Playing Pretend: A Single Dad Secret Baby Romance Read online

  “So, you want to propose to a random ass chick at my wedding? Then, ‘break up’ with her because the pressure and expectations were just too high or some other bullshit…” Holding my breath, anticipation quickened my heart beat, and Teagen snorted roughly to follow his unimpressed tone. “At least it’ll be a funny story. I’ll ask Casey and swear her to secrecy. I’ll call you back later.”

  “Thanks, Teagen.” Hanging up, I turned my attention to Delainne and Maggie as relief slumped my shoulders. Just as Teagen surmised, my plan was to propose to her using a ring I didn’t buy, and then break up for reasons that didn’t exist. Wild.

  “Dad! Look at what I can do now!” Straightening at the shrill call drenched in excitement, I smiled automatically when I caught sight of Maggie. Her brows furrowed deep in concentration, and she held out her arms for balance. Slowly, sloppily, she started to turn on the beam, and pride bubbled in my chest like tar. The metal girder was wide enough that she could fit the length of her foot on it, and she didn’t have any support.

  Delainne’s hands hovered a good few inches away from my daughter’s sides, and I pushed myself up to slip my phone back into my jean pocket. Clapping enthusiastically when Maggie made the turn, I grinned when she jumped off the beam to run at me full speed. Bending to catch her, I held her to my chest as she shivered from the force of her accomplishment.

  “You did so good! I never knew you liked to do that- maybe we can get you some lessons?” Glancing over Maggie’s head, I smiled at Delainne, and she blushed furiously. Jerking back, my daughter grabbed my face in her clammy, hot palms to force me to look at her, and seriousness swirled in her bright eyes.

  “Can Delainne teach me? I want to do what she does- she can come over while you’re at work, Dad- you don’t even have to drive anywhere.” Surprise lifted my brows, and I stammered a little before nodding. Maggie shot me a megawatt grin, twisting in my ears to cheer in elation. “You can teach me at my house! Can you? Please! My dad can pay you!”

  This little girl. I loved her with all my heart.

  “I would love to help you, Maggie.” Delainne caught my gaze, and a silent understanding buzzed between us- almost palpable in the hot, mid-summer air. Wandering towards us, she pulled back her hair, and my chest tightened as her long, slender body swayed to her gait. Realization hit me, and my smile slickened as all of the things I could teach Delainne flashed in my mind’s eye.

  Delainne

  “Your home is beautiful, Eric.” Smiling as I sat gingerly on a curved, leather sectional sofa, I blushed furiously when he dropped down heavily beside me. “I’m surprised at how clean it is. I wouldn’t think it would be since she’s six.”

  “She’s a good girl. I’m lucky that she’s not a nightmare considering I work full-time, and with everything she goes through…” Slinging his arm over my shoulders, Eric trailed off as a certain tension settled on us. My heart slowed, the blood beating against my ear drums going silent as he sighed softly. “It’s hard for her. She hates school, and school hates her. I want to get her into an accelerated program because she’s so damn smart, you know? She gets things so fast. I’ve considered being transferred so she can get the education she needs.”

  “You’re a good father, Eric.” Mine was all I could think to say, and I rubbed my fingertips together in my lap at this moment of peace. I was surprised that I could still think considering how the day had gone. “I had a very expensive education, but it still failed me in many ways.”

  “Why do you say that?”

  “I’m not so good at math, and because I went to an expensive private school, no one ever made me learn it. You can’t rely on schools to teach Maggie the things she needs to know to be successful as a person. That’s not their job. Their job is to make kids learn socializing- foremost, I think.” Gentle, callused fingertips circled my shoulder above my blouse, and I rested my cheek on Eric’s chest. Our closeness was comforting; maybe it was because I’d never had it before. “I went to an expensive private school, but my step-brother went to a public school, and we got the same education, essentially. I just had more resources.”

  “Your intelligence is sexy, you know. The way you look at things is so… unique. You don’t like to mix emotion and rationale. It’s nice- I’ve never met someone that didn’t pity me for being a single father… especially considering the circumstances.” The praise warmed my entire body, and I smiled as Eric rested his cheek on my crown. His fingertips trailed up and down my neck, and pleasant tingles rippled across my skin. “When Sasha died, everyone felt so awful for me. Maggie would grow up without a mom. Every other person I talked to for months after it happened asked if I was going to give her up for adoption. The thing was, though- Sasha wasn’t a bitch or anything. She wasn’t nasty or conniving in any way. She wouldn’t lie about it, and I felt horrible that she died.”

  “I knew I had to stop all of it when someone I hadn’t talked to in years told me that I was honorable- a real man- for taking care of a little baby that I was involved in making. I mean- I was in both Iraq and Afghanistan on four separate tours by the time Maggie was born… but suddenly, I was a better man than I was before. I was willing to die for my country when I enlisted, but people are more starry-eyed because I gave my life up for a badly timed fuck.” The disgust in Eric’s tone was heart wrenching, and I squeezed his hand as his heart thudded hard against my cheek. “I requested to be transferred here to get away from everyone. My parents had already come and gone, and Sasha’s mother moved out this way. She spoils Maggie something fierce, but I don’t have the heart to tell her not to. It’s not like they see each other so often- the weekends and holidays and stuff, but not a crazy amount of time. She doesn’t necessarily like me, I know, but she doesn’t hate me. I think she’s bitter because she told Sasha all the time to stop being a… floozy, essentially.”

  “I think those people were right in a sense, Eric.” His soft hum reverberated through my entire body, and I nibbled my bottom lip as I carefully processed everything he was telling me. “It takes something different to raise a child by yourself than it does to run towards danger. For most people- especially men- they feel forced into it.”

  “I mean, if I didn’t accept the fact that Sasha might get pregnant, I would’ve used condoms. She wasn’t a woman that I saw a future with, and I knew it early on. She was just fun while I was state-side, but she was really reckless and immature.” My heart warmed at Eric’s response, and he tilted his head away from me to fiddle with my ring. “She’d had an abortion before, you know- I remember thinking why she hadn’t just done it again. I was 2 months into a 10-month tour, and the only reason I was shipped back early was because she died. I don’t know how you feel about that kind of thing, but…”

  “It’s not my business to judge people for what they do or don’t do, Eric. There are a lot of reasons to do something like that- be it medical, or moral, or financial, or whatever.” Truth rang in my tone to clash with my own, personal brand of dread and disgust, and I inhaled sharply. “But- Maggie is a wonderful little girl.”

  “She looks exactly like me, but that personality is all Sasha. It’s infuriating sometimes. It’s difficult to find people that can keep up with her. We have a life of constant activity and structure, so babysitters can’t just plop her in front of the tv. Times like now- in the summer- is a little more lax, but not by much.” Smiling, I lifted my head to catch Eric’s eye, and I craned my neck to kiss his cheek. His arm around me tightened, and our lips found each other with little persuasion. Greedy fingers threaded in my hair, and a fire sparked in my abdomen as he secured his muscular arm lower down my back.

  Opening my mouth with a soft, low moan, I shuffled a little closer as Eric tangled his tongue around mine. He tasted like the grinder he’d had for dinner, and my buds tingled from it. Creeping up his toned chest, my fingers tickled from the desire that slowly but surely flooded my veins. Defined abdominal muscles flexed under my palm, and he carefully pushed me on my back to climb
atop me.

  Kicking my shoes off clumsily, I gasped when Eric grabbed my ankle to spread my legs, and he smiled into my mouth. Grinding as our kiss grew more intense, he palmed my breast to squeeze and send shocks down my sternum. The bulge in his jeans was tempting, firm and hot even between four layers of fabric.

  “Eric-“ Arching greedily when he pinched my nipple outside my bra, I moaned as a shiver lodged between my shoulder blades. The living room was still and dark, with only a lamp to illuminate the edges of the furniture. Sticking his hand under my shirt, Eric thrust his hips before steering from my mouth downwards. His lips left a trail of fire along my skin, and I moaned while he kneaded my breast.

  “I’d fuck you again if I was more certain you wouldn’t wake up Maggie.” My abdomen pulsed wildly at Eric’s growl, and I gasped as he smirked broadly against my collar bone. Tilting my hips against his, I groaned and shuddered from the friction, and he propped his elbow by my head to stroke my hair. His eyes glittered beautifully, and I blushed at the glint that shone there. “Did you step-brother stop you from dating or anything?”

  “No?” Dragging my palms down his chest, I bit back a moan when Eric rolled up my shirt. His eyes didn’t leave mine as he tugged down my bra, and even the question he posed couldn’t douse the flames that raged just under my skin. “I worked- I had school- I didn’t see the point because there was no one I liked enough to put before those two things.”

  “Delainne-“ The roughness of his tongue sent a spasm through me as he licked the length of my sternum, and I sucked in a sharp breath. “Stay the night with me. He’s here, and I would feel better if you weren’t alone.”

  “You just want me to be a pillow.” My tease earned me a chuckle, but the seriousness of the offer slowed my heart. Eric must’ve felt it because he stopped his grinding, and I sighed before he covered my mouth with his. Wrapping my arms around his neck, my moan was all the answer he needed, and firm, familiar fingers grazed my bare belly.

  Expertly unfastening my jeans, Eric deepened our kiss, and he slipped his fingertips into my panties with a satisfied groan. Peeling the damp fabric from my slit, he tangled his tongue around mine, and my breath caught when he circled my swollen, needy nub. Gripping his shirt tightly, I lifted my hips into his palm, and his fingers sunk inside me with no resistance and no warning.

  The sensation sent pleasure rippling through me despite how foreign it still felt, and I ripped my mouth from Eric’s to clench my teeth hard. Clamping down on his fingers as he pumped slowly, magma flowed from my core to flood my veins. His palm ground against my clit with each, knuckle-deep thrust, and he kissed and nibbled my neck with pleased, low grunts.

  “Delainne… Delainne… Delainne… you smell so fucking good- it drives me wild.” Inhaling sharply, loudly, Eric shuddered atop me as I squirmed in pleasure, and he drove harder into my channel. “You have no fucking idea how great it feels knowing no one has ever smelled this- touched it- fucked you-“

  Callused knuckles rattled my hips as Eric put his body into his thrusts, and I gasped a ragged breath before my throat closed completely. The leather couch creaked in protest, and the roughness of his fingers only heightened my rapture. Rocking in sync to the thundering of my heart, he drove me closer and closer to a climax I snatched with greedy hands.

  The coil in my abdomen snapped violently, and I arched off the couch to stifle my breathless cry against Eric’s crown. Clamping down on his fingers as they twisted and curled, I dug my nails into his shoulders. Spasms raced down my legs, and I ground my teeth hard while colors popped behind my screwed eyelids.

  Waves of euphoria weighed down my body, and I panted harshly as I fell back. Forcing my eyes open, I struggled to take proper breaths, and Eric sprawled heavily on top of me. His weight was comfortable, and my breath hitched in my tight throat when he extracted his digits from my channel.

  “You make a nice pillow, Delainne.” A rasp of a giggle burst from my chest when Eric nuzzled my breasts, and he heaved a huge breath that sucked the warmth from my skin. Neither one of us tried to move even as a twinge of worry wiggled into my chest. As if he could feel it under his cheek, he groaned and hoisted himself up to shake his head slightly. “Let’s go upstairs. It’d be confusing if Maggie saw us like this… the trick is to wake up before she does… which is usually around 7am. Think you can manage that?”

  “I guess we’ll find out.”

  Eric

  Fiddling with Delainne’s mother’s engagement ring, I leaned on the balcony of the beautiful venue Casey had chosen for her reception. A gorgeous lake shimmered below, twinkling in the golden glow cast by the sinking sun. The wedding had been stunning, and everything went off without a hitch- surprisingly enough.

  Delainne refused to say a single word to anyone, and I had a feeling it was out of respect for my cousin and his new wife. She ignored every single person that tried to introduce him or her self- even my parents. Weddings, she explained in the car, were for the bride and the groom, and she wouldn’t be the cause for disaster.

  “It’s beautiful. I remember my dad’s marriage to my step-mother was nice, but it was stiff and kind of unwelcoming.” Delainne’s murmur floated on the warm breeze, and I glanced over to find myself entranced once again. She’d dyed her hair back to its original color, and she wore no makeup at all. Dark freckles smattered across her nose and cheekbones, but I never would’ve guessed they were there; she was really good at hiding them for some reason I had yet to ask about. A small, pained smile tilted her pale pink lips, and I pursed my own thinly as expectation grew between us. “Are you nervous?”

  “No. I just feel shitty for the circumstance. If my mom wasn’t so fucking pretentious-“

  “She wouldn’t be nearly as entertaining, Eric.” Teagen’s amused voice rolled down my spine uncomfortably, and I twisted to watch him saunter over. He had a good amount of wine in him, but he wasn’t drunk by any means. “I have to say- Casey and I were about ready to die when she asked if you couldn’t talk, Delainne. You look very charming tonight, by the way.”

  “Thank you.” Teagen grinned saucily, and I slipped Delainne’s ring back in my tuxedo pocket as they exchanged smiles. “I appreciate you going out on a limb for Eric.”

  “Hey, now- that’s my line.” Wrapping my arm around her slim waist, I smirked as her cheeks glowed dusky red and gold. She was breathtakingly beautiful in her gentle, grass green gown, and I forgot Teagen was only three feet away. “I appreciate you for being here tonight for me, Delainne.”

  Rolling her thick lips between her teeth, Delainne ducked to hide behind a curtain of perfect, mahogany curls. Reaching to tuck a lock behind her ear, I caressed the cubic zirconia, dangling ear rings she’d bought at some store at the mall. She’d promised with every other word to pay me back, but the ear rings were, maybe, $6. The dress was cheap, too, but Maggie liked it, so I couldn’t persuade Delainne to get something a little more glamorous.

  “Wow- are you sure you’re not the ones that should’ve been on the alter?” Snapping out of my daze, my gaze narrowed into fine points as it snapped to Teagen, and a shit-eating grin stretched his lips. “The chemistry between you two is insane. It’s even more intense than with Sasha.”

  My heart stuttered at Teagen’s drawl, and he swiftly turned on his heel to scurry back into the ballroom. Glaring at him, I could’ve exhaled fire through my nose as my blood boiled. Tightening my grip on Delainne, I reached my free hand to swipe my jaw, but she spoke up before I could apologize.

  “This is just a show for your parents, Eric.” Her tone was chillingly calm and grave considering the sweltering temperature, and my mouth dried. “No offence, but I don’t want to marry you. I just met you… and I enjoy the things we do together, and with Maggie, but I don’t want you to get the wrong idea.”

  “I know that- I don’t particularly want to think about that, either.” Grumbling quietly, I pressed my lips to her temple to inhale a lungful of her smell. “I’m not disillusioned- we met two
weeks ago. I understand. Not to mention- you’re really young. According to my mom’s story, we would’ve started dating when you were 17, and I’d rather not open that can of worms. I’m not some 20-year-old that’s never been in a relationship outside of high school.”

  “Can’t you get in a lot of trouble for that misconception, though?” Alarm rang in Delainne’s voice, and I shrugged carelessly even though the notion of the threat tightened my gut. Intelligent, bright eyes bored into the side of my face, and I sighed as I pictured the shit-show that would happen- theoretically, of course.

  “It wouldn’t do anything. No one can prove that we met when you were underage- because we didn’t. Also, things usually only go bad when charges are filed… even though it doesn’t necessarily matter what charges. If your father magically showed up and tried to charge me for kidnapping, it wouldn’t matter that I didn’t do it. The attempt alone would ruin my career. I’m not concerned about it.”

  “If Greg knows I’m here, then my father probably knows as well, Eric.” A bare thread of worry tainted Delainne’s tone, and I turned to face her fully. Her emotions played all over her expression, and I cupped her cheeks to brush her smattering of dark freckles gingerly.

  “I don’t have a problem with your dad, but if that creep motherfucker comes within a hundred yards of you, I’ll shoot him.” My voice deepened with momentousness, and Delainne clearly felt torn about my declaration. I’d shot people- killed people- while I was overseas, but it was my job.

  This was for pleasure- well, not pleasure, exactly. More like personal.

  “We’re ready for you.” Glancing over at Teagen’s interruption, I nodded curtly as nerves set on fire just underneath my skin. Taking a deep breath, I closed my eyes for a short second as Delainne stood on her tiptoes to rest her forehead against mine. Soft fingers wrapped around my wrists, and her jaw ticked under my palms before I forced my heavy lids apart.