A Pregnancy, a Party & a Proposal. Teresa Carpenter

She believed his love and concern were genuine. But she also knew his penchant for control, and that he had a compulsive need to fix things. She easily saw one emotion feeding into the other.

      “The last is no unnecessary touching.”

      He threw back his head and laughed. “You’ve got to be kidding. The point is that we’re a couple. How do we portray intimacy without touching?”

      She understood his confusion. The man was very tactile—he couldn’t not touch...things, materials, people.

      “I didn’t say no touching. Of course there will need to be public displays of affection. But you’re a master director, brilliant at evoking emotion. I’m sure you can manage with the minimum of physical contact.”

      “So PDAs are okay?” His gaze ran over her as his mind connected the dots. He was to keep his hands to himself in private. “So businesslike. I thought you were doing this as a friendly gesture. Why so strict?”

      How to answer that? The baby motivated her to help him, because she needed to maintain a position of power. But that wasn’t the only reason. Before she’d known about the baby she’d fought her desires because they turned her into someone she wasn’t. Reckless, abandoned, acquiescent.

      She’d subjugated her will to a man once before. It had changed who she was—a mistake she’d never make again.

      She considered telling him about the baby—just putting it out there. But, no. He was already dealing with a distressed grandmother. It wouldn’t be fair to drop the baby news on him, too.

      “I’ve put what was between us behind me. Yet there’s no denying the sexual chemistry between us.” She gave him the lesser truth. “I don’t want to jeopardize the progress I’ve made. This is a deal-breaker, Ray.”

      “Okay, you win.” He threw his hands up in surrender. “I promise to keep my hands to myself.”

      She knew she’d have to remind him of his pledge, but it would do for now.

      “When is our flight?”

      * * *

      The limousine pulled to a stop in front of Lauren’s home and Ray stepped out. He knew she co-owned the bungalow-style duplex along with her sister. The arrangement allowed the twins the proximity they enjoyed, yet gave each of them their privacy. Perfect for sisters who were both friends and partners, or so she’d told him.

      Of course that would all change now Tori had married Garrett. Would the twins keep the property and rent out Tori’s side? Or would they sell, leaving Lauren to find a new home?

      In a flash he saw her at his place, bringing order to his chaos, watching daily edits with him in the media room, claiming the gaming loft as her home office.

      He froze with his hand poised to knock.

      His head shook along with a full-body shudder. Must be residual fallout from the wedding. His overactive imagination tweaking on domestic bliss overload.

      He knocked. He still puzzled over why Lauren had changed her mind and agreed to accompany him to New York. Nothing really made sense except that family mattered to her.

      He’d seen that first-hand last Thanksgiving, when he’d learned that Garrett was spending the day alone, with nothing to occupy him but memories of his father’s passing and the shattering of his own body in a car accident the previous year.

      Of course Ray had invited his buddy over for Thanksgiving dinner, and then made an emergency call to Lauren to see if By Arrangement could pull off a miracle.

      She’d been about to sit down to dinner with her family, but had named a couple of restaurants he could try. He’d cut her off to invite her family to join him and Garrett. The home-cooked deal had appealed to Ray, and additional people would help to distract Garrett.

      And, of course, thinking of Thanksgiving brought back memories of their laundry room tryst.

      Luckily the front door opened, keeping him from remembering the details of their heated session on the washing machine.

      “Good morning.” Lauren came out, pulling a small suitcase. “Can you grab the garment bag?” She motioned to the blue bag hanging over the hall closet.

      He stepped inside and grabbed it. “Just the two bags?”

      “You don’t have to be sarcastic.” She glanced at her luggage with a frown. “I know it’s a lot for a week, but you didn’t mention anything except your grandmother’s birthday so I have to be prepared for anything.”

      “I wasn’t being sarcastic.” He handed her bag to the driver, who also took the roller bag, then held the back door for her. “If you’re prepared for anything I’m surprised you don’t have twice as many bags.”

      She gave a small smile and slid across the seat. Her jacket dragged on the seat behind her and he swept it out of the way as he slid in after her.

      “Is this your heaviest jacket?” He fingered the fleece-lined raincoat. “The forecast in Queens is for snow.”

      “I’m sure it’ll be fine.” She pulled the fabric free and tossed the coat over her purse on the other side of her.

      “Fine for Southern California is not the same as fine for New York. You’ll freeze if that’s all you take.” The car pulled away from the curb. “I’ll have the driver swing by Rodeo Drive.”

      He reached for the intercom. Her hand intercepted his, pushing it down.

      “Forget it. I’m not buying a coat I’ll only wear for a week.”

      She quickly retracted her touch. The woman did like her rules.

      “I brought sweaters and a warm scarf. I’ll be fine.”

      He snorted. “Let me know when you change your mind.”

      She glanced at him over her shoulder. “Why? So you can say, I told you so?”

      “So I can take you shopping.” He trained his gaze on the muted TV monitor across the way. “The I told you so will be strictly implied.”

      Out of the corner of his eye he caught her grin. He relaxed back into his seat. The trip might not be the total cluster bash he feared.

      “Please. Hold your breath,” she advised, all sweetness and light.

      He turned to address her sass, only to stop when she pressed a hand to her stomach. A glance at her face revealed she’d lost all the color in her cheeks. Concern tightened his chest.

      “Lauren, what is it?”

      She sat very still, slowly drawing in a deep breath. “I wasn’t ready for that last turn. It sent my stomach spinning.”

      “What can I do?”

      “Can you lower the partition?” She swallowed repeatedly. “I think it will help if I can see where we’re going.”

      He picked up the remote and did as she’d asked. The additional light showed her color was returning. “If you’re not feeling well we can delay our flight for a day.”

      “That won’t be necessary.” She dug in her purse and pulled out a dry protein bar. “I should have eaten something earlier. I’ll be all right once I have a couple of bites.” She looked at him oddly. “You’re awfully cavalier about our departure time.”

      “It’s not a commercial flight. I called a friend and he’s agreed to lend me his jet. Barring emergencies, it’s at my disposal for the next week.”

      “Must be nice.” She closed her eyes and leaned her head back as she chewed. Her hand lingered over her stomach.

      “Rest.” He ran a knuckle down her cheek. “I’ll let you know when we get to the airport.”

      Instead