Way to Her Heart - By Melanie Schuster Page 0,29
it totally by going to bed with Lucas and now all these complications had raised their ugly little heads. Sydney thought she was going to marry Lucas and they’d all live happily ever after; right, like that was going to happen. The last thing she wanted to do was see her child hurt by becoming attached to a fantasy that couldn’t happen. Somehow she had to get everything back on track, and quickly.
Sherri paused for a moment to look at Lucas. He was so handsome it should have been illegal.
“We need to talk,” she said firmly.
“Whatever you wish,” Lucas said agreeably.
Lucas sat next to her, so close that she could feel the heat from his body. It distracted her immediately, but things needed to be cleared up right away.
“What’s on your mind, sweetheart?”
Hearing that word made something throb deep inside her, and she blurted it out with no finesse at all. “Sydney thinks we should get married and I understand she discussed it with you.”
Lucas moved a little closer, his arm thrown casually across the back of the sofa. “Yes, she did. She told me all about it on Mother’s Day, as a matter of fact.”
“Why didn’t you say anything to me? Didn’t you think that this was something I should know about? I can’t have my child getting all caught up in a fantasy that can’t come true, Lucas. That’s not fair to her.”
Lucas didn’t answer for a moment; he was slowly removing the pillow barrier and bringing her closer to his body. “Sydney isn’t the kind of kid to indulge in idle fantasy. She’s a very smart little girl and very observant, too. She knew I had feelings for you and she knew that you’d be happier with me in your life, so she came to me with a plan. It just so happens that her plan was the same as mine.”
Sherri turned so that she was resting against him with her head on his shoulder. She drew her legs up onto the sofa and felt her body relax into his side. His voice was so soothing that it took her a few seconds to register what he’d just said.
“What do you mean her plan was the same as yours? Did you have some kind of agenda in mind, Lucas?”
He lifted her chin so he could take her mouth in one of the long, lingering kisses that made her forget everything but the feel of his lips and the taste of his tongue. When he finally brought the kiss to a satisfying end, he spoke.
“The only agenda I had was to get to know you and to earn your trust and your confidence so that you and I could be a couple. I knew you the first time I met you,” he told her.
“You knew me? What does that mean?”
“It means that the men in my family don’t mess around. When we meet the woman who’s going to be the most important person in our lives, we know her. When I met you at Jared’s wedding, I knew,” he said simply. “I had planned on taking my time with you and Sydney because I wanted you to trust me and to know that I was the right man for you and the right man to be in your daughter’s life. But Miss Sydney kind of jumped the gun.” He laughed. “She had everything figured out and she wanted me to step up my game, so I did.”
Sherri looked at him carefully, trying to gauge his sincerity. His eyes held nothing but warmth and affection and he looked happy and full of desire for her. She had to be sure, though, of what he was saying.
“And if she hadn’t come to you with her crazy idea, what would you have done? What was the outcome supposed to be, Lucas?” She sounded a little witchy.
“I wouldn’t have done anything differently, Sherri. I would have still come after you, no matter how long it took. I would have wooed you, courted you, chased you down or whatever it took to make you mine. I told you, I had the same plan as Sydney—I want to marry you and take care of you and be a father to Sydney. I’m sure it’s too soon to tell you all of this, but because all the cards are out on the table, I think you should know what I want so I can see if you want it, too.”
The way he’d spoken to her