Mogul (29 page)

He nodded and pulled her close. They cuddled
together as they shared the bed. He didn’t want to leave her
again.

By morning, however, he had had plenty of
time to think. Until they caught this psychopath, Andy’s and the
baby’s safety were his primary concerns. He couldn’t afford to be
selfish anymore. He had to uncomplicated her life; otherwise it
could cost her everything.

He proposed his solution over breakfast,
which she immediately shut down. “That’s ridiculous,” she said. “If
this is because of last night…”

He shook his head. “It’s about your safety.
Yours and the baby’s.”

“And you think that’s better with us being
apart?”

“You’ll move into the house and I’ll stay in
Redondo, just until we figure out who this maniac is. Then I can
move in… as your husband.”

“Vanni,” she began but he cut her off.

“Think about it this way,” he said as he took
her hand in his. “We can date. Do you realize that in our weird and
chaotic courtship we’ve never actually dated? Don’t you think we
should at least have a few before we get married?” He read the
worried look in her eyes. “I’m not leaving you. I’m doing what I
can to keep you safe. If we maintain both houses, it’ll throw this
guy off the hunt. And you’ll be safe until we figure out what he
wants. I’d much rather he come after me than you.”

“I don’t want him coming after anyone,” she
said as her eyes met his. He was determined, she could tell. And
she was in no position to fight him. She was too scared to return
to that beach house after what had happened. She sighed. “Fine. We
can date. But only for a few weeks.”

His brow furrowed. “Why?”

“Because we have a wedding
to go to on June 17
^th
.” His eyes widened. “You have
to make an honest woman of me before we have a baby, don’t you
think?”

“Oh, Andy,” he said as he
hugged her close. “But why the 17
^th
?”

She touched his hair. “Because it was the day
we should have had our happy ending last year.” It was the day he
was going to tell the world she was the woman he loved – the woman
he had chosen – but Talia had interrupted in a fit of crazy and
derailed everything. “Let’s take a bad day and make it the best
day,” she said softly.

He reached for a kiss. “Every day with you is
the best day,” he whispered against her lips.

Two days later they were moving her into her
new house. Kelly had orchestrated all the furniture delivery, as
well as the delivery of anything she’d need from the beach house,
including her cat Simon. All Vanni had to do was carry Andy over
the threshold. Andy was overwhelmed at how perfect her house
already looked. Kelly was worth her weight in gold. She had taken
so many notes and paid attention to every detail, so that she could
put everything where Andy wanted it and Andy didn’t have to lift a
finger. She was still taking it easy, recovering from her attack.
She was 32 weeks along, so even if their daughter was born early
she’d have a high rate of survival. But closer to term was ideal,
and Andy considered it her main job to get them all to July 15
before she delivered. She had contractions off and on, but they
were minor and irregular. She might have missed them entirely if it
hadn’t been for her scare during the home invasion.

Vanni lit some candles around the living
room, along with their fireplace. She gave him a grin as she teased
him. “It’s too warm for a fire.”

He winked as he used the remote to play music
in the background. As he approached he said, “Since when has heat
ever been a problem for us?” He took her into his arms, as much as
he could with her pregnant belly in the way. They swayed to the
music for their first dance in their new home. He twirled her
around and then brought her close. He whispered in her ear,
“Remember our first dance?”

She chuckled. “How could I forget? You were
this half-naked bad boy rocker whispering naughty intentions into
my ear.”

His breath was hot against her neck. “Did it
work?”

“What do you think?” she breathed.

“I thought you were the sexiest woman I had
ever seen,” he said as his tongue rimmed her ear. “Thought it then.
Still think it now.” His lips covered hers.

She clung to him as he kissed her. “You still
take my breath away,” she whispered as he pulled away.

He grinned. “You ain’t seen nothin’ yet,
babe. Come on.” He took her hand and led her from the living room
down the hall. He opened a bedroom door, but it wasn’t to the
master where she thought he’d be leading her. Instead it was to a
bright and cheerful nursery. She gasped. “Vanni.”

He opened the door to a pale pink paradise,
which took everything she had planned to the next level. She
instantly knew that he and Kelly had been in cahoots. The wallpaper
featured a smattering of tiny hopeful rosebuds on a light blush
background, like Andy had wanted. But the bookshelves were filled
with childhood books she’d grown up reading, books she could now
read to their daughter. There were stuffed animals and fanciful
snow globes with fairy tale characters and shiny bright glitter.
There was even an antique music box with a graceful ballerina
balancing right on top their daughter could take with her to
adulthood. The furniture was all done in cherry wood, again like
she had wanted. But the rocking chair was an antique with a
matching ottoman, and the centerpiece of the room – the crib – was
much more extravagant. It was round, with pink bows holding up the
breezy cotton canopy, and wisps of pale pink material running down
and tying off at each pole like a cloud. It all looked tailor made
for a perfect little princess, and their special bear sat waiting
right inside. There were tears in Andy’s eyes as she reached for
it, playing the lullaby he had specially recorded for their
daughter.

It was such a magical place to bring their
baby. It almost hadn’t felt real until now. Now she couldn’t wait
to meet their little girl. Her arms hungered to feel their warm,
wiggly baby, to hold her, to rock her in the rocking chair, to sing
lullabies as she nursed her. It had all felt so abstract before.
There was no crib at the beach house; there had been no practical
place to put it in their loft bedroom. So they thought about it,
they even talked about it, but the evidence of her pregnancy was
contained almost entirely within her body.

In their first home together, they were a
couple.

Here they were a family.

And she actually felt ready.

She turned to Vanni. “I love you,” she said
simply.

He took her back into his arms. “And I love
you,” he said as he kissed her softly on the lips. “Both of
you.”

“And what’s next on your magical tour?” she
wanted to know.

He gave her his irresistible smirk as he took
her by the hand and led her through a side door into the large
master bedroom within a child’s cry from the nursery. The platform
bed was in the same cherry wood as their daughter’s furniture.
Their room matched the blush pink from their daughter’s room to a
rich and masculine hunter green. It was warm and inviting, and
instantly felt like home. All they had to do now was christen
it.

She wrapped her arms around his neck.
“Welcome home, Vanni,” she said before she reached for a kiss. He
happily complied. He loved the taste of her mouth, and the way her
lips parted for his inquisitive tongue. His hands slid down her
back and circled her close to his body, which always responded to
her ardor like a puppet at the end of her string.

With ease he swept her up into his arms
without even breaking their kiss. He carried her to their bed,
which Kelly had already thoughtfully turned down before she retired
to her temporary accommodations on the other side of the house.

But he wasn’t thinking about Kelly as Andy’s
fingers slid up under his shirt and spread across his massive
chest. His hand made a similar journey, only it paused to sweep
over her rounded tummy. He cupped her full breast and his thumb
brushed across her sensitive nipple. She arched her back to fill
his hand as she moaned into his mouth. He pulled away slightly to
remove her shirt, and she unfastened her bra to discard it
somewhere in a darkened corner of their new room. His mouth
fastened over the aching peak of her breast, and her head tipped
back as his masterful tongue etched warm circles onto her skin.

Vanni pulled her pants over her hips and
kissed his way down her body. He planted dozens of tiny, loving
kisses around the mound of her pregnant stomach, still so enamored
of her body in full bloom. It was proof of their love in every way,
a permanent bond that linked them forever. That baby was a living
wedding ring, a sacred covenant. He counted his blessings every day
she would kick him through her mommy’s skin. She had already let
him know who was boss, and he couldn’t wait to meet her.

But it was her mommy who needed his attention
now. He spread her legs with his hands and dove between to toy with
her with his mouth and his fingers. She gasped as she writhed
against him. She burned for him in a way she had never, could
never, burn for anyone else. Anything less than his body inside her
own was a tease.

And Vanni was quite the expert at
teasing.

He brought her to climax within minutes, and
she shuddered powerfully against his nimble tongue. She tried to
pull him up to her but he was determined to make her scream. His
slid his fingers inside of her, making her buck against his hand.
She wanted him to fill her completely, but he was on a mission to
take his time.

She was delirious by the time he finally
climbed back up her body. She could taste herself on his lips as he
kissed her. “Make love to me, Vanni,” she said as she pulled him
close.

There was an evil little grin on his face as
he looked down at her. “I’m afraid I’m not the kind of boy that
puts out on the first date, Miss Foster.”

She whimpered as she ground against him. She
knew he wanted her. “Why are you being so mean?” she pouted.

He bent to kiss her lips, one at a time.
“Because the first time we make love in our home, I want it to be
as man and wife. Think you can wait?”

“No,” she said with an even bigger pout,
which made him laugh. He covered her naked body with the sheet,
lovingly tucking her in. “Haven’t I always been worth the wait?” he
asked as he traced her chin with his finger.

She looked into those dark brown eyes she
loved so much. “Every time,” she agreed in a soft, sated voice.

He kissed her again, with just as much
passion as she. He was breathing hard as he pulled away. “I better
leave now or I won’t be able to,” he warned.

She wrapped him closer. “Good.”

He adopted the gentile accent of a Southern
woman. “Ah declare this is not proper. Not proper at’tall. You just
keep your hands to yourself till you put a ring on mah finger,
missy.”

She giggled and he stood. “Sleep tight,
babe,” he said as he blew her a kiss. “Dream naughty dreams.”

She looked at his hardened silhouette and
gave him a satisfied smile. “You, too.”

He left her in their bed and drove home to
the lonely beach house, taking the first of many cold showers
before he made Andy Foster his bride.

CHAPTER NINETEEN

Burbank, California

May 31, 2011

The week leading up to the premiere of Fierce
had been a hectic one for all involved. For Vanni, the other
judges, Graham, Shannon and the contestants, this included 16-hour
days at the studio. For Andy, this meant video-conferencing from
her new, secure fortress in Rancho Palos Verdes, with Kelly running
relay.

Between work and his trying to properly court
his fiancé, Vanni hadn’t had much time for anything else. He was
glad Holly had stepped up her game and taken care of herself. She
wasn’t texting him as much, and whenever he’d find a few minutes to
call her to check on her she’d hurry him off the phone, assuring
him that she’d hired a nurse and was staying in bed, and their son
was doing just fine.

He would have gone to her apartment but there
had been no time, and she made it clear there was no need. She
seemed to accept he had other obligations, and no longer seemed to
demand the all-or-nothing domestic bliss of making him choose.

It was as though his life was finally falling
neatly into place. The Wilkes had accepted the settlement offer,
Yael was happily managing the band and making progress on the new
album, and the show was right on track with everyone’s optimistic
expectations.

That night they were scheduled to broadcast
their live premiere, which would introduce the nation – and the
world – to their top contestants. Vanni was especially excited
about Jordi’s performance. Over the past few weeks he had
definitely taken her under his wing, working closely with Jorge to
unleash her individual style while boosting her confidence. Though
she was fearless on the stage, he got the distinct impression that
she was trying to prove something. He couldn’t talk to her much,
given his position as judge, but he planted the bug in Jorge’s
ear.

Jorge was known on set to be a magical fairy
godfather, who had the uncanny ability to reach in beyond all the
surface insecurities and pull forth one’s inner confidence. For
Jordi, Vanni suspected Jorge would have to do the opposite. She had
oodles of confidence when you put a microphone in her hand. Her
insecurities were deeply hidden.

He knew she’d have to fight through them to
really shine like he knew she could.

Allison voiced her concern once again that
putting her on an international stage might actually do her more
harm than good. She feared that because Jordi depended largely on
her amazing talent to validate herself, hearing any real criticism
might tear her down as opposed to build her up. They had an amazing
crop of talent for their show. She was spectacular enough to grow
out of her pond in Bumfuck, Iowa. The real question was if she
would drown in the ocean of talent in which she’d been cast.