The CEO's Baby Surprise. Helen Lacey

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СКАЧАТЬ had come into the store looking for an outfit to wear to her upcoming birthday party, and within the hour they were chatting and laughing over herbal tea and several outfit changes. It was then she learned that Solana’s American-born husband had died a decade earlier and how she’d borne him a son and daughter. Mary-Jayne had listened while Solana talked about her much-loved grandsons, Daniel, Blake and Caleb and granddaughter Renee. One hour ticked over into two, and by three o’clock the older woman had finally decided upon an outfit and persuaded Mary-Jayne to let her see some of her handcrafted jewelry pieces. Solana had since bought three items and had recommended Mary-Jayne’s work to several of her friends.

      Yes, she liked Solana. But wasn’t about to tell the other woman she was carrying her great-grandchild. Not until she figured out what she was going to do. She was nearly four months along, and her pregnancy would be showing itself very soon. She couldn’t hide her growing stomach behind baggy clothes forever.

       He has a right to know...

      The notion niggled at her over and over.

      She could have the baby alone. Women did it all the time. And it was not as if she and Daniel had any kind of relationship. If she wanted, she could leave the resort and go home and never see him again. He lived mostly in San Francisco. She lived in Crystal Point, a small seaside town that sat at the southernmost point of the Great Barrier Reef. They had different lives. Different worlds.

      And she didn’t even like him.

      She’d met him three times before the night of Solana’s birthday. The first time she’d been in the store window, bent over and struggling to remove a garment from the mannequin. When she was done she’d straightened, turned to avoid knocking the mannequin over and came face-to-face with him on the other side of the glass. He’d been watching her, arms crossed.

      Of course she’d known immediately who he was. There were several pictures of him and his brothers in Solana’s villa, and she’d visited the older woman many times. Plus, he looked enough like his younger brother Caleb for her to recognize the family resemblance. Caleb ran the resorts in Port Douglas and Phuket while his twin Blake looked after Amalfi, Maldives and San Francisco. And according to staff gossip Daniel lorded over the resorts, his brothers and the staff from his private jet.

      Still, it was hard not to be impressed by his ridiculous good looks, and despite the fact he was not her type, Mary-Jayne was as susceptible as the next woman. The impeccably cut suit, creaseless white shirt and dark tie were a riveting combination on his broad, tall frame, and for a second she’d been rooted to the spot, unable to move, unable to do anything other than stare back, held captive by the look in his gray eyes. For a moment, at least. Until he’d raised one brow and a tiny smile whispered along the edges of his mouth. He’d then looked her over with a kind of leisurely conceit that had quickly sent alarm bells clanging in her head.

      There’d been interest in his expression and if he’d been anyone else she might have made some kind of encouraging gesture. Like a smile. Or nod. But Daniel Anderson was out of her league. A rich and successful corporate shark with a reputation for having no tolerance for fools in business, and no proclivity for commitment in his private life. He was the kind of man she’d always planned to avoid like the plague. The kind of man that had never interested her before.

      But something had passed between them in that first moment. A look... Recognition.

       Awareness...

       Heat...

       Attraction...

      When her good sense had returned she’d darted from the window and got back to the customer waiting in the changing room. By the time she’d moved back to the front of the store and began ringing up the sale he was gone.

      Mary-Jayne saw him a day later, striding across the resort foyer with his brother at his side. She’d been coming from the day spa, arms loaded with jewelry trays, when Caleb had said her name. She’d met the younger Anderson many times over the previous weeks. He was rich, charming and handsome and didn’t do a solitary thing to her libido. Not so his older brother. She’d fumbled with the trays and stayed rooted to the spot as they approached and then managed to nod her way through an introduction. He was unsmiling, but his eyes regarded her with blistering intensity. Caleb’s attention had quickly been diverted by the day-shift concierge and she’d been left alone with him, silent and nervous beneath his unfaltering gaze.

      Then he’d spoken, and his deep voice, a smooth mix of his American upbringing and Australian roots, wound up her spine like liquid silk. “My grandmother tells me you’re here for six months rather than the few weeks you’d originally planned on?”

      He’d talked about her with Solana? “Ah, that’s right,” she’d croaked.

      “And are you enjoying your time here?”

      She’d nodded, feeling stupid and awkward and not in the least bit like her usual self. Normally she was confident and opinionated and more than comfortable in her own skin. But two seconds around Daniel Anderson and she was a speechless fool. Übergood looks had never interested her before. But he stirred her senses big time.

      “Yes, very much.”

      “And I trust your friend’s parent’s health is improving?”

      He knew about Audrey’s mother? Solana had been busy sharing information.

      “A little...yes.”

      A small smile had crinkled the corner of his mouth and Mary-Jayne’s gaze had instantly been drawn to his lips. He had seen her reaction and his smile had increased fractionally. There was something extraordinarily hypnotic about him, something she couldn’t quite fathom. Something she’d known she had to extricate herself from...and fast.

      She’d hastily excused herself and taken off as fast as she could.

      And hadn’t seen him again for two days.

      She’d left the resort for a run along the beach and had come upon him jogging in the other direction. He’d slowed when he was about twenty feet from her and come to a halt right next to her. And the look between them had been electric. Out of this world and all-consuming. She’d never experienced such blatant and blistering physical attraction for anyone before. And it shocked her to the core. He wasn’t her usual type. In fact, Daniel Anderson was the epitome of everything she didn’t want in a man. Money, power, arrogance... They were attributes her small-town, middle-class self had decided long ago were not for her. She dated musicians and out-of-work artists. Not corporate sharks.

      His expression had been unwavering and contained hot sexual appreciation. He wanted her. No doubt about it. And the look in his eyes had made it clear he thought he’d get her.

      “You know,” he’d said with a kind of arrogant confidence that made her tremble. “My villa is only minutes away.”

      She knew that. The family’s quarters were secluded and luxurious and away from the main part of the resort and had a spectacular view of the beach.

      “And?” she’d managed to say, despite the way her heart had thundered behind her ribs and her knees wobbled.

      He’d half smiled. “And we both know that’s where we’re going to end up at some point.”

      Mortified, she’d quickly taken off like a bullet. But her body was thrumming with a СКАЧАТЬ