Riley woke, still surrounded by all her sexy presents, but there was no sign of her sexy husband. A stab of disappointment turned her satisfied smile into a momentary pout. But then memories of the night before emerged to stir a dull ache at the heart of her. With great effort, she cast aside the sweet images and prayed Asher would stay closer to her now.
One of the X-rated flicks Misha had bought was lying on Asher’s pillow. Riley noticed a sticky note on its cover, which read, This is a good one! and was scribbled in Asher’s distinct handwriting.
Riley’s laughter filled the room then. With a sudden burst of energy claiming her, not to mention the urge to pee, she whipped back the covers. She noticed the frame on the nightstand and recalled that she’d given Asher every clue to make him aware of how much she wanted him home.
In the end, however, it was always Asher’s way or no way. Unfair? Certainly. Still, Riley was fast approaching the point where she didn’t care. She wanted her husband. She wanted to raise her child with its father. She knew then that she’d sacrifice anything else to have that.
“When exactly do you plan to talk to your wife about all this?” Talib was asking as he topped off his coffee that morning.
Asher didn’t raise his gaze from the building contract. “Soon. Guess I better before Hayes runs that story, huh?” He referred to their sports reporter friend Hayes Ortiz.
“There’s also a lot of talent out there wanting to switch to Hud-Mason,” Talib noted, without sounding at all cocky. “Lot of talk out there that’ll probably beat Hayes’s story to the punch.”
“Doubt she’ll be upset by it.”
Talib’s brown eyes twinkled. “Yet you’re still dragging your feet by not telling her?”
Asher rapped his knuckles against the contract. “We ready to sign here?”
“Ready as we’ll ever be.”
“What else is on the schedule for today?”
“Got a meet with Rake Crawford’s physician at one. Why? You in a rush?”
Asher clapped Talib’s shoulder and stood. “Seems I need to have a serious and lengthy chat with my wife, mate.”
Gloria Reynolds smoothed both hands across her sheer hose while recrossing her legs. “Are you really sure about this, Riley? You’ve waited for a chance like this for as long as I’ve known you.” Her surprise was what would be expected in light of the decision her brightest writer had come to share.
Riley’s expression relayed just as much surprise, yet it also conveyed delight. “I never thought I’d want a chance to be a mom, either.” She shrugged. “I can’t think of a better use of my life than this.”
“But to quit the paper, Riley?” Gloria leaned forward, her firm voice hushed with disbelief. “Many women manage to balance work and motherhood, you know? You certainly don’t have to quit your job.”
“I do if I want my husband.” Riley raised her hands to ward off Gloria’s rebuttal. “I know, I know…It pisses me off, too. But he wants his wife and child where he is. How can I condemn him for that?”
Gloria’s expression softened, and she tucked an auburn lock behind her ear. “I realize his organization is a multibillion-dollar outfit. Guess I’d expect it to be easier for him to be where you are.”
“Yeah…I thought so, too.” Riley set the teacup and saucer she held on the small round table between her and Gloria’s chairs. “It’s just that I’m at the point where I’m not willing to risk my marriage and family by playing the holdout game.” Absently, she fidgeted with the hem of the hunter-green swing dress she wore. “I do plan to find out about his aversion to being here in New York, but I guess I’ll just have to do that in Phoenix.”
“I rest my case.” Gloria rubbed her hands across the carved arms of her chair. “But I have to tell you, I’ve got a feeling that you’re underestimating your husband here. Some men rise to a higher level when they become fathers. I wouldn’t be surprised if he changes his mind about demanding you go out there. He wouldn’t be the first man to have a baby turn him into a softhearted sap.” She leaned over to pat Riley’s knee. “You’ll understand if I don’t take your name out of the loop just yet?”
Riley’s laughter filled the office. “Whatever makes you feel better.” She glanced at her watch and cursed. “I’m gonna be late for my doctor’s appointment.” She leaned over to kiss Gloria’s cheek and then hurried out.
Asher was making a notation in his PDA when Talib stepped into the hallway outside the doctor’s office.
“Crawford’s doc says his decision on whether he’ll be cleared for next season depends on how well the ankle surgery goes next month. All the other diagnoses we discussed in there look promising, but there will be another check following the surgery.”
“Mmm…” Asher continued making notes in the BlackBerry handheld. “Any specific date on that?”
Talib provided the info while he and Asher strolled toward the elevator bay, discussing the particulars. Asher was slipping the BlackBerry handheld into his coat when his bright eyes locked on his wife exiting one of the elevator cars at the far end of the corridor.
“See you later, Tal.” Asher walked in the direction she’d taken.
Riley was easing her keys into her purse when she felt her arm being clutched. “Hey!” she gasped, whirling around to see that it was Asher who’d caught her.
“Hey,” he responded in kind and followed the greeting with a throaty kiss, in which she eagerly participated.
Asher dropped his forehead to her shoulder. “What are you doing here?”
“Doctor’s appointment.” She tried to catch her breath. “And you?”
“Same. For a potential client.” He raised his head and smiled down at her. “You want company?”
She nodded quickly as a rush of happiness filled her chest. Arm in arm, they strolled to Lettia’s office.
“We need to talk,” Riley said.
Asher nudged her shoulder with his. “Damn right.”
They stepped into the office and were greeted promptly. Riley was right on time for the appointment, so they didn’t have to wait to be shown to an examining room.
Silently, they removed their coats. The hungry look in Asher’s eyes as they raked the cashmere swing dress she sported gave Riley pause.
“You okay?” she asked when his stare took on a deeper intensity.
“I miss you.”
His simple response almost stopped her heart, yet she gave him a playful smile. “You saw me just this morning, remember?”
Asher ran the back of his hand across his scar. “Perhaps you could remind me…but Dr. Lett’s gonna walk in on more than she bargains for.”
The electric tension in the room was somewhat doused, however, by the time the good doctor entered the examining room.
“Asher Hudson! Fine and scrumptious as always!” Lettia boasted and greeted the man with a hug and kiss.
“Lett! You always make a man feel welcomed.” He savored the hug and kept hold of Lettia’s hand as they crossed the room.
They discussed things in an idle, cursory fashion at first. Lettia directed the majority of her comments to Asher, knowing he’d be curious. This was the first appointment he’d made it to with his wife. She explained what the exam would consist of: checking Riley’s blood pressure, the baby’s heart rate, vitals, etcetera. Then she looked over at her patient and winked.
“Let’s see if that bed rest I prescribed has done any good.”
Neither Riley nor Lettia noticed Asher’s reaction to the piece of news he’d had no clue about.
After performing and reviewing the tests, Lettia’s lovely round face was an image of satisfaction. Everything, including Riley’s stress levels, appeared very much improved.
“I’ll see you in two weeks, hon,” Lettia said as she made a few notations on her pad and then eased her pen into a pocket on her coat. She fixed Asher with a dazzling smile. “Good to see you, sweetie.” She hugged and kissed his cheek again. “Don’t make this your last visit, okay?”
He winked and cupped her chin. “Don’t worry.”
Lettia headed out to her next appointment, leaving the couple alone. Riley grabbed her bag and was preparing to leave as well.
“Bed rest. Why didn’t you tell me?” asked Asher.
“What difference does it make?” Riley shrugged slowly; it was clear that she had no clue how upset he was. “Everything’s fine now.” She glanced up and noticed his rising temper. Unconsciously, she retreated as he moved toward her.
“Fine now, but not then, right?”
Riley dropped her bag and swallowed around the ball of emotion wedged in her throat. Every bit of his anger clung to the words he spoke.
“Why the hell didn’t you tell me, Ri?”
“I didn’t. So what happens now? I’ve rattled your cage once again. So what’s the penalty?” Her own temper was loosed, and it felt so good to show him how angry she was, too. “What’s the penalty, Asher? Serve me with divorce papers, go back to Phoenix and wait me out? What’s the ultimatum now?”
Asher only rolled his eyes and put space between them.
“We were going through enough, Asher.” She sighed, massaging her neck as she turned away as well. “Hell, you were moving out. Telling you that Lett put me on bed rest wouldn’t have done a damn thing except upset an already upsetting situation. We didn’t need that. I didn’t need that. I’m the one carrying the baby, remember?”
“I remember.” His voice was soft—too soft. She was right, of course; he admitted it and wanted to kick himself for once again playing the selfish jerk. “I’m sorry, Riley. For everything. If…if it weren’t for my ultimatums and other bullshit, you might never have been confined to a bed.”
Riley felt a pang of regret then as well. She wouldn’t let him take all the blame. “I’ve got a very hectic lifestyle, you know?” She spread her hands about her. “In a city like this, I can understand why you were so hung up on my leaving.”
“Riley, please.” He rubbed the side of his nose in a show of sudden weariness.
“It’s understandable, Asher. You just care, and I gave you such a hard time—”
“Riley, please.” He waited for her to take heed to his tone that time. “My hang-ups about New York began way before I ever set eyes on you.”
Silent, Riley leaned back on the desk and prayed he’d continue. She prayed he’d finally continue.
Asher flipped his coat across a chair. “Do you remember my knee injury?”
She nodded. “You were shot. A convenience store robbery you walked in on.”
Asher nodded then, too, while raking a hand through the dark waves covering his head.
“There was more to the story, wasn’t there?” she asked.
He wouldn’t look her way, preferring instead to go stare out of the examining room windows.
“I remember the mom…She was so grateful to you, and you were being called a hero.” She focused on her hands and realized she’d been wringing them. “You never told me all that went on there. I always figured there was a lot more.”
Asher chuckled briefly, his gaze still focused on the street below. Pulling a hand from his trouser pocket, he stroked his jaw. “Yeah, there was a whole helluva lot more.”
“I remember it was all over the news for weeks. I remember them talking to you, and I couldn’t help but wonder what it must’ve been like inside that store—the pro baller stumbling into a robbery and saving a mom and her kids from a madman.”
Asher had turned from the windows and was watching his wife, with a look mixed with surprise and curiosity. “You saw me on TV?”
Riley laughed. “At first, I was just interested in the story because you were so damned good to look at….” She shook her head at the memory. “Then I started to really listen to your story. There was something in your eyes…I don’t know…It was like what you were saying was a gloss. Not all the story, you know?”
He smirked. “I see why you’re so good at your job.” His easy expression faded into something haunted. “The media never uncovered the connection between the gunman and the woman. They were too dazzled by my involvement. They’d lived together several years. The kids were his, too. He’d been abusing her, and then he did her a favor and walked out on ’em. She got it together on her own. She was very…independent.” He sent Riley a knowing look. “Anyway, he decided he wanted back in, started following her. She went into the store that night for cold medicine, and he came in, with the gun, to persuade her. He shot the clerk on sight.”
Asher began to walk the examining room as memories returned. “I walked in while they were arguing.” He shook his head. “I’m no hero, Riley. The guy freaked the minute he saw me. Shot me. I never knew what hit me. Fell. Cut my face.” He waved toward the scar. “He was satisfied I was down…shot out the tape system and camera for good measure. Then he turned to yell at the woman some more. It got uglier and uglier. It all happened like that.” He snapped his fingers. “He hit her, and she pushed him, caught him off guard. He fell into a display, dropped the gun.” Asher seemed to shudder then and took a moment to breathe deep into his hands. “When he went to look for it, he found it in the hands of his eight-year-old son. The kid shot him…point-blank, all on target, all through the heart.”
Riley covered her mouth. Her eyes were wide.
“She thought fast.” Asher remembered, spilling the story as though he were pouring water from a pitcher. “She took the gun, wiped it down, tossed it…She begged me not to tell anyone what had really happened. Cops showed up. They just assumed…the guy had a record as long as my arm. Clerk was unconscious during the whole thing but stated it was the guy who shot him. It was October, so everyone had gloves. There was no question about prints on the gun. Everybody assumed I just walked in, surprised the guy and wrestled him for the gun. They all figured I got one to the knee for my trouble before putting half a clip in the fool’s chest. We never changed the story.”
“What happened to the mother and her kids?”
For the first time, Asher’s expression seemed to brighten. “Most of her family was in Puerto Rico. She moved back there.”
Riley was seated in a chair before the desk by then. Her arms wrapped tight about her, she shook her head out of sheer awe.
“I loved you so much,” he said. “I wanted you—all of you.” He moved closer to where she sat. “Didn’t matter where you were or about the distance…at first.” He reached out to rub a silky lock of her clipped hair between his fingers. “Then the excitement of having an unorthodox marriage wore off, and I just wanted us to be like everyone else—under the same roof, in the same bed, preferably mine.” He sighed and slipped a hand inside his suit coat to massage his heart. “I negotiate million-dollar deals without breaking a sweat and was arrogant enough to think wearing you down would be a cakewalk.” He knelt before her then. “You told me you were pregnant, and…it took me right back to that night in the store, watching that kid kill his father. No love in his eyes, no recognition…All the boy saw was a stranger.” His lashes fluttered and closed over his eyes. “I don’t want my child to see me like that.”
“Asher.” Riley pulled him into a desperate hug. “It won’t. I swear it won’t.”
“How can you say that?” He pulled back, searching her gaze with the same desperation that fueled their embrace. “I’m in Phoenix. Phoenix, Riley. And what happens when the kid starts school? How often will I get to see him or her? How often will I get to see you?” He buried his face in his hands and groaned. “I been goin’ out of my mind thinking about this. I know it’s all in the future.”
Riley squeezed his hands in hers. “Obsessing about the future is a necessary side effect of parenthood, I think. I’m afraid you’re stuck with it. So am I, for that matter.” Smiling then, she grabbed her bag from the floor and withdrew a photo of the home she’d been considering. “City’s a great place. Many wonderful kids are raised here, with great lives, but if given a chance, I think many parents would opt for a house and backyard for their child to mill around in.”
Asher took the photo.
“It’s a really nice place in Bedford,” she explained while Asher studied the photo. “It’ll be easy for my mom and your parents to drive in to see their only grandchild. My mom’s already seen it. She loves it.”
“Do you love it?” Asher continued to scan the snapshot.
She nodded quickly. “I love it.”
“Then so do I.” He raised a hand when she started to speak. “I want to be where you are.” He curved a hand around her belly. “Where you both are. Doesn’t matter where—either a small, cramped apartment in NYC or a flashy house in the burbs. I love you.”
“I love you,” Riley breathed and plied him with a sweet kiss. Cupping his face in her hands, she pulled back, wearing a coy smile. “I want to be where you are, too, but a big, flashy house may be a bit hard to pull off since I just quit my job.”
“You quit? You’re serious?”
“We need you,” she swore, her heart soaring when she saw the light spark in his eyes. “Can you support us, Mr. Hudson?” She linked her arms about his neck.
He shrugged, nuzzling her ear with his nose. “I can probably keep us comfy, in baby food and diapers for a few months, but then you’re gonna have to go and ask Gloria for your job back. If I gotta work, so do you.” He sobered a bit then. “If that’s what you want. If you’re okay with stayin’ home and raising my babies, then I’m good with that, too.”
Riley laughed. “I really love you.” She kissed him slow. Then she pulled back again, as if troubled. “What about Talib? How’s he gonna feel about this?”
“He’ll like it just fine.” Asher rested his head on her thigh and delighted himself with rubbing the back of her knee. “He’s always wanted to be the lone dog out in Phoenix. Doesn’t think I know it.” He looked up and graced her with a sly wink. “If I can tear myself away from you guys, I’m gonna have to try filling this building we just bought with bodies to assist all these new East Coast clients we’ve got.”
Riley’s head was spinning. “New—new building? East Coast clients?”
“We decided to establish another office here. It would be more convenient for our clients in this part of the country and Vic’s deal brought in even more.”
“Asher…Are you really sure about this? Really? This is all wonderful, but I was prepared to go back with you to Phoenix.”
His smile was serene. “I don’t want you to do that, because you don’t want to do that. I love you. Once I reminded myself how much, all the other decisions were easy.”
“Asher…”
“Now can we get past all this and focus on the fun stuff?”
“Oh, Daddy.” Riley moved her forehead against his. “That’s the best thing you’ve said all day.” She watched him press a kiss to their baby, still slumbering in her belly, before he favored her mouth with the same attention.