Taming Eric (41 page)

“Feeding me isn’t going to get you in my pants again.” She joked and he sighed. When was she going to stop thinking everything he did for her came with an ulterior motive? Of course he still wanted her. He loved her, he was always going to want her. She drove him crazy, she turned him on in a way no other woman had ever done, but not everything he did was so he could hopefully get
lucky.

“I know this morning was a moment of weakness baby. I’m not expecting any more from you other than to let me be around you and just let me take care of you when I’m offering, ok? Plus you leaping up to go and throw up straight after we made love didn’t do a hell of a lot for my ego.” He grinned and his heart swelled in his chest when she burst out lau
ghing.

“Fine, do your worst in the kitchen.” She tol
d him.

He grinned at her again and dug around in the cupboards and drawers until he’d found what he wanted and after rummaging in her fridge he pulled out bacon and began to cook Natasha bacon and poached eggs on toast. She sat watching him, a tiny smile curving her lips. He didn’t know why the idea of him cooking was so amusing to her. He didn’t cook much but when he did he enjoyed it and he could cook. He’d had to learn once he’d been out on his own when he was younger or he’d have starved. There was no Alice back in the early days of his life as a bac
helor.

Once it was done, he served it for her, sitting to watch her eat. She must have been hungry because she ate quickly and by the time she was finished, her plate was clean. “You were hungry
baby.”

“I feel fine now Eric, so hopefully that was the last of the throwin
g up.”

Eric hoped so too because he hated to see her sick especially when it was because he’d got her pregnant that she was now suff
ering.

He helped her clean up the kitchen after she’d eaten and then he told her he was leaving, dropping a kiss on her cheek and walking out the door. He didn’t want to leave her, but he didn’t want to crowd her either or make her feel pressured by hanging around too long. He only hoped that when he wasn’t around, she would miss him as much as he was going to mis
s her.

*     *
     *

It didn’t take Eric long to realise Natasha was going to have to quit as his PA and find her replacement quickly when every morning she was in the office was the same thing, her running off to be sick. She had interviewed several applicants and seemed confident she would find her replacement in
them.

As much as he didn’t want to lose her as his PA he knew she couldn’t continue working for him. He’d be working, dictating or her taking notes during conferences by Skype and it wouldn’t take long and she’d be breaking into a run, hand over her mouth and sprinting from the office as fast as she could on her heels. He couldn’t keep her at work like that. She needed to rest and he had to accept that he was going to need a n
ew PA.

“Baby I want you to go home. You can’t work like this and you’re starting to look drained. I’m worried about
you.”

“What about my job Eric? You’re the one that wanted me back and I said I’d find a replacement fo
r me.”

“Fuck it baby. Much as I’ll miss you as my PA, I don’t need you that badly that I’m prepared to have you take risks with your health. Go home baby, get some rest.” She gave him a weak smile and his heart ached to see her looking so drained. “Oh baby, come here.” He pulled her into his arms and his lips covered
hers.

She pulled back. “Eric, I was sick, I wouldn’t kiss me if I was
you.”

“I don’t care baby.” He kissed her again to prove his point. There was nothing she could do or say that would make him ever not want to touc
h her.

“What about everyone else Eric? They’ll know something is goin
g on.”

He snorted in response. He didn’t care what anyone thought if they saw them together. Things had changed. She was carrying his child, she was his, well, he was working on that part and they were forever linked together and to hell with what anyone else thought of
that.

“Baby, I don’t give a fuck. I want everyone to know you’re mine
, ok?”

“I’m not yours though Eric. I have no hold over you, just as you have no hold ove
r me.”

“Natasha stop it baby. I know you still don’t trust me, but I’ve held your hair while you vomited. Does it get any worse than that and yet I’m still here. Like it or not we are bound together by the child you’re carrying.” It was so much more for him, but no way in hell was she ready to hear declarations of undying love. He wasn’t ready to give her declarations of undying love either. The fear of her rejecting him or laughing at him kept him s
ilent.

“I don’t want you to stick around just because I’m pregnant Eric. Seriously, you should be out looking for the next woman to con
quer.”

Pain knifed through him at her words. She still didn’t fucking get it. He didn’t want anyone else, he only wanted her. Was she ever going to stop reminding him what he’d been like with his ex girlfriends? Her continued doubt in him and constantly trying to push him into the arms of another woman was starting to piss him off. Maybe she didn’t want him if she was so quick to try and get him to replace her. He just wanted to shake her and tell her he wasn’t interested in anyone else, it was always going to b
e her.

“You’re always trying to push me away and you seem to want me to end up in the arms of another woman Natasha. What the hell for? Why the fuck can’t you accept that maybe I’ve changed? I don’t want another woman, I only want you.” He felt pain lance through his body again when he realised he had to face the real possibility that she didn’t want him but was too nice to come out and say that to his face. “Is that what you want is it? Do you want me out of your life?” He asked, almost dreading her a
nswer.

She sighed. “No Eric, I don’t, I’m just trying to make it perfectly clear that you can leave anytime you want. I’m not going to use our baby to hold you against your will. I want you to be a part of your child’s life, but I need you to understand that I’m not trying to hold you a prisoner in this relationship or whatever you want to cal
l it.”

His frustration grew. She just wasn’t getting it. He was tired of trying to make her understand. “Fuck it Natasha, I don’t want to go through this shit all the time. I don’t want anyone else, I don’t want to go anywhere, I’m not going to get bored and disappear. I just wish you could believe that. I’m still terrified about becoming a Father, you know why I feel like that but it doesn’t change anything.” He cradled her face between his hands as he leaned in close to her saying softly. “I’m… not… going… anyw
here.”

They stared into each other’s eyes for a moment and he tried to show his feelings through his so she would understand but she suddenly ripped free of his grip and bolted off into the ladies room. Fuck this, she had to go home. He wasn’t going to take no for an answer. He propped himself up against the wall, hands in the pockets of his charcoal grey suit and waited for her to come back out. This morning sickness wasn’t fucking morning sickness. It seemed more like all day sickness to him and he tried not to let it affect him that she often got ill when she was around him. “You are such a pussy Rothman.” He whispered. Of course he knew it wasn’t him making her sick. She was sick so often now that it just seemed to work out that she was sick around him a lot but they worked together so they were around one another
a lot.

When she finally staggered out of the ladies room he walked over to her. “Come on baby, I’m taking you
home.”

“It’s ok Eric, you have work to do and if I go with you then I don’t have my car. I don’t want to leave it
here.”

“I’ll drive your car baby and get the limo to follow so I can get back to the office. I’m driving you so don’t argue.” He took her arm and led her to the elevators and once they were down in the office building’s car park, he guided her to where her car was p
arked.

*     *
     *

A few days later Eric was called away on business and had to fly out to the UK. He wasn’t thrilled about leaving Natasha when she’d been so ill with the morning sickness which was more like any time of the day sickness. She assured him she was ok and that her Mother was keeping an eye on her but he still hated to leav
e her.

His days in England were filled with conferences, travelling around the three companies he was there to negotiate to buy and taking the time to meet the staff from the companies. He never just went in blind. He didn’t like to buy up companies without seeing how many employees there were, what the outcome could be for them if a company that was going broke was suddenly bought, broken down and sold off. Sometimes he didn’t break them down, sometimes he got experts in to put their heads together and work out what was needed to possibly save the company. He spoke to people, he spoke to employees because one thing he’d learned over the years was the employees were for the most part keen to keep their jobs and were often very good at coming up with ideas or in some cases possible solutions to save the company. In cases like that Eric’s money could finance the changes needed to bring the company back from bankruptcy and that way employees didn’t lose their jobs. Since he hadn’t been born into money, he had a much greater appreciation for the people who worked in the companies and he understood their dedication and desire to help do whatever was necessary to save a company from going under. He knew what drove the employees, he understood that urgency to keep their jobs when everything could crumble for them if they d
idn’t.

By the fourth day Eric just wanted to get on a plane and head home. He rang Natasha every evening, her time, but she sounded so tired, her voice flat and he was worried about her but he couldn’t get out of the negotiations and meetings that kept him tied up eac
h day.

When he’d finally make it back to his hotel in the evenings, he’d collapse into bed exhausted, his dreams filled with Natasha and end up waking up hard and aching for her. It was becoming a morning ritual to stand in the shower under the warm spray and jerk off with images of her running through his mind until his release would hit and he’d come hard against the tiles of the shower. It gave him some relief but it didn’t leave him feeling satisfied. He just wanted to go home and be with her, hold her and kis
s her.

Finally by the sixth day in the UK Eric was done with his business there and it was a relief to be on the company jet and heading home. He couldn’t wait to go and see Natasha, make sure she was ok, just hold her. He had missed her so much and he hoped she’d misse
d him.

He took advantage of the bedroom in the jet and slept when he could since he fully intended to head straight to Natasha’s place once he landed. He’d duck home first to shower and change then drive to her home. He had to see her. It had been the longest six days of his life and he was desperate to hold her in his
arms.

Once the jet landed, he climbed into the limo and headed to his harbour side home. He greeted Alice, took his bags upstairs and started throwing off clothes as he made his way into the bathroom. After his shower he dressed in jeans and a t-shirt, pulled on a pair of shoes, grabbed a jacket since it was starting to cool down a bit in the evenings now and ran back downstairs, his mind filled with images of Natasha. She was all he could think about as he called good night to Alice and headed out to hi
s car.

Once he’d left the exit on the freeway near Gosford, he stopped at a petrol station and grabbed some flowers to take with him to Natasha’s and it was a bit after 7pm when he finally pulled up outside her
home.

He knocked at her door impatient to see her but when she opened it and he saw her, despite the smile she attempted to give him, she looked ter
rible.

“Natasha baby.” He groaned, pulling her into his arms and held her tight. She drooped against him and he was shocked when he felt how thin she’d become. She was little more than bones in his arms. What the fuck was wrong wit
h her?

He set her back so he could take a closer look at her and she stood, almost swaying before him, her face so pale her complexion had a greyish hue to it, dark circles under her eyes and her cheek bones were far more prominent. Fuck, she was wasting away. Fear filled him as he stared at her. What the fuck was
wrong?

“Bloody hell baby, you’ve lost weight. That can’t be right. What’s wrong with you? Are you still sick?” Dammit hadn’t her Mother noticed how unwell she was looking? Was this all caused from morning sickness because Natasha was looking really alarmingly sic
k now.

As he stared at her, his heart racing with fear over her appearance, she suddenly doubled over and vomited on his shoes, the acrid smell of it rising immediately and filling his nostrils. Fuck, but it was nothing but stomach acid, she literally had nothing in her stomach to vomit up anymore. She stared up at him, tears filling her eyes and his heart leapt in his chest at the look on her face. Even those gorgeous blue green eyes of hers appeared dull and lifeless, almost sunken into her hea
d now.

She blinked at him a couple of times, a tiny frown marring her face and when she spoke his name, her voice cracked and she croaked at him from lips he could see were dry and spli
tting.

“Natasha baby, god what’s wrong, you’re as white as a sheet.” His eyes moved over her, fear settling in his stomach almost causing bile to rise to the back of his throat. Fuck but she needed medical help now. As he stared at her, she blinked a few more times, her expression showing what looked like confusion and almost like in slow motion, her eyes rolled back and she began to sink down towards the
floor.