Chapter Seventeen

Sophia held Declan’s hand as they waited in the dimly lit reception room. He’d brought her to a freaking spa.

“You okay?” He leaned in to whisper in her ear.

Okay? She was fan-freaking-tastic. “I can’t believe you brought me to a spa.” When she turned her head, their faces were so close together, his eyes looked darker and more intense. Her heartbeat kicked up several notches.

“I wanted something you hadn’t done with any other guy,” he said.

The sweetness of those words overwhelmed her. “Mission accomplished.”

She turned back to stare at the cascading rock waterfall so she could gather her emotions. So much for her belief that she’d be able to keep a little perspective during their speed dating trial. Candles burned low, and soft music hummed with the gentle trickling of water, adding more ambiance. She looked around and wondered how the hell she was supposed to not fall for him after this.

Glancing at Dec out of the corner of her eye, she saw he looked as he usually did. At ease. Too freaking hot for his own good. The little bit of growth he sported from not shaving today was sexy and had her fingers itching to touch. She quelled the urge by squeezing his hand.

“Can I get either of you water, coffee, or tea?” the receptionist asked. She had pale blond hair swept over her forehead and pulled up into a ponytail. Her voice was barely above a whisper.

“I’m good. Sophe?” Declan looked at her, and her stomach danced. Not nausea, she realized. Just happiness.

Her tongue stuck to the roof of her mouth. “Uh, water would be great. Thank you.”

“My pleasure.”

The woman turned and walked down a long corridor out of sight.

“You ever had a pedicure?” Declan asked, looking at her feet. She was bundled thanks to the weather, but he stared anyway. He always looked at her like he could see beneath the surface. That scared her less today than it had a month ago.

“Not a professional one. I have two sisters. We painted each other’s nails all the time when we weren’t arguing. Marcus’s, too.”

Declan met her gaze and laughed. “Oh yeah?”

“Yup. Though he’d probably tape my mouth shut for telling you that. How about you? Ever let anyone paint your nails?”

He frowned. “That would be a hard no.”

Pretending to swoon a little, she batted her eyelashes. “And yet, here you are, for me.”

Declan’s eyes widened. “For you to get a pedicure. I’m watching.”

Now she arched her brows. “Wouldn’t have pegged you for a foot fetish guy. Not judging. Just saying.” She held her hands up and bit back her smile.

He gave her a mock glare that made her laugh but didn’t respond, since the receptionist came back with Sophia’s water and she was followed by two women. One was what Sophia could only describe as burly. She was portly and short and reminded Sophia of her nonna. Her dark hair was streaked with gray, and the much younger woman beside her seemed to defer to her when they approached.

Sophia accepted the water with a murmured thank-you as the receptionist slipped away and the other women stopped in front of them.

“You are here for a couples pedicure,” the older woman said with a voice so gruff, Sophia couldn’t decide if it was an accent or just how she sounded.

Declan shifted in his seat and smiled at the women. “Actually, I booked the couples massage room, but only my girl here is getting a pedicure.”

His girl? Sophia’s heart went squishy and weak at those words. She tried to shore up her defenses, but seriously, the man was going to pay someone to pamper her and he called her his girl? She was only human. Carrying another human. Remember you’re a package deal now. It was no longer something that drifted around in the back of her mind like a dream she couldn’t quite remember.

“Couples room, two aestheticians, two pedicures.” The woman crossed her considerably wide arms over her ample chest.

The younger woman, whose hair was in a tight braid resting on her shoulder, smiled in agreement.

“I’ll pay for two, but we just need one.”

Sophia frowned. “You can’t pay for two. That’s a waste of money.”

“One treatment, one room. Couples room, two treatments. It’s policy,” the woman said.

Sophia’s stomach twisted. “We can do something else,” she whispered.

Declan looked at her and then at the two women. “How about one room for her and I just keep her company?”

“You booked for two. One room, one person. Policy,” the woman repeated. Wow. She was not budging on this.

Declan stood and pulled Sophia with him. She didn’t want to be disappointed, but a pedicure sounded like heaven. Mostly, the pregnancy hadn’t been too hard on her, but her feet felt a tad swollen, and her lower back bothered her frequently, sometimes her hips as well. You can’t actually expect Declan to get pampered like a princess at a spa. That’s asking a bit too much. It was. The fact that he’d even thought of something so sweet was enough to squeeze her fragile heart back to life.

“Dec. It’s fine,” Sophia said.

He looked down at her with a confused expression, then faced the women, his brows furrowing. “I am not getting polish. I don’t care what the damn policy is.”

The younger woman’s lips trembled with the effort not to laugh, and she tucked her chin, hiding her face. The older woman nodded, satisfaction shining in her dark eyes.

Sophia looked up at Declan as the women walked down the corridor.

“We need to follow them, babe,” he said. He used the term of endearment as if they’d been together for years. People in the serving industry often used endearments—“hon,” “honey,” “sweetie,” and Declan was no different, but he didn’t address any of his other staff or his friends’ significant others as babe. It’s like he’d reserved it just for…someone special. Just her?

“This is the best date ever,” she whispered, going up on tiptoe to kiss him soft and light. He smelled so good she wanted to burrow in and run her hands over his cheeks.

“It’s barely started,” he said, his eyes glowing with affection.

“Best. Ever.”

She tugged on his hand, and they went to the couples massage room.

Sophia did her best not to make sex noises while the younger of the women massaged a sugar scrub into the arches of her feet. When she opened her eyes and let her head loll to the side, she saw Declan had a deep frown tugging his lips down. His brows were scrunched, and a little line dented his forehead. Sitting in the padded massage chair, he looked like Goldilocks sitting on Baby Bear’s chair, and it made her giggle. He glanced over, still scowling.

“Are you okay?” She whispered the words.

He winced, and his aesthetician snickered. He turned that hard look on her when she met Sophia’s gaze.

“He’s fine. Big boy is ticklish.”

Sophia couldn’t bite back the laughter, and the woman rubbing her feet—Estelle—paused to join in.

Declan did not. “Think that’s funny, do you?”

Sophia pulled her bottom lip between her teeth and pressed down with her teeth, trying to stop the laughter as she shook her head side to side.

Just a hint of a grin twisted Declan’s mouth. “Uh-huh. Don’t ever play poker, Sophe.”

All three women laughed again. Picking up the polish selection, Sophia flipped through, unsure of which to choose. No one saw her toes anyway. Soon, she wouldn’t even be able to see them. But still, she wanted something…light and playful.

She vacillated between Passion Pink and Playful Plum.

“Let’s see,” Dec said, leaning to the side so he could.

She showed him the two she was considering, and he considered only a second before his gaze locked on hers. “Passion Pink. Pink is sexy and with your skin tone? Definitely.”

Heat suffused her skin, and he hadn’t even done anything. They were just words. Hell, it was just a suggestion. But the way he was looking at her—he didn’t see someone’s daughter or sister. He wasn’t looking at her like a coworker, a screw-up, an old family friend. No. That look was straight up I-want-you lust. What really dug in and twisted her heart, though, was the added layer of affection.

She passed the palette of colors to Estelle, and her voice came out rough when she said, “Pink, please.”

After the pedicures, no polish for Declan, they headed back to his place. While she didn’t mind—she loved his house and actually missed it a little, despite liking her new space—she was surprised. Part of her had thought he’d take her to some fancy restaurant and try to romance her. Not that he hadn’t already hit a home run with the pedicure. He turned to her as he parked in his driveway.

“When I date, we typically have dinner. Maybe some drinks. Sometimes neither.”

Undoing her seatbelt, she held up a hand. “I do not need the details.”

He took her hand and pulled it to his lips, pressing them to the inside of her wrist. “No details. Just telling you that the reason I brought you here instead of taking you out to dinner is because there’s nothing typical about you, Sophe. You’re different in every way. Other than my friends’ women, no other woman has been here.”

She met his gaze in the lit cab of his truck. “You told me. You’ve definitely gone out of your way to make me feel special.” Her heart picked up its pace, settling into a hard jog.

Declan reached out and grazed her cheek with two knuckles. “You are special.”

Blinking back the emotion that welled up in her throat, she nodded. “And hungry.”

Declan laughed. “Then let’s get you fed. Stay there.”

He came around the vehicle and opened the door for her, taking her hand and holding it as they went up the steps. When they got into the house, he took her jacket, and even though they were just going through routine steps, removing shoes, hanging coats, the air was charged. Heavy. Electric.

“Garrett and Parks helped me out a bit for tonight,” Declan said, taking her hand again and leading her to the kitchen.

Sophia stopped, gaining Dec’s attention. He looked back at her—she felt his gaze. The table was covered by a white linen cloth, a vase of a wide-petaled flower she couldn’t name sat in the center, two long, tapered candles in silver holders on either side.

Tears pushed, and Sophia tried to swallow them down. Not used to her emotions being so close to the surface, she tried to breathe through the moment.

Declan turned so he was standing in front of her and tipped her chin up. “What’s wrong?”

Setting her hands on his chest, she looked down, focused her gaze there, trying to rein in the tsunami of want rioting in her chest. “Nothing. At all. I’m just not sure how I’m supposed to stop myself from falling for you when you’re not only gorgeous and sexy, but funny and so damn sweet it flattens me.”

Again, he nudged her chin so she looked at him. “How about you don’t try to fight it and just let yourself feel?”

Her breath hitched. “That hasn’t worked out so well for me. In the past—”

“Don’t need details,” he interrupted. “Just you and me, Sophe. That’s all that matters.”

Reality crashed in, stealing her breath entirely. “But that’s not exactly true.”

Declan’s eyes darkened, and her heart just about flatlined when one of his large hands covered her belly with the utmost gentleness.

“No. You’re right. Then, just us.”

She felt her heart soften and sigh. Going up on tiptoe, Sophia crushed her mouth to his because she didn’t know how else to handle the feelings swooping down on her from all sides. No one made her feel like Declan did. There was a lot in this life she hadn’t seen coming, hadn’t expected. But nothing…absolutely nothing…could have prepared her for the full effect of Declan James.

And since she didn’t know what to do with all of the questions, uncertainties, and insecurities that weighed her down like an anchor, she gave up and let herself follow his advice. She let herself feel. And nothing has felt as good as him.