The Pregnancy Plot (Brothers In Arms: Retribution Book 2) by Carol Ericson Page A

they stepped inside the B and B, Jase hung up the umbrella on a hook by the front door. “I’m going to get that fire going. You go get into some dry clothes, or better yet, some warm pajamas. Do you want some warm milk? Tea?”
    “I’ll take some tea.” She turned at the hallway that led to the back of the house. “Are you always this bossy, Jase Buckley?”
    “This is nothing.”
    She disappeared into the back, and Jase strode to the fireplace and prodded the charred wood from yesterday’s fire. He hoisted a few more pieces onto the grate and tucked some kindling into the spaces.
    In two minutes, he had the flames dancing across the wood and he stared into the flickers of orange and gold. How could he have been so stupid?
    Straight up, he wouldn’t be able to tell if a woman was pregnant any more than he’d be able to tell what she ate for dinner. He must’ve bluffed his way through that one, because she seemed to believe his line of bull.
    If the boss could’ve seen his performance tonight out on that sidewalk, Coburn would’ve questioned his sanity.
    Nina had been faster on her feet than he’d been, telling Chris that Simon wasn’t the father. All he needed was for Chris Kitchens to be hanging around Nina, bringing up Simon every other minute.
    Man, he felt for the guy. Waiting all this time to track down his brother only months after that brother had died. Once Prospero and the CIA could straighten things out regarding Simon Skinner’s story, they’d have to notify Chris...and Nina.
    Maybe he’d be long gone by then, out of Nina’s life.
    Had she been right about her suspicions in LA? She might believe it was Simon who’d been stalking her, but he knew that couldn’t be true. Prospero had finally confirmed Max Duvall’s story, and even if they never recovered Simon’s body, they had no reason to doubt that Duvall had killed him in self-defense. But if not Simon, who?
    Would her stepsister have gone down to LA to watch Nina? Stalking didn’t seem to be Lou’s style. She preferred an all-out, in-your-face attack.
    Could the boss be right again? Had Tempest already been following Nina in LA? For what purpose? She knew nothing about Simon’s work.
    “You’re hogging all the warmth.”
    Still crouching in front of the fireplace and a now-blazing fire, he cranked his head around. Nina had wrapped herself in a pink robe that matched her cheeks. She’d dried her hair and it floated around her shoulders like a cloud.
    “The flames can be hypnotic.” He rose to his feet and stretched. “And I didn’t make your tea.”
    “I can make my own tea.”
    “Sit.” He pointed to the chair across from the fireplace. “I’m bossy, remember?”
    “It’s sweet of you to be so concerned, but I’m not going to break.”
    “Sweet?” He scratched his jaw. “That’s the first time that adjective’s ever been used to describe me.”
    “Oh, please.” She settled into the chair and curled her long legs beneath her. “You’re probably great with your nieces and nephews, too.”
    “Nieces and nephews? That’s a laugh. My sister’s the type who would eat her young.” He crossed into the kitchen and started filling the kettle with water.
    “Really? I’m surprised.”
    “You don’t know my sister.”
    “No, I mean I’m surprised you’re not an uncle. I would’ve thought the way you picked up on my pregnancy, you’d been around a pregnant woman before. I just assumed your sister...”
    He swore under his breath. He was getting himself in deeper and deeper here. He had to stop acting so natural around Nina. This wasn’t natural.
    He wasn’t writing a book. He didn’t need to work as a handyman to make money. He hadn’t recognized any signs that she was pregnant. His agency had spied on her.
    “A lot of my buddies have been getting married lately and having kids. Seems like a new baby popped out every other month.”
    He folded his arms and leaned against the counter that separated the kitchen