Lonely Heart by MJ Kane Read Free Book Online Page B

until it’s time to have the baby. Oh, speakin’ of which, I’ve got a new job offer.”
    “What? Tell!” Yasmine said.
    “The studio wants to put me in charge of wardrobe for another TV show.” Just the idea my name came up as a candidate for the position made me smile from ear-to-ear.
    “That’s wonderful!” Ebony said.
    I shared the news about the two contracts. It took an entire week to weigh the pros and cons of each position.
    “Have you decided what you’re going to do?” Yasmine asked.
    I took a deep breath. “I’m goin’ for it. The pay is better, so are the benefits. God knows I need insurance to pay for the baby’s birth and doctor’s appointments. I just have to do a good job. Alexandria has faith in me or else she wouldn’t have recommended me for the job. Now I’ve got to have faith in myself.”
    “Do you?” Yasmine studied me.
    “Yes, I do.”
    Or else, I’m screwed.

Chapter 9
     
    “Antonio, are you even listening?”
    I blinked, but couldn’t erase the bored expression on my face fast enough. Listening to Gina’s monologue put me to sleep.
    Maybe tonight wasn’t the best night to live up to my promise of spending time with her.
    Irritation shot from her eyes. “If you are not interested in what happened last week, why don’t you just say so?”
    How could I tell her the reason why she added bronze streaks in her hair or how long it took to find the perfect fingernail polish to match her sandals was inconsequential to my life?
    Instead of replying, I kissed her.
    Her arms went around my neck, pulled me close; the kiss deepened.
    “Mmm…if you wanted me to stop talking, why didn’t you do this ten minutes ago?” Gina moved from her side of the sofa, sat on my lap, and settled my hands around her waist. There was no mistaking where she expected things to go from here.
    After a few minutes, I was unable to build up any sense of desire. It wasn’t working. If anything, her hands in my hair and the slide of her lips from my mouth to the side of my throat did nothing but irritate me.
    Why was I doing this?
    “I still have that sexy number you’ll like. It’s underneath my clothes,” Gina whispered, then nipped my ear with her teeth. She stood and began a striptease.
    I reached for her hands and stood, stopping her before she finished unhooking her shirt. I got a glimpse of black lace over bountiful breasts. Oddly enough, it did nothing for me.
    I pulled her in and held her tight, trying to decide how to handle what happened next. If I slept with her now, she’d expect me to stay. When we first got together, every time we saw each other resulted in ripping off our clothes. But now the attraction had faded, at least on my side. Something was missing. For the life of me, I couldn’t figure out what. Whatever it was, Gina couldn’t provide it.
    Even if I pushed that thought aside and got into it, when the action ended, we would cuddle and the subject of marriage or kids would come up. She needed to know how I felt about the matter, which of course, knowing Gina’s temperament, would start an argument. I was in no mood to deal with drama tonight.
    In the end, it was cliché. The problem in our relationship was me.
    How would I realistically make myself or any woman happy with my expectations?
    I kissed her forehead. “Not tonight, Gina. I have to go.” I pulled away.
    “Go?” Her creative use of expletives in Spanish made me flinch.
    Never piss off a horny woman.
    “Gina, you wear me out, I’ll be no good at work if I stay. We have a heavy workload tomorrow; my uncle needs me.”
    My attempt to smooth my departure over got deflected by her temper.
    Gina dragged my hand to the exposed swell of her breasts. “Does your uncle have one of these?”
    “Gina…”
    “Look, Antonio, I don’t know what the problem is, but you need to figure it out. You can’t keep all of this sitting around the house waiting for you to decide that you want it.”
    “I know…look, I’ll