"No, I'm on a plane returning to the States."

She felt a gentle tug of joy in her stomach. He was on his way home. "You're going to Los Angeles?"

"No, I'm headed straight for where you are," he said softly. "By the time you awake in the morning I should have landed. I miss you."

She felt another pull in her stomach. "And I miss you, too."

"Will it be okay for me to come straight there from the airport?" he asked.

A grin touched her lips. "Yes, most certainly."

She heard his soft chuckle. "In that case, I'm going to let you go so you can get your rest. Trust me when I say that you're going to need it."

She clearly understood his underlying hint and countered, "I encourage you to take a few catnaps on the plane as you're going to need your rest, as well."

After Dominic ended his conversation with Taylor he leaned back in the leather seat and closed his eyes. G.o.d, he missed her. For the past week he could barely concentrate on business without thinking about her. The meetings with his business a.s.sociates had been intense, and with a heaping amount of s.e.xual frustration thrown into the mix, negotiations at times had gotten downright heated. In the end, he had closed the deal he had wanted and his mission had been accomplished. Now he could set his mind and sights to other things.

Like finally acknowledging he had fallen in love with Taylor.

It had been bound to happen at some point, he thought. The week on that island had been no joke. Since then he had been trying to convince himself his attraction to her was only s.e.xual, and that since Camry he had enjoyed a number of women's company. But he'd known this thing with Taylor went deeper.

He would never forget the exact moment he'd realized just how he felt. It was the last time they had made love. After experiencing what he considered as the best o.r.g.a.s.m of his life, he had lain beside her, held her in his arms when suddenly, his mind and body had begun reeling before experiencing a feeling of having been punched in the gut by one of those wrestlers Ryder liked watching on television.

Dominic had been tempted to tell her then, but had decided to wait, to think more about his feelings and to give himself time to contemplate hers, as well as to set up a plan of action if he discovered she wasn't feeling the same way he was. He knew one of the things that made his parents' marriage special was their love for each other. Theirs was not a one-sided love match.

And he wanted the same thing for him and Taylor. If she didn't love him now, by the time he was through with her, she would. He loved her and she was going to have his baby. He was a very lucky man, a man very much in love with the mother of his child. Now his goal was to do whatever it took to make sure Taylor loved him, as well. His mission was to win her heart.

Taylor had gotten a good night's rest, grateful it was Sat.u.r.day and that she wouldn't have to go into the office. She glanced at the clock. It wasn't quite seven but she'd hoped Dominic would have arrived by now.

She had gotten up at the crack of dawn and although she hadn't bothered changing out of her nightclothes, she had washed her face, brushed her teeth and tried making her hair look decent.

If it wasn't so early in the morning she would call Cheyenne to check on her. They had talked a few nights ago and her sister was doing better with her pregnancy. The morning sickness was easing up somewhat with Cheyenne whereas so far Taylor hadn't experienced one day of her stomach feeling queasy.

Taylor's heart leaped in her chest when she heard the sound of the doorbell. She inhaled deeply as she crossed the room to answer it. The moment she opened the door to find Dominic standing there, immaculate as ever, simply breathtaking, whatever emotions she had been feeling before were nothing compared to what she was feeling now. Whether he loved her or not didn't matter. She truly loved him.

"Taylor..."

And then she realized that he had taken a step into the room, closed and locked the door behind him and had whispered her name just seconds before pulling her into his arms. The moment their mouths touched she felt it all the way to the bone, and she put her heart, body and soul into their kiss.

And when she felt herself being swept up into his arms, her body began aching with need, as he headed for the bedroom. She was so consumed with wanting and desire she barely realized the moment he had placed her on the bed, joined her there and began removing their clothes.

But she was fully aware of when he moved his body over hers and began kissing her again with a hunger that sent blood gushing through her veins. And when she felt the thickness of his erection, poised against her feminine core, she wanted him with a degree that she never wanted him before. And knowing that he wanted her, as well, that he was barely holding back and that possibly the moment he entered her he would explode, had her tense on the verge of reaching an o.r.g.a.s.m just that quick. They would savor the next one. Now what the two of them needed, what they wanted was immediate satisfaction.

He glanced down at her, opened his mouth to say something, but whatever he was about to say was lost when she lifted her hips and forced him to enter her. He threw his head back and growled out her name the exact moment he thrust forward, going deep, spilling inside her with an o.r.g.a.s.m of gigantic magnitude. She came the moment she felt his hot release and wrapped her legs around him, locking him to her.

Bringing his head down, she pressed her mouth to his as all the pa.s.sion and love she felt flowed through her, began overtaking her. Her moans of pleasure mingled with his and their bodies began shuddering and this was one magical moment that she didn't ever want to end.

"Who gave you this, Taylor?"

Upon hearing Dominic's voice it took her a moment to muster up enough strength to open her eyes. Their lovemaking sessions always left her weak as water from nearly drowning in pa.s.sion.

She brought him into focus. He was sitting on the edge of the bed holding something in his hand. She blinked to bring him into focus again and saw it was the business card his grandfather had given her. She inhaled sharply, much preferring to have waited before having this conversation with him, but it seemed that that wouldn't be the case.

"Taylor?"

He had turned and was looking at her intensely. In other words, he was frowning. She slowly pulled up in bed, mindful of the fact that like him, she was stark naked.

"Your grandfather gave it to me."

The look he gave her was one as if he'd been slapped and then he said harshly, "That's impossible because I don't have a grandfather."

She rolled her eyes. "At least not one you want to claim. You should have told me about him, Dominic. I had a right to know."

He stood and stared down at her. "The only rights you have regarding me are the ones I give you, Taylor, and an a.s.sociation with Franco Saxon isn't one of them. The man means nothing to me."

She glared at Dominic. "He might not mean anything to you, but he is my child's great-grandfather."

"No, he is not!"

"Yes, he is," she said, struggling to keep her voice calm. "Don't you think it's time for you to forgive him and move on?"

Dominic looked livid. He reached out and gripped her wrist and brought her closer to him. "No. And I don't want him to be a part of my child's life."

"And I intend for him to be a part of it, Dominic. I made him a promise."

He let go of her hand. "How much did he offer, Taylor?"

"What are you talking about?"

"I know the man. For years he's been trying to win me over with his money, with offers of business deals, the naming of me as his heir, ownership of his shipping company...so I'm sure he offered you something. What was it?" he demanded.

Taylor didn't like the sound of Dominic's raised voice, nor of his insinuations. "Are you saying that you believe I made a promise to your grandfather because of some money deal?"

"Didn't you? Are you saying he didn't agree to acknowledge our unborn child as his heir if you went along with him?"

His words made Taylor furious. "It wasn't like that at all, Dominic. Franco is a man who loves you and who already loves his great-grandchild. He merely wants to be a part of our baby's life and I can see no reason why he should not."

"Well, I do and I won't have it."

She leaned forward and placed her hands on her naked hips. "I don't care what you won't have so get over it. I will not break my promise to him."

"And what about your loyalty to me?"

Taylor figured that now was not the time to tell Dominic that not only did he have her loyalty but that he also had her love, but that this was one issue she could not, would not agree with him on. "I am loyal to you, Dominic, however, I will not deny my child the right to know its great-grandparent."

The room got quiet, and the tension surrounding them was almost unbearable. Then Dominic spoke as he began picking up his clothes off the floor. "Then it seems we have nothing more to discuss, Taylor."

He turned his back on her and went into the bathroom and closed the door. He reappeared in the room a short while later fully dressed. He came over to the bed, stood over her and glared down at her. His face was tight, his features still intense. "I'm leaving."

"Fine, and once you realize just how unfair you're being, please call me."

He face darkened. "I will call occasionally for no other reason than to check on my child. Otherwise, Taylor, our a.s.sociation is over."

Taylor fought back the tears in her eyes. "If that's the way you want things, Dominic, then that's the way they will be."

He stared down at her for a few more minutes and then without saying anything else, he turned and walked out of her condo.

It was later that day before Taylor was able to get out of bed, and only then because she knew she needed to eat something. She had to take care of the life growing inside her-the life Dominic had placed there.

As she began moving around her apartment, she couldn't put out of her mind the words Dominic had spoken. Did he hate his grandfather that much? Okay, she could imagine how he must have felt as a child growing up to discover the rift that existed between his parents and his grandfather, but if his parents could forgive the man, then why couldn't he?

"Because he is so d.a.m.n stubborn," Taylor muttered as she sat down to eat a bowl of cereal and milk. "Okay, so I won't be at his beck and call anymore," she said to the walls, sneering. "It will be his loss. I should not have been at his beck and call anyway. The only thing between us was l.u.s.t...at least on his end." She knew for her it was more. It was love.

After breakfast she decided to go for a walk. She had to leave the apartment for a while. And later she would take in a movie. She needed to keep her mind occupied so Dominic wouldn't consume so much of it. He'd made his feelings clear and there was nothing left for her to do but accept it and move on.

And she would. He'd given her no choice.

Chapter 13.

Two weeks later, Dominic was standing at the window in his New York office, staring down at the people below. They were moving rather quickly along the sidewalk, and he thought about just how fast their lives seemed to be moving. But for him it appeared that his had come to a complete standstill.

And all because of Taylor.

He inhaled deeply. He hadn't realized just how much he loved her until he'd had to do without her. He had called her twice and their conversations had been brief. He had asked how she was doing, she had said fine, and then she had ended the call. He had said some harsh words to her that day, words he now wished he could take back.

Taylor was who she was and he couldn't expect her to have a beef with his grandfather just because he had one. She was not that type of woman. She had a mind of her own, she thought for herself. He would not have wanted her any other way.

And he did want her. d.a.m.n, he also loved her but he had been willing to turn his back on that love and let his intense stubbornness rule his mind and common sense. But it hadn't been able to eradicate what was in his heart.

"Mr. Saxon, your mother is here to see you."

He turned at the sound of his secretary's voice on the intercom. As much as he loved his mother she was the last person he wanted to see right now. She had gotten upset with him when he had told her about the argument he'd had with Taylor. His mother had called him, among other things, pigheaded.

"Mr. Saxon?"

"Yes, Liza, please send her in."

The door opened and his mother walked in, beautiful as ever, but she was frowning. She retained that frown as she crossed the room and came to a stop in front of him.

"Okay, Nicky, you have sulked long enough. By now I had hoped you would have come to your senses. I want to know just what you're going to do to get the mother of my grandchild back?"

Her question, Dominic thought, was simple enough, but to be completely honest, he didn't have a clue. For all he knew, Taylor might not want to be gotten back. The last two times they had talked she didn't seem inclined to have anything more to do with him.

"It's not going to be easy," he said quietly.

Megan placed a hand on his arm and he couldn't help noticing her eyes had softened somewhat and her frown was gone. "Do you want her back?"

"Yes, I want her back," he didn't hesitate to say. "Besides you, she is the most remarkable woman I know."

A smile touched Megan Saxon's lips. "You love her, don't you?"

Dominic met his mother's inquisitive but gentle stare and said, "Yes, I love her."

"Then you're going to have to do whatever it takes to win her heart and convince her that you were wrong and that you love her," Megan said in a soft voice. "Let love guide you to do the right thing. And when you get things straightened out, let me and your father know. We still want to meet her. Regardless of your relationship, she is the mother of our grandchild." She glanced at her watch. "I have to go, our private plane is waiting."

He lifted a brow. "And where are you and Dad off to now?"

"Paris. It's your grandfather's seventieth birthday and we're flying in for the birthday celebration planned for tomorrow night. I'll talk to you when I get back."

After his mother had left, Dominic sat at his desk while he planned his strategy to win back Taylor. Moments later after taking a deep breath he picked up the phone and punched in the phone number to her cell phone. He leaned back in the chair, waiting for her to answer.

Instead, another voice came on the line that said, "I am sorry, but at the customer's request, this number has been changed to a nonpublished number." "I am sorry, but at the customer's request, this number has been changed to a nonpublished number." Then there was a sharp click in his ear. Then there was a sharp click in his ear.

He slowly hung up the phone. Taylor had changed her number? Not to be denied the right to speak with her, he then pulled her business card from his desk to try reaching her at the office. Her secretary's cheery voice came on the line. "Good afternoon, a.s.sets of Steele. May I help you?"

"Yes, this is Dominic Saxon and I would like to speak with Ms. Steele, please."

"I'm sorry, Mr. Saxon, but Ms. Steele is out of town."

"I see," he said, somewhat disappointed. "Is she visiting her family in North Carolina?"

"No, sir, she is out of the country."

Dominic frowned as he stood from his seat. "Out of the country? Where did she go?" he asked, as if he had a right to know.

There was a pause, and then as if the secretary decided that maybe he did, she said, "She's in France."