he made sure she knew up front that there would never be anything serious between them.
Had he told Sofia that? His memory was a bit fuzzy. He remembered when he’d first approached her at the wedding reception. She’d been sitting all alone at the bridal table. He’d been drawn to her, unable to resist talking to her.
Her smile had been the first thing he noticed. It had lit up her whole face, and it was infectious. The evening had been full of dancing and sparkling wine. Then more dancing, more laughing and more wine. He honestly hadn’t wanted the night to end.
The woman sitting before him didn’t resemble the engaging, bubbly woman at his cousin’s wedding—she may look the same, but it was obvious something major had changed. What could it be? Why did she look as though she had the weight of the world on her delicate shoulders?
He drew his thoughts up short. Whatever was bothering her, he wasn’t the one to resolve it. As much as he wanted to ride to her rescue, he was only in town for the night. There simply wasn’t enough time—or so he tried to tell himself.
* * *
Sofia had no idea why Niko had requested her presence. Obviously, it wasn’t to locate any missing papers or to restock his towels. Realizing she was still holding the fresh linens, she placed them on the couch next to her. She knew for a fact he had more than enough fresh towels because once he’d departed the bungalow that morning, she’d rushed back in. She’d done her fastest, most thorough cleaning job to date. So whatever he wanted had absolutely nothing to do with housekeeping.
And by the serious look on his face, he wasn’t anxious to pick up where they’d left off. So where did that leave them? Was he just upset about finding her in his room? Or did he know about her pregnancy? No, impossible. She hadn’t told a soul.
The best course of action was to get it all out there in the open, but her mouth refused to cooperate. She could feel Niko’s gaze on her, and she averted her eyes to the pattern on the rug. Her stomach quivered.
Why was she letting herself get all twisted up in knots? It wasn’t as if she wanted anything from him. Quite the contrary. She planned to take care of the baby on her own.
Niko cleared his throat. “Listen, I know you probably came here expecting us to pick up where we left off—”
“What? No, I didn’t.” Was that what he was expecting? Another clandestine hookup before he left?
His eyes widened. “You didn’t?”
“What do you take me for?” Sofia pressed her lips together, holding back a stinging comment. Just because he was sexy and rich didn’t mean she was going to throw herself at him. Was that how little he thought of her?
“I apologize if I jumped to the wrong conclusion.” The look in his eyes said he didn’t quite believe her. “Then why did you agree that we needed to talk?”
“I...I...” Her stomach lurched nauseously.
She jumped to her feet, not about to get sick in front of him. It was time to make a hasty exit. She would admit to her pregnancy later, when she wasn’t so nervous. She rushed to the door. She could hear Niko curse under his breath as he hurried after her.
“Sofia, wait!”
She stopped at the edge of the porch. She inhaled a couple of deep breaths. Her stomach settled a bit. Her hands gripped the wood and squeezed tight, willing herself to remain calm enough to utter words.
“I need to tell you something.” So far so good. Now if only she could get the rest out. “It’s about the night of the wedding.”
“It’s okay.” He stopped just behind her. His voice was much softer than it had been just moments before. “I understand. I haven’t been able to forget that night, either.”
“You haven’t?” She turned, finding him much closer than she’d expected. That was not what she was expecting him to say.
His voice lowered and vibrated with emotion. “No, I haven’t. It was special.” He stared deep into her eyes. “You are special. But after you disappeared without a word, I thought you regretted it.”
Her heart leaped into her throat. Was this really happening? Was it possible she’d totally misjudged him? “You really mean it? About the special part?”
His head dipped, and his lips claimed hers. There was no room for doubt in his kiss. This was how she remembered things from that one magical night. Maybe it’d been the sparkling wine or the romantic ballads, but Niko had swept her off her feet...just like now.
His lips moved over hers, brushing aside the rush of turbulent emotions and replacing them with pure, undiluted passion. She suddenly remembered how on that not-so-long-ago night she’d momentarily disengaged from her common sense and followed her heart. Their time together wasn’t supposed to be anything serious, but sometimes actions have consequences. And in her—well, their—case, it was a life-altering consequence.
But as his hands moved over her back, her stiff muscles eased. Her body leaned into his. Her hands wrapped around the back of his neck as her fingertips played with the longer strands of his dark hair. She could easily get used to this—quite easy indeed.
Thunk!
Sofia jumped back as though the bungalow had been struck by lightning. She glanced around. Her gaze came to rest on a volleyball. A couple of teenage girls came rushing up to the bungalow and apologized. Niko smiled, flashing his white teeth, and assured them it wasn’t a problem. Just as if nothing had happened.
Sofia tried to wrap her mind around how things had gotten so far off course. Her hand moved to her lips, her fingers gently swiping over her now-sensitive lips. Though her heart fluttered at the memory of their kiss, she knew she had to show more self-restraint. Giving in to her desires had succeeded only in complicating matters even more.
Her attention moved to the steps. She wanted to flee—wanted to avoid the inevitable questions—
“Don’t even think about escaping. I’m dressed this time. I’ll follow you.”
“THAT KISS...IT CAN’T happen again.” Sofia met his confused gaze.
Best to get this over with.
The sooner, the better.
Her palms moistened, and her mouth grew dry. She had no idea how much longer she could stand to be so close to him and yet so far away. Because she knew her secret would drive a permanent wedge between them. Nothing would ever be the same.
His expression hardened. “Then what exactly did you want to talk about?”
The time had come. Her stomach took another nervous lurch. And the words that she’d rehearsed over and over again utterly fled her mind.
“Sofia?”
It wasn’t as if she’d gotten into this position by herself. And though it was the truth, it didn’t settle her nerves. Why did this have to be so hard? Because he’d blame her. His eyes would grow dark and cold, shutting her out.
Niko
