To Make a Marriage (13 page)

Adam could see that Andie was still having trouble sharing their news. ‘How about if we show you instead of telling you?' he suggested, taking out his wallet to remove the photograph Jonas had given him earlier.

Danie's reaction to the two babies was as joyful as expected, the two men sharing an indulgent glance as the two women launched into conversation about twins, baby buggies, cots, clothes, everything that could possibly be needed for the arrival of two babies instead of one.

‘I'm afraid this evening must have been very boring for you,' Andie said shyly on the drive back to her apartment
later—much later—that evening. ‘All that baby talk,' she explained.

Adam raised blond brows, his mouth tight. ‘And why should I be bored talking about our babies?'

Andie tensed beside him. ‘Most men would be.'

‘I'm not most men, Andie,' he returned. ‘You should know that by now.'

Two steps forward, and one step back, he inwardly acknowledged. He hoped it wasn't always going to be like this between them.

But Andie hadn't mentioned that earlier meeting with Glenda so far this evening, and Adam was loath to do so earlier. Except that he knew that was what was putting this particular barrier between them.

He drew in some air. ‘About Glenda—'

‘I don't want to know, Adam,' Andie rebuked him.

‘No?' He blinked his surprise.

She gave a decisive shake of her head. ‘She's obviously someone from a different part of your life, a life I have no part of, which makes her none of my business, either.' But that slightly emotional quiver to Andie's voice implied she didn't really believe that.

Adam was stunned for a few seconds after this announcement. Andie believed—she thought—Andie believed he had been
involved
with Glenda!

Why should she have thought otherwise? Came the immediate question. To look at, Glenda was a beautiful woman—even if that wasn't true inside! He hadn't offered any explanation about his relationship with Glenda, so what else was Andie to think?

Involved with Glenda?

He would rather be involved with a snake; it would probably be less deadly!

But without telling Andie the truth, he couldn't very well contradict that impression…

‘You won't be seeing her again,' he told Andie.

‘I don't think that's the point here, Adam—do you?' Andie insisted.

‘Then what
is
the point?'

‘Whether or not
you'll
be seeing Glenda Howarth again, of course!'

His breath caught, and held, in his throat. Could he make Andie that particular promise, and keep it?

W
ITHOUT
Adam having to say anything, Andie knew she was asking him something he couldn't, in truth, agree to!

Which left the two of them precisely where?

They had agreed there would be no one else in either of their lives, that they were going to give their marriage every chance of success. Adam had agreed to that. In fact, he had insisted on it.

But not where Glenda Howarth was concerned, obviously.

What hold did the other woman have on him? There had to be something. Because there certainly wasn't any love between them; there was no way Andie could forget the contemptuous way Adam had looked at the other woman earlier today.

So why couldn't he agree not to see the other woman again?

If Adam wasn't prepared to tell her that—and by the stubborn set to his mouth, he obviously wasn't!—then she would have to ask someone else.

Glenda Howarth…?

Andie quivered with distaste just at the thought of having to see the other woman again.

Not Glenda Howarth, then.

But someone else. Because there was no way they could have the spectre of Glenda Howarth standing between them when they were married in just over two weeks' time.

‘Never mind, Adam,' Andie said sharply. ‘You obviously need to give that suggestion some thought.'

‘It isn't that—'

‘Do you want to come up for a cup of coffee?' she invited as they arrived outside her apartment block, not particularly wanting this evening to end with obvious strain between them. One evening like that had been enough as far as she was concerned.

Adam turned to look at her in the dark confines of the car. ‘I would love to—if you're sure you aren't too tired?'

‘I had a nap this afternoon,' she explained as she got out of the car. She knew it wasn't a very gracious invitation, but it was the best she could do for the moment.

Adam seemed happy enough with it, anyway, accompanying her up to her apartment, helping her to prepare the coffee in the kitchen before carrying the tray into the sitting-room.

However, that awkward silence fell between them again as they sipped their coffee.

Finally, Adam drew in a heavy breath. ‘Andie, I know you don't want to hear about Glenda—'

‘I don't,' she agreed.

‘Any more than I want to talk about her,' he continued, his expression grim. ‘However, I do have one thing to say on the subject…'

Andie briefly closed her eyes, a vision instantly coming to mind of Adam's face this afternoon, as they'd looked at the screen that had shown them their two babies. It had been a face full of love.

She had known Adam most of her life, knew that he was an honourable man. Whatever he chose to tell her about Glenda Howarth, she would believe him.

She opened her eyes, looking across at him. ‘Yes?' she pressed gently.

Adam put his coffee-cup down before standing up, coming over to crouch down next to her chair, reaching out to
grasp both her hands in one of his. ‘I want you to know that Glenda Howarth means nothing to me. Is nothing to me.'

Andie looked at him, could see the worry in his silver gaze, the dark frown to his brow. It was very important to him that she believe him…

She swallowed hard. ‘All right, Adam.' She nodded.

‘Is it?' His frown was pained now. ‘Is it really all right?'

Her expression softened as she saw the raw uncertainty in his face, reaching out a slightly trembling hand to lightly caress the hard curve of his jaw. ‘Yes, Adam, it's all right,' she told him, feeling relieved herself at a partial return to the closeness they had known earlier today; she loved Adam too much to be able to stand the desolation of that distance between them!

‘God, Andie…!' He reached forward and pulled her into his arms, his face buried in the perfumed silkiness of her hair. ‘This evening has been—awful!' he groaned achingly.

She reached up and touched his silver-blond hair. ‘I won't tell Danie and Jonas you said so!'

He pulled back slightly to look at her. ‘It had nothing to do with Danie and Jonas, and you know it.'

Yes, she knew it. It had been as if there were an invisible barrier between them most of the evening. Even though Andie had known she was responsible for most of it, that she'd flinched away from Adam every time he'd touched her, she hadn't seemed to be able to do anything about it. But she had hated that distance between them as much as Adam obviously had.

Adam's hands cradled either side of her face. ‘I will never do anything that might put my relationship with you and our children at risk,' he promised her.

Tears suddenly glistened in her eyes. Their children…

It all still seemed somehow like a dream. A wonderful dream, but a dream nevertheless.

Adam bent his head, kissing her gently on the lips, sipping and tasting their sweetness, until Andie gave a low groan in her throat and deepened the kiss, her arms moving up about his shoulders as she pressed herself against him.

She loved this man, loved him so deeply, that she knew in her heart that she would forgive him anything.

‘Andie…?' Adam raised his head to look down at her with needy grey eyes.

She wanted him, needed him, loved him. There was nothing else.

‘Adam!' she breathed, heated colour in her cheeks as she knew she wanted him more than she had ever wanted anything in her life.

He looked at her searchingly for several long seconds before standing up to bend down and sweep her up into his arms.

‘I'm too heavy for you,' she protested, at the same time clinging tightly around his neck.

He grinned down at her. ‘Maybe in a couple of months or so, you might be!' he conceded. ‘At the moment you're still as light as air.'

‘Where are we going?' she asked as he strode across the room.

‘Wonderful as it might have been the first time, I don't think we should make love on the floor a second time!' He softly kicked open the door that led to her bedroom, pulling back the bedclothes to gently lay her down on top of the bed, before joining her there.

Andie turned into his arms, a bedside lamp their only illumination as they gazed hungrily at each other. She would never have believed, at the beginning of this evening, that the two of them would be here together like this!

She reached up to curl her fingers into the thick blondness of his hair, loving the silky feel of it, suddenly feeling slightly shy. What if that one time together had been a fluke? What if this time it all went—?

Adam laughed softly as he gazed indulgently down at her. ‘Have a little faith, Andie,' he chided affectionately.

As he began to kiss her, her body suddenly alive with a hundred senses, her mind went completely blank, and there was only feeling left, vein-tingling, spine-thrilling sensation.

Adam's hands roamed restlessly down the length of her body, even as his lips trailed an erotic pattern down the creamy column of her throat to the hollows below, the curve of her breasts visible above the rounded neckline of the black dress she wore.

‘You are so beautiful, Andie.' The warmth of his breath caressed her heated skin as he slid the zip down the back of her dress. ‘So incredibly beautiful.'

It was impossible to feel in the least self-conscious in the face of such warm admiration, her dress completely discarded now, only black lace bra and matching panties covering her nakedness.

‘Let me,' she said, reaching up to unbutton his shirt, smoothing the material back to run her hands caressingly over the smoothness of his skin, fingertips tingling over the silky hair that covered his chest.

There had seemed no opportunity, the last time they'd been together like this, to actually touch and feel, to learn the contours of each other's body.

Adam's body was lean and hard, his legs long and muscular, skin lightly tanned—obviously not all of his time was spent behind a desk, on the telephone, or on a plane!—and covered with fine silver-blonde hair.

As he pulled her in tightly against his body, only thin
garments still between them, Andie could feel the hard evidence of his desire.

She moved sensuously against him, her senses raised to fever pitch, her eyes deeply green as she looked up at him pleadingly. She wanted more—so much more!—wanted to be completely naked against him, wanted—

‘Not until we're married—remember?' Once again Adam seemed able to read her thoughts, regret in his voice.

She shook her head, reaching out to caress him. ‘That doesn't seem important any more.'

‘It is to me,' he told her firmly, his hand tightly gripping her wrist.

But as if to take any sting out of his words, his head lowered, lips closing hotly over one bra-covered nipple, sucking the sensitive tip into the moist cavern of his mouth.

Andie's head went back, her eyes closing as she groaned low in her throat, her body feeling on fire as Adam released her hand to caress her other breast, heated pleasure now coursing through her body.

Her breathing was short and shallow as she felt the sensations building up inside her, sure that she was going to completely explode as she felt Adam's caress against her panties.

Waves of pleasure washed over her with ever-increasing pressure, until she felt as if she couldn't stand any more, her body arching in aching ecstasy.

The aftermath of that pleasure left her weak and exhausted, lying limply in Adam's arms now.

He raised his head to look at her as she still trembled in his arms. ‘Are you all right? I didn't hurt you?'

If that was hurting—!

‘No, you didn't hurt me,' she assured him, knowing that Adam had taken her to the plateau of complete pleasure. ‘Although I did feel as if I had died and gone to heaven.'

Adam laughed huskily, smoothing back the blonde tangle of her hair from the heat of her face. ‘That's how I hoped you would feel!' He reached beneath them to pull the bedclothes up over both of them. ‘And now I would like a pleasure that was denied me last time,' he said.

She looked up at him, unsure of what he meant. She was pregnant as a result of their last lovemaking, so what—?

He looked down at her with laughing grey eyes. ‘The pleasure of having you fall asleep in my arms,' he explained with playful rebuke.

Andie stared at him in the glow from the bedside lamp. ‘But—'

‘Sleep, woman,' he commanded, his arm about her as he put her head on his shoulder before reaching out to turn off the lamp.

Andie lay beside him in the darkness. But he hadn't— He had given her pleasure, and yet he—

‘We have the rest of our lives, Andie,' he murmured beside her in the darkness as he sensed her troubled thoughts. ‘Tonight I wanted to give you pleasure.'

And he had.

He certainly had!

Complete. Utterly. Unselfishly…!

 

‘Will you stop pacing up and down on the same piece of carpet, Adam? You'll wear it out!'

He paused to give Rome a glowering glare. But he changed the direction of his pacing, nonetheless.

He had known, after that meeting with Glenda yesterday, Andie's reaction to it, that he had to talk to someone. Unfortunately, the person he was closest to in the world—apart from Andie, herself!—was Rome. Who, of course, also happened to be Andie's father!

Which explained why he was pacing impatiently up and
down the sitting-room at the estate house. He had no idea how to even begin telling Rome about Glenda!

Rome sighed. ‘Is this going to take long, Adam? Because I have a wedding of my own to go to next week, you know!' he added satirically, perfectly relaxed as he sat in one of the armchairs watching Adam.

‘Very funny!' Adam grimaced.

‘I doubt Audrey would share that sentiment if I failed to appear at the church simply because it took you a week to get round to what you want to say!' Rome drawled.

Adam stopped his pacing. ‘It's all very difficult…'

Rome looked concerned. ‘You aren't thinking of letting Andie down, are you?' He spoke mildly enough, but there was a definite edge to his tone as he looked far from relaxed now.

‘Don't be ridiculous,' Adam came back impatiently.

‘That's okay, then.' The older man settled back into his chair. ‘Because you would seriously be stretching the bounds of our friendship if you were to even consider doing that.'

‘I've just said I'm not,' Adam snapped irritably.

‘I heard you. Just as I heard you the day you came here to explain to me that you and Andie had been secretly involved with each other for months, and that you were the father of her baby,' Rome continued softly, blue eyes narrowed now.

Adam looked at the other man warily. ‘It's true, I am. And by the way, it's babies. Plural,' he added.

Rome gave an abrupt nod of his head. ‘Andie came to see me this morning to tell me the good news.'

Andie had been here this morning…?

Adam had left her apartment shortly after eight o'clock this morning, the two of them sharing a pot of coffee before
he'd gone back to his own apartment to shower and change ready for going to his office.

Except that he hadn't gone to his office, had spent the morning at his apartment thinking over what he should do about Glenda, finally telephoning Rome and asking if he could come and talk to him.

But Andie had already been here today.

Why? Oh, obviously she would want to tell her father about the twins, but even so…

Adam frowned. ‘I didn't realise that.'

Rome shrugged. ‘There's no reason why you should have done. I'm pleased for both of you, of course.'

But.

The other man hadn't actually said that, but it was there in the tone of his voice.

Adam also questioned why Rome hadn't told him he knew about the twins when he'd arrived a short time ago. Surely it would have been the most natural thing in the world for Rome to have talked excitedly of the fact that he was now expecting two grandchildren and not one?