young. All she believes is that you're here to rain on her parade.”

“But I'm not,” he replied, his blue eyes sparkling earnestly. “Three weeks ago Gina and I had a fight. It was a silly argument and I didn't think too much about it at the time. She packed a bag, told me she
was leaving Foxrun and drove off. I figured she'd be home by nightfall.”

“But she wasn't,” Colette said. She tried not to notice how the bright sunshine made his dark hair gleam with richness.

“No, she wasn't. I waited until the next afternoon, then began to ask questions of friends and neighbors. That's when I discovered Margaret Jamison had a friend in Kansas City and had encouraged Gina to come here.” The muscle in his jaw tightened in obvious irritation.

“I gather Margaret Jamison isn't one of your favorite people right now.”

The muscle ticked again. “I think she's a busybody who should keep her nose to her own business.” A slight flush swept up his neck. “Sorry, I shouldn't have said that. I know she's your friend.”

“She's also a busybody,” Colette agreed with a small laugh. “But she means well. She worked for me in the shop for about six months before her husband bought the farm out west.” They stopped in front of her apartment building.

“They bought the place right next door to mine,” Tanner replied. He swept a hand through his rich dark hair and frowned thoughtfully. “Anyway, it was Margaret who told me about you, said she'd talked to you about you hiring Gina and giving her a place to stay for a while.”

Colette nodded. “Margaret called me and told me
that Gina was a sweet, bright young woman ready to strike out on her own.”

“She is sweet and she is bright, but she is also incredibly naive and innocent and not prepared for life on her own. She's never even had a real job before.”

“But she told me she did volunteer work at an animal shelter and at the local hospital.” Colette juggled the catalogs into one of her arms and with the other hand retrieved her keys. “Tanner, I really don't want to get in the middle of this fight between you and Gina. This should be a decision the two of you make.”

“You're right,” he said instantly. “I'm sorry, I shouldn't have brought it up.”

Colette hesitated, knowing she shouldn't say any more but unable to help herself. “All I know for sure is that in the three weeks Gina has been working for me, she's proven herself to be very conscientious and responsible. Maybe it's possible you're seeing her as the little girl she was instead of the young woman she's become.”

His eyes grew stormy and the tic once again pounded in his jawline. “I know what's best for her. And it's best she come back to Foxrun with me.” His voice rang with an authority she hadn't heard before.

“Then I guess all you have to do is convince her of that,” Colette replied. “And now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to get settled in for the night.”

“Yes, of course.” He smiled, but she could tell the pleasant gesture was forced. “I'll see you tomorrow.”

Colette watched him as he turned and walked away. He walked with a loose-hipped gait that held a touch of arrogance.

She turned and went into her building. As she rode the elevator up to the eighth floor, she thought of the conversation they'd just had.

In the last moments of that conversation she'd seen a flash of the man Gina had described to her—a man determined to have his own way. She had a feeling that beneath his obvious charm was a man who could truly be “cursedly stubborn.”

Entering her apartment, she immediately kicked off her shoes, dropped the catalogs on the coffee table and then went into the bedroom to change her clothes.

On the one hand she was taken with the obvious love Tanner felt for his sister, the worry and concern she knew had driven him to the city in pursuit of her. On the other hand she had a feeling he was vastly underestimating Gina's strength and resolve.

She had just finished changing her clothes when the phone rang. Flopping on the bed, she picked up the phone on the nightstand.

“Colette, I'm glad I caught you in.”

“Hello, Lillian,” Colette said to her mother.

“I got the message that you called last week and thought I would return your call.”

Colette wanted to say that it was a good thing she
hadn't called with an emergency, but she'd long ago realized her mother was incapable of giving the emotions and love Colette had once hungered for.

“Mother's Day is next Sunday. I was wondering if you'd like to go to lunch with me?” Colette twisted the phone cord around her finger as she realized how much she would love it if her mother said yes.

“I'm afraid I can't,” Lillian replied, no regret in her voice at all. “Joe and I have planned a little mini-trip for the weekend. You know how he loves to fish.”

No, Colette didn't know. She knew very little about Joe Kinsell, her mother's latest boy-toy. She'd only met him once.

“Well, that's nice. I hope the two of you have a wonderful time,” she said, unwrapping the cord from her hand.

“Oh, I'm sure we will. We always have a wonderful time together. We need you to come over here and feed and take care of Cuddles.” Cuddles was her mother's poodle.

Colette wondered if her mother hadn't needed to talk to her about caring for Cuddles, if she would have called at all.

“Of course. I'll be glad to.”

“Good. We'll be back late Sunday night and I'll call you sometime next week when things quiet down again.” With these words, Lillian disconnected.

As Colette hung up the phone, a painful emptiness
resounded in her heart. She should be used to the fact that she wasn't on her mother's list of priorities. She never had been. She'd learned very early not to need anyone, not to depend on anyone other than herself.

She rolled over on her back and placed a hand on her tummy. She'd never wanted anything as much as she wanted a baby. And the thought that at this very moment she might be pregnant filled her with a sweet warmth that banished the emptiness of moments before.

Although she'd been told that it might take several attempts for the artificial insemination to succeed, she was hoping she'd be one of the lucky ones and the first attempt had been successful.

Thoughts of Tanner and Gina once again filled her head. They were so lucky to have each other. But she had a feeling it wouldn't be long before she felt as if she was in the middle of a war zone. She wondered how long she could remain neutral, and if eventually she had to choose a side, which side would she choose?

 

As Tanner walked back to the store, he couldn't remember a time when he'd felt so energized, and he knew what the feeling was—sexual tension.

He wasn't even sure if he liked Colette Carson, but he knew damn straight he wanted her. It was crazy, it was utterly irrational, but it was there…thrumming
through his veins, reminding him of just how long it had been since he'd been intimate with a woman.

Too long. When Gina had been younger, Tanner had wanted to set a good example for her and had never had a woman to the ranch. He hadn't started dating until recently, but had found no woman he particularly wanted to be intimate with.

Again and again throughout the course of the day he'd found his gaze drawn to Colette. He'd found himself wondering what her lips would taste like? If her skin was really as silky to the touch as it looked as if it would be?

His desire for her had nothing to do with his desire to make her see his side of the issue with Gina. They were two very separate issues—one using his head, and the other utilizing a visceral part of him that had little to do with his mind.

As he walked through the shop door, all thoughts of Colette blew out of his mind as he saw his sister leaning over the counter obviously flirting with a young man wearing a delivery uniform.

She straightened as she saw Tanner. “Tanner, I'd like you to meet Danny Burlington. Danny, this is my brother, Tanner Rothman.”

The young man held a hand out to Tanner. Tanner grasped it and gave it a shake. “You here making a delivery or trying to pick something up?”

“Tanner!” Gina exclaimed angrily.

Danny released Tanner's hand, but held his gaze.
“I'm here to visit with Gina, sir. In fact, I've asked her to go to a late dinner with me this evening and perhaps see a movie.”

“And I've told him I'd be delighted to go with him,” Gina exclaimed. Her expression warned Tanner, and he suddenly realized that if he handled this situation the way he wanted to, he'd risk losing Gina forever.

He placed an arm around Gina and forced a smile to his lips as he looked at Danny. “I trust you'll make it a relatively early night since Gina is a working woman.”

Danny visibly relaxed. “Yes, sir. I start my job early in the mornings, too. We won't make it a late night.”

Tanner decided it would be better if he didn't ask for a copy of Danny's driver's license or get fingerprints from the young man, although that's exactly what he wanted to do.

“Come on, Danny. I'll walk you out,” Gina said. She slithered out from beneath Tanner's arm and walked with Danny to the door.

Tanner watched his sister as she smiled up at the handsome delivery boy. This was just what he'd feared…that she'd be swept off her feet by a sweet-talking city slicker.

At worst, he'd leave her pregnant and alone. At best, she'd fancy herself in love with him and never agree to return to the ranch with Tanner.

Still, as much as he wanted to rant and rave and call off her date, he couldn't. He knew that the way he handled this latest crisis would either lead to his ultimate success in gaining what he wanted or doom him to failure.

He forced a smile at Linda, the part-time worker who had come in just before he'd walked Colette home. She glared at him, then returned to folding baby blankets. He wondered what his baby sister had told her about him? Somehow he knew by her glare that whatever Gina had said had not been too favorable.

Gina smiled, her eyes sparkling as she came back into the shop. “Thank you,” she said as she got to where Tanner stood.

“For what?”

“For not being mean and hateful to Danny.” She leaned her elbows on the counter, her features retaining her smile. “He's been really nice to me since I came to Kansas City. Most evenings he comes here to walk me home after I close up the store. I told him he didn't have to tonight because you're here.”

Tanner shoved his hands in his jeans, fighting the impulse to reach out and grab her to his chest, hold her tight and keep her safe from life. “So what do you know about him?” he asked, trying to keep his tone light.

She shrugged and walked over to a nearby display of baby shoes. “I know he's twenty-five years old
and has been working for the delivery company for four years,” she said as she straightened the boxes of shoes. “He lives with his family not far from here and has two younger sisters and a little brother.”

BOOK: What If I'm Pregnant...?
3.13Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
ads

Other books

Gravedigger's Cottage by Chris Lynch
Dark Beach by Ash, Lauren
Black Dog Short Stories by Rachel Neumeier
Defying Fate by Lis, Heidi
Violca's Dragon by Leilani Love
The Blind Date by Melody Carlson
Seduction by the Book by Linda Conrad