She inhaled deeply again and held it in for a moment, then exhaled slowly while nodding.
“I can't promise we won't both get a little banged up in the process, though,” I warned her honestly.
Arya's dark eyes widened with fear. “I don’t want either of you getting hurt.”
I would have been insulted, especially since I have a good sixty pounds and several inches on Nova. But he had a deceptive build, appearing lean and wiry. However, I'd seen him fight in bars and in a ring—the dude was a fucking machine and lethal as hell. I knew I'd be able to hold my own against him, but I wouldn't walk away without taking a beating.
I smiled and kissed her sweet lips, distracting her for a few minutes. When I pulled back, she was dazed and flushed, tempting me to take her back to bed. But I wanted to be ready when Nova arrived.
Standing, I carried Arya back up to the bedroom and gave her a quick, hard kiss before setting her on her feet. “Go back to bed, baby,” I encouraged with a pat on her pretty little ass.
She rolled her eyes and scoffed. “As if I could sleep now.”
I cupped her face in my palms and gazed pleadingly into her eyes. “Please, Arya. You're resting for two.”
Crimson stained her cheeks as she protested, “You don't know that.”
I grinned arrogantly and glided my hands down her shoulders, and over her tits, before coming to rest on her flat belly. “Yeah, I do. That's my kid in there, and I want him and his mommy to rest.”
At the mention of her being called mommy, Arya’s eyes lit up with hope and happiness. “Okay.” She turned and sashayed toward the bed, making the bulge in my jeans grow. Then she threw me a sassy look over her shoulder, and I nearly gave in to my desire. “She and I will rest.”
I laughed and winked at her. “Nope. That's my boy in there.”
She shook her head in mock exasperation, but her lips curved into a beautiful smile. “We'll see.”
I chuckled again and tucked her in before taking a quick shower. She was fast asleep when I opened the bathroom door. Quietly, I roamed around the room, gathering our things. We hadn't brought much, so it didn't take long. I set out Arya's extra outfit, shoved everything else in my duffel, zipped it up, and headed downstairs. Then I grabbed my keys and walked out to my truck.
After tossing it in the extended cab's back seat, I loaded and secured my bike in the bed. Once that was done, I went back inside and made Arya some breakfast. I didn't want her skipping a meal with all the bullshit about to hit the fan.
When the food was ready, I checked my watch. If my prediction had been correct and Nova made good time, we had around an hour, give or take. I jogged up the steps and gently sat on the bed next to my woman. “Wake up, baby,” I whispered as I stroked the back of my hand over her soft cheek.
Her eyes fluttered, and as the sleep cleared, her mouth curled up in a lazy smile. I hated to give her any reason to lose the happy look on her face, which was why I was going to beat the shit out of Nova when he got here. “It's time to get up. I made you some breakfast.”
Reality floated back to her, and her expression clouded as she sat up. I kept my eyes trained on her face when the covers pooled around her waist. We didn't have time for me to lose my head over her incredibly sexy body. “I'm not hungry,” she responded as she scooted to the edge of the bed. “I'll just grab a quick shower.”
“No.” The word came out a little more harshly than I intended, and she lifted her head, staring at me in surprise. “Sorry.” I leaned in to give her a tender kiss. “I should have explained. You're eating for two, Arya. And we don't have time for breakfast and a shower. So, food it is.”
“But I'm not hungry,” she grumbled. “And I smell like your cologne and...sex.”
Exactly. It gave me a perverse sense of satisfaction to know her brother would smell me on her. Not that Nova needed any more reasons to want me dead.
I helped her up from the bed and dressed her—she'd become used to me wanting to do everything for her and rarely fought me on it anymore. Then I carried her down to the kitchen and lowered her onto a chair at the table. I removed the omelet I'd made from the microwave and grabbed a bowl of fruit from the counter, setting both in front of her. Lastly, I brought her a large glass of orange juice.