Riding the Storm - Brenda Jackson [56]
Of all those things she’d named, Storm recognized only one that he might eventually become guilty of.
“And what’s wrong with a man wanting the sole responsibility of taking care of his wife so she won’t have to work outside the home?”
Her glare thickened. “For some women, nothing, but I prefer taking care of myself. I don’t want to depend on anyone.”
Storm frowned and crossed his arms over his chest. “So, for your own selfish reasons, you’re willing to deny your child a father?”
“If it means not wasting my time looking for a Mr. Right who doesn’t exist, then yes.”
Storm tried to keep his anger in check. Why couldn’t she see that he was her Mr. Right? He slowly shook his head again. “If you want a baby, then I’ll give you my baby.”
“What!”
“You heard me. I’ll be damned if I’ll let another man get the woman I love pregnant.”
Jayla was shocked at the words he’d spoken. “The woman you love?”
Silence shredded the air and Storm knew he had to get her to understand the depth of how he felt. He crossed the room and with his fingertip, lifted her chin to meet his gaze. “Yes. I love you, Jayla, and if you want a baby, then we’ll get married and I’ll give you one.”
She stared at him as if she didn’t believe he’d suggested such a thing. And then she took a step back from him. “Things wouldn’t work between us, Storm. You would want more from a wife than I’m willing to give.”
“And what about the fact that I love you?”
She shrugged. “I believe you like sleeping with me, but I find it hard to believe that you really love me, Storm.”
She sighed deeply when he didn’t say anything but continued to stare at her. “We agreed that we would end things between us whenever I was ready,” she finally said to break the silence. “Well, I’m ready. For us to continue seeing each other will only complicate matters.”
“Complicate matters like hell!” he said, his voice rising. “I tell you that I love you and that I want to marry you and give you the baby you want, and you’re telling me that you don’t believe a word of it and to get out of your life? And to top things off, you plan to continue with this crazy scheme to have a baby from a man who not only doesn’t love you, but a man you don’t even know?”
“I don’t owe you an explanation for anything I do, Storm. And considering everything, it would be best if you left.”
Storm stared at her for a moment, then moved past her to the bedroom. Moments later, fully dressed, he came back into the living room. He stood in front of her and said softly, “I hope that one day you’ll take your blinders off. Maybe then you’ll recognize your Mr. Right when he comes and stands right in front of you.”
He then turned and walked out the door.
When Storm left, Jayla moved around the house trying to convince herself that she was glad they would no longer be seeing each other. The last thing she needed was a man trying to control her life.
After closing things up and turning off the lights, she slipped back into bed, and tried to ignore the scent of Storm that still lingered there. She closed her eyes.
I love you, Jayla…
She opened her eyes, flipped on her back and stared up at the ceiling as she tried to convince herself that she wasn’t the one with blinders on, he was. Couldn’t he see that what he was feeling wasn’t really love but lust? Die-hard bachelors like Storm didn’t fall in love in a blink of an eye or after a few rolls between the sheets.
She turned to her side and closed her eyes, trying to force thoughts of Storm from her mind. But she couldn’t. Steeling herself, she sighed, knowing the memories of the times they’d spent together were too deep, too ingrained in her memory.
Getting over him wouldn’t be easy, but dammit she would try. She would shift her focus elsewhere and appreciate the good things that were happening to her. Everything she’d wanted was falling in place. Tomorrow, she would go to the fertility clinic for her physical and then she would wait eagerly for the day when she would be inseminated.
Storm was not the most important thing to her—having a baby was.
“Hey,