Married For His Heir
“In the meantime,” Talia added, “so we don’t waste time, I think you should meet Hattie.”
Maybe she was right.
He looked up at her. “You sound certain about my parentage. If I get this little child, if she is mine and the state backs off, where do you come in? You’ve been caring for her.”
She shook her head and looked away, and to his shock it looked as if her eyes filled with tears. “I love Hattie like she’s my own, but I know I have to give her up. She’s your baby. You’re young and you’ll marry again. I’m realistic enough to know there won’t be a place in her life for me once I turn her over to you.”
She ran her fingers over her eyes and he knew she wiped away tears. He thought about his own loss. He only knew his son two months, but he had loved him beyond measure, so he could understand her feelings. She’d loved this baby for fourteen months and a lot of that time she had been the sole parent with only the help of the day care. He was sorry that she hurt and he knew the hurt would only grow.
“It’s amazing how babies can wrap around your heart and steal it away,” he said gently and she gave him a startled glance. “If you live in the area, perhaps we can work something out where you can see her. We’ll talk about it after the DNA result is in,” he added.
“Thank you. That’s nice if it works out,” she said, still staring at him as if reassessing her opinion about him. She brushed her fingers over her eyes again and took a deep breath before she spoke. “You’re very doubtful this is your baby. I can understand that but—”
“You’re certain that Madeline gave you the straight story?” he interrupted to ask her. “I mean, if I am the father, she had almost two years to tell me about the baby.”
“I encouraged her to, but in the beginning, she worried that you might try to take Hattie from her. When her music career was beginning to take off she expected to leave Texas and move to New York or California or maybe Nashville, and she figured you’d never cross paths again.”
And if that had come to pass, he’d never have known about Hattie. If she was indeed his.
Talia must have read his thoughts because she said, “You get your DNA test and we’ll talk.” As she stood, he came to his feet immediately. “Unless you have some questions, I think we’re finished for now.”
“You don’t have a doubt, do you?” he asked and looked into her big blue eyes that made him draw a deep breath again and almost forget his question.
“No, I don’t. I do want you to know the truth and the DNA should convince you. That and Hattie’s looks.”
Startled, he stopped thinking about Talia’s blue eyes and stared at her. “You think Hattie looks like me?”
“You can decide when you see her,” she said, smiling faintly.
Her smile couldn’t hide the hurt that he saw in her eyes. She didn’t want to give up the baby she’d come to love. He could see that. He also saw the toll this meeting was taking on her. It was time to end it.
“I’ll get the DNA test and we’ll get back together,” he said as he led her out of the study. “I just can’t fully accept this until I have some proof. I’m glad you understand that.”
“Yes, I do.” She stopped at the front door and turned to him. “You have my name, address and phone number in that envelope. I’ll expect to hear from you.”
There was authority in her tone that reminded him of his grandmother and he almost felt he should promptly answer, “Yes, ma’am.” Instead, as he caught the scent of her perfume and looked into the depths of her eyes, he wanted to ask her out. The idea surprised him, and as fast as it came, he dismissed it. This woman had already complicated his life, and whatever happened, he needed to keep his wits about him and not get emotionally—or physically—involved with her. He wasn’t going to consider dealing with Talia if Hattie turned out not to be his baby, either. Too bad, really. He suspected she was as strong-willed as he was, and under other circumstances he would have liked to get to know her.
Talia reached for the doorknob the instant he did, and instead of the cold metal handle, his hand touched the warm softness of her wrist. Instantly, his heartbeat sped up and he was aware that mere inches separated them. Her skin was smooth and flawless; her rosy mouth was as captivating as her gorgeous blue eyes. When he couldn’t get his breath, the reaction she caused in him astonished him. Seconds after he’d lectured himself to resist her appeal, he reacted to it.
His eyes left her lips and traveled to her eyes when her voice broke the silence. “Nick,” she said, “I may not have the right to ask you but...” He saw her throat tighten as she swallowed back tears. “If she is your baby and you don’t want her, please don’t abandon her and let her become a ward of the state. Surely there’s room in your life and your heart for a child you’ve fathered.”
“If this is my child, I’ll take responsibility,” Nick said. He couldn’t help wondering if he was making a colossal mistake in committing himself, yet he wouldn’t abandon a baby that was his own.
“I’ll count on that. You won’t regret it. She is an adorable, happy baby,” she said, and he heard the wistful note in her voice.
Something hurt deep inside him as he once again thought of his own little boy, who came into his life and then went out too fast. Even though it was approaching three years since he last held Artie, he still hurt badly. “I’ll get the DNA and contact you whatever the answer.”
She nodded. “I’ll be waiting and we can go from there. Thank you for telling me that Hattie can rely on you.”
He opened the door and Talia stepped away, but he saw tears in her eyes again. “I’ll wait to hear from you.”
He watched her walk to her car, her hips swaying slightly with a poised, purposeful walk. She was one good-looking woman, but she had come into his life with potential news that would change it forever. So why the physical reaction to her? Maybe he was coming back to life and would have that reaction with any other attractive woman.
As fast as that thought came, he rejected it. He saw attractive women almost daily and had no such reaction. Not only attractive women, but friends, women who should stir the kind of response that this one had, but they didn’t.
He headed to his kitchen to get a cold beer and get Talia Barton’s big blue eyes and million-dollar legs out of his thoughts.
He opened his refrigerator and looked at all the casseroles, desserts and salads the local bachelorettes had brought. He wasn’t aware he even knew this many women. With a sigh he retrieved a beer, sat at the table and opened the envelope Talia had given him. He read the notes she’d jotted in her neat teacher’s handwriting. Then he called to make an appointment for tomorrow with the DNA people.
He took a long pull on his beer and stared into space, thinking about Regina and little Arthur. He wondered if he would ever stop hurting, ever stop missing them. How was he going to love a little girl he didn’t know when longing for Artie and Regina filled his heart?
Artie had been so tiny. Nick had rocked him, talked to him, sang to him, bathed and dressed him and carried him around when he cried. Occasionally, he gave him a bottle, but he hadn’t been fully responsible for his son’s care, and he never worried about what to do because if he had a question, Regina was there to answer it.
A fourteen-month-old baby girl would be another matter. She needed a mother who would shower her with love. The thought worried him until he shrugged it away. There was no reason to worry until he knew without any doubt that this little child was his.
And if Hattie was his child—how much would that bring Talia into his life?
Two
Talia Barton drove away from Nick Duncan’s ranch house. She could barely see for her tears, so she pulled over and tried to get a grip on her emotions. She loved Hattie and felt as if she was a second mother to the little girl. It had hurt terribly to try to get Nick to realize he had a responsibility to take Hattie. She had lived with a chilling panic since people from the state agency had stepped in and said Hattie should be a ward of the state because there was nothing official to indicate the mother had wanted Talia to raise Hattie.
Madeline’s life had been filled with joy, excitement and the promise of a glittering future in the music world. She had talked about seeing an attorney and getting papers drawn up to make Talia Hattie’s guardian, but hadn’t gotten around to it. Madeline had been so busy with her career, so filled with a love of life and her baby, that she hadn’t considered anything happening to take that life away. It hadn’t occurred to Talia to worry about the possibility, either. The accident had been a painful, numbing shock that still was a raw hurt.
Thinking about parting with Hattie hurt and Talia cried quietly. Finally she dried her eyes. She prayed Nick would want his baby and would come forward to claim her. Talia knew that, whatever happened, she would not get to keep Hattie as her own. She had to accept that. If she couldn’t raise Hattie herself, then she wanted the best possible outcome and right now there were only two solutions: Nick Duncan would claim his baby or the state would take Hattie. Talia didn’t want the latter to happen.
Thinking about Hattie and wanting to get home to see her, Talia gripped the steering wheel tightly and pulled onto the road.
Her thoughts shifted to Nick and the moment she had first met him. The first time they had touched, the mere handshake had sent tingles radiating through her and made breathing difficult. What shocked her was that he had felt the electricity, too. She’d seen it in the look he gave her, felt it as he took her hand lightly, a slight, impersonal touch, yet it hadn’t been impersonal. She had tingled to her toes, and she knew he reacted, as well. Another twist she couldn’t worry about. Right now she was focused on getting him to become the dad for Hattie that he truly was, and as soon as possible. Hopefully, Nick would let her stay part of Hattie’s life. Was that asking so much?
Yet she didn’t know Nick and he didn’t know her. What if someday he married again and his wife didn’t want Talia in their lives? Would Nick keep Hattie from her?
She didn’t want to think what would happen if Nick wouldn’t claim Hattie. First he needed proof that he was her dad. The minute she’d seen him, Talia had noticed the family resemblance. Hattie had Nick’s green eyes with little flecks of gold, his tangled brown hair and the same facial structure.
Talia shook her head. How was she going to go about work and keep focused on what she needed to do? All she could think about was Hattie every minute. She pulled into the day-care parking lot, climbed out of the car and went inside to find her little charge.
Hattie saw her coming and held out her arms. Talia picked her up, smiling at her and kissing her cheek as she squeezed her close. “Hi, sweetie,” she said, smiling at the baby, feeling warmth and love pour over her. She loved this child with all her heart. If only Nick would love Hattie, too. She told herself he would, once he was certain she was his. Surely he wouldn’t want the state to take her.
“How’s my girl?” she asked, snuggling close and inhaling the sweet scent of baby powder. Then she leaned back to look at Hattie, who smiled and patted Talia’s cheek. “I love you,” Talia said.
“Wuv you,” Hattie replied softly in her childish voice, but the words thrilled Talia even when it was wuv instead of love.
“I’m taking you home now,” Talia said, getting Hattie’s bag, gathering up her other things. She talked to two of the women who ran the day care and then signed out and left with Hattie.
“Once he sees you, I don’t see how your daddy can resist you,” Talia said as she buckled the child into the car seat.
“Da,” Hattie repeated.
“That’s right,” Talia said, brightening. “Daddy. We’ll work on that one. Da-dee,” she said, drawing out the word. Hattie giggled.
“I hope he makes you laugh. Da-dee,” Talia repeated, hoping Hattie would pick up the sounds and learn the word.
“We’ll keep trying. I want your daddy to be unable to resist you. I don’t want him to take you from me, but if he doesn’t, the state will, so better your daddy, who might let me see you occasionally.”
* * *
The first week of May, Nick was in his office on the ranch, staring at the document in his hand. The results of the DNA test. Absolute proof that he was Hattie’s father. He mulled over the news when Stan knocked and entered the open door.
“I needed to drive into town and thought I’d stop to see you. Are you doing okay with this?”
“That I’m a dad? Hell, no, I’m not.” He’d told his brother the DNA test results as soon as they’d arrived. Over the last few hours he’d read them a dozen times. He dropped the report back on his desk. “Talia Barton is bringing Hattie to my Dallas house tomorrow so I can meet her. We’re both trying to ease into this. Talia is hurting over losing her charge and I can’t imagine becoming a parent to a fourteen-month-old little girl. I don’t know how to cope with a baby girl.”
Stan stared at him with his brow furrowed as he pushed his hat back on his head. “You want to let the state take her?”
Startled, Nick looked up at his brother, his brows rising.
“Sorry,” Stan said. “I know you don’t want to do that and I wouldn’t want to, either. I’m sorry I even asked you a question like that.”
“Forget it. She’s mine and I’ll take the responsibility that I should, though this deal just tears at me. I didn’t even know the mother. I feel like every time I look at that little girl, I’ll want her to be Artie.”
“Sorry, Nick. You’ll get used to her. I’ll help any way I can.”
Nick heard the earnest note in his brother’s voice and he smiled. “Thanks, Stan. That offer means a lot,” he said, suddenly feeling proud of his younger brother for volunteering to help.
“I’ve got to run. I just stopped for a minute. When tomorrow is Ms. Barton coming to see you and bringing the baby?”
“In the afternoon. In the morning I’ll go to Dallas and she’ll bring Hattie by after her last class.”
“You’re a dad and I’m an uncle to a baby girl. Wow. That does take some getting used to.” His wistful look was replaced by a serious one. “I’m surprised the state hasn’t already stepped in and taken the baby from Ms. Barton. She doesn’t have legal rights.”
“She’s a teacher in a community college and she has a quiet, take-charge manner that probably makes people do what she wants.”
“A battle-ax?”
Smiling, Nick shook his head. “Trust me, you’ll never use those words again after you see her.”
“A hottie?”
“She’s stunning. You’ll see. In addition, she has that authoritative manner, in a quieter way, that our grandmother does.”
“No kidding. I can’t wait to meet her.”
Nick didn’t reply, but he looked forward to seeing her again himself and that shocked him. He didn’t want to have that reaction to her because she had upended his life.
He walked out with Stan. “I don’t want to tell Grandmother until I have everything lined up. I don’t want her trying to move into my house.”
“What a thought. Of course, if you let Grandmother move in, you won’t ever have to make another decision. You can just drift.”
“You know better than that. She’d make all the decisions but she’d keep me hopping every second. No, she doesn’t know until I’m ready. You go ahead and tell Blake and Adam and I’ll call them or text.” He knew he’d have better luck with his other two brothers than his grandmother.
“Good deal.”
“Talia said Hattie looks like me. We’ll see.”
Stan shot him a horrified look. “I’m afraid I can’t imagine a little baby girl looking like you.” Then he smiled.
“Frankly, I can’t, either,” Nick said, running his hand over the brown stubble on his jaw.
“Even if you try to keep her out of your hair, Grandmother will want to approve of the nanny you hire. And I’m sure you’re hiring a nanny.”
“I don’t know what I’ll do.” Nick couldn’t stop his fears from surfacing again. He’d been fighting them for the last few hours. “I don’t even know this little girl, much less love her. I keep thinking how she won’t have anyone who loves her here. Talia Barton adores her. She’ll go from having love poured out to her to a bunch of strangers. That’s not good and it’s worrying me.”
“We’re not a bunch of ogres, Nick, but I see what you mean. She’ll need someone to love her. It may not help her disposition, either,” Stan said.
Nick had already thought of that, but he was more worried about having a little baby who wasn’t loved.
“If she’s that good-looking, marry this Talia person,” Stan said, breaking into his thoughts.
“Stan!” Nick said, annoyed and amused at the same time.
“I’m kidding. I wouldn’t worry, Nick. Babies adapt and we’ll all be here to help. You know Grandmother is going to love this baby. She adored Artie. And pretty soon, we’ll all love her, too.”
“You’re right, I suppose. Grandmother is going to have to cooperate on this one. I can’t deal with a hassle from her.”
“Send me a picture of the teacher,” Stan said, going down the porch steps. He glanced over his shoulder. “I might want to propose. Then I’d be daddy and uncle to your little girl.” He laughed at his own joke and Nick shook his head.
“You’re hopeless, Stan. Take your suggestions and go,” Nick said, laughing with his brother.
“Seriously, I’ll help if you need me, although I don’t know as much about babies as you do. My expertise ends with colts and calves.”
“Thanks, Stan,” Nick said, feeling a bond with his brother.
As Stan drove away, Nick returned to his office, but he couldn’t get his mind to focus on the ranch work in front of him. He remembered Madeline. Since meeting Talia, he recalled everything about that night. He was sure he had used protection, yet here was this little baby and the DNA definitely made her his baby. He couldn’t get accustomed to the idea, and guilt swamped him at the thought he would have to take her away from someone who poured out love to her and place her in a family of strangers.
Enough, he told himself. It’d work out. It had to.
He picked up the leather-bound ledger but the figures swam before his eyes. All he could think about was his new status as a daddy...and his electrifying attraction to Talia Barton.
* * *
Late the following sunny May afternoon Nick paced back and forth. He was in his mansion in a gated community of Dallas, waiting for Talia to arrive, and then he would meet his daughter. That still didn’t seem possible. A night at a party—when he’d had too much to drink, been too long alone, hurting over his loss and trying to overcome the grief and desperation he felt—he’d had sex with a woman he’d barely known. Now he had a daughter for the rest of his life. A little girl who was going to move in with a father who was a total stranger. He knew that was better than the state and they would probably all grow to love her, but it was going to be rough for the little girl for a time and he hated that. And it was breaking Talia’s heart, something he could understand all too well because of the loss of his son.
When he heard a car, he glanced at his watch. Talia was on time. He thought about seeing her again and that was one bit of this whole thing that he looked forward to, even though he shouldn’t because she had already complicated his life beyond measure.
He hurried to the front door. When he reached for the door, he glanced out and saw Talia coming up the walk carrying a little girl in her arms. His pulse jumped as his glance swept over Talia’s high heels and her deep blue sleeveless dress. Her hair was high, pinned on the sides of her head, and fell in spiral curls over her shoulders. The curls bounced slightly with each step she took. His gaze shifted to the baby in her arms. The little girl had one thin arm on Talia’s shoulder with her fingers wound in Talia’s long curls. Her other arm hung at her side. She had wispy, tangled brown hair, and from a distance she looked like a pretty child. He couldn’t imagine that this was his baby, but she was. It was a shock each time he thought about it, and seeing her didn’t make it any more real to him.
A little girl he didn’t know in the arms of a woman he would like to know if circumstances were different. His life was going to change forever and he couldn’t even imagine how.
He opened the door. “Come in. You and Hattie.”
“Thank you,” Talia said in a tight voice. From the sound of it, he was sure she was hurting. If she felt this bad just introducing him to his daughter, how much worse was it going to get for her?
He looked down at the baby in her arms, gazing into wide green eyes with gold flecks that were like his own and ran in his family. Hattie had the same color hair he did, the same facial features, but slightly darker skin. As if sensing something was wrong with the adults around her, she gazed solemnly up at him.
He stepped back so Talia could enter and closed the door behind her, catching up with them, his gaze lingering briefly on the sexy sway of Talia’s hips as she walked. Hattie twisted around to stare at him, studying him intently.
“Let’s go to the family room. It’s probably the most childproof room in the house. Arthur wasn’t toddling around or even crawling, so we didn’t get anything ready for a baby to explore.”
“I’ll watch her and she’ll go home with me until you’re ready to take her,” Talia said. “Unless you have other plans.”
“Plans? I’m just trying to get a grip on my new status.”
She glanced up with worry in her big eyes.
“You’re worrying about me taking her from you,” he said.
She shook her head. “I’m worrying you won’t take her and the state will get her.”
He caught Talia’s arm lightly, instantly having that startling awareness from the physical contact. He heard her breath catch and realized she felt something, too. Why did sparks fly between them when they didn’t even know each other? Looking intently at her, he released her just as quickly. Standing so close, he was acutely aware of her while he tried to focus on the problem.
“Let’s settle that one right now. I have the DNA and Hattie is my baby. I’m not giving my baby to the state to try to place in foster homes or wherever they can find. I’ll take Hattie and you’ll get to see her. You have my promise,” he said, emotions tearing at him because he was making a huge commitment that he didn’t even know if he could live up to. He had been tossed into fatherhood abruptly and it brought back memories of his baby boy and of his wife, of being in love and happy and filled with plans for a future that vanished in a crushing blow when their private plane went down in a storm. He hadn’t ever expected to raise a little girl he didn’t even know, a child born to a mother he was with for only a few hours. As he looked down into Talia’s wide, frightened eyes, his insides churned and he wondered if he could possibly keep the promise he was making to her. This promise was monumental and a life-changer. Along with tremendous responsibility, it brought heartache. Every time he looked at this child he’d be reminded of what he had lost in the past.
As she searched his gaze, tears filled Talia’s eyes. She brushed away her tears hastily. “You really mean that, don’t you?” she asked softly.
“Yes, I do,” he said. “Don’t cry. I’ll take Hattie because she’s my child and you’ll get to see her. We’ll figure something out.”
“I wanted so badly to adopt her and be her mother. My attorney said I’d have to go through the state to apply.” Shaking her head, Talia turned away, carrying the baby to the window and talking softly to her. He let her go so she could get herself pulled together while he tried to calm his own nerves.
A few minutes later he glanced around and saw Talia was standing a few feet behind him, holding out Hattie to place her in his arms. As their hands brushed, he felt a frisson of electricity shoot up his arm. He inhaled her perfume, an enticing scent. As he took Hattie, his gaze met Talia’s, and if he let himself, he could drown in the blue depths of her eyes.