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And, while she couldn’t tell what Raoul was thinking, there was a certain intensity in his posture that suggested he was remembering, too.
“I prepared tinned soup and tea,” he said. “Get under your blankets before you become chilled.”
“I turned the heat up.”
Raoul kept the smile from his face, knowing it would simply annoy Julia. There had been many surprises about her that day, and her house was another. It was a beautifully restored brick bungalow from the 1800s, with a simple, restful decor that belied the cool sophistication she projected.
“I hope you don’t object, but I made myself a cup of coffee,” he said when she was settled in her bed, resting against a pile of pillows. “But I thought you would prefer the tea I found by your stove. Herbal, I think.”
Julia’s eyelids fluttered open, and she looked at him, so pale and beautiful that he wanted to pull her into his arms. Their time together had been so brief, yet it seemed that every cell in his body was imprinted with her warmth and scent. Sometimes at night he woke, thinking she was there, and the desire was so strong he would be unable to sleep again.
“You’re welcome to the coffee,” she whispered. “I don’t mean to be…ungracious.”
“I didn’t say you were.”
He wanted to pursue the reason she’d eluded him following the Washington conference, but he couldn’t. Not when she was so vulnerable. Something told him Julia would only resent him for taking advantage, making things more difficult later.
The blankets next to her stirred as she reached for the cup of soup and a furry head poked itself out. Julia stroked the feline’s head with an absent caress and it settled down, watching Raoul with unblinking eyes.
“Your cat seems suspicious.”
“Muppet is protective.”
“Ah, the jealous type…I can understand. He is in an enviable position—one I wouldn’t relinquish easily.”
Raoul could see the muscles in Julia’s throat convulse. He’d given her a reminder of his interest, a reminder she understood. Truly, he couldn’t comprehend why she’d acted one way at the conference—a bold temptress with flashing gold eyes and a sassy smile—and now was so reticent. It was a woman’s prerogative to invite or cast a man from her bed, but this did not make sense.
Still musing on the mystery, Raoul sat on the end of the mattress while he drank his coffee. It wasn’t the Arabic blend he liked best, but at least he’d brewed it at the proper strength.
Julia took small sips of her soup, keeping her gaze cast downward. She was so strong, he disliked seeing her so quiet and withdrawn. Despite her denials, could she really be sick? Something serious?
A chill that had nothing to do with a Chicago winter went through him. Julia had looked well earlier, her color bright with anger, but that didn’t mean there was nothing amiss with her health. When Raoul couldn’t stand wondering any longer, he leaned forward.
“Is Kane correct—are you ill?” he asked. “More than your excuse about recovering from rich holiday food?”
The tip of her tongue flicked over her lips and she put her teacup back on the tray. “I’m fine. Anyway, you don’t have to worry, I’m not your concern.”
“We were lovers,” he reminded. “Do you think I care so little for the women I take to my bed?”
“I…” Julia drew a shaky breath.
We were lovers.
The words reverberated in her heart and mind. They had engaged in the most intimate of acts between a man and woman. She hadn’t wanted to feel pleasure, wanting to think of it as a medical procedure and nothing more, but she’d burned when Raoul Oman touched her. A burning she’d never come close to feeling with another man.
“Never mind, chère,” Raoul murmured. He put his cup on the tray next to her empty soup bowl, then moved both to the top of her dresser.
Tell him.
Her conscience was darned inconvenient, but Julia opened her mouth to the unspoken command. “Raoul, we…I…”
We’re having a baby and I planned it all along. “Rest now. I’ll arrange for you to see a doctor tomorrow.”
Irritation swamped less-comfortable emotions, and she pushed herself farther upright against the head-board. “You’ll do no such thing. I don’t need to see a doctor, and I don’t need you to take care of me.”
For some reason Raoul’s dark eyes gleamed with satisfaction. “Perhaps.”
“Perhaps nothing. I told you, I’ve been—”
“Yes,” he interrupted smoothly. “You’ve been taking care of yourself since you were seventeen.”
“That’s right.” Keeping a wary eye on him, Julia snatched the telephone and dialed the taxi company. She asked that a cab be sent to her house as quickly as possible. “They’ll be here in twenty minutes,” she said, returning the receiver to the cradle. It was remarkably fast service considering the weather, but twenty minutes still seemed like twenty years.
Raoul sat next to her on the bed, his leg nudging her hip, as though he had all the time in the world. “You don’t have a family, Julia?”
“Just a father and a brother,” she muttered. “My mother died when I was four. I barely remember her.”
“Your father and brother, you are not close to them?”
“Not in this lifetime.” Her mouth twisted in a grimace. “My brother is a gung ho Navy Seal—sudden death in every direction. He’s older than me, and we never had much in common. We only see each other every couple of years.”
“And your father?”
“I haven’t seen him since I was seventeen. I’m a disappointment, you see. A weak female who wouldn’t toughen up and do what he wanted. He washed his hands of me when I left for college instead of enlisting in his army.”
Raoul fought a surge of anger at the bleak expression on Julia’s face. His own family’s gentle tyranny about marriage and children seemed minor by comparison. How could her father fail to recognize the unique strength of the daughter he’d raised?
“He is a fool,” Raoul said flatly.
Faint surprise registered in her eyes. “He’d argue the point with you—he’s very well thought of by the Pentagon. Last I heard, he’d become a three-star general.”
“That is merely a title. It doesn’t make him less of a fool. A blind man could see that you are not weak. You have the heart of a tigress.”
Julia blinked several times. She would have expected a man like Raoul to defend her father, at least in part, but instead he was supporting her without reservation. A traitorous warmth crept through her body.
“Thank you,” she murmured. A yawn caught her by surprise and she sighed. “Sorry.”
Raoul regarded her for a long minute. “You are tired, chère. I will wait for the taxi in the other room.”
He leaned closer. His finger stroked the arch of one eyebrow, then traced the curve of her cheek, and a flood of remembered sensations made her tremble. She couldn’t have spoken if her life depended upon the words.
“I thought you couldn’t possibly be as lovely as I remembered, but I was wrong.”
The dark, gravelly quality of his voice hypnotized Julia to the point that she didn’t object when he brushed her mouth with his. The light kiss deepened and she sensed the suppressed sexual energy in him, yet even that wasn’t enough to make her pull away. Their brief time together had made her far too susceptible to his potent brand of loving.
“Sleep well,” he murmured. “Please think about seeing a doctor if you’re not better soon.”
“I…yes.” Julia tried to be glad Raoul was too much of a gentleman to attempt a seduction when he believed she was ill. She might manage to actually feel glad in an hour or so.
A moment later he’d closed the door behind him and she curled onto her side, a tear trickling down her cheek. These days she was a confused muddle of pregnancy hormones. Everything was blown out of proportion, her emotions seesawing wildly.
But things would be better in the morning.
They had to be.
Chapter Three
“No more foolishness,” Julia mumbled around the toothbrush in her mouth. She spat a foamy mouthful into the sink and rinsed.
She’d escaped her usual bout of morning sickness, even managing to eat a bowl of cereal and drink a glass of milk. After the previous day that was a miracle, since tense emotions usually made the nausea worse.
And nothing about Raoul Oman was calm and soothing.
She’d had a moment of weakness the previous night, but that moment was over. The baby was the most important thing in her life, and she wouldn’t do anything to jeopardize it.
Julia put a hand over her abdomen. Over the past few months she’d worn looser clothing at work, choosing soft, thick sweaters to conceal the rounding of her stomach, rather than her usual silk blouses and suits. Sooner or later it wouldn’t be enough to conceal her secret any longer, and the news would be out. She only prayed it would be good news.
Sometime during the night Julia had realized she would have to tell Raoul, preferably before gossip spread through the company with its usual wildfire speed. He was extremely intelligent. He’d know the baby was his, so the best way of handling the matter was to tell him first and hope for the best. She’d make it clear she didn’t want anything from him, so maybe he wouldn’t care.
“Yeah, right,” she muttered.
The funny thing was, she didn’t have any idea how Raoul would react. Naturally there would be shock in the beginning, but after that?
She shivered, though the house was quite warm. The doorbell interrupted her troubling thoughts, and she stepped into the living room. Peering through a window, she gulped at the sight of Raoul standing on her doorstep.
“Oh, Lord,” she breathed.
It was the perfect opportunity to talk with him privately, but having that particular conversation in her home probably wasn’t smart. Later would be best, at the office, or maybe in a restaurant. In a public location, after she’d had time to think about her announcement—and his possible reactions—for a little longer.
“What are you doing here?” she asked as she opened the door.
Raoul smiled, pleased to see the color in Julia’s cheeks. She was lovely, her dark-blond hair falling around her face in the stylish cut she favored. “Good morning, chère.”
“I asked you to stop calling me that.”
“So you did. There are many beautiful Arabic words of affection. Would it please you more if I chose an endearment from my native language?”
“Not especially,” she growled.
Chuckling, he motioned with the key he had taken from her key ring before leaving the previous evening. “I brought your car back from the office. I did not want you inconvenienced because we took a cab home from the restaurant.”
“Oh. You didn’t have to do that.”
She seemed so surprised that Raoul’s mouth tightened. What kind of men had Julia known that she would be surprised by something so small? He’d gotten a clear idea of her father and brother, an idea that wasn’t flattering. Were there others who had acted just as badly?
“How are you feeling this morning?” he asked, deciding not to upset her with questions she’d already demonstrated she didn’t want to answer.
“Fine.” Her chin lifted. “If you’ll wait while I get my coat and purse, we can go in together.”
“Shouldn’t you be resting?”
“No, I’m all right.” Julia disappeared, then returned, pulling on her coat. She locked the door and turned around. “Ready?”
The falsely cheerful tone of her voice didn’t fool Raoul. Though she was plainly in better health today, there was a distinct tension in her body and face.
The snow that had fallen during the night made the footing treacherous, and Raoul put a hand on Julia’s elbow. Fortunately, the winding, snow-lined streets of the neighborhood had already been tended by city employees, making them safe to drive now that the storm had blown over.
When they reached the car he held up the key once more. “Do you wish to drive, or shall I?”
Again, surprise registered in her hazel-gold eyes. “Er…no, go ahead.”
There were so many mysteries about Julia. Raoul shook his head as he closed the passenger door and crossed to the driver’s side of the vehicle. In Washington they had shared a great passion—an uncomplicated passion in many ways. Though he’d sensed deeper currents within his mischievously sensual lover, they’d been well protected.
“Tell me something about the people at Kane Haley, Inc.,” he asked, deciding it was a safe topic, and might help Julia relax. “I’ve met a few, and reviewed the employee records, but that’s all.”
“Well, Margaret Steward is Kane’s administrative assistant. She’s extremely competent and knows the company from top to bottom. She’s great to go to when you have questions or problems. Matthew Holder and Jennifer Martin just got married and they have a baby, but she’s out on maternity leave. Sharon Davies recently married Jack Waterton, who’s one of our big clients. Sharon and I’ve been….” At the swift intake of Julia’s breath, Raoul glanced at her and saw she was more tense than ever.
“Yes?”
“N-nothing. You know Kane, of course.”
“We met when I was attending the Sorbonne.”
“You didn’t go to Oxford?” Julia turned in her seat, nervously adjusting the seat belt over her waist. “I thought it was the school of choice for wealthy Middle-Eastern families.”
“I did attend university in England. But as a compromise to Grand-mère, my post-graduate studies were completed in France at the Sorbonne.”
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