2

Chapter Two

Chloe was halfway through the living room with two bags of groceries before she realized the lights were on and dimmed to provide a hazy glow accentuated by candles. The meager illumination allowed her to see a trail of rose petals that led from the living room down the hallway. Her first thought was crazily random—it was going to be a pain to clean up those petals from the carpet.

Her second thought was more coherent and a lot more terrifying. Someone had broken into her house to set up this scene. Her heart plummeted into her stomach as she dropped her grocery bags to fumble for her cell phone. Her hands trembled as she dialed nine-one-one, her thoughts squarely on her baby.

The operator answered on the first ring. “Nine-one-one, what is your emergency?”

“Someone has broken into my apartment.”

“Are they still there?”

She looked up as a solid form entered the living room, drawing to a halt. Barely biting back a panicked scream, she said, “Yes, the intruder is still here.”

“Intruder?” Sean stepped close enough to be identified. “I’m not an intruder. Who are you talking to?”

“Nine-one-one.”

He scowled and cursed before closing the distance between them to take the phone from her hand. “This is Sergeant Sean Nolan, badge number six-two-five-one. There isn’t an intruder. I let myself in to set up a sweet scene for my girlfriend, but she didn’t know it was me.”

Her mouth dropped open, and she glared at him, mouthing the word, “Girlfriend?”

He turned away slightly, verifying more information before hanging up. Sean was scowling just a bit when he handed her the phone. “They’ll probably send out a uniform to check my story.”

“He can take you with him then.” She knelt to pick up her abandoned groceries, wincing when she saw the eggs had landed hard. “What the hell are you doing in my apartment, Sean?” At least now she knew what he’d written on his pad—her address.

He followed her as she went to the kitchen, taking both bags from her and setting them on the island before leaning back slightly to watch as she began unloading. “I was worried about you, and I wanted you to have a relaxing evening.”

She sniffed. “You haven’t seen me in five years. Why would you worry now?”

Sean sighed before reaching out to lightly touch her belly. “That’s a lot to be carrying alone.”

She maintained her cool mask. “What makes you think I’d want you here?”

He had a sad smile. “I thought our one kiss was pretty dynamite, sweetie.”

Forgetting about the broken eggs in the carton, she whirled to face him fully. “It was something else, but then you vanished.” She poked him in the chest. “You told me to wait a few months, until my birthday, but then you just disappeared.” Once more, she poked him, suddenly raw with the suppressed emotions she hadn’t let herself feel for almost five years.

He put up a hand to block her poking finger, but didn’t try to touch her otherwise. “You were only seventeen, Chloe.”

She rolled her eyes. “I remember.”

He sighed, which made his muscular chest lift in a way that she absolutely did not notice. “You also remember that I was twenty-five? I had no business kissing you, no matter how delicious you looked in your prom dress.”

“You said all this that night, but you also said you’d come back for me when I was eighteen.” She scowled. “You lied to me, and now you think I’ll be happy to see you again after a random traffic stop?”

Sean gently reached for her hand, folding her fingers into his. “I’d hoped you might be happy to see me, after I explained what had happened.” The doorbell peeled, and he cursed. “Ugh, let me deal with this first, and then will you please listen?”

She hesitated, torn between her anger at his abandonment and curiosity about his explanation. She couldn’t see any justification for kissing her, building her hopes, and then never seeing her again when she had lived next door to his parents. Even when she had moved into her own apartment during her sophomore of college, he could have tracked her down. With a ragged exhalation, she nodded once. “Five minutes.”

He looked hopeful as he went to the door, bringing her along with him. She opened it to find a young black man about her age in the hallway. He tilted his hat. “Ma’am, you called nine-one-one about an intruder?”

“That would be me,” said Sean easily. He reached with exaggerated care into his pants pocket to pull out a leather case that he flipped open to show a badge and photo identification. “My surprise was a flop.”

The young officer leaned his head in slightly to take in the romantic scene in the living room before looking at Chloe. “Are you okay, ma’am?”

She forced a smile. “I’ll be fine. I’m sorry I bothered you.”

He shrugged. “Better safe than sorry. Have a good night.”

After he’d left, she tugged her hand free from Sean’s, but followed behind him to sit on the loveseat. He crowded too close for her to keep breathing normally without really focusing on it, but when she scooted over a bit, he followed. She sighed in resignation, waiting for him to start.

“I felt like a creep for wanting you that night, Chloe, but it wasn’t the first time I’d noticed you. I’d been thinking about you in a way that wasn’t strictly appropriate for at least a year before then.”

She swallowed at the admission, giving a grudging one of her own. “I had a thing for you too.” Since she was practically old enough to notice boys, Sean and his identical twin Shane had entranced her. As she got older, her attention had switched solely to Sean, and she’d had a raging attraction to the sexy older man. When he’d crossed the yard to sweep her into his arms for a dance, after her loser date didn’t show, her heart had raced in her ears.

Then had come the kiss, which was everything a first kiss was supposed to be and more—explosive, tender, demanding, and sweet. He’d seemed to have trouble wrenching his mouth from hers, and they had stayed pressed together, foreheads touching, for several moments before they could speak.

She blinked when she realized he was talking. “What?”

He took her hand again, ignoring her resistance. “I wanted you, and waiting a few weeks until you were eighteen was torture.”

“Then why didn’t you come back?” It made no sense.

He brushed the pad of his thumb across the back of her hand, making her shiver. “Shane and I both got recruited for a taskforce to bring down a major drug cartel, or at least impact its booming heroin business. Shane was put in surveillance and evidence, but they drafted me to go undercover.”

She frowned. “You mean as a drug dealer?”

He nodded, his eyes looking vaguely haunted. “It was the worst assignment ever, Chloe. I was constantly in danger, had to witness all kinds of depravity, and I couldn’t break cover.” He touched her cheek. “I couldn’t risk having you in my life. If the cartel had discovered I was undercover, they would have used you to hurt me.”

A sharp pang hit her chest, and she bit her lip, struggling to decide if she should believe him. “That was five years ago.”

He nodded. “I was undercover for one year with that cartel before the bust. Unfortunately, my cover was still deep and still preserved, so the DEA borrowed me for a long-term assignment to infiltrate another extension of the cartel in New York City. I only got back home last year.”

She narrowed her eyes. “That was still a year ago. Why didn’t you try to find me?”

Sean looked down. “I asked your mom about you, and she told me you were serious about some guy and would probably get married after graduation.” He met her gaze. “She told me this Jay guy had much better prospects than an undercover cop who’d made enough enemies to bring an entire cartel down on him, if anyone ever found out my real identity. What she said made sense, so I tried to forget about the promise I’d made to show you how I felt when you turned eighteen.”

Chloe groaned. “Jay? She told you I was dating Jay?” Her eyes narrowed. “That jerk was my mom’s boss’s son, and she was hoping I’d marry him so it would get her in good with her boss and his rich friends.” She rolled her eyes. “I think she was planning to make Mr. Jones her third husband, but it didn’t work out. All Jay wanted was a quick fuck. It was never serious.”

His gaze dropped to her stomach. “Serious enough to make a baby.” Envy underscored his words, along with a strong trace of jealousy.

She shook her head. “It wasn’t Jay.” Allowing a hint of the devastation she’d felt earlier sweep through her, she cupped her stomach. “I had an affair with my professor last semester.” Seeing his surprise, she added, “I didn’t know it was an affair. He told me he and his wife were separated, and their marriage had been over for years.” Her lips tightened with bitterness. “He didn’t clarify that their separation was one of geography, while she was on a research project in the Badlands for a few months—and only he considered the marriage over, at least as long as it suited him.”

He squeezed her hand. “I’m sorry.”

She managed a feeble smile. “Me too. I got over him quickly enough, but finding out I was pregnant was a real blow. He’s been ducking me for months, but when he asked me to meet him this afternoon, I was optimistic.” She tucked a strand of caramel-brown hair behind her ear. “I didn’t want to get back with him or anything, but I’d hoped he planned to do the decent thing for the baby.”

His hand tightened almost painfully on hers. “Is he going to acknowledge the baby?”

She shook her head. “No. He was waiting for the wife to be gone again before confronting me. He gave me a document releasing him from all paternal rights or obligations in exchange for ten grand.” Tears slipped down her cheeks. “He considers a life worth so little.”

“You took it, didn’t you?”

She nodded, surprised by his intensity. “Do you think I shouldn’t have?” She glared at him. “I wasn’t trying to extort him, and I definitely didn’t get pregnant on purpose.”

He held up his hand. “Shush, I didn’t think anything like that. I just wanted to be sure that dickhead is completely out of the picture.”

She swallowed. “Oh. Yes, he’ll never be part of my son’s life.”

“A boy?” His eyes gleamed when he cupped her stomach, but then he blinked. “Right, so you deserve a night of pampering.”

“I was going to have peach ice cream and an early night.”

He shook his head. “You sit here with your feet up. I’ll bring you some ice cream. While you eat that, I’ll rub your feet before giving you a massage, all topped off with a bath to wash away the massage oil.”

It was tempting, but she was still hesitant. His explanation sounded good, but what if it was all a line? She laughed almost as soon as she had that thought. A line for what? Seduction? Not likely with her enormous stomach rounded with someone else’s baby. He clearly felt sorry for her, and he must care about her, but sex was the farthest thing from his mind. Who would want sex with a woman who was seven months pregnant if he wasn’t the father?

Still, it removed any pressure from the equation. She could accept the overture as a gesture of renewing their friendship. If she felt more than a pang that it was only friendship they were renewing, she would just force herself to ignore it. The last thing she needed was to restore the feelings she’d had for Sean. “Some pampering would be nice,” she said with a small smile.

“Great.” He patted her leg as he got up. “Kick off those shoes, honey.”

Feeling bemused, Chloe slid off her flats and propped her feet on the coffee table, putting an extra cushion behind her back to ease the ache. As promised, he returned a few minutes later with a glass bowl filled with ice cream. She took it with a laugh. “I’m eating for two, not twenty.”

He grinned. “I thought we could share.”

She noted there was only one spoon, but made no comment. A squeak of surprise escaped her when he sat on the sofa and lifted her feet to swing them onto his lap. She turned instinctively to settle comfortably, releasing a small sigh as his large hands began kneading her swollen flesh. “That is heavenly.”

“The ice cream?”

She shook her head, waving at her feet with the spoon. “The massage.” Taking a bite, she moaned softly. “That’s heaven too.”

“Give me a bite.”

It was strangely intimate to lean close enough to feed Sean a bite of the ice cream. She couldn’t ignore the way her nipples beaded when they pressed against her bra at the shift forward and hoped he wouldn’t notice.

He licked his lips. “Tasty.”

“Can I ask you something?”

“You may.” He accepted another bite of ice cream.

Chloe pursed her lips, trying to find the right way to phrase the question. “If you worked undercover for all those years, shouldn’t you be doing something besides issuing traffic tickets?”

He pressed against the ball of her foot in a way that made her squirm before answering. “I could be. I pretty much had my pick of any assignment, and the DEA offered me a job as an agent. I was just burned out by the whole thing, and I wanted to come home.” He met her gaze, the blue in his eyes blazing with meaning. “I had a lot to come home for.”

Chloe cleared her throat, mechanically offering ice cream when he opened his mouth. “Why patrol though? You could be a detective or something, couldn’t you?”

He lifted a shoulder. “I requested a beat. I wanted to remember what it was like to be a cop working with people, not scumbags. I might eventually pursue a promotion, but I’m content for now.”

“Oh.” She took another bite of the ice cream, surprised to find they had almost finished it all between them. Scooping up the last bite, she offered it to Sean, fascinated by the tiny droplet on his lower lip. It was only when she realized she was on the verge of leaning forward to lick it off that she averted her gaze. Stretching, she put the bowl on the coffee table, feeling like a beached whale when the maneuver left her breathless and her stomach protruding more prominently.

“Massage time.”

She frowned, uncertain about the wisdom of that idea. With her pregnancy-induced sex drive through the roof, Chloe was afraid she’d end up doing something humiliating that would stir his pity, but not his cock. “I think I’ll just have an early night.”

He glanced at the clock. “It’s barely past seven. Give me another hour.”

“All right,” she said with ill-grace, certain she was going to regret the idea.

“Great.” His boyish grin chased away the shadows she’d noticed in his eyes when he had spoken of his undercover assignment. “Go to your room and get undressed. I’ll be in shortly.”

Her mouth dropped open. “What?”

He lifted a brow. “It’s hard to get a massage with your clothes on. You agree?”

“Yes, but—”

“Scoot to it then, woman.”

She rolled her eyes at his command, but found her feet taking her back to her bedroom. To her surprise, there was already a protective sheet over the bed, along with a bottle of oil on the nightstand. The surreal feeling increased as she stripped off her outer garments, not even considering taking off her bra or underwear, though neither piece was flattering. Her utilitarian white bra was built for support, not seduction, and her granny panties couldn’t have been less attractive, with their built-in pregnancy panel for added comfort.

She shrugged, deciding it didn’t matter. Sean wasn’t here to be seduced. He was doing something nice for her and probably wanted to rekindle the friendship, but that was it. Chloe forced herself not to remember the jealousy she’d heard in his voice when he was talking about Jay and Timothy. She’d wasted enough time hoping for Sean, and with the baby, it was fruitless to start all that again. He wouldn’t want a ready-made family. Would he?

No, stop thinking that way. It would just lead to more disappointment. Keeping that firmly in mind, she lay down on her left side, back facing the door, and waited for Sean. His knock came a moment later, and she called him in.

He sat beside her, and oil dribbled onto her back a second after. It was torture and pleasure to have his fingers smoothing it over her skin. He moved with slow, deep strokes that made her want to moan and squirm.

“I don’t want to use too much pressure, or it could trigger contractions. You’re supposed to have someone trained in prenatal massage during pregnancy.”

She blinked. “Are you?”

“Not certified, but I’ve had some training in massage.”

Chloe bit back a moan when he pressed his thumbs into her lower back, making her arch forward. “Was that a cop thing?”

Sean laughed. “Nah, it was a personal interest. I took a few months off after my undercover assignment ended, before I came home. I toyed with the idea of getting out of law enforcement, and I’d been told I had gifted hands.”

Those gifted hands were busy rubbing and caressing her into a state that was anything but relaxing. She had to clear her throat before she could speak, and even then, she sounded husky. “Masseuse wasn’t the job for you?”

“No. I ended up missing being a cop, so I decided to go back to the beginning, to the part of the job I had always loved.” His voice dropped lower as his fingers dipped into the waistband of her panties. “My true love has always been here.”

She stiffened slightly, wanting so badly to interpret that in a personal way. Gritting her teeth, she resisted the urge. “I’m glad you were the cop today. Anyone else might have given me a ticket.”

It sounded as though he sighed softly before his hands moved higher again. “Only a jerk would give an upset pregnant woman a ticket for a minor infraction.”

She yelped with surprise when his fingers undid the latch of her bra. “What are you doing?” Gripping the cups, she pressed the garment closer to her breasts.

“I can’t reach your skin with the bra in the way.” He drizzled extra oil on the area that had been covered before massaging her upper back for a few more minutes.

She was a breathless mess, so close to sobbing out a plea for him to fuck her, by the time he’d finished stroking her back. Relief made her sag when he finally stopped touching her, though she missed his hands.

“Are you ready for that bath?”

Chloe nodded, taking a moment to breathe deeply.

“Your robe is on the edge of the bed.” He stood up, sounding a tad annoyed. “You might want to completely undress before you get in the water.”

Her lips quirked, and she had to bite back a giggle. Clearly, he had intended for her to remove all her clothes. Crazy man, expecting a pregnant woman to undress in front of someone who had never seen her naked. Waiting until she heard the water start in the bathroom, she finally stood up, sighing with pleasure to note the usual ache in her back was absent due to his ministrations.

As fast as she could, she shed her underwear and wrapped herself in the robe. Padding into her adjacent bathroom, she found the room hazy with steam. Her old-fashioned tub was half-filled, and she was surprised to see more rose petals floating amid the bubbles. More mess to clean, she thought with a bit of irritation, though the sweetness of the gesture pleased her.

Glancing around the bathroom, she saw no sign of Sean. Chloe shoved the door closed before stripping off her robe and hanging it over the hook on the back of the door. She sighed with pleasure when she stepped into the warm bath, delighted that he hadn’t made it too hot, which wasn’t safe for the baby. It took some creative maneuvering—the main reason she hadn’t bothered with a bath lately—to get in the tub, but when she was fully immersed in the water, she decided it was worth the effort.

Too lazy to move, she toed off the faucets and leaned back with her head on the bath pillow. Chloe draped a warm cloth over her face and let the soothing warmth soak into her. She could get used to Sean’s pampering. It had been so difficult doing everything alone. This was the way she’d always pictured having a baby, a loving partner at her side. Being a single mother had never been in her plans, but plans had a way of changing.

She certainly didn’t regret getting pregnant and was looking forward to her baby’s arrival. With her degree, she’d managed to secure a decent finance job just out of college that might actually have room for growth. It came with good insurance, and no one had seemed bothered that she would need maternity leave within months of starting. She had better circumstances than many women facing parenthood alone, but that didn’t mean she didn’t want a man beside her.

Chloe forced herself to push aside that thought. Maybe Sean was interested, but the idea of her having a baby had to be daunting. If anything came of their long-ago kiss and reunion, it would be a slow process. She couldn’t let herself be tempted to lean on him.

A splash in the water had her eyes flying open, and she pulled off the cloth just as Sean dragged a porous sponge across her shoulder. “What are you doing?” Oh, god, he’d taken off his shirt. Holy…his torso was sculpted in a way that made her mouth water, and she had to force her gaze away from the hypnotic sight of the strip of dark hair trying to seduce her eyes southward.

“Giving you a bath.”

She was speechless for a second. “But why? I can do it myself.” The sponge moved across her chest to her other shoulder, not in any way inappropriate, but she still had to stifle a moan.

“Sure you can, but I want to help.” The sponge moved lower, going down the side of her breast before disappearing into the water. “I want to touch you.”