Baby Bodyguard: Book #3 (Baby, Oh Baby! Series (chockful of matchmaking, soul mates, love at first s

Chapter 9

Noah swore softly. “I thought you said she was killed with your father. That it was a car accident.”

Sami tucked into a tighter ball, resting her chin on her bent knees, her dress a faint glow of red in the darkened room. “Nancy was such a sweet thing,” she commented. “Have I told you that already?”

Noah schooled himself to patience, aware she needed to explain what happened in her own way, in her own time. “No, you haven’t.”

“I absolutely adored her. Anything she wanted, Igave her.” Ever so gently she set Mr. Woof on the seat beside her. “This was the first birthday present I ever bought her. And the last.”

Understanding dawned. “That’s why you panicked when you saw Loner with it.”

“It was Nancy’s favorite toy. She took it everywhere. It’s the one memento I have of her.”

He had to get Sami to tell her story, to lance the wound that had festered for so many years. “Why do you blame yourself for Nancy’s death?”

“Because it was my fault.” A hint of anger rippled through her voice, but he let it go. At least she expressed honest emotion instead of the surreal calm that had gripped her earlier.

“Tell me more.”

Slowly, she removed her headband and tossed it aside, taking a moment to massage her temples before speaking again. “We were stopped at a red light.”

“We?”

“Didn’t I mention?” Her laugh escaped, barren of humor. “I was in the car, too.”

He fought to control his breathing, to keep from betraying his shock. “No. You didn’t mention that before.”

“Nancy had dropped Mr. Woof and I—” Her voice broke. “We were stopped. Ithought it was safe.”

He sat down beside her, drawing her into his arms. “Finish it, Sami. What did you do?”

“I sat in the front seat next to Dad. Nancy sat in the back. She’d dropped Mr. Woof and he’d rolled onto the floor of the car where I couldn’t reach. But I could reach Nancy. So I unfastened her seatbelt and told her to get the toy. Ithought she’d be okay. Iswear I did.” She curled into him, wrapping her arms around his waist, her breath shallow and rapid. “But then the light turned green. We started into the intersection. ‘Hurry,’ I said and… I remember my father’s shout. He swore. Isn’t that funny? He never swore. Iremember the hideous shriek of metal. And I remember the pain before everything went dark.”

“Another car hit you?”

She nodded. “It ran the red light and broadsided us. Iwoke up in the hospital. Babe was there.” Tears slipped down her cheeks. “But Nancy and Dad were gone.”

“It wasn’t your fault. You have to know that, right?” He gripped her shoulders. “You were eleven years old. It was a freak accident. You couldn’t possibly have realized what might happen.”

“Babe’s told me the same thing. And most days I even believe it. But this birthday…” She shook her head. “It just hit hard. Ifeel guilty celebrating what would have been a special day for her.”

“Tell me something, Sami. This baby business. How much of it has to do with your sister? Are you sure you’re not trying to close a circle or replace her in some subconscious way?”

“Of course there’s some of that,” she conceded. “I’d be foolish to deny it. But it’s not just Nancy. Iadore children. Ialways have. The only reason I don’t already have a half dozen is because I’m not married.”

“So when did you decide that a husband was no longer a necessary component?”

“Recently.” She pulled back, her expression settling into defensive lines. “There are lots of women raising children without benefit of husbands.”

“And a lot of them wish they didn’t have to. Wouldn’t you have wanted your father in your life for longer than you had him?”

“That’s not fair, Noah!”

He forced himself to ignore the rawness in her voice. He had to make her understand, to see how the choices she made in the coming months would affect the rest of her life—the rest of both their lives. “I’m not trying to make you feel worse, sweetheart. But don’t you get it? You’re still looking at this situation through the eyes of an eleven-year-old.”

“I’m thirty-one, not eleven.”

“Listen to me, Sami. You’re a smart woman. Unfortunately, at an impressionable age, you watched your mother lose the man she adored. And then you watched as she flung herself from marriage to marriage trying to recapture what she’d shared with your father. No wonder you’re terrified of making that sort of commitment.”

She shook her head. “Even if I found a man I could love, there aren’t any guarantees. I’m as likely to lose him through divorce as death.”

“You’re right. Life doesn’t come with guarantees.” He released his breath in a long sigh. “Look, Iunderstand that you’re afraid. You’re afraid of opening your heart and giving all the love trapped inside. You’re sure the person you choose to love will either die or leave you.”

“Yes!”She pushed him away and escaped the window seat. “There. Are you satisfied now? I’m afraid. It’s safer to stay single and avoid all that.”

“Do you think Babe would have avoided falling in love with your father if she’d had the choice? Do you think if she’d known in advance what would happen, she’d have refused to marry him?”

“I haven’t a clue.”

“Yes, you do. Idon’t know Babe as well as you, and yet I can say without any hesitation that she’d have gone through with the marriage, no matter what the cost in the end.”

“You can’t be certain of that.”

“Yes, Ican. Damn it, Sami. Why the hell do you think she’s married so many times?” He didn’t wait for an answer. “It’s because she’s still looking. She wants love in her life again. Sure, she’s made mistakes. But she must think they’re worth it if it means finding the sort of love she had with your father.”

Sami’s mouth set in a stubborn line. “That’s fine for Babe. I’ve made a different choice.”

“One that’s based on fear.” He stopped her before she could interrupt. “It isn’t love you’re afraid of. It’s loss. Think about it, Sami. Let’s say you go ahead with your plan to have a baby. Will you handle the loss of that child any better than you’d handle the loss of a husband?”

She stared at him, stricken.

“Don’t you see? It wasn’t just your father who died in that accident. Nancy died, too. Ithink you’re having this baby so you can move forward with your life. To pick up, emotionally, where you left off all those years ago. But you’ll never be able to do that until you face your fear and let go of it. You have to allow yourself to love without limits or conditions. Otherwise, fear will always keep you emotionally stunted.”

“You’re wrong!”

“Am I? What happens when that baby turns one?” he demanded. “Will you panic every time you’re in the car with her? And what if she survives until she’s two? You’ll think, ‘Phew, she lived longer than Nancy.’ But then your imagination will come up with a whole new scenario, awhole new set of fears and worries and dangers that could hurt your child. You’ll go from one fear to the next to the next. And you’ll instill those fears in your child. You won’t mean to, but it’ll happen. That’s what fear does to you. Don’t you see? You don’t really want a baby.”

“How can you say that?”

“Because I’ve watched you. I’ve listened to you. Iknow what’s in your heart. Whether you’re willing to admit it or not, you want a complete family. One that will replace what you lost. That’s why you were looking for the perfect father for your baby. Because he’ll also be the perfect husband for you.” He gathered her in his arms, searching for the words to convince her. “You’re sweet and generous and kind. You open your home to strangers, trying to help them in every way you can. You’re the most loving person I’ve ever met and yet when it comes knocking on your door, you push it away with both hands.”

“No, Idon’t. And I can prove it to you.” She encircled his neck with her arms. “Make love to me, Noah. Right now.”

He shut his eyes, agonizing over the choice before him. “Why do you want me, Sami? It isn’t like we’ve received the all-clear from the doctor.”

“I don’t care what the doctor has to say!”

“Maybe you want to practice for the main event. Is that it?” Wordlessly, she shook her head. His voice dropped, coaxing the truth from her. “Then is it because you’re afraid? Any port in the storm?”

“No, no and no.” Frustration edged her voice, but he refused to make it easy forher.

Releasing her, he stepped back and folded his arms across his chest. “Tell me why and make it the truth.” He forced himself to wait her out, fighting the overriding urge to sweep her off her feet and carry her to hisbed.

“Noah, please!” Her throat worked with painful desperation and it took three tries before she found the right words. “It’s because we’re incomplete on our own. Because together we’re whole.”

It was as close to a commitment as he’d likely get. He’d thrown some hard punches tonight and she’d taken them without flinching. She hadn’t ordered him out or refused to listen. She hadn’t liked what he’d said, but she’d stuck by him. That meant something. It hadto.

“If I were smart, I’d kiss you goodnight and keep my hands to myself.” His mouth curved in a self-mocking smile. “If I were really smart, I’d get the hell out of here now. Before it’s too late.”

“I hope to heavens that means you’re not going to be smart.” Her eyes were as luminous as the lights dotting the bay. “Otherwise, you’ll force me to take drastic action.”

That caught his attention. “What sort of drastic action?”

“I’d have to seduce you.”

His smile grew. “And how would you go about that?”

She tilted her head to one side as she considered. “First I’d kiss you. The kind of kiss you’d exchange listening to Barry White’s music. Ones that are slow and deep and vibrate all the way to your toes. Midnight kisses.” A slumbrous quality entered her voice. “Bedroom kisses.”

He nodded, conceding the point. “That might keep me standing here for a bit longer.”

She drifted toward him, her dress whispering silken promises. “Then while you were standing there and I was kissing you senseless, I’d slip off your jacket and unbutton your shirt.”

“Do you think taking off my shirt’s enough to keep me from leaving?”

“There’s no question in my mind.”

He shot her a challenging look. “Prove it. First the kiss. Slow, deep, and vibrating to my toes. That’s what you promised in order to keep me here.”

“And that’s what you’ll get.”

Standing on tiptoe, she slid her fingers into his hair and captured his mouth with hers. Tilting her head to one side she gave him a thorough introduction to slow, followed by one in deep. Just when he thought she’d given him her best shot, she tugged at his bottom lip and proceeded to prove she knew precisely how to make him vibrate straight down to histoes.

Noah cupped her hips and aligned them with his, moving her against him to the music his imagination provided. “Remind me to play Barry White on a regular basis.”

“Oh, but it gets better.” Was she warning or promising? “Now midnight kisses.”

She threatened his sanity with each lazy sweep of her tongue. Tantalizing him one minute, consuming him the next. Teasing with tiny nips before softening the kiss with the gentlest of caresses. Taking him with delicate parries, then aggressive demand.

He fought for breath. “If those are midnight kisses, what the hell qualifies as bedroom ones?”

Her lips slid to his earlobe and she whispered in wicked detail the difference between the two. His arousal hit, instantaneous as it was painful. “Now do you understand why they’re limited to the bedroom?” she teased.

“Because we’d be arrested if we tried it in public?”

“Well… One of us would.” She wrapped her hands around his lapel and smiled up at him, her expression filled with an irresistible combination of mischief and hunger. “I believe I’m supposed to be stripping you while kissing you senseless.”

“Only if you’re still intent on convincing me to stay.”

“Oh, trust me. Iam.”

Noah watched in wry amusement as she pushed and prodded his arms out of his jacket, finally discarding the Armani as though it were a used rag. It went winging through the air to crumple in a heap by the bed, his cummerbund following behind. Next shirt studs rained onto the floor like fallen stars and after what felt like an interminable delay, she dragged his dress shirt off his shoulders. She’d bared him to the waist and he waited to see what she’d do next. She didn’t leave him guessing forlong.

With the lightest of touches, she trailed her fingertips across his shoulders to the hollow at the base of his throat, leaving behind a path of fire. “Do you want to go now?” she murmured.

He fought to organize his thoughts enough to speak. “I’m considering my options.”

“Then I suggest you take this into consideration….”

Her index finger drifted down the center line of his chest, over the planes of his abdomen to the top of his trousers. He swallowed a groan. How did she manage to rouse such a reaction with one tiny finger? It didn’t seem possible.

She fixed her gaze on him, her rich green eyes filled with sultry promise. The opening of his trousers loosened and she flattened her hand against his belly, warming him with herheat.

“Have I convinced you to stay?”

“Almost.” The word tore from his throat, heavy and guttural and filled with demand.

“Almost?” Her rich laughter stirred an even more painful reaction. “You can’t fool me, Noah. You’re definitely going to stay. Shall I prove it to you?”

She didn’t wait for an answer, but slipped beneath his clothing, cupping his weight in her hands. She offered a smile as knowing as it was filled with ancient feminine mystique. And then, ever so gently, she squeezed.

A roaring filled his head and a cry welled up from someplace raw and elemental. He’d always prided himself on his control, always been the one to take charge. But that control became an illusion. Colors burst behind his closed eyelids. The same blazing orange and excruciating lime-green as the first outfit he’d seen her wear. Carnal Coral combined with Shell Shock Pink and Insatiable Indigo. They whirled through his mind like the colorful bracelets he seen whirling on a slender wrist.

Reason deserted him and he reached for her. The single shoulder strap of her flapper-style dress ripped beneath his hand. Silk rustled suggestively as it slipped from her body and pooled at her feet. She stood before him, unmoving, her skin touched with moonlight, her eyes filled with emerald fire, her moist lips the color of passion. Only the golden delta between her thighs remained shadowed, ascrap of black lace preserving her modesty.

Her breasts moved in a frantic rhythm with each give-and-take of her breath, signaling her arousal. It was his turn to reach out, to slide his index finger from the hollow of her throat to the tip of her breast. The rosy center puckered, asilent plea for his caress, and her groan echoed his, frantic and needy, ademand and an appeal all at the sametime.

Slowly, she released him, the leisurely glide of her fingers an exquisite torture. “Does this mean you’re staying?” she whispered.

His capacity for speech deserted him. He burned for this woman, his desire desperate and immediate, riding him harder than anything that had come before. Where was his ability to consider and analyze? With one touch this woman had pirated his reason, transforming him into something primitive and feral. His fist closed around the scrap of lace that concealed her fromhim.

“Take it off or I will,” he warned.

Her smile took on a wild edge. “Do it.”

The sound of rending cloth ripped away the last of his control. He tumbled her back onto the bed, shedding his trousers as he joined her. Tracing her body, he explored lush swells and soft indentation, drifting from sleek curves to moist hollows. Where once she’d promised to give him bedroom kisses, he bestowed them on her, edging her relentlessly toward a shattering completion.

She shuddered in his hold. “Please, Noah. Ican’t take any more.” Tugging him into position, she locked her legs around him, encouraging his possession. “Now, Noah. Take me now.”

He wanted to. He wanted to more than she could possibly know. But he couldn’t. Not like this. “Not yet, Sami.”

“Why?” she cried. “Noah, please.”

“I can’t.” Lust bound them. And lust couldn’t satisfy him. Not anymore. “You have to say the words, sweetheart. Let me know this means more than satisfying a momentary urge. Ican’t give you casual. It’s not in my nature.”

Sami stared at Noah. Harsh color scored his cheekbones and his eyes were fixed on her, blazing with a dark desperation that could only be assuaged in one way. He wanted her, wanted her as frantically as she wanted him. But he held back, refusing to take her physically unless he had an emotional commitment, aswell.

Everything he’d said to her, all that had taken place since he’d walked into her life solidified in that moment. The past blended with the present into a single pathway, while the future forked dramatically ahead.

The first trail offered easy passage, smooth and rock-free, though there’d only be room for one traveler. She could traverse it untouched by pain, but girded by fear. The other could only be reached by throwing herself off a jagged cliff—one that had blocked her way for more years than she cared to count, one that forced a fall that would be long and hard and terrifying.

The only consolation was Noah standing at the bottom of that cliff. Waiting. Hoping she’d trust that he’d catch her. Trust. Commitment. Fear. Love. The words shrieked in her ears, battling within hersoul.

“Noah!”

“I’m here, sweetheart. Ihave you.”

She closed her eyes and wept. “I can’t do it. Ican’t.”

“It’s okay to be afraid. It’s not the fear that’ll hurt you.”

“It’s the fall.”

“It’s not the fall. Ipromise that won’t hurt you, either. It’s walking away that will hurt. Don’t walk away, Sami. Fight for what you want.” He pushed a tumble of pale curls from her face. “Say the words, Sami. Take the risk.”

“What happens if I won’t?”

His forehead touched hers, his words feathering across her mouth. She could feel the tension build in him, feel him gather his impressive control. “It’s all right, sweetheart. Nothing happens if you walk away. Nothing at all.”

Nothing, except he’d leave her alone in the bed, unfulfilled and hurting. Take the risk! Her eyelids fluttered open and she stared up at him. Taking a deep breath, she leaped. “I love you, Noah. Ilove you more than life.”

She fell then, tumbling freely. The tears spilled down her cheeks, but this time Noah simply smiled. For a man who didn’t “do” tears, he seemed to be handling them remarkablywell.

“I love you, too, Sami,” he said, gently wiping the dampness from her cheeks. “You’re everything I’ve ever looked for in a woman. You’re everything I’ve ever wanted.”

He cupped her face, drugging her with the intoxicating kisses she’d described in such vivid detail a short time ago—long and slow and deep, vibrating all the way to her toes. But the craving she’d felt before couldn’t begin to compare to this. Perhaps it was the freedom that came from opening her heart. Or perhaps it came from her absolute trust in the man who held her secure in hisarms.

Every tender sweep of his hand, every whispered endearment, every brush and scrape and caress expressed such intense rapture she finally understood what her mother had lost all those years ago. The tears came again. Tears of regret that she’d almost missed experiencing such grace. That she’d tried to push something so wondrous from her life. That she’d have dared to believe creating a child without such a bonding would have been acceptable.

Noah quieted her remorse with compassionate concern, his understanding absolute. “It’s all right,” he murmured. “Everything will be all right now.”

“Make love to me, Noah. Show me how right it is,” she pleaded.

He responded instantly, gathering her close. Each kiss drove her to a new plane of passion, each touch became a benediction, each whispered promise a commitment that bound them as one. Settling between her thighs, he joined with her so completely she slipped beyond words, beyond rational thought, his lovemaking unlike anything she’d known before. He gifted her with life and she opened herself to him, giving Noah the one thing she’d never offered another man. The only thing she had available to offer.

She gave her love. All of it. Free and unconditionally, holding nothingback.

As they reached for the stars, the night fell heavily on them, blanketing them. And as they became sated and fulfilled, they grew still, curling into each other, ablissful tangle of arms and legs. And when they slept, it was a deep sleep, contented and serene.

For Sami, it was the most peaceful she’d known in two endless decades. Because at long last, she knew she’d found the family she’d lost all those yearsago.

Noah awoketo an earsplitting scream. The moment he realized his arms were empty of anything small, feminine, and delightfully passionate, he knew the worse had happened.

Sami had been taken.

It took every ounce of self-control not to panic. Exploding from the bed, he snatched up a pair of jeans, yanking them on in five seconds flat. Loner greeted him outside the door, barking hysterically. Together they ran, racing flat-out for the staircase leading to the foyer, taking the steps three at atime.

Widget stood by the open front door. Spotting them, she screamed again. For someone who hadn’t been able to speak above a whisper until now, she sure could raise hell when she chose.

“Where is she?” he demanded, skidding to a halt in front of her. “What happened to Sami?”

“He took her.” Widget’s breath came in half-hysterical pants. “A man took her.”

With a shaking finger, she pointed to the bracelets scattered across the wooden floor and Noah closed his eyes. He’d know those colors anywhere. Insatiable Indigo. Carnal Coral. Shell Shock Pink. And a vivid red the exact color of the lipstick he’d kissed from Sami’s mouth the night before. Loner sniffed the area, before collapsing on the floor, his nose inches from the bracelets. He released an odd-sounding whine, as though something about the odors confused him. Before Noah could ask any further questions, Pudge, Carmela, and Daria came racing into the foyer. Rosie waddled behind at a more leisurelypace.

Noah gave Widget his full attention. “Tell me exactly what happened,” he requested.

She nodded. “Okay. I’ll do my best.” She twisted her hands together like a nervous schoolgirl preparing to recite in front of a roomful of strangers. “First, the doorbell rang. Sami had just come down the stairs. Iremember thinking that she was looking mighty pleased with herself—”

“Don’t editorialize,” Noah ground out. “Just get to the point.”

Rosie chuckled. “Noah, you dirty dog. Iknew if anyone could bring her around, you could.” She looked at everyone in confusion. “So, what’s up? Did I hear someone yell?”

Widget waved her silence. “This is serious, Rosie. Sami’s been abducted.”

“What!”

Noah gripped Widget’s shoulders and turned her to face him. “The only way I can help her is if you tell me precisely what happened. Sami came downstairs and the doorbell rang. Iassume she opened it, right?”

Widget nodded. “Yes. There was a man standing there. He held out a box. Sami gave this happy shout. You know how she does? Anyway, the man picked her up, slung her over his shoulder and walked out.” She began to cry. “Please, Noah. You have to do something. If it hadn’t been for Sami I’d be rotting in jail, amenace to society.”

Aw, hell. Tears. Why did it have to be tears? “Take it easy,” he soothed. “And try and concentrate. This man. Can you describe him?”

“He was big. Really big. Agiant of a man.”

“Did he say anything? Did Sami?”

“He said, ‘These are for you, Ms. Sami.’ And she sort of squealed and… Oh! She gave him a hug.”

Noah fought for breath. “She hugged him?”

“Well, Ithink that’s because he gave her chocolates. You know how Sami is about chocolate.”

He swore beneath his breath. “Focus, Widget. The box contained chocolates? You’re sure?”

“Positive. It was the same type she has all over the place. You know the ones I mean? The pretty gold foil boxes? Gosh, they’re good. And she’s so sweet about sharing them.”

He knew precisely the ones Widget meant. How many times had Sami pulled a box from some cubbyhole or drawer? Chocolate makes everything better, she’d said on more occasions than he could count. “Are you sure he abducted her?”

“Positive. After he handed her the box and she hugged him, he said, ‘Sorry about this, Ms. Sami.’ Then he picked her up and tossed her over his shoulder like she didn’t weigh anything at all.”

“What did Sami do?”

“She screamed.” Widget caught her lip between her teeth. “But I think it was because she was surprised. Or maybe it was because her bracelets fell off.”

“Did she fight him? Did she kick?” His voice rose despite his attempt to control it. “Did she do anything I’ve damn-it-to-hell taught the woman?”

Widget shifted from foot to foot. “She… er—”

“What?”

She winced. “Sami ripped the top off of the chocolates and ate one.” She pointed to the corner of the foyer. “See? The lid’s over there.”

He turned to look. Sure enough, the lid lay discarded in the corner. He hadn’t noticed it before. For some reason he had trouble drawing breath. “She ate the chocolates. That’s it? She. Ate. The. Chocolates?”

“Just one.” More tears flowed. “Then the guy tipped his cap in my direction and marched out the door and tossed her into his limo. That’s all I remember.”

Pudge tugged on Noah’s arm, practically dancing with excitement. “A big guy with a limo. Get it?”

The two exchanged a glance of total accord. “Bill,” they said at the sametime.

Widget blinked in confusion. “That’s right. How’d you know?” Her tears slowed. “I almost forgot that part. When he gave her the chocolates, she said, ‘Thanks, Bill.”’

“Why in the world would Reggie’s driver abduct Sami?” Rosie demanded.

Noah’s mouth tightened. He didn’t have an answer to that, but he knew what he intended to do about it. He thought of the odd-shaped “shaving kit” he’d hidden in his dresser drawer upstairs. Damn. Looked like it was time to break out his razor. “I don’t know what Bill wants with her. Yet. But I’m going to find out.”

“Oh, Bill wasn’t abducting Sami.” Noah and Rosie turned as one to stare at Widget. She smiled weakly. “I forgot that part, too. When he picked her up, he said, ‘Sorry about this, Ms. Sami.”’

Noah thrust a hand through his hair, hanging on to his patience by a mere thread. “You mentioned that already.”

“I know. But then he said, ‘I have my instructions.’ I’d guess that meant Bill was working for someone else.” She glanced from one to the other. “Right?”