Wedding With The Enemy

Chapter 1 — Great Uncertainty

Isabella turned off the shower and stepped out of the stall. It was ten o'clock at night, and she wanted to get to bed early so she'd be rested and ready when Jed arrived the next day.

Just thinking about it made her stomach knot with fear. She caught her reflection in the mirror and pulled her robe around her slender body. How much longer would she stay this slender? She had to tell her boyfriend she was pregnant.

Jed Salvatore was a successful thirty-five-year-old financier who also wielded the quiet power behind the Salvatore Group. They had met a year ago when she was working as a waitress at a well-known restaurant. Jed had come in for lunch with a group of investors, and the moment he walked through the door his eyes landed on the girl behind the bar. He stood there watching her — her wavy blonde hair tumbling over her shoulders, her body exquisite. The black skirt and white blouse she wore did nothing to hide her figure, and Jed smiled as he watched her cross the marble floor in her heels, her legs the kind that could make any man's imagination run wild.

He followed her with his eyes until she reached a table and turned to smile at the next customer. That smile stopped the breath in his throat. He wasn't seeing anyone at the time, and he decided then and there that this girl would be his.

Jed took his seat and requested that she be the one to serve him — and naturally, no one contradicted Jed Salvatore. Isabella approached the table because she'd been asked to cover it. When she got close and smiled at him politely, he noticed she was even more beautiful up close. An oval face, fair skin, vivid blue eyes, and lips that were frankly sensual.

Jed smiled back, and when he held her gaze she blushed.

He asked her to have dinner with him that evening. Surprisingly, she turned him down, saying she wasn't allowed to go out with customers. She needed that job badly — it was covering her expenses while she studied History at university. He left his card and mentioned he could offer her something better.

From behind the bar, Isabella watched him. He was perfect: dark hair, brown eyes, flawless lips, a strong jaw. He was every woman's dream.

Isabella came back to the present, grabbed a towel, bent forward, and started drying her hair.

"Ah!" She cried out as someone grabbed her by the shoulder. "Jed — is that you?" she exclaimed.

"I hope so. Who else were you expecting in your bathroom?" He laughed.

"Jed, I wasn't expecting you until tomorrow. I've missed you so much," Isabella said, and curled into his arms.

He pulled her against him and walked her to the bedroom. "Do you want something to drink? You just got back from your trip."

"I couldn't spend another day away from you. The only thing I want is you." He laid her back on the bed and stretched out beside her.

Thrilled by the desire he showed for her, Isabella began to caress him and kissed him with abandon.

He made love to her slowly, with a passion that left no inch of her untouched, carrying her all the way to the edge.

Hours later, lying in his arms, she wondered whether their son would look like Jed. She had always dreamed of being married before getting pregnant. He'd mentioned he had a surprise for her — could it be a ring?

Jed got up and went to get Isabella's surprise.

"Sit down. This is for your graduation," he said, handing her a box. She opened it. Inside lay a diamond necklace.

"Thank you, Jed, it's beautiful," she said, fighting to keep the disappointment off her face. In the year they'd been together he was always giving her things.

The next morning over breakfast, Isabella began to feel ill — the nausea that hit her every morning without fail.

She ran to the bathroom while Jed called after her asking what was wrong. When she came back out, he studied her with an expression that mixed concern with tenderness. She smiled, walked up to him, and placed her hand on her stomach.