The Illegitimate Billionaire (Whiskey Bay Brides Book 4; Billionaire & Babies)

by Barbara Dunlop

  But then it pinged: At the bakery. But on my way home.

  He glanced at the red light and typed in a message: Be there in an hour.

  A horn honked behind him. He hit send and switched to hands free, contacting an air charter company.

  They had a jet with immediate availability. He didn’t ask the price, all but threw them his credit card in the boarding lounge and leapt on board.

  He barely noticed the opulent white leather surroundings. He did say yes to a single malt, hoping it would calm his nerves. The pilot was able to radio ahead for a car, and Deacon came close to his time estimate.

  One hour and twenty minutes later, he was at Callie’s front door.

  She opened it, and he had to fight an urge to wrap her immediately in his arms.

  “Hi,” he said, instead, feeling breathless.

  “Hi,” she returned.

  He could hear the boys in the kitchen.

  “Is everything okay?” he asked.

  He searched her expression for a sign of her mood or her state of mind. At first, he’d taken her request as a good sign. But as the minutes dragged by in the jet, he was assailed with doubts. The truth was, he had no idea what she wanted.

  “You came,” she said.

  “Of course I came.” Nothing could have kept him away. “Is it the boys?”

  “They’re fine. We’re all fine. Well, maybe not so fine.”

  Deacon was leaping from hopeful to worried to confused.

  “Come in,” she said, stepping out of the way.

  He walked over the familiar threshold, feeling more at peace and at home than he had in weeks.

  “I can’t live in the castle,” she said.

  Hope flooded him. “I would never ask you to live in the castle.”

  The castle was a terrible place. He had no intention of living there either.

  “I know it’s a lot of money,” she said.

  “The money doesn’t matter.” The money couldn’t matter less. “You matter. The boys matter.”

  “You said you loved me.”

  “I do.”

  “What do you love about me?”

  “Everything.” Without conscious thought, he moved closer to her.

  “You haven’t talked yourself into it, have you? You know, because of the potential perks of loving me.”

  He couldn’t help but smile at that. “I haven’t talked myself into a thing. After you left, if I could have talked myself out of loving you, I would have done it in a heartbeat to save my sanity.”

  She tilted her head to the side as if she were considering him. “I didn’t exactly understand that, but I’m going to assume it was a good thing.”

  “It was a good thing. It is a good thing.” He gave into his desire to reach for her, cradling her face with his palm and stepping closer still. “I love you, Callie, more than anything else in the world.”

  “You’ll give up the money, hundreds of millions of dollars.”

  “See, the thing is—”

  She put her fingertips across his lips. “There can be no equivocation. You have to make your choice.”

  “There is no equivocation. It’s you, Callie, and James and Ethan, over and above anything else in the world.”

  “Good. Then we’ll get by. We have the bakery. We’ll work as hard as we have to.”

  He opened his mouth to explain again, but then thought better of it. “I know we will.”

  “Good,” she repeated.

  “So...” He searched her expression. “We’re doing this? We’re making it real? We’re making it work?”

  “I love you,” she said.

  His heart sang, and his grin broke free. “Thank goodness.”

  He swooped in for a heartfelt kiss.

  “Daddy!” came Ethan’s excited voice.

  “Daddy!” James chimed in.

  Ethan’s compact body hit the side of Deacon’s leg, his little arms going around it. James came up on the other side to give his hip a hug.

  Deacon gave Callie another quick kiss. “Hold that thought.” Then he crouched down to hug the boys.

  “We are a package deal,” she said with a thread of laughter.

  “Best package in the world,” Deacon said to the boys.

  “Daddy, come and see the new castle,” Ethan said, tugging on Deacon’s hand.

  “It has a moat,” James added. “Mommy made us build it in the kitchen.”

  Deacon looked up at Callie. “Mommy’s very smart.”

  Deacon followed the boys, his boys, to the kitchen, duly admiring their creation.

  After a few minutes, he stood, leaning on the counter next to Callie. He took her hand. He touched her cheek. He gave her another kiss.

  “There’s something you need to know,” he said.

  She drew back to look at him. “Will I be unhappy?”

  “I don’t know. It’s about the money and the Clarksons.”

  “That never makes me happy.”

  The boys squealed and zoomed rubber alligators through the makeshift moat.

  “It’s Aaron and Beau. They want us to be real brothers.”

  She searched his expression. “Is that what you want?”

  “It is.” It was what Deacon wanted. He was surprised by how much he wanted it.

  Callie wrapped her arms around his waist. “Then that’s wonderful.”

  Deacon didn’t want to leave anything out. “That’s not the crux of it. They want to join forces with me in running Hale Harbor Port. They blocked Tyrell’s plan to write me out of the company.”

  She pulled back again. “The money?”

  “It’s still mine. It’s ours. We own Frederick’s share of Hale Harbor Port. And someday it will belong to James and Ethan.” He held his breath, waiting to see if she’d be angry.

  She didn’t look thrilled, but she didn’t look angry either.

  “You don’t mind?” he dared ask. “That we’re rich and we’re connected to the Clarksons? I promise you don’t have to worry about Tyrell or Margo or anyone else. Any relationship with them will be on your terms.”

  “We were always going to be connected to the Clarksons,” Callie said with resignation. “I just didn’t know it for a while.”

  “Between me and my brothers—that’s so odd to say. With the three of us together, Tyrell won’t be able to bully anyone ever again.”

  James shouted out, “The alligator ate the princess!”

  “Owie alligator,” Ethan called.

  “I’m not afraid of Tyrell,” Callie said, molding against him. “I’m through being afraid of bullying men.”

  “Good.”

  She gave a little laugh. “I’ll send them to you.”

  “Absolutely.”

  “You can bribe them.”

  “Ouch,” he said.

  “I’m teasing. I have complete faith in you to protect us.”

  “I always will,” Deacon said, feeling a deep and enormous sense of satisfaction. He tightened his hold. “I have a family,” he whispered in wonder. “A true and wonderful family. And I love you all so very much.”

  “We love you back, Deacon. All three of us love you right back.”

  * * * * *

  If you liked this BILLIONAIRES AND BABIES novel

  from Barbara Dunlop

  don’t miss her other books in this series!

  THE BABY CONTRACT

  ONE BABY, TWO SECRETS

  Or her WHISKEY BAY BRIDES trilogy!

  FROM TEMPTATION TO TWINS

  TWELVE NIGHTS OF TEMPTATION

  HIS TEMPTATION, HER SECRET

  Available now from Harlequin Desire!

  ***

  And don’t miss the next

  BILLIONAIRES AND BABIES story,


  BILLIONAIRE’S BARGAIN,

  by USA TODAY bestselling author Maureen Child

  Available June 2018!

  ***

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  Wrong Brother, Right Man

  by Kat Cantrell

  One

  Soulless. The CEO’s office of LeBlanc Jewelers in Chicago’s Diamond District hadn’t changed since the last time Val had darkened the door. Despite sharing a last name with the man behind the desk, this was the last place he’d choose to be. Which was too bad considering it was going to be Val’s office for the next six months.

  Val’s brother Xavier sat back in his chair and eyed him. “Ready to take over?”

  “Not by my choice.” Val flopped into one of the seats ringing the desk, more than happy to let Xavier keep the chair on the other side. That was where his brother belonged. Val didn’t. “But yeah. The sooner we get this nightmare over with, the better.”

  There were few things Val disliked more than the chain of jewelry stores that bore his name. His old man came in a close second, or would if he hadn’t died two months ago.

  If there was any justice in the world—a concept Val lost faith in the moment he’d heard the terms of the will—the LeBlanc patriarch even now was being roasted over an open flame. Which wouldn’t be nearly punishment enough for forcing him to switch places with his twin brother.

  LeBlanc peddled diamonds for God’s sake—the most useless of all possessions on the planet—hawking propaganda that coerced men into spending thousands of dollars on a rock for their lady that would eventually be worth a quarter of what they’d paid for the piece. Not that it would matter overmuch in the divorce settlement.

  “The nightmare is all mine,” Xavier corrected.

  “Please. You got the easy task.” Val ran a hand through his longish hair, as he willed a brewing headache into submission. “I have to increase the profits of a company I’ve scarcely set foot in. If pushing LeBlanc over the billion-dollar mark in revenue for the calendar year was simple, you’d have done it already.”

  His brother’s near-identical features mirrored none of the indignation that Val felt. Of course not. Xavier had never met an emotion he could tolerate, showing the same arrogant, coldhearted behavior as their father. No mystery why Xavier had been the favorite.

  “Definitely not simple.” Xavier steepled his fingers, every inch the corporate stooge he’d been groomed to be. “But doable. If I were the one doing it. Instead of being given that chance, I’ve been banished into the bowels of LBC.”

  LBC was Val’s, which automatically gave it less importance in his brother’s eyes. LeBlanc Charities had a noble purpose, and Val had poured his heart and soul into it since the age of fourteen. That was when he’d followed his mother through the doors of the nonprofit organization she’d founded.

  Val snorted and didn’t bother to cover the flash of annoyance. “You act like your test is a punishment. LBC is an amazing place, full of dedicated people who work as a team to change the world. You’ll emerge a better person from your stint there.”

  Val, on the other hand, was being set up to fail. Deliberately.

  The hot spurt of injustice wouldn’t ease. Death had only been another step in Edward LeBlanc’s diabolical need to ensure Val understood that he was not the favored son. If he and Xavier weren’t twins, he’d wonder if he had even a drop of LeBlanc blood running through his veins.

  But he’d counted on his inheritance to bolster the flagging donations at LBC. People were starving on the streets of Chicago, and Val was doing his part to feed them, one meal at a time.

  Having a basic need met allowed people to feel more secure in their future. Val would never abandon those he helped.

  He needed that money. The people he served needed that money. The things he could do with half a billion dollars—it was mind-boggling. Val had already poured a lot of his own personal fortune into the coffers, but LBC was a large organization that required a dizzying amount of overhead. More than seemed appropriate most days, given that it took away from money being funneled into food supplies.

  And Xavier was going to be the conquering hero as he did Val’s job.

  “At least you have a shot at passing your test.” Xavier sneered. “Raising profits over the billion mark at LeBlanc within six months was already in my plan. I have those dominoes set up. All you have to do is push them over. But I have to become a fundraiser.”

  He said the word with distaste. Likely because he had no clue what it meant to be selfless, to spend time in pursuit of something honorable as you sacrificed your time, day in and day out, to better someone else’s life.

  “Should be a piece of cake for someone with your connections.” Val flicked his fingers. “Ten million in six months is essential. So it’s not a lark that you can do or not do if you don’t feel like it. The organization will collapse if you fail. It hardly matters if I pour more money into LeBlanc’s coffers, but people depend on LBC for survival.”

  Val gave his money gladly. LBC didn’t depend on it to stay afloat, but he believed in his cause and in setting an example.

  Glowering at Val’s casual dismissal of his responsibilities, Xavier tapped an expensive pen against his laptop. “If LBC is in such dire straits, Dad should have allowed me to write a check. But no. He specified in the will that I have to raise the money through donations as some kind of character building exercise. It’s ludicrous.”

  On that, they agreed. But not much else.

  Before Val could blast apart Xavier’s assessment of LBC’s current state—which was not dire—Mrs. Bryce stuck her head into the office, glancing between the two of them with eyebrows raised. “Your one o’clock is here, Mr. LeBlanc.”

  “Thank you,” Val said at the same time as Xavier, who stared at him balefully as he processed that he’d already lost his admin to the new CEO.

  “You have a one o’clock?” his brother asked and shook his head with bemusement. “Would you like my suit too?”

  That straitjacket? Not even if it came with a hot redhead inside it. “That’s okay. I’ll take your chair. I have an interview.”

  No time like the present to get this crap-storm of a party started.

  Xavier stood and then turned a shade of
green that looked horrific. Which meant Sabrina had walked into his office. Excellent. Too bad Val had forgotten his popcorn.

  Sabrina Corbin swept into the CEO’s office as if she owned it, her cool smile dropping the temperature faster than an arctic front. Holy hell. Tactical error. She was far more beautiful than Val remembered and far frostier. Xavier needed to go, stat.

  “I believe you two know each other?” Val flipped a hand at Xavier’s ex as he skirted the desk to sink into the newly vacated seat. He locked eyes with the woman he’d only met once but desperately needed.

  Sabrina had insight into the mind of LeBlanc’s CEO. Who better to assist Val into a checkmark for his task than an executive coach Xavier had dated?

  Suddenly, he really wanted to know what had happened between them. And how he could do better than his brother. It was a complication he hadn’t seen coming, but there it was. He wanted Sabrina to choose him over Xavier, especially since Xavier had had her first.

  “Sabrina.” Xavier’s expression smoothed out, magically eliminating a good bit of the tension. “Nice to see you. I was just leaving.”

  With his brother’s exit, the rest of the tension should have gone with him. It didn’t. Sabrina turned in Val’s direction, and he resisted the urge to check under his seat for icicles.

  “Shall I call you Valentino or Mr. LeBlanc?” she inquired as she slid gracefully into the spot Val had just vacated, crossing a mile of leg under the pencil skirt she wore like a second skin.

  Even her stilettos looked like she kept them in the freezer. What would it take to warm her up? Instantly, his body got in on that action, every nerve poised to figure that out. Did she like slow and romantic? Fast and blistering hot? Both, spread out over a long weekend?

  “You should definitely call me Valentino but not under these circumstances,” he told her with a lazy smile.

  Sabrina lifted a brow. “Mr. LeBlanc then.”

  Ouch. His grin widened. That had Interesting Challenge written all over it, and he did enjoy besting his brother or he wouldn’t have contacted Sabrina in the first place. “Thanks for coming by on short notice. You up for the job?”

  “My last client succeeded in her goals three months before our deadline. If your check clears, I’m up for whatever you throw at me.”