The Texan's Contract Marriage - By Sara Orwig Page 0,52
beginning to show. “You’re a handsome devil, Marek Rangel.”
“And you’re stunning,” he said. He rolled to his side, taking her with him, and they faced each other while he smiled with satisfaction.
“This is a good marriage, Camille. We’ll be good for Noah.”
She laughed. “You say that only days since our wedding. It hasn’t been a month yet. You can’t tell whether this is good or bad.”
“Of course I can. You don’t think it’s good?”
“It’s wonderful,” she replied. “Noah is happy, and now he has a daddy, which I think is a fine thing for him. He’ll have grandparents because Jess will be another grandfather, I suspect. He has aunts who love him, now more cousins.”
“Ginny and her family are already crazy about him. In his quiet way, Jess is, too.”
“I’m glad. I’ve told you in June I will perform La Traviata here in Dallas. I will sing Violetta’s part. I want you to come for opening night.”
“I’d be delighted,” he said.
“If you don’t care for opera after you’ve been to a performance, tell me. I know not everyone does. I won’t burden you with attending again if you don’t like it.”
“I’m going to love watching you,” he said and she smiled, shaking her head.
“You have no idea whether you will or not. Save the flowery declarations until you can say them truthfully.”
He grinned. “I think I will love it. Afterward, will you come home?”
“Of course. There may be a party, but eventually I’ll come home. You’ll be with me, whatever I do.”
“Then I’ll be happy. I told you earlier, I’ve waited eons to be alone with you. It seemed this time would never arrive.”
“You wasted no time when they all left,” she remarked drily.
“If you knew how much I’ve thought about making love to you, you’d know why I wasted no time.” He propped his head on his hand. “Want to shower or sit in a hot tub and relax?”
“When you put it that way, the hot tub wins.”
Standing, he picked her up and she wound her arm around his neck. “You’re a feather.”
She laughed. “Hardly. It takes a body to have the voice I have. No feather here.”
“A gorgeous, lush, to-die-for beauty,” he said, carrying her to his sunken tub. She watched as he began to fill the tub and shortly they both sat with her in front of him, between his legs, while he caressed her lightly, toyed with long strands of her hair and talked about growing up spending a lot of his life on his grandfather’s ranch.
He carried her back to bed and made love to her again, loving her through the night. Afterward she stayed in his embrace, still talking about their lives before they had met each other. He asked about her career, and she could feel a closer bonding with him. Did he feel the same or was this a casual conversation that he would forget swiftly?
He rolled on his side, holding her close with one arm while he propped his head on his other hand. “Camille, we’re married. Share a bedroom with me.”
Startled, she gazed into his inscrutable dark eyes. “I’m surprised you want that,” she said, giving herself time to think, but also admitting the first thought that came to mind. This was not something she had expected, and her heart leaped. Could this mean that he cared more for her?
“I’ve given it thought. Our sex life is fantastic,” he declared in a husky voice, brushing a kiss on her lips. “I like having you in my arms and in my bed. I would like that on a regular basis. We’re husband and wife—why not? We are making love and it’s good. I like being with you. It’s that simple.”
A mixture of feelings gripped her. His declaration and invitation to sharing a bedroom meant a big shift in their relationship. She loved him, and her deepest reaction was joy. Along with it was awareness of all she had worked to achieve. What would a closer relationship, her growing love for him, do to her career?
Was her relationship with Marek a threat to her career? She might be reading more into his actions than she should, but this was a wonderful change in so many ways. The more she could be intimate with him, the more they were simply together and enjoyed each other’s company, the more likely he was to lose that barrier around his heart. There was a far better chance of his falling in love if they lived together