Page 27 of Hidden Desire

Robert nodded. “Good.”

“I’m going to head out unless you need me to do something else?”

Robert shook his head. “No. You’ve done so much already. Thank you for everything.”

“It was my pleasure. I like seeing you happy again,” Channing said. “Brandon is planning to have some men around here until you don’t need them anymore.” He bent and kissed Grace on the cheek. “Congratulations, Honey.”

“Thank you, Channing,” Grace said.

After the door closed, Robert turned to her and pulled her into his arms. “How are you doing, Sweetheart?”

“I think I’m okay. I just wish I understood what was going on.”

“I’ll tell you, but later. Let’s see what Taylor has for us to eat. After dinner, we’ll watch a movie and then put Hannah to bed.” The last thing he wanted was to tell her that her father was trying to get her back. He knew it would upset and possibly terrify her.

“Okay.”

Chapter Twelve

Grace watched as Robert and his daughter playfully teased each other, and she couldn’t help but smile. She could tell there was a deep love between them, and although she was happy they had each other, a small part of her always wondered if she was destined to be alone.

She glanced down at the beautiful ring Robert had slipped on her finger. Although it fit very well, she was still frightened she’d lose it. The time in the office earlier, where she was married, or thought she was, confused and scared her. The whole situation was surreal, and nothing made sense.

It might be something else besides the fact that Robert loved her and wanted her to be his wife. He’d never talked about his feelings toward her or if he even had them. He’d kissed her a few times and touched her intimately, but after the pool days before, he hadn’t shown any signs he even wanted her.

“Hey, aren’t you hungry, Sweetheart?” Robert asked.

She hadn’t realized she’d been staring down at her plate while her fork spread her food around. “Oh, not really. I guess I’m a little tired.”

He looked concerned. “We’ll go to sleep early tonight.”

Her eyes jerked up to his. “We? You don’t have to.”

A gentle smile grew across his face. “Yes, I do. It’s technically our wedding night.”

She could feel a blush cover her face. God, she hadn’t thought about that. “Oh, I just thought it was pretend.”

“No, Sweetheart. We are legally married.”

Hannah caught on to what they were saying. “Married? Who got married?”

“We’ll talk about that in a bit, Honey,” Robert said. “Let’s finish dinner.”

Grace couldn’t eat another bite, and fortunately, herefrained from saying anything.

Grace was surprised when Taylor sat a piece of cake in front of her and then hugged her.

“I wanted to make it a little bit special. It’s been a busy day.”

Grace smiled up at her and nodded.

The older woman must have caught the shadows of doubt in her eyes because she hugged her again. “It’s all going to be okay.”

Grace tried to smile as she nodded. She caught the look between Taylor and Robert, and it made her feel even more troubled.

The maids came in to take the dishes as Robert stood and helped her with the chair. He grasped her hand and Hannah’s and led them to the family room. The three sat on the sofa with Hannah in the middle.

“Before we start a movie, we’d like to tell you something,” he said to Hannah.