Pregnant by the Billionaire: Pregnant with the Billionaire's Baby / Mistress: Pregnant by the Spanish Billionaire / Pregnant with the De Rossi Heir

‘Who’s to say that we won’t learn to love each other, given time?’

‘I somehow doubt that very much!’ Luccy muttered.

Sin shrugged. ‘Stranger things have happened.’

‘Not to me, they haven’t!’ she growled.

‘In that case, as I fully intend for us to be married before the baby is born, it would appear I have seven months in which to convince you otherwise, doesn’t it?’ he pointed out. ‘I’ll try to make those months as pleasurable for both of us as possible.’

‘If you think you can seduce me into falling in love with you, then all I can say is you must have a very inflated opinion of the effect your lovemaking has on me!’ Luccy was breathing hard in her agitation.

Sin slowly crossed the room, his movements all feline stalking. ‘I’ll probably have to work pretty hard at it,’ he acknowledged dryly. ‘But as I said, I’ll endeavour to make sure that you enjoy the experience…’ He stood in front of her now, those grey eyes gleaming like molten steel as he looked down at her.

Sin’s eyes were like heated mercury, Luccy thought inconsequentially as she found herself unable to look away from the warmth of that gaze as it moved slowly over her slightly flushed features. And just as lethal if she got too physically close!

If Sin set out to deliberately break down her defences, then she wouldn’t stand a chance. She gave a determined shake of her head as she tried to evade the spell that heated gaze was weaving about her senses. ‘I have a plane to catch—’

‘Not today, I’m afraid, Luccy,’ Sin told her softly.

‘I’ve already warned you not to presume to tell me what I can and can’t do, Sin,’ she retorted.

He didn’t bother to reply as he moved to pick up the telephone receiver before pressing a single button. ‘Reception?’ His gaze held Luccy’s as he spoke into the mouthpiece. ‘Could you call the airport and cancel Miss Harper-O’Neill’s flight to England later today? Thanks,’ he added decisively before replacing the receiver to look at her challengingly.

‘Damn it! I’ll simply rebook!’ Luccy told him with angry impatience. ‘You really are the most arrogant man it has ever been my misfortune to meet!’ She glared at him.

‘Was meeting me really so unfortunate, Luccy?’ he prompted huskily even as he reached out and curved his hand about her cheek before running the pad of his thumb caressingly across her bottom lip.

A caress Luccy felt from the hair on top of her head to the skin on the soles of her feet as it completely eradicated every other thought in her head.

Her lips tingled from the caress, the whole of her body becoming sensitised, breasts firming, nipples tightening, a warm clenching sensation in the pit of her stomach, that familiar heat between her thighs.

Luccy was still furious with Sin for the insulting remarks he had made to her earlier. Even more so for his high-handedness in cancelling her flight just now.

Obviously, just not furious enough to prevent herself from physically responding to him…

Before meeting Sin she had never thought of herself as a particularly sensual person, hadn’t found her previous physical experience particularly stimulating, and had only mildly enjoyed the few kisses she had received at the end of other dates over the years. Yet Sin only had to look at her in a certain way, to touch her however lightly, and she felt that caress all the way from her head down to her toes.

‘Was it, Luccy?’ Sin persisted huskily, the lure of her parted lips proving almost too much of a temptation to him as he touched their softness, his whole body having tensed with awareness.

She swallowed hard. ‘Can you doubt it when it’s resulted in an unwanted pregnancy?’

Her breath was like a light caress across the tops of his fingers, totally distracting him from the sting of her words. ‘It isn’t unwanted by me.’

Her eyes widened. ‘How can you say that when you’re insisting on marrying a woman you don’t even like?’

‘Who says I don’t like you?’

Luccy stared up at him exasperatedly. ‘Of course you don’t like me! You can’t possibly like someone you don’t trust.’

Sin didn’t answer her in words, his hand dropping back to his side before he slowly lowered his head and captured her lips with his own, not touching her in any other way now as he sipped and tasted their pouting softness and he felt her quiver in response beneath the gentle onslaught.

Sin knew when a woman responded to his kisses. Just as he knew that Luccy’s response to him the night they had made love had been completely genuine. As had his own response to her.

Even if they never felt more for each other than that physical desire, surely, for the sake of their child, it would be enough to sustain a marriage?

Sin raised his head slightly to look directly into the dark blue of her eyes. ‘Now do you believe me when I say I don’t dislike you?’ he prompted gruffly.

Luccy didn’t know what to believe any more!

But she couldn’t marry a man who didn’t love her just because he physically aroused her every time he so much as touched her. That sort of heated passion didn’t last, and once that had died what would they have left? The same disastrous mess as Abby and Rory’s marriage had been.

She drew in a ragged breath. ‘I believe that at the moment, because of the baby, you think that marriage is what you want,’ she conceded huskily. ‘But—’ Sin placed silencing fingertips over her lips.

‘I want our baby to grow up with two parents, Luccy,’ he told her emotionally. ‘The same way that I did. The same way that you did.’

‘And once this baby has grown up, where would that leave the two of us?’

‘As grandparents, possibly?’

He really was serious about her marrying him!

It was tempting, oh-so-tempting, to accept his offer of marriage and to hell with what happened later. To lay down the mantle of responsibility and let Sin take charge.

But even for the sake of the baby she carried Luccy knew that without that magic ingredient of a shared love—something Sin would never, ever feel for her!—they didn’t stand a chance of making a marriage between them succeed.

Sin had watched the flickering emotions on Luccy’s expressive face, had seen that brief flare of doubt quickly followed by one of firm resolve. ‘Let’s just forget about the whole idea of marriage for the moment and concentrate on getting to know each other, instead,’ he suggested. ‘I doubt it’s good for you, or the baby, if you continue to upset yourself in this way.’

‘You aren’t going to be one of those overprotective prospective fathers who attempts to wrap the pregnant woman in cotton wool until after the birth, are you?’ she challenged. ‘Because if you are I think I should tell you right now that I’m pregnant, not ill. I also intend to continue working until the moment they wheel me into the delivery-room!’ Her eyes sparkled like twin sapphires as she glared at him rebelliously.

‘Sinclair wives don’t work,’ Sin told her arrogantly. ‘And especially not when they’re pregnant,’ he added firmly.

‘This one will!’

Sin knew that there would have to be a lot of adjusting, by both of them, over the next seven months and beyond, but he was determined not to be goaded into arguing with Luccy before they had even begun.

He took a deep breath. ‘If you insist, I’ll just come along and carry your equipment for you.’

Luccy eyed him frustratedly. ‘Sin, I don’t think you’re taking what I have to say seriously.’

‘Sure I am,’ he said briskly. ‘Is your luggage downstairs in your room?’

‘How did you know—? How long have you known it was this hotel I’ve been staying at?’

Sin’s smile was wicked. ‘I made it my business to know once I realised you couldn’t be relied upon to keep our luncheon appointment. Reception had strict instructions to let me know if you tried to book out.’

Luccy should have known. He was a Sinclair, after all. Besides, he owned the damned hotel!

‘Your luggage, Luccy?’ he prompted.