Bewitched (34 page)

He and Dana were silent on the ride home, but R.J. was
content. He parked the car and opened her door for her, then followed her inside. They climbed the stairs together, and already R.J. was hard with wanting her. The feeling was different now that he knew he loved her, that he'd make this marriage the forever kind, just as Dana deserved.

They stepped into her bedroom and he caught her shoulders, turning her to face him.

Before he could orate on his love, however, she beat him to the punch. She stared at him, her beautiful eyes solemn, and said, “I can't do this anymore, R.J. I'm moving back to my own place.”

 

F
OR A SINGLE HEARTBEAT,
R.J. turned to stone. It felt as if the blood had frozen in his veins. Then determination set in. He'd be damned if he'd let her walk away after he'd just come to such a life-altering revelation.

Nodding slowly, his hands clasped behind his back in a pose that he hoped would hide his anger, he asked, “Care to tell me why?”

She paced over to the window, looking out on the grounds she'd always admired so much. “I love you, R.J.”

“Ah.” He thought he might explode with happiness. He felt taller, stronger. “Obviously a good reason to leave a man.”

She toyed with the edge of the curtain, uncertainty obvious in the tilt of her head. “You don't understand….”

“You've never accused me of being a stupid man before, sweetheart. Let's not start now, okay?” That fragile look settled over her again. He wanted to hold her and decided there was no reason not to.

She looked startled when he strode across the room and scooped her up. “R.J.!”

“Shh. You're my wife.” He laid her across the bed and sat beside her. The dress she'd worn was more feminine than her usual attire, and he'd remarked to her earlier how anxious he was to get her out of it. That urgency hadn't abated one bit,
but first he had to take care of other things. “Did you know Drake and Hope are separated?”

Dana turned her head away, but quickly faced him again. His wife was no faint heart. “Yes. I've known for some time. Hope wants children. I…I thought about that, R.J. She's hurting so much, and I can't help but put myself in her shoes. Every day…” She swallowed hard, then continued. “Every day I love you more. I thought I could do this, thought I could play house, and wife, and enjoy the time I had with you, but every time we have sex—”

“Make love.”

She paused, then nodded. “Every time it makes it so much harder to think of leaving. But you've made it plain you don't want this forever. You don't want kids, and—”

“I've changed my mind.” He wanted to laugh at the way her eyes widened and her mouth fell open. Instead, he bent down and kissed her gently. “I have no idea what kind of father I'll make, Dana, yet Anna assures me I'll handle it just fine.” His forehead touched hers, and he sighed. “I'm not my father, I know that, but as his son I was afraid I might carry a legacy of paternal disinterest.”

“Oh, R.J.” She looked equal parts amazed, sympathetic and annoyed. “For an intelligent man, that's not a very sound deduction.”

He didn't take offense; he agreed with her. “I know. But I couldn't bear the thought of doing what he'd done, abandoning a child of my own, feeling no emotional tie or responsibility….”

“It's called love,” she explained gently, “and you've already proven—to everyone but yourself, I guess—that when you love, you don't hold back. Anna knows that, as do Will and Megan and all the rest of your family.” Her hand smoothed over his nape, and her smile was gentle. “You're an absolutely wonderful man, and I know you'd make a wonderful father.”

R.J. accepted her words, then added, “But only with you. If you leave me now, Dana, well, then, I guess I'll just remain the most eligible bachelor in Austin, because I sure as hell won't settle for anyone other than you. Not after seeing how perfect you're suited to me.”

She looked like a statue, staring at him, not moving, not even blinking. R.J. turned and pulled off her shoes, tossing them over his shoulder to the floor. He felt exuberant and excited. He was painfully aroused. “I think I may be ready to give fatherhood a try. The idea of you carrying my baby turns me on.” He grinned at her. “But if you have any doubts…”

“No.”

She sat up to regain his attention, and R.J. reached behind her to the fastenings of her dress. “Good. Your faith in me never ceases to boggle my mind.”

“R.J.—”

The dress slipped over her shoulders, leaving her in her strapless bra. R.J. whistled. “Damn, honey, when did you get that?”

Distracted, she explained, “Hope and Anna bought me some things.”

He fingered the lace edging the cups of the bra. “More things like this?”

“Yes. R.J., stop that.” She pushed his hands away, then pressed on his shoulders. R.J. pushed back, and gently tumbled her onto the bed. “R.J….”

He kissed her ribs as he tugged the dress down. “Another thing, honey.” The dress bunched at her hips, and R.J. lifted his head to look at her. Tears were in her eyes, ripping his heart out. “I love you.”

She gasped, and the tears spilled over. “You love me?”

He settled at her side, then gathered her against his chest. “So much, Dana. Damn, I've been stupid.” She stirred, and he squeezed her tight to keep her in place. “No, don't defend me.”

“I was going to agree!”

He laughed. Much as Dana loved to defend him, she didn't pull any punches, either. She was, as he'd told her, perfect for him. “Good. Because I've been a blind fool. My only excuse is that you let me be blind. I'll trust in the future that you'll keep me better informed of things I should know.”

Dana wriggled out of his hold to prop her elbows on his chest. The position did delightful things to her breasts and made the urgency beat at him. The emerald necklace hung free, the light glinting off it. “Tell me again,” she said.

“That I love you? I do. And I need you. And I want you.”

She pressed her hips down. “The want part I can believe. You've got proof.”

He stilled her hips by gripping them in his large hands. “The love and need part you can believe, too. I don't want you to have any doubts, Dana. Not about me and what I feel for you. I've known so many women over the years, but none of them affected me like you do. I've been obsessed with you, but I didn't even know why.”

“You've been obsessed with sex.” She kissed him. “Not that I'm complaining.”

R.J. pulled her back for a more thorough tasting that left them both breathless. “This isn't mere sex, woman. Sex I could have with any number of women. What we have together is special, and if you don't tell me you'll stay with me and love me and have my babies, I'll…”

“Fire me again?”

“Smart ass.”

“Smart enough to know a good thing when I have it. I'm not going anywhere, R.J.” She laid her head on his chest. “All I ever wanted was for you to love me.”

“I seem to recall you demanding sex rather forcefully, too.”

“R.J.!”

His grin was wicked. “As a businessman, I have to say that was the best deal of my life.”

Dana met his grin with one of her own. “Then I think you should stop talking and start fulfilling your end of the bargain.”

R.J. agreed. After all, regardless of his father's tainted legacy, he was no slacker. And he'd proved it.