The Wedding Lullaby

by Melissa McClone

  “I’m going to have a tough time explaining this.”

  “Sorry.” But she hadn’t come this far to be sent away. They’d been married—though not for long—so she hadn’t exactly lied.

  He studied her. “I thought you’d be with Henry and the squad, touring the vineyards of Bordeaux.”

  Laurel no longer belonged to the squad. She’d lost track of most of them and their travels over the past few months. Friendship only went so far in certain circles. Many had blocked her on social media and their cell phones. Only Cynthia, Ryland, and Henry had returned Laurel’s texts before her cell phone service was cut off. “I, um, decided to pass.”

  “Maybe next year.”

  She shrugged, even though next year she’d be lucky if she could afford a bottle of red table wine. “You never know.”

  “No, you don’t.”

  Brett leaned against his desk and raised an eyebrow, bringing attention to a small scar above it that gave him a dangerous, bad-boy look. Maybe that was why she’d found him so appealing in Reno. A bad boy on the outside, a teddy bear on the inside.

  “What brings you to the Rose City?” he asked.

  She’d rehearsed this moment a million times. Taking a deep breath, Laurel concentrated on his milk-chocolate eyes. Eyes that belied the strength in his jaw now hidden by his beard and ruggedness of his nose. A nose that must have been broken at least once. His appearance suggested he would be more comfortable hiking in the mountains or riding on a horse than making billions in the stock market and telling others how to do the same.

  “I—I came to see you.” She forced out the words.

  “Really. After all these months?” He sounded surprised, and not in a good way.

  Laurel nodded, trying not to hunch and hide. She’d expected a warmer welcome.

  “It’s been, what? Almost four months since Reno?” His tone was razor sharp. “All that time without getting in touch—no e-mail, phone call, or letter.”

  How dare he? She grimaced. “Those things work two ways.”

  His jaw tensed.

  “Besides, we never said we’d keep in touch,” she added, trying to lessen the growing tension between them.

  He held his chin high. “Yes, they do, and no, we didn’t.”

  Laurel expected he might be upset, but this angry man was nothing like the one she’d shared a bed with on their honeymoon night. Still, he was her only hope. She had nowhere else to turn. “I planned to, but when I got back to Chicago…”

  My life fell apart. Worse than I could have ever imagined.

  Laurel stared at the carpet. This conversation wasn’t going the way she’d planned. She wanted to tell him the truth—that she and her mother had been and still were sinking faster than the Titanic—but she couldn’t. Pride wouldn’t let her admit what had happened, what her own stupidity had allowed to happen.

  How could Laurel explain just when she’d thought things couldn’t get any worse, her world imploded? That she found herself not only responsible for herself, but…

  She met his eyes. “Family matters required my full attention.”

  Not the whole truth but not a lie, either.

  Brett’s gaze bore into her soul. She shivered. Not since their wedding night, when she’d stood before him offering the only thing she had to give—herself—had she felt so vulnerable.

  “I’m sorry I didn’t contact you sooner,” she admitted.

  “I’m sure you are.” He folded his arms across his chest. “So?”

  The accusation in those two letters made her stiffen, but she hadn’t come all this way for nothing. She met his steady gaze. “What?”

  “Which are you going to tell me about first? Being broke or being pregnant?”

  ♥ ♥ ♥

  Laurel’s wide, topaz-blue eyes told Brett he’d surprised her. Good. He’d wanted to do that, but her genuine shock took away any pleasure he might have received.

  “Y-y-you knew?” she asked. “How?”

  As if a noose had tightened around his neck, his throat constricted. He’d been feeling this way ever since learning the truth about Laurel Worthington from a private investigator a month ago, and then having the man follow her ever since. “I heard a few rumors, so I checked them out.”

  “I… I don’t understand.” She wet her lips. “You knew I was pregnant, but you never tried to get in touch with me? Find out if…”

  Every single nerve ending stood on end, wanting to know the answer to the question he needed to ask. One that had been on his mind nonstop since finding out about her pregnancy.

  “Is it mine?” His tone was harsher than he’d intended, but he couldn’t control his emotions. Not around her.

  At the flash of hurt in her eyes, Brett knew the truth, but he still wanted to hear her say the words.

  She brushed a strand of hair behind her ear. “Why didn’t you ‘check it out’ yourself?”

  At least she hadn’t lost her spunk. The silver-spoon set never did, not even when they hit rock bottom. That trait must be something that came along with their trust funds. He was happy she still had a spine, however fragile she appeared. After what she’d been through…

  He hardened his heart against the thought.

  Brett couldn’t afford to let down his guard, to allow emotions to override logic, not even for an instant. Because with Laurel, that was all it took. An instant of weakness to bring a man to his knees. He’d been that man the night of their honeymoon, and he’d played right into her hands. A tough lesson to learn, but one he wouldn’t allow to happen again.

  “Is it mine?” he repeated.

  “Yes.” She met his gaze straight on, daring him to contradict her.

  A baby. His baby.

  Hearing about her pregnancy from a secondary party had been one thing. Having her sit in his office and confirm the gossip was another. He felt as if his head might explode.

  As reality sank in, he tried to summon a protest to keep her from realizing how deeply the truth affected him. His chest tightened. He struggled to breathe.

  A father.

  He was going to be a father.

  A thrill shot through him. He would get the chance to right the wrongs of his own childhood. Give his baby all he’d lacked growing up.

  Brett had decided what he wanted to do—had planned to go and see her in Chicago as soon as the current work crisis had been resolved—but those plans seemed inadequate and inappropriate now. His lawyer had warned Brett that Laurel would want him to support her in the manner to which she was accustomed.

  Writing her a blank check had seemed like the best way to ensure he was a part of the baby’s life. But Brett didn’t want to be a weekend dad. That wasn’t good enough for his child or him.

  But before he remedied the situation, he needed a few answers.

  He took a breath to calm himself. “How did this happen?”

  Her are-you-kidding-me expression almost made him smile. “Brett, you know—”

  “We used protection,” he fired back, cutting her off. Yes, he’d been overcome with desire for her, but he wasn’t stupid enough not to use birth control.

  Laurel flushed. “Nothing is foolproof.”

  He gritted his teeth. “Did you want this to happen?”

  “I…” She stared at the carpet before raising her gaze to his. “No, but my world was falling apart. Maybe subconsciously, I was searching for a way to keep things together.”

  Subconsciously?

  She couldn’t have planned her salvation any better, and he couldn’t have been a more willing participant.

  Be careful what you wish for…

  In Reno, he hadn’t known she wasn’t the woman of his dreams. She wasn’t wealthy, refined, and connected. Not any longer. She was nothing more than a fraud.

  “The baby is yours,” she insisted. “You’re the only one I’ve ever been with.”

  Despite her previous engagement, he’d suspected she’d been a virgin on their wedding night due to her lack
of experience and the way she’d reacted to him. But she’d been so strong and sure of herself that he hadn’t wanted to dampen the mood—the romantic fantasy—so hadn’t called her out. The PI also hadn’t discovered any lovers before or after her trip to Reno, only a former fiancé who kept his distance from her.

  “I believe you,” Brett said.

  She tilted her chin as if she couldn’t care less whether he believed her or not. “I suppose I should thank you for that.”

  “Don’t bother.”

  Her expression didn’t change. “If that’s what you want.”

  Old money through and through. She might not have a penny to her name, but the wealthy attitude remained. What a fool he’d been. She’d been so sweet—his blushing bride. Being with her had made him feel as if he belonged, and he hadn’t wanted to let go. Imagining their “marriage” to be real, to be permanent, had been so easy to do.

  When they’d reached the hotel room, the pretending should have stopped. But as he’d carried her over the threshold of the honeymoon suite, taking her to bed had seemed like the next logical—the most natural—step to take. She had wanted that, too.

  Now she was pregnant.

  Broke.

  And his responsibility.

  He had to give her credit. For someone who’d lost everything, she appeared remarkably unchanged. Her wet hair resembled molasses rather than the caramel he remembered, but the color brought back memories of the heart-shaped tub they’d shared. He forced the unwelcome image from his mind.

  She didn’t look pregnant, but he couldn’t tell much with her seated. The changes, if any, were subtle. The bottom of her wrinkled shirt covered her waist and stomach. The buttons on her blouse strained slightly over her chest. He wanted to touch her belly to convince himself a baby—his baby—grew inside.

  Anger darkened her eyes. “See something that interests you?”

  He shrugged. “Have you located Daddy Worthington…or is he still living it up in the Caribbean on what’s left of your inheritance?”

  “Your rumors were right on target.” She clasped her hands together and then placed them gracefully on her lap. “He seems to have disappeared.”

  “Along with his barely legal plaything—all of nineteen, I believe?”

  Laurel frowned. “Why are you doing this? Being so mean? What did I do to deserve—”

  “Why did it take you so long to tell me about the baby?”

  She stared, her features composed. Ever the heiress. “My mother needed me. There were debts to settle, things to sell.”

  Excuses. None of which he bought. Not when she carried his child.

  Brett stood, giving him even more of a height advantage with her sitting. Maybe being on his feet would stop his insides from twitching. “I’d say notifying me about the baby was as important as any of those other things.”

  She flinched. Her hands fisted until her knuckles went white. “Did you forget how to use a phone? You knew I was pregnant. Why didn’t you contact me?”

  Laurel’s voice carried her anger and frustration, but he didn’t answer. He wasn’t sure what to say.

  When he’d returned from Reno, he’d picked up the phone more times than he wanted to admit, but he couldn’t bring himself to call her because she knew how to contact him. As the months slowly passed without a word, he’d realized the obvious. Laurel had thought she was too far above him to call. It had happened before. But after hearing mutual “friends” joke about her finances and pregnancy, he’d hired a private investigator in Chicago.

  Since then, he’d received daily reports on her activities. After learning her mother had lost the family estate due to foreclosure and Laurel had sold her condo, he’d been ready to step in until he found out she was heading via bus to Portland.

  To him.

  The PI had ridden with her the entire journey to ensure she arrived safely on his doorstep, but the guy had lost her when she’d gone into the ladies’ room at the bus station and missed her exiting.

  “I figured you’d contact me if you needed something,” Brett said finally.

  “How diligent of you.” She sounded unimpressed and hurt.

  “Seems we’re both at fault.” He rubbed his beard. “But your timing is interesting considering the recent article on me in Forbes and my book hitting the New York Times list.”

  Her expression hardened. “How dare you imply—”

  He rolled his eyes at the indignation on her face. “A Worthington to the end, aren’t you? Even though the Worthington name is worthless thanks to your father and his reckless style of living and loving.”

  “You make it sound so…sordid.” She sighed. “Okay, the situation is sordid, but what’s it to you?”

  His gaze snapped to hers. “You’re the mother of my child.”

  She stared down the length of her perfect nose. “Thank you for acknowledging the child as yours.”

  Her “I’m-better-than-you” attitude made him want to toss Laurel out of his office. But he couldn’t. She was carrying his baby. Penniless. Life in ruins. He clenched his hand. “You were my wife.”

  “Our marriage was annulled, so we weren’t really married. I shouldn’t have called myself your ex-wife.”

  He still couldn’t believe two total strangers could have ignited so much passion and longing, yet parted company without so much as a hug or a handshake. “How about my one-night bride?”

  “How about we don’t define it?” She pressed her lips together.

  “Fine.”

  Leaning her head back, she rubbed her neck. “Look, if I had anywhere else to turn…”

  Here we go. What a pathetic joke. He forced himself not to laugh.

  Now she wanted him. When she didn’t have two nickels to rub together, she would settle for someone like him. His jaw clamped.

  Never had he imagined working so hard to build a successful life for himself, only to marry someone in a position far worse than he’d ever been in. He wasn’t happy about what he needed to do, but it was too late for regrets. He’d been a willing partner on their wedding night.

  Thanks to a roll of the dice, life as he knew it was over. But that wasn’t their innocent baby’s fault. Unless he took certain steps, the past was about to repeat itself. He wouldn’t fail his child the way his own father had failed him. Brett had to do the right thing…the only thing.

  He had to marry Laurel.

  His child needed a father; his child needed a family.

  Before Brett offered marriage, however, he wanted her to ask for his help. Beg for it. “Tell me what you want.”

  “I want…a job.”

  “Right.” He saw right through her lie. “You traveled halfway across the country to ask me for a job?”

  “And to tell you about the baby.” She bit her lip. “Telling you I was pregnant over the phone wouldn’t have been proper.”

  She was worried about etiquette now? “What else do you want?”

  Her lower lip quivered. “Medical insurance to cover the pregnancy.”

  He’d fallen for her lies in Reno. Never again.

  Brett waited for her to say something else. She didn’t. “That can’t be all.”

  Her forehead wrinkled. “Why not? What more could I possibly need?”

  His money. A band of gold on her finger. More of his money.

  Walking away wasn’t an option. He wasn’t his father, so that left Brett with no other choice. He was in this for the long haul.

  His gaze locked with hers. “That’s really it?”

  Laurel nodded.

  If she wanted to play it this way, he was game. “Fine, I’ll give you a job with a full benefits package. You’ll supervise a small staff, organize and host events, and perform philanthropic duties with various organizations throughout the city. You’ll receive a top-notch health and dental plan. I’ll toss in a clothing allowance and a car.”

  “Sounds perfect.” Her eyes sparkled. “What’s the position?”

  “My wife.”
/>
  CHAPTER TWO

  Wife? He wants to marry me? For real?

  Laurel’s pulse picked up speed, and her dry throat got even drier. He couldn’t be serious, but the intensity in Brett’s eyes said he was.

  She wet her lips. Three months ago, she would have given anything to hear him propose marriage. Three months ago, she would have said yes without a second thought. Three months ago, she would have wanted him to bail her out of financial ruin.

  But all that had changed. She had changed.

  With a child came responsibility—financial, moral, the works. She hadn’t planned on having a kid so soon or alone, but now that a baby was growing inside her, Laurel had to do right by her son or daughter. She wanted to be the kind of mother her child could respect. Not the kind who needed handouts or a man to justify her existence.

  Marriage wasn’t the answer. Brett might be the father of her child, but she didn’t need a knight in shining armor—make that a tarnished one after how he was acting today—to rescue her. She didn’t need to be rescued by anyone except herself. Laurel would make it on her own, prove to herself she wasn’t like the other women in her family.

  “No, thanks,” she answered, her voice strong and solid. She had zero doubts about making this decision.

  His dark brows furrowed. “What did you say?”

  “No,” she repeated. “I don’t want to marry you.”

  “You’re saying no?” His voice went cold. “To me?”

  “I am.” Laurel didn’t know much about Brett Matthews, but she’d upset him. Okay, maybe not upset, but the creases on his face told her she’d frustrated him.

  Good.

  He frustrated her, too.

  She hated the way he studied her as if she were an annual report and he didn’t know whether to buy or sell shares of stock. Hated him accusing her of getting pregnant on purpose. Most definitely hated having nowhere else to go.

  “Why?” he asked.

  Where should she start? Laurel wasn’t stupid. She understood the benefits of marrying a man like Brett. Financially, she would be set for life, but Laurel had learned an important lesson from her parents—whoever controlled the purse strings controlled the relationship. It had happened with her own father. She wasn’t about to put herself in that position again. Especially with a man as wealthy and powerful as Brett Matthews.