Chapter Twenty-Two

 

 

 

“Do you think this will be an ongoing thing with us?”

Alex shifted so he could look into her eyes. They had settled in front of the fire near the window so they could watch the snow. Maia felt right snuggled against his chest. After their heart to heart in the bath, the atmosphere had shifted. They became two lovers trapped together in yet another maelstrom. Not that he was complaining.

He held her closer. “You mean the storm? I wouldn’t mind if it was. As long as I’m with you, I couldn’t care less where I am or what’s going on around us.”

She laughed. “I like it too. It’s like there’s no one else but us.”

Alex nuzzled the delicate skin below her ear, inhaling her sweet scent. “As far as I’m concerned, there isn’t.”

“Maybe I should change my angle to storm chaser, then? I’m sure I could convince Jo to go along with it.”

He grinned at her teasing tone. Wherever she went, he would follow, but he sure as hell wouldn’t let her run headfirst into a storm. “How are you feeling?” Maia wasn’t as pale or wan as when he first saw her. She still wasn’t as steady as he’d like, but definitely improved.

“Much better. Still a little wobbly but overall, I’m good.”

“I’m glad. Because I need to ask you something.” Alex eased out from behind her and sat in front of her. Straddling the chaise, he took her hands. “Is it possible that your illness might not entirely be due to the altitude?”

It took a second for her to catch on. Her eyes widened and her lips pursed adorably as she considered his question. “I don’t know. It’s certainly possible…”

“I only ask because I saw the pregnancy test on the bedside table. I wasn’t sure if you had asked for it or if it was left just in case. I guess that answers that.”

Maia’s cheeks flushed. “I wasn’t exactly in a talkative mood when the doctor was here. I remember him saying he left stuff for me to look at. I guess he was thinking along the same lines as you are.” She paused. Her eyebrows dropped as she caught his gaze. “Is that why you’re being so nice?” Maia tried to pull her hands away from his.

Something that felt too close to panic flared in his chest. He had to stop that line of thought before things got out of hand. “Of course not!”

“Alex. If you’re just trying to make up for the past…” Maia’s eyes watered. “You don’t have to. If you’re only here because you think I’m pregnant—”

His hands tightened on hers. “Maia. If you are carrying my child, then I will be over the moon. If not, then we’ll just have to try harder. But I’m here for you. I want only you.” He kissed her. “Just you.”

 

What was it about Alex that sent her emotions out of control? One second she was happy, then angry, tense and now just plain confused.

Was he truly there for her or was he only being so nice because he wanted to make up for the past? Because he didn’t want to abandon her, possibly pregnant, again? It hurt her head, and her heart, to think about it.

She stared at him for a long moment trying to divine his true intentions. There was one way of getting rid of one of the doubts.

Maia got up and stomped over to grab the stack of boxes from the end table and headed for the bathroom.

“Maia?”

She closed the door behind her. It was a simple matter to sift through the pile until she found what she wanted.

If she was pregnant, what would it mean? Before she had been a terrified student but Alex had assured her that he was going to be by her side. And that hadn’t worked out. The situation was a bit different now. Maia had her own place, her own money, so those weren’t a problem, but she had a career to think about and without that the first two wouldn’t last. How long could she keep up the traveling with a baby to think about?

Alex seemed sincere. She wanted to believe that he was there for her and that if there was going to be a baby that he would love him or her as much as she would.

Maia took the test, replaced the cap and stared at it. It was funny how a little plastic stick could determine the fate of so many things at once.

The thing was, she didn’t want her life to be dictated by it or anything else. She had let her emotions run her life for far too long. Now it was time to use her head.

Alex was wonderful, smart, sexy and he cared for her. He was perfect. He was even willing to scramble his mind to get his memories of their time together back. They clicked so well in and out of bed. Maia couldn’t ask for a better partner.

She put the test face down on the counter, took a deep breath and, with her heart pounding in her ears, walked back into the bedroom.

Alex stood at the window, hands in his pockets, tense and pensively staring at the snow. He turned to her the moment she opened the door, an expectant expression on his face. “Well?”

“It’s going to take a minute.” She took a breath. Held it. Released it and did it again.

He crossed the room and wound his arms around her. “I meant it when I said I want only you.”

Maia shimmied back a little, needing to see his eyes. “I know.”

Alex shook his head. “I don’t think you do.” He tugged her over to the chaise and sat her at the foot of it. “I thought that I needed my memories to complete our relationship. But I know now that what we have is already complete. We have each other. We can make new memories.”

She watched in a daze as he lowered himself down on one knee. He pulled a small box out of the pocket of his jeans. It was opened to reveal a dazzling diamond surrounded by tiny ones all set in glossy platinum. Maia’s heart lurched into her throat.

“That’s why I bought this for you before I left Nice. I know that I want to be with you. I need to be with you. Maia, I love you.” He took her nerveless hand and slid the ring on. “Please, marry me.”

She launched herself into his arms. He’d bought her a ring before he’d left. He didn’t know where she was or anything about a damned pregnancy test and he’d still wanted to marry her.

“I love you too, Alex. So much.” Dragging his head down, she grinned before her lips met his for a scorching kiss. She drew back after a long while, both to refill her lungs and to say, “I’ve been so lost without you. You were right about me running myself into the ground. Without you, my life is hollow. It’s just travel without the fun or the enjoyment. I need you in my life. You make me whole.”

Alex grinned and didn’t hesitate to dive back in for another searing kiss. Tongue dueling with hers, he groaned when her hand grazed his erection. “Are you sure you’re up for this?”

Maia tore at his jeans. “What do you think?” It had been far too long. With his jeans out of the way, she ripped his shirt open, sending buttons flying into the far reaches of the room.

“I’m glad I’m not the only eager one.” Chuckling, he made short work of her clothes tugging them off her with swift and decisive moves. Once she was bare, he let his hands and eyes trail over her skin. Alex picked her up and hooked her legs around his hips as he carried her to the bed.

He laid her on it as if she was made of spun glass. Alex grinned down at her. “I’ve missed you so much.” He grazed his hands up her legs with feather-light strokes.

Maia loved the care he was taking with her but she needed him now. She didn’t want soft and gentle. She wanted him wild and unbidden, ready and willing to push her over the edge again and again. But when she tried to drag him over her, he resisted.

“Patience.”

“I’ve been patient enough.” Hooking a leg around his, she pushed him over and straddled his hips. Maia changed her angle so she could feel him wedged against her and wriggled her hips. “Are you saying that you’d rather take it slow instead of taking me right here, right now?”

She let her hair trail over his chest as she slowly slid down over him. Maia rocked gently. “We could take it slow, I guess. Soft and quiet. But wouldn’t you rather make me scream your name?”

She could see the instant his control snapped. Gripping her hips, he drove upward. Alex sat up, sliding his hands up her back to claw in her hair. “You know there’s nothing I would deny you.” He nibbled her bottom lip as he bucked into her.

Maia skyrocketed toward bliss. Arching against him, meeting his urgency with her own. With a biting kiss, he flipped her under him and drove even deeper. The words he growled against her breasts were a tangle of English and French. But she understood that she was loved. Cherished. His.

She climaxed with a keening cry. His name on her lips as she had promised.

Alex, wild and uninhibited exactly as she wanted him, drove her over the edge twice more before he finally joined her with a deep groan.

As they lay intertwined and gasping, basking in the afterglow, he ran his hands over her skin and sighed. “I could do this forever.”

Maia laughed. “Could you imagine what Jo and your father would say to the idea of their favorite workhorses lying around naked all day?”

He kept hold of her as he rolled to his back, sprawling her over him. “I can’t speak for Jo, but I think that my father would be delighted that we’ve finally decided to marry.”

“We have? I don’t remember agreeing to that.” With a squeal, she evaded his halfhearted attempt to grab her. Maia slipped off the bed and dashed into the bathroom with a grin.

 

He watched her disappear into the bathroom and stretched, feeling languid and relaxed for the first time in weeks. The smile on his face wouldn’t be budged.

Alex chuckled. He didn’t have any doubt what her answer would be, but he asked, “So? What’s your answer?”

“Yes.” She stuck her head out of the door with a grin and waved the test. “And yes.”