Czytaj książkę: «Married To The Mum-To-Be»

Chapter One

“I think I’m pregnant.”

Kayla Rickard hadn’t planned on announcing the news to Liam O’Sullivan that way.

But the unexpected craving for pistachio ice cream at nine that Tuesday morning, followed by a surge of nausea that had her racing to the bathroom to lose the contents of her stomach, and then staring at her pale reflection in the washroom mirror, had her realizing one undeniable and alarming fact.

I’m pregnant.

She didn’t really need an over-the-counter test or a doctor to tell her what was now seeping through to her bones with Technicolor clarity, even though she would certainly get confirmation as soon as she could. Because it all made perfect sense. She was late. And she was never late. She was nauseous, notably in the mornings. And she’d been uncharacteristically weary for weeks. Her breasts were tender. Her senses were heightened. And now these random cravings? The more she’d considered it, the more obvious it became.

“What?”

Liam’s hollow voice broke through her thoughts. Kayla took a deep breath, squared her shoulders and looked him over...every perfectly proportioned inch of his six-foot-two frame. His short, dark brown hair was cut neatly and his features were flawlessly put together. He was turn-your-head handsome. And successful and confident and sexy as sin. His midnight-blue gaze met hers and Kayla was drawn deep into him. It was always like that between them. There was tension and heat and raw, undeniable attraction...

And now, God help them, there would be a baby, too.

“I’m...you know. Late,” she whispered, the words curdling deep in her throat.

The moment he realized what she meant his expression turned to a kind of wary bewilderment. He stared at her, searching her face with his eyes. “Are you sure?”

“No,” she replied quickly, dropping her voice again. “I mean, I’m sure that I’m late, but I’m not sure about anything else. But I...I feel like I am. Which probably doesn’t make any sense because I wouldn’t be too far along. But I feel...I don’t know...different.”

He was silent, looking at her with hot, blistering intensity. There were questions in his eyes and tension in his jaw. “We obviously need to talk about this.”

“Not here,” she said, looking around the reception area. “People might see us and—”

“My office?” he suggested quietly.

Kayla nodded. She’d been to his office many times, mostly to discuss the upcoming charity benefit for the local hospital that was being held at the museum and art gallery where she was the curator. And the extension plans for the gallery that were currently being reviewed by the local council.

He looked tense and guilt snapped at her heels. It had come out all wrong. She’d planned on going somewhere private and quietly letting him know she suspected she was pregnant...not announcing the fact in the middle of the hotel foyer with his staff and guests watching on.

The O’Sullivans were the wealthiest and most powerful family in Cedar River, a small town that sat in the shadow of the Black Hills of South Dakota. And Liam was the heir apparent to the O’Sullivan portfolio and fortune. Both his brothers lived elsewhere—Kieran was a doctor in Sioux Falls and Sean was a movie producer in LA. Liam had returned to Cedar River after college and taken over from his father when he retired, running the big hotel in town, along with several other businesses.

Kayla followed him wordlessly toward the elevator and by the time they reached his second-floor office she was a bundle of nerves. She looked around as she crossed the threshold. “Where’s Connie?” she asked.

“Lunch,” he replied and checked his watch. “So we have about fifteen minutes until she gets back to her desk.”

Connie had been Liam’s assistant for several years and Kayla liked the other woman a lot—but she didn’t want anyone’s prying eyes around them while they discussed her bombshell.

She walked farther into the room and then followed him into his large office. “Okay.”

“You do look a little pale,” he said as he closed the door. “You were sick last week,” he said, almost as though he was talking to himself. “I should have realized.”

Kayla shrugged and said lightly, “Well, it only occurred to me after I threw up today, so don’t beat yourself up.”

“Will pregnancy complicate your condition?”

Kayla had suffered from anemia since she was a teenager. A heavy menstrual cycle and her vegetarian lifestyle meant she had to keep the condition under control with her diet and exercise. She would certainly be asking her doctor about any precautions or supplements she’d need to take if she was pregnant.

“I’m sure it will be fine. And I didn’t mean to tell you in the middle of the lobby,” she admitted. “It just slipped out that way.”

“It’s okay,” Liam said as he moved to the small kitchenette in the corner of the office and grabbed a bottle of water from the bar fridge. “I’m always glad to see you.”

More guilt pressed between her shoulder blades. It had been three days since they’d been this close. Her doing, not his. She was the one putting distance between them, stepping back and finding excuses to stay away. But there was no stepping back from this. A baby would change everything.

Kayla instinctively pressed a hand to her belly. Even without a test, she knew she had a baby growing inside her... Liam’s baby. Every instinct she possessed told her it was true.

“Why don’t you sit down,” he said and passed the bottle to her.

Kayla took the water and stared at him. “You seem awfully calm.”

“Hysterics won’t help.”

She gave a brittle laugh and he immediately gave her an inquiring look. “I’m trying to imagine you being hysterical.”

He ignored her words and pointed to the dark leather sofa pushed against one wall. “Come and sit down, Kayla.”

She walked across the room and sat down. He was a few strides behind her and then perched on the armrest, elbows on his knees. “You said you were late. How late?”

She held up one hand. “Five or six days. But last month I had an unusually light period,” she said candidly, figuring there was little point in being coy about the whole thing. “And you know I’m paranoid about keeping track of my cycle to avoid any bouts of anemia.”

He was silent for a moment, clearly absorbing her words. “I take it you haven’t been to see a doctor or done a home test?”

“Not yet. I didn’t want to go to Talbot’s Drugstore. If I buy a pregnancy test in this town, word would spread like wildfire.”

“I can go and get it.”

“No,” she said, her tone growing frantic. “That would be worse.”

It sounded overly dramatic, but it was the truth. And Liam didn’t disagree. Cedar River was a small town, and small towns weren’t easy to get lost in. He nodded fractionally, as though he was working out a solution. And of course he came up with one. In typical Liam fashion.

“We could drive into Rapid City this afternoon and buy whatever test is needed.”

“Not today,” she said and shook her head. “Tomorrow,” she added, thinking that Rapid City, a forty-minute drive from Cedar River, was far enough away that she wouldn’t be recognized. “I still feel a little queasy. And anyway, I can go by myself, so there’s no need to—”

“Kayla,” he said softly, cutting her off. “We should go together.”

Of course he was right. And she didn’t want to exclude him. But she also didn’t want him thinking he could snap his fingers and she’d simply comply.

“I didn’t tell you so you could make all the decisions, Liam. Stop being so bossy.”

“Habit,” he said and his mouth twitched as he sat back. “You know how I am.”

Yes, she knew. Better than anyone.

She got to her feet and walked toward the long window. The drapes were open and the street below was its usual bustle for a midweek lunchtime.

She loved Cedar River. After college in Washington State she’d returned home for two months, helping her father out at his real estate office. She knew there was nowhere in town she could utilize her degree and eventually got an opportunity to work at an art museum in Colorado. It meant leaving again, but she had to do what was best for her career. The next few years she’d spent working in Denver had been good ones, but something had always been missing from her life. She’d enjoyed her work, made friends, dated and eventually had a three-year relationship with a college professor during her time there. But there had been a hollowness to her life. An emptiness. A space that she couldn’t fill with work or friends or a romantic relationship. A space she needed to fill with one thing.

Home.

Cedar River had called her back. When the long-serving museum curator retired and the position became available, she had immediately applied, and with her stellar references had quickly been offered the job. That was over a year ago. She’d had dreams back then...dreams of living back in town, of spending time with her friends and family, and then of meeting someone special, settling down and having a family of her own. Someone that wasn’t Liam O’Sullivan.

Because her father absolutely hated his father...hated the entire O’Sullivan family, in fact. And she knew it would break her parents’ heart when they discovered she was in a relationship with the son of their mortal enemy.

She knew Liam, of course. Every girl in town knew the three handsome O’Sullivan brothers. And she’d always liked his younger sister, Liz. Since he was seven years older than Kayla, they had traveled in different social circles, but she remembered his youngest brother, Sean, from high school, even though he’d been a couple of grades above her. It seemed there were always girls hanging around the O’Sullivan boys. By the time she’d returned to town permanently, both Sean and Kieran had moved away. Liz had died tragically, leaving three young daughters and a husband behind, and Liam was running the hotel.

And she didn’t give him a thought. Not one. Not ever. Until the night her car collided with his in the hotel parking area. She was backing out, he was driving in. His hulking black Silverado had barely sustained a scratch, but her aging Beamer wasn’t as lucky. One broken taillight and a crumpled trunk later, she’d gotten out of the car full of apologies and then had clamped her mouth shut when she realized who she’d crashed into.

Because she’d been raised on a steady diet of dislike and abhorrence for anyone named O’Sullivan all of her life. The feud went back thirty years, before she was born. It was not a story that anyone talked about in detail. Her father and J.D. O’Sullivan had been friends once, even partners in business. But something had happened that had changed everything, and Kayla had always happily kept her distance, leaving for college and not giving the O’Sullivans a single thought. When she returned to visit her parents over the years, she would occasionally see Liam or even his brothers around town if they were visiting their family, but never entertained the idea of talking to any them. She went to the O’Sullivan pub with her friends and rarely registered Liam’s presence. Of course, that changed once she returned home permanently and then crashed into Liam’s truck a month later.

Immediately on the defensive, she’d expected him to be arrogant and judgmental and entitled about the whole incident. That’s who he was—or at least, that’s who she believed he was. And she did her best to ignore his handsome face, broad shoulders and how good he looked in jeans, white shirt and a leather jacket that screamed money and good taste. He was hot, no doubt about it. But he was also as off-limits as the stars from a distant planet.

He’d looked her up and down, quickly registering who she was and probably imagining the great big red flag waving between them just as she did. She saw a flicker of something in his eyes, a kind of unexpected and guarded awareness that was mirrored in her own.

But to her surprise, Liam had been very civil about the whole thing. They’d exchanged cell numbers and insurance details and he even called a tow for her and a cab once she’d refused his offer to drive her home. She said goodbye before one last apology and left. And that, she’d thought, was that.

Except he called her forty-eight hours later and asked her out.

Date Liam O’Sullivan?

Not a chance.

She refused him as politely as she could and pushed the idea from her thoughts. Until three days later when he called again. Of course she turned him down. There was no way in hell she could go out with him. Even if she wanted to. Which of course she didn’t. At least, not without hurting her parents.

Instead, she started dating someone else. Will Serrato was the foreman on one of the local ranches, a good-looking cowboy with nice manners, a lovely smile and no familial ties to Cedar River, which suited her fine. Her parents liked him and Kayla enjoyed his company. It lasted three months, until they both admitted they were better off as friends rather than lovers. She liked Will a lot, but that wasn’t enough to sustain a long-term relationship. She’d had three bland years with the college professor as proof. Liking someone didn’t cut it.

“Have you told anyone else?”

Liam’s voice jerked her back into the moment. She turned and discovered he was only a couple of feet away. He had the stealth of a cat. Her blood heated immediately, her usual reaction when he was within touching distance.

She crossed her arms. “No.”

“Not the Happy-Hour Crew?”

She frowned. That’s what he called her friends, Ash, Lucy and Brooke. They’d regularly met at O’Sullivans on a Friday evening up until a few months ago. But Brooke had recently married a New York lawyer who’d bought out a legal practice in town and they’d adopted a baby girl who was biologically Brooke’s niece. And Lucy and her fiancé Brant Parker were to marry in the next few months. Ash had a twelve-year-old son at home, plus a small ranch where she took in foster kids, and there wasn’t much time left in the week for socializing.

“No one,” she said again. “This is between me and you.”

His mouth flattened. She knew that look. He was close, so close she could feel the heat radiating from him. Since they hadn’t been as near to one another for days he was burning even hotter than usual. They had great chemistry and making love with him was like nothing she’d experienced before. Hot, passionate and yet achingly tender. For five months she’d loved him...loved him...with her body and her whole heart.

“I guess everyone will know soon enough,” he said quietly, reaching down to briefly rest his hand against her belly.

Kayla stilled at his warm touch and felt cold when he moved his hand away. She didn’t want to think about the whole world learning about her pregnancy. Confirming the news aloud to him—and to herself—was dramatic enough. “I have no intention of saying too much too soon, even if I do see my friends on a Thursday night.”

“When you’re hanging out at the Loose Moose?” he queried.

Kayla shrugged. Lucy’s fiancé owned the Loose Moose, and although it was a different kind of place than O’Sullivans, it was still competition. And Liam knew she went there every other Thursday evening to have dinner with her friends. Brant was always there because he owned the place and Brooke regularly brought Tyler on their get-togethers. But Kayla had not taken Liam...not once. She didn’t want the questions she would get from her friends. Or their concern, since they knew about the feud between her father and J.D. O’Sullivan.

“It’s a nice place,” she said extra sweetly. “The steaks are good.”

His gaze narrowed. “You’re a vegetarian.”

Kayla managed a tight smile. “I like the salad bar,” she said and shrugged lightly.

His hand came up to touch her cheek and as his fingertips gently rubbed her jawline the sensation spread heat through her with the speed of a brushfire. “I know what you like.”

His words were packed with innuendo. He did know. Better than anyone. “Well, I guess I should get back to work.”

“Not yet,” he said, his voice so quiet it was almost a whisper. He leaned in closer, his intent obvious. She’d craved his kiss since that first date and tilted her chin acceptingly. He kissed the corner of her mouth softly. And then her cheek and then the sensitive spot just below her earlobe. “Come home with me tonight, Kayla,” he whispered against her skin. “Come home and let me make love to you.”

It should have been easy to nod and fall into his arms and to agree to anything he suggested. But it wasn’t. If she was pregnant, then their complicated relationship was about to become even more so.

“I can’t,” she replied, woozy from the feel of his lips trailing over her skin. “Ash is coming by this evening to drop off some flyers for the hospital benefit. You know she’s on one of the committees and is helping me with the—”

He pulled back, straightened and stared down at her. “Is this because of the fight we had the other day?”

She remembered the words they’d exchanged a few days earlier. It was the same discussion they’d been having since the beginning of their relationship. But she wasn’t ready to break her father’s heart. And she wouldn’t be pushed.

“Was that a fight?” she asked and sighed.

He shrugged loosely. “Maybe. If it was, then I’m sorry.”

Kayla reached out and touched his jaw, felt the bristle of stubble and smiled. “You didn’t shave this morning?”

He met her gaze. “I don’t sleep well unless I have you next to me. Then I woke up late and ran out of time.”

His words melted her. She didn’t want to give him sleepless nights. She didn’t want to argue with him, either. She wanted...she wanted it to work out. She wanted their families to end the feuding. With a heavy heart, Kayla suspected she wanted the impossible.

“Liam...”

“It kills me to be away from you,” he admitted and swallowed hard. His gaze dropped to her stomach and without a word he gently pressed a hand to her middle. “Do you really think that you’re...” His words trailed off with a kind of agonized sigh when she nodded. “My god, Kayla...if you are then everything changes. Everything,” he said again, steadier, as though he was affirming the idea to himself.

His palm was warm against her belly. And strong and familiar. Their connection had never seemed more intense than it did in that moment and she had to say what was on her mind. And in her heart. “This isn’t what I planned...at least, not yet. But, the more I think about it, the more I want this baby, Liam. Despite what it will mean to our families. Despite how...complicated it is.”

They hadn’t talked about having children, not in any real depth. It was one of those things that seemed too hard, considering they were keeping their relationship a secret from everyone they knew. From the world.

“So do I, Kayla.”

Of course she knew that. Liam would make a great father. “So, I’ll see you tomorrow,” she said and dropped her hand. “Okay?”

He nodded resignedly. “I’ll pick you up in the morning at eight thirty and we’ll drive into Rapid City.”

Kayla frowned. “My mother is coming by in the morning, plus I have a busload of tourists arriving tomorrow, so it will have to wait until the afternoon before I—”

“You could cancel your mother and get Shirley to cover you,” he said. “This really can’t wait.”

Sixtysomething Shirley had been working part-time at the museum for over twenty years and would certainly work if Kayla needed her. She pushed down her impatience at his high-handed logic. “Stop telling me what to do, Liam.”

“I’m not trying to make things harder here, Kayla. But if I’m going to be a father I’d like to know sooner rather than later.”

Of course he would. Kayla had a fleeting thought that she was being selfish. She’d had all morning to get used to the idea. Liam had only had fifteen minutes. “Okay,” she said agreeably. “Okay... I’ll call Shirley when I get back to work. And my mother,” she added.

His mouth twisted a little, as though he’d won a round. “I’ll call you later.”

She knew he would. He called her every night.

She grabbed her bag and headed for the door, stopping when he said her name. “What?”

“So I know that you’re okay, text me when you get back to the apartment this afternoon.”

The apartment. Not her apartment. Liam had his mind set on her spending every night at the house by the river. But she wasn’t ready for that. Not yet. Not until her parents knew about their relationship. Sure, she was stalling. But she had her reasons and they were valid. Even if Liam did struggle to understand, Kayla knew she had to do what she thought was right. As she always had.

“I really am fine,” she lied. “I mean, despite the fact that I’m probably pregnant and the baby is going to be caught in the middle of two families who hate one another.”

His jaw tightened. “Kayla, you know that I will never allow that to happen. If you are pregnant, then our child will come first, before any old squabbles, before any decades-old resentment, before anything.”

She shivered, because again she knew she should have been reassured. She knew Liam, she knew he could be ruthless when he needed to be. And she knew their relationship would be blown out of the water the moment her pregnancy was confirmed...and that Liam would be the one to do so.

“Of course I know that,” she said quietly. “My month is nearly up, remember?”

Three and half weeks earlier they’d agreed she would tell her parents about their relationship. It wasn’t an ultimatum. It was the next step. The obvious step. Exactly what needed to happen if they were to make their relationship work. But she still hadn’t told them. Not because she was a coward, although sometimes she wondered if Liam thought that of her...but because her parents loved her so dearly and upsetting them was such an alien concept to her. Liam didn’t appreciate that... Oh, he was considerate and caring, but he didn’t truly understand her motives.

“I didn’t suggest a month to hurt you,” he said quietly. “Or push you. I just thought it would be long enough for you to broach the subject and maybe ease them into the idea.”

“I know,” she flipped back. “And I get that you don’t understand the relationship I have with my parents. I get that you believe they smother me and think the world revolves around me...and you’re right...they do. That still doesn’t mean I want to upset them.”

“I know you don’t,” he said. “I don’t think anyone chooses to hurt the people they love.”

Her throat thickened. It was a direct hit. He loved her. She loved him. It shouldn’t be so messy. But it was.

“I’ll talk to you later,” she said and left the room before he had a chance to respond.

By the time she got back to the museum her head was throbbing. She turned the shingle over to say the place was open, unlocked the door and headed inside. As always, she experienced a sense of calm as she crossed the threshold. It always did that to her. The museum was her safe place. Her harbor. The balm she needed to soothe her soul. Split into two areas, it was a museum and art gallery, showcasing not only the incredible history of the town, but both the local and indigenous artists. There was a small gift shop that Shirley managed for a few hours each day, but mostly Kayla worked alone. And she liked it that way. Oh, she loved her family and friends, but the museum and gallery was her place, her calm center away from the world where she could think and read and find peace.

Liam understood that about her...perhaps more than anyone else ever had.

After she’d broken up with Will, Liam had pursued her again. Not obviously. In fact, at times he seemed to be ignoring her. But she knew what he was doing. The way he said her name whenever they met, the way his glittering blue eyes always seemed to linger on her mouth... Kayla was switched on enough to know she was being pursued. There was no ego in her realization, just instinct. An O’Sullivan had always been on the board of the museum, but suddenly he started turning up for the monthly meetings instead of his mother. And then he began regularly bringing his young nieces to the gallery. Subtle, for sure...but effective. Seeing him with the girls did something to her. It touched her heart, breaking down her defenses, making Kayla want him in ways that went beyond physical attraction.

It took a couple of months for Kayla to admit the truth to herself. That she liked him. That she more than liked him. And then one afternoon, when she could stand it no more, when he’d arrived early for a committee meeting to discuss the planned extension for the museum and they were alone in her office, she’d grabbed him by the lapel of his jacket and kissed him...forgetting everything...forgetting the three-decade-old feud, forgetting that her family would be devastated if they found out. All she knew was that in that moment, she had to feel his kiss, his touch.

It was also the moment she realized she was really falling for the son of the man her father hated most in the world.

So, from day one their relationship became a secret. No one could know. Her parents were good people, honest and hardworking, and they had always put her first. Always. And she wasn’t eager to disrespect the love and devotion they had shown her all their lives.

Only...

If she was carrying Liam’s child, hurting them was inevitable.

Her cell beeped with a text message as she walked into her office. She checked the number and saw that it was Ash saying she’d be at her apartment that afternoon. Kayla texted back, saying she’d see her later and then called her mother and rescheduled her visit. Then she called Shirley and asked her to cover her shift. Her cell rang again a few minutes later, and thinking it might be Shirley again and that something could be wrong, she snatched the phone up quickly.

“Hello,” she said breathlessly.