Baby Of Fortune
Baby Of Fortune
Shirley Rogers
Justin Bond knew all about forging steel ties, but human bonds were another matter - especially when it came to winning back his wife! And with Heather agreeing to accompany him to Texas to meet his Fortune relatives, he'd reluctantly sworn to be the perfect gentleman…. But when their platonic arrangement gave way to passion, Justin learned Heather's three-month-old secret. A baby had torn them apart, but now could baby Timmy keep them together?
THE TEXAS TATTLER
All the news that’s barely fit to print!
Fortunes Bestow Texas-Sized Welcome on Heirs!
Never let it be said that those Fortunes don’t look out for their own. All of Red Rock is buzzing with news of the ten-million-dollar gift Miranda and Mary Ellen Fortune have bestowed on each of the “lost heirs.” Local merchants are stockpiling electronics and “luxury goods”—just in case Miranda and Cameron Fortune’s offspring want to unload some of that money.
Of course, it’s not entirely clear that all of them need the money, especially Justin Bond. He’s already made his mark in the steel industry and is one of Pennsylvania’s leading businessmen. A source close to the Fortunes tells us that there is one thing this tycoon wants—his wife. Seems Justin and his college sweetheart have been estranged for the past year and during that time he became a daddy. Now, if you ask this reporter, that’s an even bigger gift than all the money in Texas!
Dear Reader,
Welcome to the world of Silhouette Desire, where you can indulge yourself every month with romances that can only be described as passionate, powerful and provocative!
Silhouette’s beloved author Annette Broadrick returns to Desire with a MAN OF THE MONTH who is Hard To Forget. Love rings true when former high school sweethearts reunite while both are on separate undercover missions to their hometown. Bestselling writer Cait London offers you A Loving Man, when a big-city businessman meets a country girl and learns the true meaning of love.
The Desire theme promotion THE BABY BANK, about sperm-bank client heroines who find love unexpectedly, returns with Amy J. Fetzer’s Having His Child, part of her WIFE, INC. miniseries. The tantalizing Desire miniseries THE FORTUNES OF TEXAS: THE LOST HEIRS continues with Baby of Fortune by Shirley Rogers. In Undercover Sultan, the second book of Alexandra Sellers’s SONS OF THE DESERT: THE SULTANS trilogy, a handsome prince is forced to go on the run with a sexy mystery woman—who may be the enemy. And Ashley Summers writes of a Texas tycoon who comes home to find a beautiful stranger living in his mansion in Beauty in His Bedroom.
This month see inside for details about our exciting new contest “Silhouette Makes You a Star.” You’ll feel like a star when you delve into all six fantasies created in Desire books this August!
Enjoy!
Joan Marlow Golan
Senior Editor, Silhouette Desire
Baby of Fortune
Shirley Rogers
SHIRLEY ROGERS
lives in Virginia with her husband, two cats and an adorable Maltese named Blanca. She has two grown children, a son and a daughter. As a child, she was known for having a vivid imagination. It wasn’t until she started reading romances that she realized her true destiny was writing them! Besides reading, she enjoys traveling and going to the movies.
Shirley loves to hear from readers. Please enclose a self-addressed, stamped envelope and write to: PMB#189, 1920-125 Centerville Tpke., Virginia Beach, VA 23464.
Meet the Fortunes of Texas
Meet the Fortunes of Texas’s Lost Heirs—membership in this Texas family has its privileges and its price. As the family gathers to welcome its newest members, it discovers a murderer in its midst…and passionate new romances that only a true-bred Texas love can bring!
CAST OF CHARACTERS
Justin Bond: This no-nonsense, hard-driven businessman has already made his mark in the world…but now he’s realizing what matters most—family!
Heather Bond: Once she’d loved Justin with her whole heart, but a tragedy had ripped their marriage apart. Can she learn to love her husband again?
Timmy Bond: At three months, he is too young to understand how the events happening in this single month will shape his entire life….
Holly Douglas: Cameron’s illegitimate daughter had refused to come to Red Rock…so now the Fortunes are taking matters into their own hands and heading to Alaska!
Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
One
“Take your hands off my wife.”
Justin Bond stood on the spacious porch of the home he’d once shared with his wife, and a flash of irritation whipped through him. He steeled himself to remain in control as he stared through the partially open door. He’d never expected to find Heather in the arms of another man.
Sucking in a hard breath, he balled his hands into fists at his side. His plans to woo his wife slammed into a brick wall. He’d come to ask her to give their marriage another try. It was a blow to his self-esteem to discover she was seeing someone else.
Reeling from the brutal tone of the warning, the man snapped his arms away from Heather, tripping over his own feet as he backed away. A nervous twitch appeared in his left eye. Justin considered that a victory of sorts.
“Justin!”
Shock and disbelief registered on his wife’s face. She pressed a hand to her chest, as if unable to catch her breath. Or was she embarrassed to be caught in a compromising situation? Justin wasn’t sure which, and at the moment, he didn’t exactly care. He wanted this jerk out of his house.
“Heather.” Justin swiftly shifted his gaze in her direction again, and annoyance swept through him like a sandstorm in the desert. He clenched, then relaxed his hands again.
“What are you doing here?” She didn’t wait for him to answer as she looked from Justin to the other man, then back at her husband. Soft pink color stained her cheeks and neck, disappearing beneath the vee of her cream-colored blouse. “Um, you remember…uh, Paul…Paul Dailey, a colleague of mine from school?” Her voice trembled slightly.
Justin acknowledged the introduction with a slight nod. Twisting his lips, he studied his competitor. He hadn’t thought much of Dailey when he’d first met him a few years ago at a school function with Heather. His blond hair was messy, his casual pants and shirt severely wrinkled. He’d always had that “slick salesman” look about him. Justin didn’t trust him for a second.
It took every ounce of his willpower to restrain from storming into the room, grabbing the jerk by his collar and throwing him out of the house. Dammit! Heather was still his wife!
“Paul stopped by to discuss some…committee decisions we need to make.”
Justin sent his wife a questioning glance. “Committee decisions?” His throat tightened as his gaze shifted with lightning speed to her companion. “Is that what you were discussing with my wife?” he asked pointedly. He put his hands on his hips, and it gave him a bit of pleasure to note a trace of fear in Dailey’s eyes.
“We, uh, I…yes.” Paul Dailey cleared his throat several times, and his hands flitted about nervously, as if disconnected from his arms. “Heather, we…uh, we can continue our discussion tomorrow at school.” He snatched his briefcase from the floor and clutched it against his chest like a shield of armor. Without looking at her, he cautiously approached the door, his eyes watchful of the man challenging him.
Justin didn’t move, forcing Dailey to squeeze his slender body through the small opening created between Justin and the doorjamb. Before Dailey was through the door, Justin reached out and flattened his hand against the jamb, preventing his escape.
“My wife is off-limits to anyone but me. In the future, you’d be smart to remember that.” The threat of Justin’s words was reinforced by his grave tone. He hesitated a moment, then dropped his arm. He heard the man’s hurried footsteps, then a car door, and finally a revving engine and squealing tires. If he wasn’t so irritated with his wife, he might have been amused.
As it was, Justin stared at the woman he’d married seven years ago, his heart slamming hard against the wall of his chest. Damn, just seeing her again after a year apart made his pulse race. Heather had always had that effect on him. She was still as beautiful as the day he’d met her on the campus of Penn State during his last year of school.
Watching him with uneasy eyes, Heather cautiously stepped closer, stopping just in front of him. She put her hand on the door, then leaned her hip against it, hiking her short brown skirt higher on her thighs. Her auburn hair fell in curls around her face and shoulders. Black shoes with three-inch heels complemented her shapely calves. Justin’s muscles tightened as he remembered the last time he’d stroked her legs, the last time they’d been intimate. His blood pressure rose a notch.
Damn, a year was a long time without sex.
Apparently, it had been too long for Heather, also, he thought, outrage pulling at him.
“That was uncalled for,” she stated, her voice sounding more stable as she began to absorb the shock of seeing him. Small brackets formed a frown around her full lips.
“Was it?” Justin shrugged one big shoulder. “The wimp wanted to have you. I made sure he understood he wouldn’t.”
He heard her intake of breath as her green eyes darkened with emotion.
“You have no right to interfere with my life.” Her features tightened as she glared at him, a line between her eyes becoming prominent.
“You’re still my wife,” Justin reminded her. “Apparently you’ve forgotten that.”
“I haven’t forgotten that we’re still married.” She faced him squarely, her shoulders visibly tightening. “But I easily could have. I haven’t heard a word from you in a year.” The reminder was spoken sharply, and hurt lingered in the shadows of her eyes. After she’d miscarried their baby, Justin had withdrawn from her. Eventually their marriage had suffered irreversible damage, and he’d chosen to leave her. The pain of his rejection still had the power to make her heart ache.
Justin stated the obvious. “I’m here now. May I come in?”
As she stared at her husband, Heather’s whole carriage stiffened. Her heart tripped over itself as his gaze held hers captive. He was so handsome that he literally stole her breath. Impeccably dressed in a white shirt and dark business suit, he looked as if he’d come straight from work. Justin always had a presence about him, something about him that commanded attention wherever he was, whoever he was with.
She glanced back up at his face. His well-groomed dark brown hair was combed back from his face, and his blue eyes were blatantly perceptive as they studied her. Though she could never quite read what Justin was thinking, she wished now, more than ever, that she had such power.
What was he doing here? Could it be that he still loved her? Flushing at the foolish thought, she dismissed it. She’d given up that hope long ago. Besides, she wasn’t going to let him hurt her again. There was no way in hell she could stand the torture of losing him again.
“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” she told him, then frantically glanced behind her and into the living room, praying that none of her baby’s things were visible. It was the one area of the house that she tried very hard to keep straight.
A flash of guilt swept through her, temporarily paralyzing her. She’d never told him that when he’d walked away from her, he’d left her pregnant. He had no idea that he had a three-month-old son. Knowing Justin, if she’d told him, he would have felt obligated to come back to her—and Heather hadn’t wanted him back on those terms. A child wasn’t a good reason to keep a marriage together. She’d learned that cold hard fact when her own father had deserted her and her mother when she was thirteen.
Her husband’s unexpected arrival on her doorstep unnerved her. Was it possible he’d learned of Timmy’s existence? Panic seized her—the hard, gripping kind that twisted and tortured every muscle in her chest.
“I’d like to talk to you.” Justin spoke with obvious control. Though he appeared calm, the underlying determination in his tone spoke volumes.
Heather glanced at her watch and realized she was very late picking up Timmy. Nerves made her stomach tighten as she weighed the consequences of allowing Justin inside. She was thankful she’d had a few errands to run after school, and hadn’t swung by her mother’s for her baby.
“Maybe some other time,” she suggested coolly, dropping her hands to her side. Dispassionately, she continued, “I have another appointment in a few minutes.” It was the wrong thing to say.
Justin stared directly at her, his curiosity apparently piqued. “What kind of appointment?”
“Just something I need to take care of,” she offered vaguely. She combed her hair away from her face with her fingers. “Look, can’t this wait?”
“It’ll only take a few minutes,” he insisted, stepping closer. “What harm could there be in inviting me in?”
His words made her skin burn hot, and Heather immediately assured herself that her reaction was only from seeing him so unexpectedly, not at all because of his nearness or the familiar scent of him. No, she couldn’t afford to let her heart respond to him.
“None, I assure you,” she retorted, then wished she hadn’t let him provoke her.
“Then let me in—” his lips curved ever so slightly “—since you have nothing to be afraid of.”
Heather thought about it for a moment. Well, technically he was still her husband, even if she didn’t want to acknowledge that fact to him. That they’d been separated for a year apparently meant nothing at all to him. And she really couldn’t refuse, since he still owned the house they’d shared through six years of marriage.
She shifted and moved away from the door. “All right. For a few minutes.”
Justin stepped inside, and then he shut the door behind him. As he entered the foyer and then the living room, his gaze slowly swept it, as if cataloging every item in minute detail.
His scrutiny made Heather edgy, and she glanced about, again searching the room to be sure it was free of anything that belonged to her son. Then she walked over to the sofa and stopped beside it. “Would you like to sit down?” She gestured toward the chair across from her.
“I’ll stand.” Justin walked farther into the room.
His gaze swept her from head to toe, and she nervously smoothed her hair with her hand. The curls refused to cooperate, and she tucked a stray strand behind her ear.
“How long have you been seeing Dailey?” It came out sounding like a blunt demand.
“We’re just friends. I haven’t been seeing him.”
Justin stared at her, his expression disbelieving. “Then that was the first time he’s come on to you?”
Heather blushed furiously.
“I didn’t think so.”
“All right, I’ll admit that it wasn’t, but that doesn’t mean anything!” She put her hands on her hips to stop them from shaking. He had the power to annoy her without even trying. Apparently he hadn’t changed. Justin always had to be in control. It was one of the things she’d first admired about him. He’d been a no-nonsense, hard-driven, dependable person in her life when she’d needed someone to care for her. After years of struggling with feelings of abandonment by her father, it had been easy for her to let him take charge.
But she was no longer the love-starved young girl he’d married. She no longer needed someone to lean on, someone to protect her and take care of her.
“I see.”
“Apparently you don’t,” Heather retorted, taking in his skeptical expression. “Maybe Paul’s asked me out a few times, but I’ve always refused.” Heather had her hands full working full-time as a teacher and being a mother.
Okay, so maybe she got lonely once in a while, but she wasn’t ready to date again. She didn’t have time for a relationship, nor did she want one. She knew too well how easy it was to get hurt.
Justin’s jaw tightened a fraction. “He didn’t look as if he was going to take no for an answer just now,” he remarked.
“You didn’t give me a chance to make it clear to him that I wasn’t interested.”
“If he’s come on to you before and you’ve discouraged him, apparently he isn’t getting the message,” he reasoned, and a muscle worked in his jaw.
Heather gave a frustrated sigh. “I really don’t see that this is any of your business. You’ve been out of my life a long time, Justin, and I don’t owe you any explanations.”
He favored her with a curious look, lifting his brow in question. “We’re still married.”
She bristled, annoyed by the intimate reminder she saw in his eyes. “We haven’t lived together in a year,” she stated, resolving to end the conversation.
“That’s why I came to see you.”
Heather paled and her breath caught. She felt as if she’d been punched in the chest.
He’s come to ask you for a divorce!
She trembled before she brought herself under control. Though totally unprepared for this, she could handle it. She could, dammit! Shaking her head, she realized she should have expected that he’d find someone new.
“You want a divorce,” she stated flatly, denying him the chance to tell her he was in love with someone else.
A small smile gradually spread on Justin’s lips, just enough to expose a trace of the dimple in his right cheek. Heather’s heart hammered. His smile was what had first attracted her to him. His smile and that damn attractive dimple.
“What?” Confusion etched her brow. Feeling lightheaded, she touched the back of the sofa for support. “Isn’t that why you’re here?”
“No.”
She glanced at his hand, and for the first time realized he still wore his diamond-and-gold wedding band. “Why are you here, then?”
Justin regarded her silently, then seemed to choose his words very carefully. “Actually, I want us to give our marriage another try, Heather.”
“What?” Heather couldn’t have heard him right. Surely, her mind was playing tricks on her.
“You heard me correctly,” he assured her, apparently reading the bewilderment on her face. “I want us to give our marriage another chance.” He stepped closer to her, and she immediately took two steps away from him.
“I don’t understand,” she whispered softly. This didn’t sound at all like the Justin who had turned his back on her and walked out on their life together after her miscarriage. “I mean, why?” She wondered again if he knew about Timmy. But from the way the conversation was going, that was doubtful.
Justin reached toward her and touched his fingers to her cheek. She moved her head a fraction, out of his reach, and he let his hand fall. “A lot has happened in the year we’ve been apart.”
“Such as?” she prompted. What could possibly have happened that would have a bearing on their marriage? she wondered suspiciously.
He’d never been one to open up, and she’d always thought they would have had a chance if he’d told her what he was thinking, what he was going through.
“I met my birth mother.”
She blinked with surprise. “You have? Really?”
Heather was stunned that he was talking about his past. She always believed the reason that Justin was so reserved and reluctant to share his feelings was the way he was raised. As a baby, he’d been left on the doorstep of a sheriff’s office in Nevada. Because he was unable to be put up for adoption, he’d been placed with a foster family, had been given their last name. He’d grown up in the foster-care system, had been shuffled around all his life. He was never allowed to put down roots, never given the opportunity to become part of a family.
When they’d first married, she’d thought that they would put down their own roots. Naively, she had believed they’d be together forever. She couldn’t have been more wrong.
Justin gave her a slight nod. He hesitated a moment, then continued, “Her name is Miranda Fortune and she lives in Texas.”
Heather wasn’t sure what to say. Justin seemed…somehow pleased by this new development in his life. “Oh, Justin.” She sighed, and her heart swelled with caring. Despite the heartache he’d caused her, she was happy for him.
Justin had been searching for something all his life, something to fulfill him. He seemed to have found it. The realization that it wasn’t her, that she hadn’t been enough to make him happy, stung, even as her compassion for him flourished.
“How did you find her?”
“I didn’t.” He shoved his hands in his pockets. “Her ex-husband, Lloyd, sent a private detective to look for me. The P.I.—Flynn Sinclair—eventually contacted me and asked me to go to Texas to see her.”
“And you did?”
He nodded. “At first I refused. Then I learned that I have a twin, a sister.” Justin could understand Heather’s surprise at his news. He’d felt the same overwhelming disbelief when the detective had shown up at his office to tell him of his heritage. His first reaction had been indifference. His mother hadn’t cared enough to keep him—why should he give her the satisfaction of knowing him now?
But learning he had a twin had convinced him to change his mind. There was another part of him somewhere in the world, someone with some of the same personality traits, the same looks, the same feelings of abandonment and emptiness. Based on that, he’d agreed to a meeting.
“A twin sister?”
The thought of his sister brought a smile to Justin’s lips. He touched the dimple on his cheek and remembered his surprise when he’d first seen that she, too, shared the identical physical trait. “Her name is Emma,” he said to his wife. “She’s just had a baby, and she ended up marrying Flynn Sinclair.” Seeing the confusion on her face, he added, “It’s a long story.”
“My goodness.” She sounded as if she couldn’t believe it. “A lot has been happening. I’m very pleased for you,” she said. “What is your mother like?”
“She seems nice, and is interested in learning more about me,” he explained, his tone noncommittal. “Miranda was very young when she had us, and on her own. She felt that there was no way she could take care of us. Later, she married and had two other children—so I have two other siblings, as well.
“I’ve seen them all on a few occasions,” Justin continued. “The first time was several months ago when I first went to Texas to meet Miranda and Emma. I saw Miranda again just a few days ago at a party given by my half-brother, Kane and his wife Allison, welcoming me into the Fortune family.” Justin had even considered moving to Texas, but had quickly realized that leaving Pittsburgh would add a finality to his relationship with Heather. He wasn’t prepared to do that. Not yet.
“You have a brother?”
Justin nodded. “Yes. He’s a doctor and he also lives in Texas. So does my half-sister, Gabrielle, who is married to the town sheriff and has a daughter.”
“And you’ve already met them all?” Heather could imagine Justin’s manner as he met the strangers who were related to him. Even as he spoke of them now, she could see the reservation in his eyes. That he’d called his mother by her first name revealed more than he intended. He’d met these people—relatives—but he wasn’t yet willing to call them family.
“As I said, several times.” He moved across the room and picked up a framed picture on a drop-leaf table. It was of the two of them on their wedding day. Deep in thought, he rubbed his thumb over the picture.
Heather wished at that moment that she’d put it away. She didn’t want him to think it meant something to her. She’d kept it out to remind herself of the mistake she’d made by believing he truly loved her.
“Apparently the Fortunes are obscenely wealthy,” Justin stated, sounding notably unimpressed as he studied the smile on Heather’s face in the picture. Their wealth hadn’t been what had encouraged him to meet Miranda or the Fortunes. At eighteen, he’d moved to Pittsburgh with the last foster family he’d lived with. A short time later, when they’d moved again, he’d moved out on his own. He’d worked two jobs and attended college.
He’d made a place for himself in the world—owned his own prosperous steel business, Trigon Steel, which earned enough money for him to live on quite comfortably for the rest of his natural life even if he never worked another day.
But it wasn’t enough to fill the void inside him, and what actually prompted him to meet his biological mother was her connection to his own existence. It was finally knowing where he’d come from, who he was linked to in the world, that had taken him to Texas.
“Your mother never searched for you before?”
“I don’t think so. When Miranda was young, she never wanted any affinity with the Fortune family, but she’s since made peace with them. She wants Emma and me to be a part of the family, too.”
“What about your biological father? Have you met him as well?”
“No, we haven’t discussed who my father was.” Though he was curious, he hadn’t asked.
He looked at Heather and saw confusion clouding her green eyes. She couldn’t imagine why meeting his family had provoked this visit from him, nor did she have any idea why he thought they should make another go of their marriage. How could he make her understand, when he wasn’t quite sure he understood himself?
Seeing all of the Fortune family together had made an impact on his hardened heart. Through troubles and tribulations, they’d stuck together, found offspring they didn’t know existed and brought them under the umbrella of their family. They’d supported each other, had opened their arms to welcome him and Emma.
“And what exactly does all of this have to do with me?” Heather finally asked, after listening to his explanation. “With us?”
“Miranda would like to meet you.”
“But, why?”
“Because you’re my wife.”
Justin’s answer was too simple to make sense. Heather couldn’t imagine why his biological mother would want to meet her, especially since she and Justin were separated.
When she didn’t reply, he swung around to face her. She felt the full force of his heated gaze as it traveled very slowly over her body, then rose with meticulous precision to her face. Butterflies attacked her stomach. She had an eerie feeling she wasn’t going to like what he was going to say.
“I’d like you to go to Texas with me.”
Two
“To Texas?” Heather’s voice rose a pitch as she stared blankly at her estranged husband. He couldn’t really mean what he was suggesting.
He frowned deeply at her reaction. “That is where she lives.” There was the briefest hint of frustration in his tone. “I’d like you to meet her, as well.”
Heather’s mouth was still hanging open. “You would?” Knowing her husband wasn’t prone to spontaneous actions, she figured there had to be more to this. For someone like Justin, who needed to control everyone and everything around him, well, she figured, adjusting to his new family had to be very hard for him to deal with.
She was certainly curious about the Fortunes. Apparently they’d made quite an impression on him. He seemed so…she couldn’t really put her thoughts into words. Justin was somehow undefinably…different.
“Of course.”
“Why didn’t you just tell your mother we were separated?”
He hesitated, then said, “Because I thought maybe you and I still had a chance together. There’s no reason for her to know otherwise, if we stay together.” He moved a step closer to her. “It’s not so crazy when you think about it. We were happy once, Heather.” He reached toward her and ran his fingers across her cheek, then through her hair to brush it from her face.
She stiffened, again moving a step away. “I thought we were,” she agreed, “until…” She left the words unspoken, but the reminder was there all the same. Heather’s skin tingled where he’d touched her, and she suspected he wasn’t just talking about their marriage. For a while, they had shared something special, and she had no trouble remembering those wonderfully happy times. Those memories taunted her often, as did the memory of the moment he’d left her.
“We both made mistakes, but we had a good life for a while.”
“I haven’t forgotten, Justin.” Her admission came reluctantly, and brought a barely noticeable look of relief to his features.
“Maybe we can recapture what we had.”
“Justin—”
“We were married for six years,” he interrupted, his tone slightly challenging. “Doesn’t that mean anything to you?”
She bristled. “I could ask you the same thing. I haven’t heard a word from you in a year, and now you show up wanting me to go away with you.”
“You didn’t bother to contact me, either,” he reminded her sharply.
Heather felt a wave of embarrassment sweep over her. His charge was justified, more so than hers. She’d had more reason to contact him than he knew. “You’re right, but—”
“Come to Texas with me,” he said again, softening his tone. He cocked his head and studied her. “That’s all I’m asking. It’ll give us time to think about what’s happened between us, time to decide where we should go from here.” Surprise filled her gaze once again. “Would you be willing to try again to make our marriage work?”
“I…I don’t know,” she answered honestly, astonished at how her pulse raced at the thought. Could she really risk her heart again?
Justin didn’t say anything for a moment. He turned and went to the window and stared out of it. Heather nervously bit her bottom lip, wondering what he was thinking. Just as she was about to speak, he turned and faced her.
“How about if we give it a month?” He walked back over to her and stopped so close that she could feel his body heat. “One month. Isn’t our marriage worth a month out of your life?”
Heather swayed, staggered by his proposition. “A month,” she repeated. He was putting a timetable on their reconciliation. Now, that sounded more like the Justin she remembered. Always in control.
Justin nodded. “It’s long enough to see if we can work things out,” he rationalized. “If after a month it isn’t working, I’ll give you a divorce.” His jaw tightened a fraction.
Heather still couldn’t believe this was happening, and she was hesitant to give him the power to hurt her again. Yes, she still had feelings for her husband—but only because he was the father of her son. And what about when he learned about their baby? Would Justin use Timmy to pressure her into staying married?
She was astute enough to realize that she saw very little change in Justin. He was still a man of few words, still kept his thoughts to himself. Though Heather had always felt during her marriage that he cared for her, he had never really said the words. She supposed she couldn’t blame him. Words of love never came easy to her, either, and she’d held back her own thoughts and feelings. It was also obvious that he still wanted to control everything around him.
However, in the past year she’d changed, grown independent. She was used to making decisions for herself.
Deep in thought, Heather was unaware of how close Justin had come to her until he reached for her and drew her against him. Caught by surprise, she put her hands flat against his hard-muscled chest. In the past, they’d settled many problems in each other’s arms—the last being when she’d gotten pregnant with Timmy. But she wasn’t going to let him get away with it now.
Not this time.
Leaning backward, she put enough pressure in her arms to break his embrace. He frowned, and his lips flattened into a thin line. But he let her go. She stepped farther away, enough to feel as if she could breathe normally again. She hated the way he had of stealing her breath with his mere presence.
“One month, Heather.”
The ringing of the telephone startled them both. Heather murmured an apology. “I have to get that,” she said, suspecting it was her mother. Quickly moving across the room, she picked up the telephone receiver on the end table.
“Hello,” she said. “Oh, Mom. Yes, I know I’m late. I’m sorry.” She glanced at Justin before quickly looking away.
He watched her talk on the phone with her mother. He’d always liked Kathryn Watson. She was warm and attentive without being controlling or smothering—the kind of mother that he’d always yearned for, the kind of mother he’d never known. Now that he’d met Miranda, Justin thought she, too, seemed to be kindhearted and caring. She’d made an effort to get close to him, but so far he hadn’t been able to totally let his guard down around her—or any of the other Fortunes.
His reserve around his extended family didn’t include his sister Emma. He and his twin shared a certain respect for each other, a bond that only twins could feel. He’d been amazed by her easygoing nature, despite her troubled past. When they’d met, he’d learned she was on the run from an abusive ex-boyfriend. Had he not been reassured by Sinclair that Emma would be safe with him, Justin would have taken care of her himself. The thought of someone hurting her infuriated him. Justin was pleased that Emma had found Flynn, who loved her and her newborn daughter.
“I have some unexpected company.”
Heather’s voice drew his attention, and he wondered what Kathryn would say if she knew it was him. He strained forward to hear what he could of the conversation, and it was obvious she was avoiding telling her mother about him. Well, that was okay. Kathryn would know soon enough that he wanted to reconcile.
His wife sighed heavily. “It’s Justin, Mom.” She listened for a moment. “I’m going to be a few minutes longer, if that’s okay.” More silence, and her foot tapped the floor nervously. “Thanks, Mom. I really appreciate it.”
Heather hung up the telephone, then turned to face him. Her expression was shadowed, probably out of a need for self-preservation. But Justin didn’t miss the brief glimpse of awareness in her eyes, and he took that as a sign that she still felt something for him.
She ran the pink tip of her tongue over her upper lip, and he bit back an oath. He wanted nothing more at that moment than to pull her to him and make love to her, to show her there was an underlying spark between them that they could build on.
She represented everything he’d worked for in his life—and everything he’d been unable to hold on to. He’d lost the woman he’d loved, his home, and with her unfortunate miscarriage, the family he’d wanted so badly. They’d had a chance once. Was it irrational to believe they could have another?
He resisted the urge to pull her back into his embrace, and as though she needed to put space between them, she stepped farther away from him and stood beside one of the big overstuffed chairs that decorated the room.
Her hands tightened on the back of the chair, her knuckles turning white. She looked…wary, and Justin could understand that. He’d deeply disappointed her once, although he’d thought he was doing the right thing by giving her her freedom. It was going to be hard for her to put those unpleasant memories to rest and consider his proposal.
She held her head high and looked him directly in the eyes. “This is so like you,” she commented. “I mean, showing up so suddenly, making decisions and expecting me to agree to whatever you want.”
Annoyed by her words, Justin grimaced. “I called and left you a message, letting you know that I’d be coming over.”
Heather’s gaze swung to the answering machine sitting on the table. The little red message light was blinking. “I haven’t had time to check my messages. As soon as I came in the door, Paul arrived.”
“Would it have made a difference if you’d known I was coming?”
“I don’t know.” She searched his face, wishing for even a hint as to what he was thinking. “We didn’t exactly part on good terms.” Truthfully, they hadn’t exactly parted on any particular terms. He had simply walked away from her one day.
Later, he’d contacted her through his lawyer, who had informed her he would be sending her a monthly check. Once she’d realized that he wasn’t coming back, she slowly started putting her life back together.
Then she’d discovered she was pregnant again.
They’d made love one of the last evenings they’d spent together. On her part, it had been a desperate attempt to regain some closeness between them. Heather hadn’t taken precautions, and neither had Justin. Even up to the very end, she’d hoped to have another child. She had foolishly thought another baby would help her marriage, had hoped Justin would love her if she gave him a child.
But he’d left, anyway. It wasn’t long afterward that she had started missing her periods. When she’d found out she was pregnant, she was elated, yet deeply saddened by the irony of her situation. She realized she was going to have the baby they’d always wanted—only Justin wouldn’t be there to share the joy with her.
She’d hoped he’d contact her, give her some idea he still cared for her. But he hadn’t, and she had decided at that point not to tell him about her pregnancy. She’d thought about it long and hard. But dealing with his rejection had been so difficult, and she’d known he would have come back to her only because of the baby. Heather just couldn’t live with him knowing that her love wasn’t enough to make him happy.
For a while, she’d been worried he’d find out somehow, or that their paths would cross and he’d discover the truth. Fortunately, Pittsburgh was a very big city. Justin’s office was across town in the Pittsburgh Plate Glass building, and their house in the elite suburb of Fox Chapel was far enough away that she’d hoped her secret was safe. Apparently she hadn’t had to worry about it. Justin had never even tried to see her—until now, and the friends they’d had had dropped out of her life when she no longer traveled in the same circles.
Justin’s lips curved into the bare resemblance of a smile. She hadn’t seemed surprised when he’d shown up. “My intent in coming here wasn’t to run roughshod over you.” His gaze was direct. “My motives aren’t suspect. I’m asking you to give us another chance.”
When she didn’t answer right away, he felt his heart stop. His plans for a reconciliation depended on getting Heather alone with him so he could convince her to give their marriage another try.
“I don’t know. I need to think about this,” she stated frankly.
Though he didn’t necessarily like her answer, he decided not to pressure her. He’d give her some time to think about it, then see where that got him. He had a tenacious nature and wasn’t one to give up easily if something was important to him.
That had a lot to do with his past. It hadn’t been easy getting past abandonment and growing up in foster care. Justin had never been fortunate enough to live with a family who cared about him.
He hadn’t stayed with any one family very long. There had always been a reason to get rid of him, no matter how hard he’d tried to fit in. He’d been too young or too old, too reserved or too much trouble. At a very early age he’d learned to look out for himself.
He should thank Miranda for instilling in him a drive to make something of himself. In a perverse way, her abandoning him as a baby had implanted the motivation to become independent and successful.
“All right.” He stared at her a moment, then reached for her hand. He was both surprised and pleased when he realized she still wore his ring. He touched it, then watched the large, tear-shaped diamond sparkle in the light from the window. She drew her hand away, and he frowned. “I’ll call you tomorrow.”
Heather pressed her lips together as she followed him to the door. “No,” she said quickly, wanting to control their next meeting. “I have school and a meeting afterward. I’ll call you. Where will you be?”
Reaching inside his jacket, he extracted a business card. “You know the office number. This has the number of my apartment, as well as my digital.”
Heather studied the card as he opened the door. “All right, I’ll call you after school tomorrow.”
Justin nodded, then stepped outside. He hesitated, then turned back toward her. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”
Heather watched him get into his Mercedes and drive away. As he disappeared from sight, she sagged against the door, her strength zapped.
Justin’s visit had blindsided her. Even a tornado wouldn’t have caused such havoc in her life.
Was she losing her mind? She’d actually told him she’d think about his proposition—that she’d consider giving their marriage another try.
Did she really want to?
A long time ago she’d loved Justin. Could she learn to love him again?
Three
“How did he look?” Kathryn Watson asked as soon as they had settled around the kitchen table to eat dinner.
“Justin?” Heather asked needlessly. “The same. Too handsome for his own good.” She twirled a few strings of spaghetti around on her fork, then took a bite and chewed thoughtfully. There wasn’t a woman on earth who wouldn’t look twice at him if she passed him on the street.
“Does he know about Timmy?”
“No! Oh, my, Mom. That’s what I thought, too, when I saw him.” She explained that she’d stopped off at home for a few minutes to bring some things into the house and that Paul Dailey had shown up. Heather also told her of the altercation between her husband and Paul.
Kathryn chuckled, and Heather shot her mother a glare. “It wasn’t funny.”
“I wish I’d been there,” Kathryn said. “Justin’s always been very protective of you. I bet he was seething.”
“He was overbearing and rude,” Heather retorted, taking another bite of her food.
“Well, at least that problem’s solved. You’ve been discouraging him for months.”
“Yes, well, Justin didn’t have to be so…blunt,” she said, for lack of a better word.
“Funny, that’s one of his traits that I’ve always admired. Justin’s not a man of many words, but when he says something, he’s direct. What did he want?” she asked.
Heather told her about Justin’s heritage and how he’d gone to Texas to meet his biological mother and twin sister.
“Well, I couldn’t be happier for him. He’s always been so alone in the world, without family, growing up being passed from foster home to foster home.”
Kathryn had always told Heather that she found Justin’s drive to be one of his greatest strengths. He’d majored in business, and after graduation he’d worked for a while in the steel industry, then started his own steel fabrication company. Trigon Steel was now a major player in a city where the competition was stiff and often brutal.
“He had me. I was his family,” she reminded her mother, her eyes cloaked with sadness. “He walked away from what we had.”
“He was hurting, as you were. Justin isn’t anything like your father, honey. Henry was manipulative and selfish. He never led me to believe there was anything wrong between us. If I’d known he was having an affair, I would have left him long before he left us.”
“Dad didn’t care about you or me.” Heather’s eyes glistened, and she looked away.
She had a tremendous amount of respect for her mother. Kathryn Watson was strong and independent. She’d raised her daughter alone, had worked overtime hours as a secretary to help her pay for college. Heather was fortunate to have her mother as her best friend and confidante.
However, her father’s desertion remained with her throughout her life. Though her mother had dealt with his betrayal, Heather was never able to express the hurt and rejection that was always a part of her.
Kathryn remained silent for a moment, then said quietly, “Not all men leave.”
“Justin did.” Heather couldn’t forget that. His leaving had effectively reinforced the wall around her heart.
Kathryn reached across the kitchen table and touched her daughter’s hand. “Everyone handles grief differently. Justin handled it the only way he knew. He threw himself into his work. He didn’t know how to relate what he was feeling.”
“Mom, you’ve always championed Justin.” She wrinkled her brow, deepening her frown. “I know you’ve supported me, too, but why is it you feel the need to come to his defense?”
“Because he’s never had anyone to do that for him,” Kathryn answered softly. “I can’t imagine what it must be like to grow up without any connection to the world. No family, no distant relatives, no one.”
“Well, now he has an entire family, complete with a half brother and sister. Apparently, they’re extremely rich.” She shoved her plate away and sat back in the chair. “Mom, he wants me to go to Texas to meet his mother and he has this…this weird idea of us giving ourselves a month together to see if we can work things out between us.”
Speechless, Kathryn stared blankly at her daughter. “A month? What did you tell him?”
“That I needed to think about it. What else could I say?” Gauging her mother’s thoughtful expression, Heather asked, “What do you think?”
“Marriages aren’t always easy, honey. The fact that Justin has come to you means a lot. He must still have feelings for you. And how would you feel if you gave up this chance? You have Timmy to think about, as well as yourself. You’re going to have to tell him about Timmy, Heather.”
Heather saw the censure in her mother’s eyes. “I know. And I will. Just not yet.” She flushed as guilt ate at her. She had intended to tell Justin about the baby before now, really she had. It was ironic that he’d shown up and had effectively taken away her chance to come clean voluntarily. “I know Justin, and if he found out about his son, he’d insist on reconciling for that reason alone. I don’t want a marriage based on sacrifice.”
Kathryn picked up Heather’s plate and took it to the sink. “Look, why don’t you think about going to Texas? You’ll be alone together, and it will be the perfect opportunity to see if you can salvage your marriage.”
“I can’t just up and run off to Texas, Mom. I have responsibilities here. I have Timmy to take care of.”
“Don’t use Timmy as an excuse,” Kathryn scolded. “I can keep him for you, and you know he’ll be safe with me.”
Heat darkened Heather’s already flushed face. Her mother wasn’t easily fooled. Using Timmy was a quick and easy excuse she could hide behind. “All right, I know that.”
“Then go home and think long and hard about what Justin has proposed.”
Later at home, Heather could think of nothing else. Did she dare do as her mother encouraged? She wasn’t even sure if she could leave Timmy for a long period of time. He was so little, and he needed her. Since his birth, she hadn’t been away from him, other than the hours she was at school. How could she abandon him to her mother for a month?
There was no way she could leave Timmy. She’d just have to think of something else, she decided, her head full of decisions to make, her heart heavy.
“Your wife is on line four.”
“Thank you, Ms. Harris,” Justin responded, and realized his voice wasn’t as steady as he’d have liked.
He’d been impatiently waiting for Heather to call, had instructed his secretary to put her through immediately. He’d even picked up the telephone several times to call her, only to put it back down. Aware his hands were sweating, he rubbed them on his slacks, then picked up the receiver and punched a button on the telephone.
“Heather?” He was anxious to hear her husky voice, to hear her say his name. Her effect on him even after one short visit was lethal. She was all he could think about.
“Hi. Is this a bad time?”
Justin thought she sounded a little rattled. Well, he could relate to that. His uncertainty as to what she was thinking or what her decision might be had made him irritable. His secretary had threatened to quit after working with him for only a few hours this morning. He knew the reason, and its name was Heather.
“No, of course not. You can call me anytime.”
“Oh.” There was silence on the line while she digested that. “Well, I’ll only keep you for a moment. I was wondering if we could meet. You know, to talk.”
“Of course,” he assured her, enjoying the breathless sound of her voice as she spoke. It wrapped around him, warming him like a blanket on a cold, snowy day. “How about if I stop by the house this evening?” he suggested, wanting to see her again as soon as he could. He’d drive there right now if she said the word.
“No,” she replied quickly. “I, um, have some business to attend to in the city. I thought maybe you wouldn’t mind if I came to your apartment.”
That cost her—which made him curious as to her motive, wondering if she was purposely setting a meeting on her own terms. Though he’d told his lawyer to give her the address in case she needed to reach him, Heather had never set foot in his apartment or called there.
“All right.” He leaned over his desk, propped his elbows on it, and he stared at her picture. In it she was smiling at him, reminding him of everything he’d given up when he’d left her. “What time is good for you?”
She named a time, and he gave her directions. He hesitated breaking the connection, reluctant to end their conversation. But she didn’t say anything more, and like a fool, he couldn’t think of a way to prolong it. “I’ll see you at seven, then.”
“Yes,” Heather said. “Seven.”
Justin put the receiver in its cradle, and a heavy sigh escaped his lips. He drove his fingers through his hair, then held his head in his hands, his eyes fixed on the picture of Heather on his desk. Even after they’d separated, he’d never put it away.
It was of her while they were on their honeymoon. It wasn’t one of those posed shots by a professional, but a candid photo, catching her eyes shining with happiness, her wide smile. Her auburn hair fell around her face, and her cheeks were slightly flushed.
She looked happy and blissful.
That had been a lifetime ago, before she’d withdrawn into herself when she’d lost their baby. In the beginning, he’d pushed her, trying to force her to face their loss. When she’d continue to resist his efforts, he’d backed away. He’d dealt with the loss of their child in his own way, throwing himself into his work, driving himself to the edge of sanity just to get through each day. Somehow they’d lost each other in the process of healing their wounds.
But now he hoped they could find the common bond that had brought them together in the beginning of their relationship.
He glanced at his gold watch and realized he had only a few hours before she’d be at his apartment.
Justin decided to step up his plan to woo his wife.
The doorman to the high-rise building didn’t hesitate when Heather identified herself and who she was there to see. He opened the door and greeted her cordially, as if they’d met on several occasions before.
“Mrs. Bond. Mr. Bond is expecting you.”
She smiled, a nervous little smile that caused her lips to tremble. Obviously Justin had left word with the doorman to expect her. Her legs shaking, she walked across the black-and-white marbled floor to the elevator. Her hand trembled as she pressed the call button. A few moments later, the doors opened and she stepped inside.
Her heart jumped as the car ascended. She told herself it was because of the alarming speed of the elevator, not because it was taking her to Justin. To steady herself, she grasped the silver bar on the wall and held on tight. Before she could regain her equilibrium, the bell sounded and the car stopped on the top floor.
There were several apartment doors in view as she stepped off, but Heather knew to look for the number he’d given her. Still, she glanced at the paper the address was written on to be sure she had it right, then stuffed it inside her purse. She approached the door with the caution a trainer would use when confronting an uncaged lion, then stopped in front of it. Her hand shook as she raised it and gave a soft knock.
Moments later, it opened, and her husband was standing before her. He was dressed rather casually. For Justin, anyway. He had on dark-blue slacks and a polo shirt. His hair was slicked back from his face.
He smiled when he saw her, exposing that adorable dimple, and Heather’s heart melted a little, which caused her concern. She resented his ability to generate such a reaction inside her by his mere presence, momentarily robbing her of her perspective.
“Hi,” she said, and prayed her legs wouldn’t give out on her. Realizing she was clutching her purse, she willed herself to relax. The last thing she wanted was to seem nervous, though at the moment, that was an understatement.
He reached for her hand. She hesitated a beat, then offered it to him.
“Come in,” he said, drawing her into the room.
His tense expression relaxed a bit, and she was surprised at the brief look of relief she saw in his eyes. Had he wondered if she would change her mind? Well, it wasn’t like she hadn’t thought of canceling a hundred times, she admitted silently.
“I was glad to hear from you.”
“I said I would call,” she reminded him. She felt a tingle of pleasure as his hand closed around hers. It disconcerted her, when more than ever she wanted to keep her bearings about her. The familiar scent of his cologne drifted to her, and unconsciously she stepped closer to him.
Since she’d never been to his apartment, had never even known where it was other than the address, she was more than curious. An odd feeling crawled up her spine as she took in her surroundings. The room was spacious and formal, the furniture expensive and not at all what she’d envisioned. She’d imagined soft leather furniture, black or gray, something appealing to a man, with a large television and every electronic gadget that could possibly be used with it.
Instead, a decorator’s touch was evident everywhere, from the modern sofa and chairs, to the valuable framed paintings on the walls and the showy, perfectly placed vases of flowers, statues and lamps.
“I confess that I wondered if you would call.”
Her gaze went quickly to his face and an odd feeling made her tremble. The Justin she knew would never have admitted that.
“So this is where you live,” she murmured. He seemed totally out of place in the stark surroundings. This could have been anyone’s home. There were no signs in the room indicating Justin had made it his home.
“You seem surprised,” he said, watching her closely. “Did you think I was living in some luxurious bachelor pad?”
Flushing, she swallowed hard, annoyed he could read her thoughts so easily. “It doesn’t even look lived in,” she observed, avoiding his comment.
She wasn’t surprised that the room was immaculate. Justin had always been obsessively neat. The one time she’d asked him to pick up something he’d left in another room, he’d complied so quickly that he’d stunned her. He’d humbly apologized and sworn it wouldn’t happen again. It was such an overreaction that it had caused her concern.
After that day, she’d never had to ask him to pick up behind himself again or even had to remind him to wash out the sink after he shaved. She’d always thought that was a little strange, and she’d broached the subject with him once, but he wouldn’t talk about it.
“I’ve been traveling a lot lately.”
His words broke into her thoughts, and he seemed amused by her curiosity. Heather gave him a small smile. “I see.”
“Besides the trips to Texas, I’ve been out of town a lot for the company.” Putting his hand behind her back, Justin led her toward a door across the room. “Would you like a drink before dinner?”
“Dinner?” she repeated, then flashed him a confused look.
“I was hoping you hadn’t eaten,” he told her, ushering her into a large formal dining room. “Have you?”
“No…no, I haven’t,” she stammered.
He grinned. “Great! I wanted to surprise you.”
He’d certainly done that, she thought as she walked inside and examined the room. There was an ornate cherry-wood china cabinet and a matching oval table that could comfortably seat twelve people. Two single candles in crystal heart-shaped bases added atmosphere to what she thought was probably normally an austere room. The table had been set for two, with one place setting at the end and the other to the left.
Touching a switch on the wall, Justin lowered the lights a fraction, adding a touch of ambience. “Here, sit down,” he invited, leading her to the side of the table and holding her chair.
Like a robot programmed to follow orders, Heather slid onto a softly padded chair. A single red rose rested across the plate in front of her.
Justin touched her shoulder, then slid his hand with familiar ease to her neck. He leaned over and whispered near her ear, “I’ll be right back.” Then, before moving away, he murmured, “You smell wonderful.”
Heather shivered as he left her. She felt like a bug caught in a spider’s web, a tiny little bug facing a really big spider. Apprehension warred with excitement inside her. He’d certainly gone to a lot of trouble for her, and despite her resolve to remain aloof, it touched a tender spot in her heart. This was a side of him she wasn’t used to. It made her wonder what else about him had changed.
Fingering the soft petals of the rose, she pondered its intent. Justin had never been what one would call romantic. Though he’d always acknowledged her birthday and their anniversary with gifts, Heather had never felt that he’d put much thought into them. They were never overly personal, and actually, she’d wondered if he’d had his secretary choose them.
Picking up the rose, she breathed in its sweet, floral scent. Justin knew she loved roses, and he’d occasionally brought a dozen home to her. Red roses were her favorite. She trailed the soft, velvet-like petals across her cheek.
Closing her eyes, she remembered the first time he’d given her roses. It had been the night he’d asked her to marry him. From the moment she’d met him, she’d never looked at another man. She’d been thrilled when he proposed.
Now he was proposing something totally different.
The door to the kitchen opened, and heat rushed to her face. She swung her head around in time to see him stop beside her and place two silver covered dishes and a basket of bread on the table. Not wanting him to wonder what suddenly had her hot all over, she quipped, “You cooked?” The truth was, they both knew he’d burn water if it was possible.
That brought a quick smile to his lips. “Smart aleck.” His expression was teasing as he lifted the lids and the aroma of garlic and tomato sauce filled the room.
They both laughed, and Heather enjoyed hearing the rich, cheerful sound of his voice. How long had it been since they’d share such a moment? She stared at him, all kinds of raw emotions wreaking havoc inside her.
Life just didn’t play fair. When they’d married, she’d thought they’d be happy forever. She supposed that was silly, but it was what she’d longed for, wanted to believe in, despite her father’s desertion. It had taken a lot of courage to trust Justin with her heart. What had happened to the love they’d once shared? Where had they failed?
The shared moment died, and as her eyes watered, she looked away.
Justin’s lips flattened into a thin line. “What?” he asked as he took his seat. He reached over and touched her hand.
“Nothing.”
“Heather—”
She reluctantly turned her gaze to his, her eyes glistening.
“I don’t want to hurt you.”
“I think I know that,” she said, then continued rather solemnly, “in my head. My heart is quite another matter. Sometimes whether we want to or not, we do hurt each other.” She stopped speaking to take a breath, to will herself to get control. “I don’t know if I can do this again,” she admitted truthfully.
“Give us a chance. That’s all I’m asking.”
She couldn’t look at him. “You make it sound so simple, so easy. But it isn’t.”
Justin let go of her hand and sat back. He breathed heavily. “I don’t know what you think, but this past year hasn’t been easy for me, either.”
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Shirley Rogers
Justin Bond knew all about forging steel ties, but human bonds were another matter - especially when it came to winning back his wife! And with Heather agreeing to accompany him to Texas to meet his Fortune relatives, he'd reluctantly sworn to be the perfect gentleman…. But when their platonic arrangement gave way to passion, Justin learned Heather's three-month-old secret. A baby had torn them apart, but now could baby Timmy keep them together?
THE TEXAS TATTLER
All the news that’s barely fit to print!
Fortunes Bestow Texas-Sized Welcome on Heirs!
Never let it be said that those Fortunes don’t look out for their own. All of Red Rock is buzzing with news of the ten-million-dollar gift Miranda and Mary Ellen Fortune have bestowed on each of the “lost heirs.” Local merchants are stockpiling electronics and “luxury goods”—just in case Miranda and Cameron Fortune’s offspring want to unload some of that money.
Of course, it’s not entirely clear that all of them need the money, especially Justin Bond. He’s already made his mark in the steel industry and is one of Pennsylvania’s leading businessmen. A source close to the Fortunes tells us that there is one thing this tycoon wants—his wife. Seems Justin and his college sweetheart have been estranged for the past year and during that time he became a daddy. Now, if you ask this reporter, that’s an even bigger gift than all the money in Texas!
Dear Reader,
Welcome to the world of Silhouette Desire, where you can indulge yourself every month with romances that can only be described as passionate, powerful and provocative!
Silhouette’s beloved author Annette Broadrick returns to Desire with a MAN OF THE MONTH who is Hard To Forget. Love rings true when former high school sweethearts reunite while both are on separate undercover missions to their hometown. Bestselling writer Cait London offers you A Loving Man, when a big-city businessman meets a country girl and learns the true meaning of love.
The Desire theme promotion THE BABY BANK, about sperm-bank client heroines who find love unexpectedly, returns with Amy J. Fetzer’s Having His Child, part of her WIFE, INC. miniseries. The tantalizing Desire miniseries THE FORTUNES OF TEXAS: THE LOST HEIRS continues with Baby of Fortune by Shirley Rogers. In Undercover Sultan, the second book of Alexandra Sellers’s SONS OF THE DESERT: THE SULTANS trilogy, a handsome prince is forced to go on the run with a sexy mystery woman—who may be the enemy. And Ashley Summers writes of a Texas tycoon who comes home to find a beautiful stranger living in his mansion in Beauty in His Bedroom.
This month see inside for details about our exciting new contest “Silhouette Makes You a Star.” You’ll feel like a star when you delve into all six fantasies created in Desire books this August!
Enjoy!
Joan Marlow Golan
Senior Editor, Silhouette Desire
Baby of Fortune
Shirley Rogers
SHIRLEY ROGERS
lives in Virginia with her husband, two cats and an adorable Maltese named Blanca. She has two grown children, a son and a daughter. As a child, she was known for having a vivid imagination. It wasn’t until she started reading romances that she realized her true destiny was writing them! Besides reading, she enjoys traveling and going to the movies.
Shirley loves to hear from readers. Please enclose a self-addressed, stamped envelope and write to: PMB#189, 1920-125 Centerville Tpke., Virginia Beach, VA 23464.
Meet the Fortunes of Texas
Meet the Fortunes of Texas’s Lost Heirs—membership in this Texas family has its privileges and its price. As the family gathers to welcome its newest members, it discovers a murderer in its midst…and passionate new romances that only a true-bred Texas love can bring!
CAST OF CHARACTERS
Justin Bond: This no-nonsense, hard-driven businessman has already made his mark in the world…but now he’s realizing what matters most—family!
Heather Bond: Once she’d loved Justin with her whole heart, but a tragedy had ripped their marriage apart. Can she learn to love her husband again?
Timmy Bond: At three months, he is too young to understand how the events happening in this single month will shape his entire life….
Holly Douglas: Cameron’s illegitimate daughter had refused to come to Red Rock…so now the Fortunes are taking matters into their own hands and heading to Alaska!
Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
One
“Take your hands off my wife.”
Justin Bond stood on the spacious porch of the home he’d once shared with his wife, and a flash of irritation whipped through him. He steeled himself to remain in control as he stared through the partially open door. He’d never expected to find Heather in the arms of another man.
Sucking in a hard breath, he balled his hands into fists at his side. His plans to woo his wife slammed into a brick wall. He’d come to ask her to give their marriage another try. It was a blow to his self-esteem to discover she was seeing someone else.
Reeling from the brutal tone of the warning, the man snapped his arms away from Heather, tripping over his own feet as he backed away. A nervous twitch appeared in his left eye. Justin considered that a victory of sorts.
“Justin!”
Shock and disbelief registered on his wife’s face. She pressed a hand to her chest, as if unable to catch her breath. Or was she embarrassed to be caught in a compromising situation? Justin wasn’t sure which, and at the moment, he didn’t exactly care. He wanted this jerk out of his house.
“Heather.” Justin swiftly shifted his gaze in her direction again, and annoyance swept through him like a sandstorm in the desert. He clenched, then relaxed his hands again.
“What are you doing here?” She didn’t wait for him to answer as she looked from Justin to the other man, then back at her husband. Soft pink color stained her cheeks and neck, disappearing beneath the vee of her cream-colored blouse. “Um, you remember…uh, Paul…Paul Dailey, a colleague of mine from school?” Her voice trembled slightly.
Justin acknowledged the introduction with a slight nod. Twisting his lips, he studied his competitor. He hadn’t thought much of Dailey when he’d first met him a few years ago at a school function with Heather. His blond hair was messy, his casual pants and shirt severely wrinkled. He’d always had that “slick salesman” look about him. Justin didn’t trust him for a second.
It took every ounce of his willpower to restrain from storming into the room, grabbing the jerk by his collar and throwing him out of the house. Dammit! Heather was still his wife!
“Paul stopped by to discuss some…committee decisions we need to make.”
Justin sent his wife a questioning glance. “Committee decisions?” His throat tightened as his gaze shifted with lightning speed to her companion. “Is that what you were discussing with my wife?” he asked pointedly. He put his hands on his hips, and it gave him a bit of pleasure to note a trace of fear in Dailey’s eyes.
“We, uh, I…yes.” Paul Dailey cleared his throat several times, and his hands flitted about nervously, as if disconnected from his arms. “Heather, we…uh, we can continue our discussion tomorrow at school.” He snatched his briefcase from the floor and clutched it against his chest like a shield of armor. Without looking at her, he cautiously approached the door, his eyes watchful of the man challenging him.
Justin didn’t move, forcing Dailey to squeeze his slender body through the small opening created between Justin and the doorjamb. Before Dailey was through the door, Justin reached out and flattened his hand against the jamb, preventing his escape.
“My wife is off-limits to anyone but me. In the future, you’d be smart to remember that.” The threat of Justin’s words was reinforced by his grave tone. He hesitated a moment, then dropped his arm. He heard the man’s hurried footsteps, then a car door, and finally a revving engine and squealing tires. If he wasn’t so irritated with his wife, he might have been amused.
As it was, Justin stared at the woman he’d married seven years ago, his heart slamming hard against the wall of his chest. Damn, just seeing her again after a year apart made his pulse race. Heather had always had that effect on him. She was still as beautiful as the day he’d met her on the campus of Penn State during his last year of school.
Watching him with uneasy eyes, Heather cautiously stepped closer, stopping just in front of him. She put her hand on the door, then leaned her hip against it, hiking her short brown skirt higher on her thighs. Her auburn hair fell in curls around her face and shoulders. Black shoes with three-inch heels complemented her shapely calves. Justin’s muscles tightened as he remembered the last time he’d stroked her legs, the last time they’d been intimate. His blood pressure rose a notch.
Damn, a year was a long time without sex.
Apparently, it had been too long for Heather, also, he thought, outrage pulling at him.
“That was uncalled for,” she stated, her voice sounding more stable as she began to absorb the shock of seeing him. Small brackets formed a frown around her full lips.
“Was it?” Justin shrugged one big shoulder. “The wimp wanted to have you. I made sure he understood he wouldn’t.”
He heard her intake of breath as her green eyes darkened with emotion.
“You have no right to interfere with my life.” Her features tightened as she glared at him, a line between her eyes becoming prominent.
“You’re still my wife,” Justin reminded her. “Apparently you’ve forgotten that.”
“I haven’t forgotten that we’re still married.” She faced him squarely, her shoulders visibly tightening. “But I easily could have. I haven’t heard a word from you in a year.” The reminder was spoken sharply, and hurt lingered in the shadows of her eyes. After she’d miscarried their baby, Justin had withdrawn from her. Eventually their marriage had suffered irreversible damage, and he’d chosen to leave her. The pain of his rejection still had the power to make her heart ache.
Justin stated the obvious. “I’m here now. May I come in?”
As she stared at her husband, Heather’s whole carriage stiffened. Her heart tripped over itself as his gaze held hers captive. He was so handsome that he literally stole her breath. Impeccably dressed in a white shirt and dark business suit, he looked as if he’d come straight from work. Justin always had a presence about him, something about him that commanded attention wherever he was, whoever he was with.
She glanced back up at his face. His well-groomed dark brown hair was combed back from his face, and his blue eyes were blatantly perceptive as they studied her. Though she could never quite read what Justin was thinking, she wished now, more than ever, that she had such power.
What was he doing here? Could it be that he still loved her? Flushing at the foolish thought, she dismissed it. She’d given up that hope long ago. Besides, she wasn’t going to let him hurt her again. There was no way in hell she could stand the torture of losing him again.
“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” she told him, then frantically glanced behind her and into the living room, praying that none of her baby’s things were visible. It was the one area of the house that she tried very hard to keep straight.
A flash of guilt swept through her, temporarily paralyzing her. She’d never told him that when he’d walked away from her, he’d left her pregnant. He had no idea that he had a three-month-old son. Knowing Justin, if she’d told him, he would have felt obligated to come back to her—and Heather hadn’t wanted him back on those terms. A child wasn’t a good reason to keep a marriage together. She’d learned that cold hard fact when her own father had deserted her and her mother when she was thirteen.
Her husband’s unexpected arrival on her doorstep unnerved her. Was it possible he’d learned of Timmy’s existence? Panic seized her—the hard, gripping kind that twisted and tortured every muscle in her chest.
“I’d like to talk to you.” Justin spoke with obvious control. Though he appeared calm, the underlying determination in his tone spoke volumes.
Heather glanced at her watch and realized she was very late picking up Timmy. Nerves made her stomach tighten as she weighed the consequences of allowing Justin inside. She was thankful she’d had a few errands to run after school, and hadn’t swung by her mother’s for her baby.
“Maybe some other time,” she suggested coolly, dropping her hands to her side. Dispassionately, she continued, “I have another appointment in a few minutes.” It was the wrong thing to say.
Justin stared directly at her, his curiosity apparently piqued. “What kind of appointment?”
“Just something I need to take care of,” she offered vaguely. She combed her hair away from her face with her fingers. “Look, can’t this wait?”
“It’ll only take a few minutes,” he insisted, stepping closer. “What harm could there be in inviting me in?”
His words made her skin burn hot, and Heather immediately assured herself that her reaction was only from seeing him so unexpectedly, not at all because of his nearness or the familiar scent of him. No, she couldn’t afford to let her heart respond to him.
“None, I assure you,” she retorted, then wished she hadn’t let him provoke her.
“Then let me in—” his lips curved ever so slightly “—since you have nothing to be afraid of.”
Heather thought about it for a moment. Well, technically he was still her husband, even if she didn’t want to acknowledge that fact to him. That they’d been separated for a year apparently meant nothing at all to him. And she really couldn’t refuse, since he still owned the house they’d shared through six years of marriage.
She shifted and moved away from the door. “All right. For a few minutes.”
Justin stepped inside, and then he shut the door behind him. As he entered the foyer and then the living room, his gaze slowly swept it, as if cataloging every item in minute detail.
His scrutiny made Heather edgy, and she glanced about, again searching the room to be sure it was free of anything that belonged to her son. Then she walked over to the sofa and stopped beside it. “Would you like to sit down?” She gestured toward the chair across from her.
“I’ll stand.” Justin walked farther into the room.
His gaze swept her from head to toe, and she nervously smoothed her hair with her hand. The curls refused to cooperate, and she tucked a stray strand behind her ear.
“How long have you been seeing Dailey?” It came out sounding like a blunt demand.
“We’re just friends. I haven’t been seeing him.”
Justin stared at her, his expression disbelieving. “Then that was the first time he’s come on to you?”
Heather blushed furiously.
“I didn’t think so.”
“All right, I’ll admit that it wasn’t, but that doesn’t mean anything!” She put her hands on her hips to stop them from shaking. He had the power to annoy her without even trying. Apparently he hadn’t changed. Justin always had to be in control. It was one of the things she’d first admired about him. He’d been a no-nonsense, hard-driven, dependable person in her life when she’d needed someone to care for her. After years of struggling with feelings of abandonment by her father, it had been easy for her to let him take charge.
But she was no longer the love-starved young girl he’d married. She no longer needed someone to lean on, someone to protect her and take care of her.
“I see.”
“Apparently you don’t,” Heather retorted, taking in his skeptical expression. “Maybe Paul’s asked me out a few times, but I’ve always refused.” Heather had her hands full working full-time as a teacher and being a mother.
Okay, so maybe she got lonely once in a while, but she wasn’t ready to date again. She didn’t have time for a relationship, nor did she want one. She knew too well how easy it was to get hurt.
Justin’s jaw tightened a fraction. “He didn’t look as if he was going to take no for an answer just now,” he remarked.
“You didn’t give me a chance to make it clear to him that I wasn’t interested.”
“If he’s come on to you before and you’ve discouraged him, apparently he isn’t getting the message,” he reasoned, and a muscle worked in his jaw.
Heather gave a frustrated sigh. “I really don’t see that this is any of your business. You’ve been out of my life a long time, Justin, and I don’t owe you any explanations.”
He favored her with a curious look, lifting his brow in question. “We’re still married.”
She bristled, annoyed by the intimate reminder she saw in his eyes. “We haven’t lived together in a year,” she stated, resolving to end the conversation.
“That’s why I came to see you.”
Heather paled and her breath caught. She felt as if she’d been punched in the chest.
He’s come to ask you for a divorce!
She trembled before she brought herself under control. Though totally unprepared for this, she could handle it. She could, dammit! Shaking her head, she realized she should have expected that he’d find someone new.
“You want a divorce,” she stated flatly, denying him the chance to tell her he was in love with someone else.
A small smile gradually spread on Justin’s lips, just enough to expose a trace of the dimple in his right cheek. Heather’s heart hammered. His smile was what had first attracted her to him. His smile and that damn attractive dimple.
“What?” Confusion etched her brow. Feeling lightheaded, she touched the back of the sofa for support. “Isn’t that why you’re here?”
“No.”
She glanced at his hand, and for the first time realized he still wore his diamond-and-gold wedding band. “Why are you here, then?”
Justin regarded her silently, then seemed to choose his words very carefully. “Actually, I want us to give our marriage another try, Heather.”
“What?” Heather couldn’t have heard him right. Surely, her mind was playing tricks on her.
“You heard me correctly,” he assured her, apparently reading the bewilderment on her face. “I want us to give our marriage another chance.” He stepped closer to her, and she immediately took two steps away from him.
“I don’t understand,” she whispered softly. This didn’t sound at all like the Justin who had turned his back on her and walked out on their life together after her miscarriage. “I mean, why?” She wondered again if he knew about Timmy. But from the way the conversation was going, that was doubtful.
Justin reached toward her and touched his fingers to her cheek. She moved her head a fraction, out of his reach, and he let his hand fall. “A lot has happened in the year we’ve been apart.”
“Such as?” she prompted. What could possibly have happened that would have a bearing on their marriage? she wondered suspiciously.
He’d never been one to open up, and she’d always thought they would have had a chance if he’d told her what he was thinking, what he was going through.
“I met my birth mother.”
She blinked with surprise. “You have? Really?”
Heather was stunned that he was talking about his past. She always believed the reason that Justin was so reserved and reluctant to share his feelings was the way he was raised. As a baby, he’d been left on the doorstep of a sheriff’s office in Nevada. Because he was unable to be put up for adoption, he’d been placed with a foster family, had been given their last name. He’d grown up in the foster-care system, had been shuffled around all his life. He was never allowed to put down roots, never given the opportunity to become part of a family.
When they’d first married, she’d thought that they would put down their own roots. Naively, she had believed they’d be together forever. She couldn’t have been more wrong.
Justin gave her a slight nod. He hesitated a moment, then continued, “Her name is Miranda Fortune and she lives in Texas.”
Heather wasn’t sure what to say. Justin seemed…somehow pleased by this new development in his life. “Oh, Justin.” She sighed, and her heart swelled with caring. Despite the heartache he’d caused her, she was happy for him.
Justin had been searching for something all his life, something to fulfill him. He seemed to have found it. The realization that it wasn’t her, that she hadn’t been enough to make him happy, stung, even as her compassion for him flourished.
“How did you find her?”
“I didn’t.” He shoved his hands in his pockets. “Her ex-husband, Lloyd, sent a private detective to look for me. The P.I.—Flynn Sinclair—eventually contacted me and asked me to go to Texas to see her.”
“And you did?”
He nodded. “At first I refused. Then I learned that I have a twin, a sister.” Justin could understand Heather’s surprise at his news. He’d felt the same overwhelming disbelief when the detective had shown up at his office to tell him of his heritage. His first reaction had been indifference. His mother hadn’t cared enough to keep him—why should he give her the satisfaction of knowing him now?
But learning he had a twin had convinced him to change his mind. There was another part of him somewhere in the world, someone with some of the same personality traits, the same looks, the same feelings of abandonment and emptiness. Based on that, he’d agreed to a meeting.
“A twin sister?”
The thought of his sister brought a smile to Justin’s lips. He touched the dimple on his cheek and remembered his surprise when he’d first seen that she, too, shared the identical physical trait. “Her name is Emma,” he said to his wife. “She’s just had a baby, and she ended up marrying Flynn Sinclair.” Seeing the confusion on her face, he added, “It’s a long story.”
“My goodness.” She sounded as if she couldn’t believe it. “A lot has been happening. I’m very pleased for you,” she said. “What is your mother like?”
“She seems nice, and is interested in learning more about me,” he explained, his tone noncommittal. “Miranda was very young when she had us, and on her own. She felt that there was no way she could take care of us. Later, she married and had two other children—so I have two other siblings, as well.
“I’ve seen them all on a few occasions,” Justin continued. “The first time was several months ago when I first went to Texas to meet Miranda and Emma. I saw Miranda again just a few days ago at a party given by my half-brother, Kane and his wife Allison, welcoming me into the Fortune family.” Justin had even considered moving to Texas, but had quickly realized that leaving Pittsburgh would add a finality to his relationship with Heather. He wasn’t prepared to do that. Not yet.
“You have a brother?”
Justin nodded. “Yes. He’s a doctor and he also lives in Texas. So does my half-sister, Gabrielle, who is married to the town sheriff and has a daughter.”
“And you’ve already met them all?” Heather could imagine Justin’s manner as he met the strangers who were related to him. Even as he spoke of them now, she could see the reservation in his eyes. That he’d called his mother by her first name revealed more than he intended. He’d met these people—relatives—but he wasn’t yet willing to call them family.
“As I said, several times.” He moved across the room and picked up a framed picture on a drop-leaf table. It was of the two of them on their wedding day. Deep in thought, he rubbed his thumb over the picture.
Heather wished at that moment that she’d put it away. She didn’t want him to think it meant something to her. She’d kept it out to remind herself of the mistake she’d made by believing he truly loved her.
“Apparently the Fortunes are obscenely wealthy,” Justin stated, sounding notably unimpressed as he studied the smile on Heather’s face in the picture. Their wealth hadn’t been what had encouraged him to meet Miranda or the Fortunes. At eighteen, he’d moved to Pittsburgh with the last foster family he’d lived with. A short time later, when they’d moved again, he’d moved out on his own. He’d worked two jobs and attended college.
He’d made a place for himself in the world—owned his own prosperous steel business, Trigon Steel, which earned enough money for him to live on quite comfortably for the rest of his natural life even if he never worked another day.
But it wasn’t enough to fill the void inside him, and what actually prompted him to meet his biological mother was her connection to his own existence. It was finally knowing where he’d come from, who he was linked to in the world, that had taken him to Texas.
“Your mother never searched for you before?”
“I don’t think so. When Miranda was young, she never wanted any affinity with the Fortune family, but she’s since made peace with them. She wants Emma and me to be a part of the family, too.”
“What about your biological father? Have you met him as well?”
“No, we haven’t discussed who my father was.” Though he was curious, he hadn’t asked.
He looked at Heather and saw confusion clouding her green eyes. She couldn’t imagine why meeting his family had provoked this visit from him, nor did she have any idea why he thought they should make another go of their marriage. How could he make her understand, when he wasn’t quite sure he understood himself?
Seeing all of the Fortune family together had made an impact on his hardened heart. Through troubles and tribulations, they’d stuck together, found offspring they didn’t know existed and brought them under the umbrella of their family. They’d supported each other, had opened their arms to welcome him and Emma.
“And what exactly does all of this have to do with me?” Heather finally asked, after listening to his explanation. “With us?”
“Miranda would like to meet you.”
“But, why?”
“Because you’re my wife.”
Justin’s answer was too simple to make sense. Heather couldn’t imagine why his biological mother would want to meet her, especially since she and Justin were separated.
When she didn’t reply, he swung around to face her. She felt the full force of his heated gaze as it traveled very slowly over her body, then rose with meticulous precision to her face. Butterflies attacked her stomach. She had an eerie feeling she wasn’t going to like what he was going to say.
“I’d like you to go to Texas with me.”
Two
“To Texas?” Heather’s voice rose a pitch as she stared blankly at her estranged husband. He couldn’t really mean what he was suggesting.
He frowned deeply at her reaction. “That is where she lives.” There was the briefest hint of frustration in his tone. “I’d like you to meet her, as well.”
Heather’s mouth was still hanging open. “You would?” Knowing her husband wasn’t prone to spontaneous actions, she figured there had to be more to this. For someone like Justin, who needed to control everyone and everything around him, well, she figured, adjusting to his new family had to be very hard for him to deal with.
She was certainly curious about the Fortunes. Apparently they’d made quite an impression on him. He seemed so…she couldn’t really put her thoughts into words. Justin was somehow undefinably…different.
“Of course.”
“Why didn’t you just tell your mother we were separated?”
He hesitated, then said, “Because I thought maybe you and I still had a chance together. There’s no reason for her to know otherwise, if we stay together.” He moved a step closer to her. “It’s not so crazy when you think about it. We were happy once, Heather.” He reached toward her and ran his fingers across her cheek, then through her hair to brush it from her face.
She stiffened, again moving a step away. “I thought we were,” she agreed, “until…” She left the words unspoken, but the reminder was there all the same. Heather’s skin tingled where he’d touched her, and she suspected he wasn’t just talking about their marriage. For a while, they had shared something special, and she had no trouble remembering those wonderfully happy times. Those memories taunted her often, as did the memory of the moment he’d left her.
“We both made mistakes, but we had a good life for a while.”
“I haven’t forgotten, Justin.” Her admission came reluctantly, and brought a barely noticeable look of relief to his features.
“Maybe we can recapture what we had.”
“Justin—”
“We were married for six years,” he interrupted, his tone slightly challenging. “Doesn’t that mean anything to you?”
She bristled. “I could ask you the same thing. I haven’t heard a word from you in a year, and now you show up wanting me to go away with you.”
“You didn’t bother to contact me, either,” he reminded her sharply.
Heather felt a wave of embarrassment sweep over her. His charge was justified, more so than hers. She’d had more reason to contact him than he knew. “You’re right, but—”
“Come to Texas with me,” he said again, softening his tone. He cocked his head and studied her. “That’s all I’m asking. It’ll give us time to think about what’s happened between us, time to decide where we should go from here.” Surprise filled her gaze once again. “Would you be willing to try again to make our marriage work?”
“I…I don’t know,” she answered honestly, astonished at how her pulse raced at the thought. Could she really risk her heart again?
Justin didn’t say anything for a moment. He turned and went to the window and stared out of it. Heather nervously bit her bottom lip, wondering what he was thinking. Just as she was about to speak, he turned and faced her.
“How about if we give it a month?” He walked back over to her and stopped so close that she could feel his body heat. “One month. Isn’t our marriage worth a month out of your life?”
Heather swayed, staggered by his proposition. “A month,” she repeated. He was putting a timetable on their reconciliation. Now, that sounded more like the Justin she remembered. Always in control.
Justin nodded. “It’s long enough to see if we can work things out,” he rationalized. “If after a month it isn’t working, I’ll give you a divorce.” His jaw tightened a fraction.
Heather still couldn’t believe this was happening, and she was hesitant to give him the power to hurt her again. Yes, she still had feelings for her husband—but only because he was the father of her son. And what about when he learned about their baby? Would Justin use Timmy to pressure her into staying married?
She was astute enough to realize that she saw very little change in Justin. He was still a man of few words, still kept his thoughts to himself. Though Heather had always felt during her marriage that he cared for her, he had never really said the words. She supposed she couldn’t blame him. Words of love never came easy to her, either, and she’d held back her own thoughts and feelings. It was also obvious that he still wanted to control everything around him.
However, in the past year she’d changed, grown independent. She was used to making decisions for herself.
Deep in thought, Heather was unaware of how close Justin had come to her until he reached for her and drew her against him. Caught by surprise, she put her hands flat against his hard-muscled chest. In the past, they’d settled many problems in each other’s arms—the last being when she’d gotten pregnant with Timmy. But she wasn’t going to let him get away with it now.
Not this time.
Leaning backward, she put enough pressure in her arms to break his embrace. He frowned, and his lips flattened into a thin line. But he let her go. She stepped farther away, enough to feel as if she could breathe normally again. She hated the way he had of stealing her breath with his mere presence.
“One month, Heather.”
The ringing of the telephone startled them both. Heather murmured an apology. “I have to get that,” she said, suspecting it was her mother. Quickly moving across the room, she picked up the telephone receiver on the end table.
“Hello,” she said. “Oh, Mom. Yes, I know I’m late. I’m sorry.” She glanced at Justin before quickly looking away.
He watched her talk on the phone with her mother. He’d always liked Kathryn Watson. She was warm and attentive without being controlling or smothering—the kind of mother that he’d always yearned for, the kind of mother he’d never known. Now that he’d met Miranda, Justin thought she, too, seemed to be kindhearted and caring. She’d made an effort to get close to him, but so far he hadn’t been able to totally let his guard down around her—or any of the other Fortunes.
His reserve around his extended family didn’t include his sister Emma. He and his twin shared a certain respect for each other, a bond that only twins could feel. He’d been amazed by her easygoing nature, despite her troubled past. When they’d met, he’d learned she was on the run from an abusive ex-boyfriend. Had he not been reassured by Sinclair that Emma would be safe with him, Justin would have taken care of her himself. The thought of someone hurting her infuriated him. Justin was pleased that Emma had found Flynn, who loved her and her newborn daughter.
“I have some unexpected company.”
Heather’s voice drew his attention, and he wondered what Kathryn would say if she knew it was him. He strained forward to hear what he could of the conversation, and it was obvious she was avoiding telling her mother about him. Well, that was okay. Kathryn would know soon enough that he wanted to reconcile.
His wife sighed heavily. “It’s Justin, Mom.” She listened for a moment. “I’m going to be a few minutes longer, if that’s okay.” More silence, and her foot tapped the floor nervously. “Thanks, Mom. I really appreciate it.”
Heather hung up the telephone, then turned to face him. Her expression was shadowed, probably out of a need for self-preservation. But Justin didn’t miss the brief glimpse of awareness in her eyes, and he took that as a sign that she still felt something for him.
She ran the pink tip of her tongue over her upper lip, and he bit back an oath. He wanted nothing more at that moment than to pull her to him and make love to her, to show her there was an underlying spark between them that they could build on.
She represented everything he’d worked for in his life—and everything he’d been unable to hold on to. He’d lost the woman he’d loved, his home, and with her unfortunate miscarriage, the family he’d wanted so badly. They’d had a chance once. Was it irrational to believe they could have another?
He resisted the urge to pull her back into his embrace, and as though she needed to put space between them, she stepped farther away from him and stood beside one of the big overstuffed chairs that decorated the room.
Her hands tightened on the back of the chair, her knuckles turning white. She looked…wary, and Justin could understand that. He’d deeply disappointed her once, although he’d thought he was doing the right thing by giving her her freedom. It was going to be hard for her to put those unpleasant memories to rest and consider his proposal.
She held her head high and looked him directly in the eyes. “This is so like you,” she commented. “I mean, showing up so suddenly, making decisions and expecting me to agree to whatever you want.”
Annoyed by her words, Justin grimaced. “I called and left you a message, letting you know that I’d be coming over.”
Heather’s gaze swung to the answering machine sitting on the table. The little red message light was blinking. “I haven’t had time to check my messages. As soon as I came in the door, Paul arrived.”
“Would it have made a difference if you’d known I was coming?”
“I don’t know.” She searched his face, wishing for even a hint as to what he was thinking. “We didn’t exactly part on good terms.” Truthfully, they hadn’t exactly parted on any particular terms. He had simply walked away from her one day.
Later, he’d contacted her through his lawyer, who had informed her he would be sending her a monthly check. Once she’d realized that he wasn’t coming back, she slowly started putting her life back together.
Then she’d discovered she was pregnant again.
They’d made love one of the last evenings they’d spent together. On her part, it had been a desperate attempt to regain some closeness between them. Heather hadn’t taken precautions, and neither had Justin. Even up to the very end, she’d hoped to have another child. She had foolishly thought another baby would help her marriage, had hoped Justin would love her if she gave him a child.
But he’d left, anyway. It wasn’t long afterward that she had started missing her periods. When she’d found out she was pregnant, she was elated, yet deeply saddened by the irony of her situation. She realized she was going to have the baby they’d always wanted—only Justin wouldn’t be there to share the joy with her.
She’d hoped he’d contact her, give her some idea he still cared for her. But he hadn’t, and she had decided at that point not to tell him about her pregnancy. She’d thought about it long and hard. But dealing with his rejection had been so difficult, and she’d known he would have come back to her only because of the baby. Heather just couldn’t live with him knowing that her love wasn’t enough to make him happy.
For a while, she’d been worried he’d find out somehow, or that their paths would cross and he’d discover the truth. Fortunately, Pittsburgh was a very big city. Justin’s office was across town in the Pittsburgh Plate Glass building, and their house in the elite suburb of Fox Chapel was far enough away that she’d hoped her secret was safe. Apparently she hadn’t had to worry about it. Justin had never even tried to see her—until now, and the friends they’d had had dropped out of her life when she no longer traveled in the same circles.
Justin’s lips curved into the bare resemblance of a smile. She hadn’t seemed surprised when he’d shown up. “My intent in coming here wasn’t to run roughshod over you.” His gaze was direct. “My motives aren’t suspect. I’m asking you to give us another chance.”
When she didn’t answer right away, he felt his heart stop. His plans for a reconciliation depended on getting Heather alone with him so he could convince her to give their marriage another try.
“I don’t know. I need to think about this,” she stated frankly.
Though he didn’t necessarily like her answer, he decided not to pressure her. He’d give her some time to think about it, then see where that got him. He had a tenacious nature and wasn’t one to give up easily if something was important to him.
That had a lot to do with his past. It hadn’t been easy getting past abandonment and growing up in foster care. Justin had never been fortunate enough to live with a family who cared about him.
He hadn’t stayed with any one family very long. There had always been a reason to get rid of him, no matter how hard he’d tried to fit in. He’d been too young or too old, too reserved or too much trouble. At a very early age he’d learned to look out for himself.
He should thank Miranda for instilling in him a drive to make something of himself. In a perverse way, her abandoning him as a baby had implanted the motivation to become independent and successful.
“All right.” He stared at her a moment, then reached for her hand. He was both surprised and pleased when he realized she still wore his ring. He touched it, then watched the large, tear-shaped diamond sparkle in the light from the window. She drew her hand away, and he frowned. “I’ll call you tomorrow.”
Heather pressed her lips together as she followed him to the door. “No,” she said quickly, wanting to control their next meeting. “I have school and a meeting afterward. I’ll call you. Where will you be?”
Reaching inside his jacket, he extracted a business card. “You know the office number. This has the number of my apartment, as well as my digital.”
Heather studied the card as he opened the door. “All right, I’ll call you after school tomorrow.”
Justin nodded, then stepped outside. He hesitated, then turned back toward her. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”
Heather watched him get into his Mercedes and drive away. As he disappeared from sight, she sagged against the door, her strength zapped.
Justin’s visit had blindsided her. Even a tornado wouldn’t have caused such havoc in her life.
Was she losing her mind? She’d actually told him she’d think about his proposition—that she’d consider giving their marriage another try.
Did she really want to?
A long time ago she’d loved Justin. Could she learn to love him again?
Three
“How did he look?” Kathryn Watson asked as soon as they had settled around the kitchen table to eat dinner.
“Justin?” Heather asked needlessly. “The same. Too handsome for his own good.” She twirled a few strings of spaghetti around on her fork, then took a bite and chewed thoughtfully. There wasn’t a woman on earth who wouldn’t look twice at him if she passed him on the street.
“Does he know about Timmy?”
“No! Oh, my, Mom. That’s what I thought, too, when I saw him.” She explained that she’d stopped off at home for a few minutes to bring some things into the house and that Paul Dailey had shown up. Heather also told her of the altercation between her husband and Paul.
Kathryn chuckled, and Heather shot her mother a glare. “It wasn’t funny.”
“I wish I’d been there,” Kathryn said. “Justin’s always been very protective of you. I bet he was seething.”
“He was overbearing and rude,” Heather retorted, taking another bite of her food.
“Well, at least that problem’s solved. You’ve been discouraging him for months.”
“Yes, well, Justin didn’t have to be so…blunt,” she said, for lack of a better word.
“Funny, that’s one of his traits that I’ve always admired. Justin’s not a man of many words, but when he says something, he’s direct. What did he want?” she asked.
Heather told her about Justin’s heritage and how he’d gone to Texas to meet his biological mother and twin sister.
“Well, I couldn’t be happier for him. He’s always been so alone in the world, without family, growing up being passed from foster home to foster home.”
Kathryn had always told Heather that she found Justin’s drive to be one of his greatest strengths. He’d majored in business, and after graduation he’d worked for a while in the steel industry, then started his own steel fabrication company. Trigon Steel was now a major player in a city where the competition was stiff and often brutal.
“He had me. I was his family,” she reminded her mother, her eyes cloaked with sadness. “He walked away from what we had.”
“He was hurting, as you were. Justin isn’t anything like your father, honey. Henry was manipulative and selfish. He never led me to believe there was anything wrong between us. If I’d known he was having an affair, I would have left him long before he left us.”
“Dad didn’t care about you or me.” Heather’s eyes glistened, and she looked away.
She had a tremendous amount of respect for her mother. Kathryn Watson was strong and independent. She’d raised her daughter alone, had worked overtime hours as a secretary to help her pay for college. Heather was fortunate to have her mother as her best friend and confidante.
However, her father’s desertion remained with her throughout her life. Though her mother had dealt with his betrayal, Heather was never able to express the hurt and rejection that was always a part of her.
Kathryn remained silent for a moment, then said quietly, “Not all men leave.”
“Justin did.” Heather couldn’t forget that. His leaving had effectively reinforced the wall around her heart.
Kathryn reached across the kitchen table and touched her daughter’s hand. “Everyone handles grief differently. Justin handled it the only way he knew. He threw himself into his work. He didn’t know how to relate what he was feeling.”
“Mom, you’ve always championed Justin.” She wrinkled her brow, deepening her frown. “I know you’ve supported me, too, but why is it you feel the need to come to his defense?”
“Because he’s never had anyone to do that for him,” Kathryn answered softly. “I can’t imagine what it must be like to grow up without any connection to the world. No family, no distant relatives, no one.”
“Well, now he has an entire family, complete with a half brother and sister. Apparently, they’re extremely rich.” She shoved her plate away and sat back in the chair. “Mom, he wants me to go to Texas to meet his mother and he has this…this weird idea of us giving ourselves a month together to see if we can work things out between us.”
Speechless, Kathryn stared blankly at her daughter. “A month? What did you tell him?”
“That I needed to think about it. What else could I say?” Gauging her mother’s thoughtful expression, Heather asked, “What do you think?”
“Marriages aren’t always easy, honey. The fact that Justin has come to you means a lot. He must still have feelings for you. And how would you feel if you gave up this chance? You have Timmy to think about, as well as yourself. You’re going to have to tell him about Timmy, Heather.”
Heather saw the censure in her mother’s eyes. “I know. And I will. Just not yet.” She flushed as guilt ate at her. She had intended to tell Justin about the baby before now, really she had. It was ironic that he’d shown up and had effectively taken away her chance to come clean voluntarily. “I know Justin, and if he found out about his son, he’d insist on reconciling for that reason alone. I don’t want a marriage based on sacrifice.”
Kathryn picked up Heather’s plate and took it to the sink. “Look, why don’t you think about going to Texas? You’ll be alone together, and it will be the perfect opportunity to see if you can salvage your marriage.”
“I can’t just up and run off to Texas, Mom. I have responsibilities here. I have Timmy to take care of.”
“Don’t use Timmy as an excuse,” Kathryn scolded. “I can keep him for you, and you know he’ll be safe with me.”
Heat darkened Heather’s already flushed face. Her mother wasn’t easily fooled. Using Timmy was a quick and easy excuse she could hide behind. “All right, I know that.”
“Then go home and think long and hard about what Justin has proposed.”
Later at home, Heather could think of nothing else. Did she dare do as her mother encouraged? She wasn’t even sure if she could leave Timmy for a long period of time. He was so little, and he needed her. Since his birth, she hadn’t been away from him, other than the hours she was at school. How could she abandon him to her mother for a month?
There was no way she could leave Timmy. She’d just have to think of something else, she decided, her head full of decisions to make, her heart heavy.
“Your wife is on line four.”
“Thank you, Ms. Harris,” Justin responded, and realized his voice wasn’t as steady as he’d have liked.
He’d been impatiently waiting for Heather to call, had instructed his secretary to put her through immediately. He’d even picked up the telephone several times to call her, only to put it back down. Aware his hands were sweating, he rubbed them on his slacks, then picked up the receiver and punched a button on the telephone.
“Heather?” He was anxious to hear her husky voice, to hear her say his name. Her effect on him even after one short visit was lethal. She was all he could think about.
“Hi. Is this a bad time?”
Justin thought she sounded a little rattled. Well, he could relate to that. His uncertainty as to what she was thinking or what her decision might be had made him irritable. His secretary had threatened to quit after working with him for only a few hours this morning. He knew the reason, and its name was Heather.
“No, of course not. You can call me anytime.”
“Oh.” There was silence on the line while she digested that. “Well, I’ll only keep you for a moment. I was wondering if we could meet. You know, to talk.”
“Of course,” he assured her, enjoying the breathless sound of her voice as she spoke. It wrapped around him, warming him like a blanket on a cold, snowy day. “How about if I stop by the house this evening?” he suggested, wanting to see her again as soon as he could. He’d drive there right now if she said the word.
“No,” she replied quickly. “I, um, have some business to attend to in the city. I thought maybe you wouldn’t mind if I came to your apartment.”
That cost her—which made him curious as to her motive, wondering if she was purposely setting a meeting on her own terms. Though he’d told his lawyer to give her the address in case she needed to reach him, Heather had never set foot in his apartment or called there.
“All right.” He leaned over his desk, propped his elbows on it, and he stared at her picture. In it she was smiling at him, reminding him of everything he’d given up when he’d left her. “What time is good for you?”
She named a time, and he gave her directions. He hesitated breaking the connection, reluctant to end their conversation. But she didn’t say anything more, and like a fool, he couldn’t think of a way to prolong it. “I’ll see you at seven, then.”
“Yes,” Heather said. “Seven.”
Justin put the receiver in its cradle, and a heavy sigh escaped his lips. He drove his fingers through his hair, then held his head in his hands, his eyes fixed on the picture of Heather on his desk. Even after they’d separated, he’d never put it away.
It was of her while they were on their honeymoon. It wasn’t one of those posed shots by a professional, but a candid photo, catching her eyes shining with happiness, her wide smile. Her auburn hair fell around her face, and her cheeks were slightly flushed.
She looked happy and blissful.
That had been a lifetime ago, before she’d withdrawn into herself when she’d lost their baby. In the beginning, he’d pushed her, trying to force her to face their loss. When she’d continue to resist his efforts, he’d backed away. He’d dealt with the loss of their child in his own way, throwing himself into his work, driving himself to the edge of sanity just to get through each day. Somehow they’d lost each other in the process of healing their wounds.
But now he hoped they could find the common bond that had brought them together in the beginning of their relationship.
He glanced at his gold watch and realized he had only a few hours before she’d be at his apartment.
Justin decided to step up his plan to woo his wife.
The doorman to the high-rise building didn’t hesitate when Heather identified herself and who she was there to see. He opened the door and greeted her cordially, as if they’d met on several occasions before.
“Mrs. Bond. Mr. Bond is expecting you.”
She smiled, a nervous little smile that caused her lips to tremble. Obviously Justin had left word with the doorman to expect her. Her legs shaking, she walked across the black-and-white marbled floor to the elevator. Her hand trembled as she pressed the call button. A few moments later, the doors opened and she stepped inside.
Her heart jumped as the car ascended. She told herself it was because of the alarming speed of the elevator, not because it was taking her to Justin. To steady herself, she grasped the silver bar on the wall and held on tight. Before she could regain her equilibrium, the bell sounded and the car stopped on the top floor.
There were several apartment doors in view as she stepped off, but Heather knew to look for the number he’d given her. Still, she glanced at the paper the address was written on to be sure she had it right, then stuffed it inside her purse. She approached the door with the caution a trainer would use when confronting an uncaged lion, then stopped in front of it. Her hand shook as she raised it and gave a soft knock.
Moments later, it opened, and her husband was standing before her. He was dressed rather casually. For Justin, anyway. He had on dark-blue slacks and a polo shirt. His hair was slicked back from his face.
He smiled when he saw her, exposing that adorable dimple, and Heather’s heart melted a little, which caused her concern. She resented his ability to generate such a reaction inside her by his mere presence, momentarily robbing her of her perspective.
“Hi,” she said, and prayed her legs wouldn’t give out on her. Realizing she was clutching her purse, she willed herself to relax. The last thing she wanted was to seem nervous, though at the moment, that was an understatement.
He reached for her hand. She hesitated a beat, then offered it to him.
“Come in,” he said, drawing her into the room.
His tense expression relaxed a bit, and she was surprised at the brief look of relief she saw in his eyes. Had he wondered if she would change her mind? Well, it wasn’t like she hadn’t thought of canceling a hundred times, she admitted silently.
“I was glad to hear from you.”
“I said I would call,” she reminded him. She felt a tingle of pleasure as his hand closed around hers. It disconcerted her, when more than ever she wanted to keep her bearings about her. The familiar scent of his cologne drifted to her, and unconsciously she stepped closer to him.
Since she’d never been to his apartment, had never even known where it was other than the address, she was more than curious. An odd feeling crawled up her spine as she took in her surroundings. The room was spacious and formal, the furniture expensive and not at all what she’d envisioned. She’d imagined soft leather furniture, black or gray, something appealing to a man, with a large television and every electronic gadget that could possibly be used with it.
Instead, a decorator’s touch was evident everywhere, from the modern sofa and chairs, to the valuable framed paintings on the walls and the showy, perfectly placed vases of flowers, statues and lamps.
“I confess that I wondered if you would call.”
Her gaze went quickly to his face and an odd feeling made her tremble. The Justin she knew would never have admitted that.
“So this is where you live,” she murmured. He seemed totally out of place in the stark surroundings. This could have been anyone’s home. There were no signs in the room indicating Justin had made it his home.
“You seem surprised,” he said, watching her closely. “Did you think I was living in some luxurious bachelor pad?”
Flushing, she swallowed hard, annoyed he could read her thoughts so easily. “It doesn’t even look lived in,” she observed, avoiding his comment.
She wasn’t surprised that the room was immaculate. Justin had always been obsessively neat. The one time she’d asked him to pick up something he’d left in another room, he’d complied so quickly that he’d stunned her. He’d humbly apologized and sworn it wouldn’t happen again. It was such an overreaction that it had caused her concern.
After that day, she’d never had to ask him to pick up behind himself again or even had to remind him to wash out the sink after he shaved. She’d always thought that was a little strange, and she’d broached the subject with him once, but he wouldn’t talk about it.
“I’ve been traveling a lot lately.”
His words broke into her thoughts, and he seemed amused by her curiosity. Heather gave him a small smile. “I see.”
“Besides the trips to Texas, I’ve been out of town a lot for the company.” Putting his hand behind her back, Justin led her toward a door across the room. “Would you like a drink before dinner?”
“Dinner?” she repeated, then flashed him a confused look.
“I was hoping you hadn’t eaten,” he told her, ushering her into a large formal dining room. “Have you?”
“No…no, I haven’t,” she stammered.
He grinned. “Great! I wanted to surprise you.”
He’d certainly done that, she thought as she walked inside and examined the room. There was an ornate cherry-wood china cabinet and a matching oval table that could comfortably seat twelve people. Two single candles in crystal heart-shaped bases added atmosphere to what she thought was probably normally an austere room. The table had been set for two, with one place setting at the end and the other to the left.
Touching a switch on the wall, Justin lowered the lights a fraction, adding a touch of ambience. “Here, sit down,” he invited, leading her to the side of the table and holding her chair.
Like a robot programmed to follow orders, Heather slid onto a softly padded chair. A single red rose rested across the plate in front of her.
Justin touched her shoulder, then slid his hand with familiar ease to her neck. He leaned over and whispered near her ear, “I’ll be right back.” Then, before moving away, he murmured, “You smell wonderful.”
Heather shivered as he left her. She felt like a bug caught in a spider’s web, a tiny little bug facing a really big spider. Apprehension warred with excitement inside her. He’d certainly gone to a lot of trouble for her, and despite her resolve to remain aloof, it touched a tender spot in her heart. This was a side of him she wasn’t used to. It made her wonder what else about him had changed.
Fingering the soft petals of the rose, she pondered its intent. Justin had never been what one would call romantic. Though he’d always acknowledged her birthday and their anniversary with gifts, Heather had never felt that he’d put much thought into them. They were never overly personal, and actually, she’d wondered if he’d had his secretary choose them.
Picking up the rose, she breathed in its sweet, floral scent. Justin knew she loved roses, and he’d occasionally brought a dozen home to her. Red roses were her favorite. She trailed the soft, velvet-like petals across her cheek.
Closing her eyes, she remembered the first time he’d given her roses. It had been the night he’d asked her to marry him. From the moment she’d met him, she’d never looked at another man. She’d been thrilled when he proposed.
Now he was proposing something totally different.
The door to the kitchen opened, and heat rushed to her face. She swung her head around in time to see him stop beside her and place two silver covered dishes and a basket of bread on the table. Not wanting him to wonder what suddenly had her hot all over, she quipped, “You cooked?” The truth was, they both knew he’d burn water if it was possible.
That brought a quick smile to his lips. “Smart aleck.” His expression was teasing as he lifted the lids and the aroma of garlic and tomato sauce filled the room.
They both laughed, and Heather enjoyed hearing the rich, cheerful sound of his voice. How long had it been since they’d share such a moment? She stared at him, all kinds of raw emotions wreaking havoc inside her.
Life just didn’t play fair. When they’d married, she’d thought they’d be happy forever. She supposed that was silly, but it was what she’d longed for, wanted to believe in, despite her father’s desertion. It had taken a lot of courage to trust Justin with her heart. What had happened to the love they’d once shared? Where had they failed?
The shared moment died, and as her eyes watered, she looked away.
Justin’s lips flattened into a thin line. “What?” he asked as he took his seat. He reached over and touched her hand.
“Nothing.”
“Heather—”
She reluctantly turned her gaze to his, her eyes glistening.
“I don’t want to hurt you.”
“I think I know that,” she said, then continued rather solemnly, “in my head. My heart is quite another matter. Sometimes whether we want to or not, we do hurt each other.” She stopped speaking to take a breath, to will herself to get control. “I don’t know if I can do this again,” she admitted truthfully.
“Give us a chance. That’s all I’m asking.”
She couldn’t look at him. “You make it sound so simple, so easy. But it isn’t.”
Justin let go of her hand and sat back. He breathed heavily. “I don’t know what you think, but this past year hasn’t been easy for me, either.”
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Shirley Rogers
Тип: электронная книга
Жанр: Современные любовные романы
Язык: на английском языке
Издательство: HarperCollins
Дата публикации: 16.04.2024
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О книге: Justin Bond knew all about forging steel ties, but human bonds were another matter – especially when it came to winning back his wife! And with Heather agreeing to accompany him to Texas to meet his Fortune relatives, he′d reluctantly sworn to be the perfect gentleman…. But when their platonic arrangement gave way to passion, Justin learned Heather′s three-month-old secret. A baby had torn them apart, but now could baby Timmy keep them together?