Millionaire Mavericks: The Oilman’s Baby Bargain. Michelle Celmer

Чтение книги онлайн.

СКАЧАТЬ would it be fair to the child to raise it in poverty and shame? But the idea of a stranger raising her own flesh and blood made her heart ache.

      This is Mitch’s child, too, she reminded herself. Shouldn’t he be part of the decision?

      As if reading her mind, Tara asked, “What about the father?”

      He may have been the biological father, but Mitch had made his feelings unequivocally clear. Their night together had been a mistake, and no one could ever know. “The father wants nothing to do with me.”

      “Curious,” Tara said, looking thoughtful. “Mitchell Brody always struck me as the responsible type.”

      Lexi’s mouth dropped open in surprise. She hadn’t told anyone about the night she’d spent with her former fiancé’s brother. It would have been too humiliating. How did Tara…?

      “I would have to be an imbecile not to have figured it out,” Tara told her. “For a week, you talked of nothing else. It was Mitch this and Mitch that. Mitch took me to the Smithsonian and Mitch took me to the most exclusive French restaurant in all of D.C. Mitch and I sat talking for hours. It was obvious you had feelings for him. A woman doesn’t hold on to her virginity for twenty-four years, then give it up to a stranger.”

      That week had been one of the best in her life. She had learned that there was more to Mitch than his serious, and sometimes intimidating exterior. He could be sweet and fun. She’d allowed him to seduce her, and look at the mess it had gotten her into.

      “On the other hand,” Tara said, “if he was really that responsible, he would have used protection.”

      “He did! That’s why I was so hesitant to believe I could be pregnant in the first place.”

      “Did you use a condom every time?”

      “Of course we—” She frowned.

      Tara mirrored her expression. “What?”

      Lexi shook her head. “No, that couldn’t be it.”

      “You had unprotected sex?”

      “Only for a minute. It was the middle of the night, and we woke up and he started to…” Her cheeks blushed a brilliant shade of pink. She’d never spoken about anything so personal to anyone in her life. Not even her physician. “But he put a condom on before he…you know…finished.”

      Tara looked pained. “Sperm can be released before ejaculation. And it only takes one. They teach this stuff in health class, Lex.”

      But she hadn’t had health class. She had been homeschooled by tutors, to spare her the improper influence of other children. And not a single one of those tutors, not even her science instructor, had ever said a word about sex education. Her father would have had a fit. Everything she knew about sex, she’d learned from the romance novels she used to sneak into the house. Lately, she had come to realize that those books offered a somewhat slanted view of what love and relationships truly entailed.

      “So, this is my fault,” she said. If she hadn’t been so naive, she would have known better.

      “It’s no one’s fault. Besides, it sounds like you two had one heck of a night together. Maybe, if there’s a chance—”

      Lexi shook her head. “There’s no chance. He wasn’t the man I thought he was.”

      “Well, he still has rights.”

      “I know,” she said, feeling more confused than she ever had in her life. “I don’t know what to do.”

      “Maybe what you need is some time away to think this through. You’ve been telling me for months that you’d like to take a vacation. Didn’t you mention a trip to Cabo San Lucas?”

      The place where she had hoped to spend her honeymoon in marital bliss with Mitch? She couldn’t bear the thought of it.

      “Too hot,” she told Tara.

      “Okay, how about an Alaskan cruise?”

      She blanched. “As if I’m not nauseous enough.”

      “I didn’t think about that.” Tara gnawed her lower lip for a moment, then she brightened. “I know! What about that villa in the Greek Isles that Senator Richardson mentioned? That would be perfect.”

      Actually, that was an excellent idea. She wanted quiet and seclusion, and no one in Greece was likely to know, or even care, who her father happened to be. But there was still a problem. “What if my father won’t allow it?”

      “Tell him the humiliation of Lance’s rejection is just too much to bear, and you need some time alone.”

      It was the humiliation of Mitch’s rejection that was really killing her, but still, it wasn’t a bad idea.

      “Make him feel guilty for putting you in this position,” Tara said. “It is ultimately his fault that you’re going through all this.”

      Tara had a point. If her father hadn’t insisted she marry Lance, Lexi never would have met Mitch. So, in a roundabout way he was responsible, although she doubted he would agree. He would lay the blame solely on her. As always. No matter how hard she tried, she never seemed to do anything right. And though she had never been one to play the pity card, if the circumstance demanded it…

      She smiled at her friend, thankful she had someone so supportive to lean on at a time like this, even if she was getting paid handsomely to do so. “How soon can you make the reservation?”

Chapter Three

      As soon as he left the senator’s office, Mitch called his brother.

      Lance answered on the first ring. “What did he say?”

      “He agreed.”

      Lance released a breath.

      “You’re sure you’re ready to deal with the backlash?” Mitch asked. “This isn’t going to look great for you.”

      “After the way I humiliated her, I would say I probably deserve it. I’m just sorry that you have to go through this.”

      “Sorry for what? You were going to make the same sacrifice.”

      “But I didn’t. I went with my heart.”

      “I’m sure Lexi and I will eventually grow fond of one another,” he lied. It was probably more likely they would live completely separate lives. If they didn’t kill each other first.

      “I just feel guilty as hell making you do this. Now that I know what it feels like to be with someone I love and trust, I want the same for you. I want you to be happy.”

      “When our company is thriving and we’re leaving our competitors in the dust, I will be. Besides, you know I don’t believe in love. Life doesn’t work that way. Not for me, anyhow.” Nor did he want it to. It was tough to betray a man who refused to leave himself vulnerable. СКАЧАТЬ