Balancing a now sleeping Anna, he set her down in the work space crib. The little girl stretched out slightly, reaching as if to yank on his heartstrings. He placed drowsy Mary in the white crib beside her sister, her little fingers curled into something that looked like a wave. One that could sweep right over him too easily.
He walked to one of the white sofas, settling into the surprisingly firm cushion. The wall of windows showcased the autumn sky. He’d thought nothing could be more majestic than a Texas landscape—until he’d come to Alaska.
Light snow coated the mountaintops in the distance, beautiful, regal. Just like the woman in this office who juggled motherhood while putting out legal fires as if she’d been managing the combination for years. He glanced back at Naomi just as she absently shook her head again, the echoing buzz of Dwight’s voice still filling the silence.
Finally, the ass on the other end of the line seemed to run out of steam.
Naomi adjusted the phone against her ear. “I hear your concerns. Loud and clear. We can address them calmly at four o’clock this afternoon, eastern time, when I’ve had time to consult at length with the rest of the legal team.” Her voice was all business, leaving no room for argument. “At which time you can decide if you wish to complete this deal and be a part of Alaska Oil Barons’ ecofriendly pipeline to the Dakotas—along with all of the positive press that entails. Or you are welcome to roll the dice with Johnson Oil.”
Cal Johnson was in a tailspin over his competition’s upgrades. Even Johnson’s CEO, Ward Benally, had resigned. And clearly Naomi knew this gave her an edge to use.
Royce couldn’t help but think of the day they’d met, when she’d tracked him down to a remote cabin to persuade him to share his research with her family’s company. He’d been skeptical about joining Alaska Oil Barons, but the Steeles and the Mikkelsons had proved themselves to be strong advocates for his vision. He appreciated the fire and conviction in her voice.
Whatever Dwight said brought a victorious smile to Naomi’s face. She nodded, then said, “Glad to hear you’re feeling reassured. And yes, tomorrow is fine with me, since you’re busy this afternoon. Happy to accommodate. Have a nice rest of your day. We’ll speak soon.”
She disconnected the call and exhaled hard. “Jerk.”
“He’s a jerk who apparently lost whatever edge he expected to gain.”
Her fingers lingered on a glass swan figurine that looked as if it were carved from ice. Steel entered her voice as she straightened papers on Glenna’s desk, then swiveled in the plush black chair. “He deserves to lose a lot more.”
“I agree.” Royce let his gaze wander from her angled face. Natural sunlight filtered into the office, framing her at the desk between the two towering bookshelves behind her. “Your firm sense of right and wrong is very attractive.”
Damn, but she mesmerized him. Loose waves of her hair gathered just above her breasts, feathering out against her flowy blue dress. She stood, moving around the desk, her leather boots softly pressing into the off-white carpet.
“Thank you.” She smiled, her cheeks pink, color returning to her face after being pale for a few days. “And thank you for pitching in with the babies so I could take care of this problem. I hope I’m not taking advantage and detracting from your own work?”
“Nothing to worry about. I took some time off from lecturing at the university. And flexibility is the benefit of being a consultant. I can set my own schedule, plus any tweaks to the current project with the pipeline can be done remotely while the babies sleep.” The success of his patents afforded him the luxury of never working again if he so chose. Not that he saw himself ever retiring. He enjoyed inventing, helping the work, and delivering the occasional college seminar to teach future generations. All of which left him with the creative freedom to pursue research grants as inspiration struck.
“Regardless,” she said, “you’ve gone above and beyond. And I have to admit, it was helpful to have the paperwork in front of me today.”
“You could have things couriered to the house.”
“I could have...” She scrunched her nose, exhaling as she made her way to the sofa. She sat on the arm of the adjacent couch, looked over her shoulder to the window. Naomi took a deep breath before turning to face him. “Okay, truth? I needed to get out of the house and this was the perfect excuse. Thank you for helping make it happen in a way I didn’t have to worry about the girls.”
Coming here hadn’t been as much of a chore as he’d initially thought. The stillness of the office surprised him. Solitude seemed to settle in the room—the kind he craved, and the kind that didn’t permeate the Steele family compound. Attraction heightened in the solitude.
Royce cleared his throat, needing a physical act to disrupt his intense eye contact with Naomi. Eye contact that reawakened all sorts of desires in him. He needed to pull on his professional skills to help him now. “I meant it when I said I wanted to help...and before you go ballistic, wondering if I’m trying to use the twins as a replacement family, let’s just settle on a compromise. You and I both have issues to work through. And in letting me help you, you’re helping me.”
“You make that sound too easy. There has to be a catch.” Naomi moved from her perch to sit next to him.
“Quit thinking like a lawyer.”
She sagged into the couch, her skirt pooling around her knees, exposing her shapely calves. “A tired lawyer. Thank goodness Dwight didn’t take me up on my offer to get everything together today.”
“The girls are sleeping, so let’s not risk waking them up by carrying them down to the car.” He touched the small of her back, and damn, but the familiar feel of her soaked right into him. Not that anything could happen between them. She’d broken his heart. He was here for closure, not to fall back into old patterns of leaning on their sensual connection.
Clearing his throat again, he pulled his hand away and motioned to one of the sofas. “Stretch out on the couch, put your feet up and eat something. I have to confess, I wouldn’t mind doing the same.”
“You’ve been too kind to me.”
“We have to work together. Unless you want me to quit consulting—”
“Bite your tongue. My family would kill me.”
Chuckling, he settled onto the sofa across from her and studied the coffee table sporting a platter of food they’d ordered up from the headquarters’ five-star restaurant. He loaded up a plate from the antipasto selection of cured meats, cheeses, olives, crostinis and a fruit spread. “Well, we can’t have that.”
She plucked an olive from the plate he handed her and nibbled it.
“What are you thinking?” he asked, trying to ignore the low buzz of his phone with an incoming text.
“Just remembering some old times. This was a favorite snack when we were kids—minus the olives back then.” She swung her feet up onto the sofa, sitting up against throw pillows with her plate of food. “Life was so idyllic before the accident. Camping trips. Family dinners. And yes, it was noisy, but so happy. Even when we weren’t getting along, it was funny, because it wasn’t mean-spirited. Does that make sense?”
“Knowing your family? Yes.” Having grown up an only child, he was intrigued by their dynamics, the ability to coexist in a crowd.
“Marshall and Brea loved trekking in snowshoes.”
“I’m assuming from the tone in your voice that you didn’t feel the same?” His phone buzzed again and he checked quickly, finding a work text that could wait. He switched off his cell and turned his attention to Naomi.
“I wanted to curl up with a book at the cabin.”
“Seriously? You wanted to be alone?” He couldn’t resist teasing her on that count.
“I wasn’t totally alone. My grandmother was there—my mother’s mom. She said she stayed at the cabin in case one of us kids needed to come back, but she had COPD and couldn’t handle
the long walks anymore. I cherished the time alone with her, not competing with the others.”
“She was a strong influence in your life.”
“I don’t know what I would have done without her when I went through cancer treatments. I don’t know how she held so strong so soon after her daughter—my mom—died.” Naomi looked over at the crib with her sleeping babies. “I can’t even imagine the pain she must have felt. But she was there for me. Telling me endless stories in the hospital. I can still hear the sound of her voice.”
“What kinds of stories?”
Naomi smiled more to herself than to Royce. Her eyes took on a faraway, nostalgic look, and suddenly he found himself even more invested in their conversation.
“My grandmother made sure we heard the legends directly from her, not from a book. Like the tale of the Qalupalik—one of our favorites. She was green and slimy and lived in the water. She hummed and would draw bad children to the waves. If you wandered away from your parents, she would slip you in a pouch on her back and take you to her watery home to live with her other kids. You would never see your family again.”
“Your grandma sounds like a tough cookie.”
“She was. That story actually used to scare all of us to pieces when we were younger. Delaney cried the first time she heard it. But then the story was familiar and a part of our ritual.”
He saw something lurking in her eyes that prompted him to ask, “What were some of your other favorite stories?”
“There’s also the werewolf legend about the Adlet. They were said to have the lower body of a wolf and the upper body of a human—”
“Like centaurs,” Royce said, before biting into a slice of sharp cheese.
“Basically, yes. And apparently, they still roam. Broderick and Marshall tried to hunt one once. They had to turn back because I tagged along, and Aiden followed me...” She straightened, setting her plate down on the couch cushion beside her. She tensed and Royce could practically see the walls fly up as her voice took on a decidedly more defensive tone. “Are you just being polite? You have to have heard all of this about the werewolf legend. It’s a well-known one.”
“I haven’t heard it this way. Not from you.” She narrowed her eyes as if trying to discern his intent. “What are you trying to tell me?”
“Marshall and Brea were always close. People worried more about him after we lost her, and I understand that. But she and I were close, too.” A pained smile tugged at her mouth. “She was my sister. I was supposed to protect her.”
“Naomi, you were still a kid. That’s a heavy burden to put on yourself.”
“I know that in my mind, but in my heart?” She blinked back tears. “Since my sister Brea died, it seems like the family is missing a part—like the Adlet legend.”
“It’s understandable that she’s on your mind now.”
“I keep thinking about how my girls will never know her.”
Ah, hell. Objectivity and distance weren’t even an option. He set aside his plate and moved to the other sofa. He shifted her until he could pull her against his side and hold her. She didn’t resist. In fact, a shuddering sigh went through her that rocked him to his core.
They both grew silent and he stroked her hair, breathing in the scent of her. Every breath pulled temptation tauter inside him.
Her curves molded to his side, the swell of her breasts a sweet temptation. She was drifting off, but he was very much wide-awake. Her breathing eventually slowed even as his heartbeat thudded harder in his ears. And lower.
Sitting here, holding her, was torturous. Apparently, he was a masochist, because he couldn’t bring himself to move.
* * *
Gathering bottles into a black diaper bag with polar bears stitched on the handles, Naomi took a moment to breathe. And man, did she need to after the last hour of her life.
Having Royce nearby had been a godsend. She moved through work, felt less wiped out than the day before. But she needed to get out, away from the sweet domesticity of playing house with Royce. Dividing up the tasks also made transitioning into her professional life infinitely easier.
But as for her heart? Another matter entirely.
This time with Royce had been too enticing. Too much like things were before, except with two sleeping infants in the room.
Well, and the fact that they couldn’t have sex.
Which, now that she thought about it, actually made today different from before, since they’d spent most of their past jumping into bed together. Often. So why was he sticking around?
The obvious answer stung all over again. That he was looking for a replacement family. Or closure for that lost family.
Her heart hurt—and a fierce protective feeling flowed through Naomi. Her children would be no one’s replacement.
She would not stay this vulnerable. No. She needed to channel her last name. Erect those famous “Steele” walls.
She quickened her pace, searching the room for any lingering toys and necessities. At this point, Naomi felt she was almost on autopilot. She barely registered Royce’s presence. Or perhaps more accurately, tried to ignore the way he attentively searched the room for stray items.
He placed a hand on her shoulder, the warmth both familiar and new. That was confusing.
“Hey, slow down, Naomi. I’ve got it. You’ve done a lot today on your first big day out, other than for a doctor’s visit.”
He moved closer, the musky scent of him reminding her of the bed that they once shared while making love for hours on end. What it was like to be with him, their bodies slick with sweat and need. Then afterward, sated, resting her head on his muscled chest, listening to the heavy slug of his heart against his ribs.
The memory made her move faster as she stepped away, under the guise of picking up a throw pillow off the floor and replacing it on the sofa. “I’m fine. I’ll be home soon with plenty of family to help.”
There. Take the hint. She could do this without him. She had to.
He cast a look at her, but didn’t take the bait. He simply grunted and tucked a stray swaddling blanket into the diaper bag, then put away his tablet, which he’d brought along to catch up on work of his own during a baby feeding.
A tap on the door stopped her before she could volley a lawyerly retort his way.
Royce called, “Come in.”
Of course he did. He’d won the battle by default. And she knew she was acting prickly, but being with him was difficult and too easy all at the same time.
The door opened and a woman peeked around it, her long blond hair swinging. “Excuse me for interrupting. I have those files you asked for.”
Right. The files. The main reason for coming here. Naomi smiled in gratitude at Glenna’s new assistant. “Thank you, Milla. Sorry to have slipped in while you were out for lunch. We’re so glad to have you working for the family company.” Then she turned to Royce, grateful to have the woman in the room as an extra barrier to protect her from the crackling emotions between them. “Have you had a chance to meet Milla Jones?”
Six
Her heart pounding, Milla studied Naomi and Royce, having seen the pair only from a distance at the hospital as they’d walked down the corridor with the two bassinets. She’d been careful not to be observed during her just-before-dawn flower deliveries. Although that hallway moment had been a near miss. She’d almost been spotted where she shouldn’t have been and blown her whole cover as a new employee for Alaska Oil Barons, Inc. If one of them had remembered her from her job interview...
Perhaps she’d been reckless in indulging in that night to scope out the families. But the temptation had been irresistible to see them in a relaxed moment, unguarded.
Here in the office was different. They had on their business faces, with all the walls that entailed. She was taking a risk, but having an “in” here was too important. S
he had access to records that she wouldn’t have elsewhere. Records that could provide answers. Justice.
Peace.
Milla extended her hand to Royce Miller, glad she’d taken the time to get a manicure to lessen the ragged look of her chewed nails. “Nice to meet you.” She’d met Naomi at the interview stage, but not him. “I only just started officially today, although I shadowed my predecessor last week. I understand you’ve all been busy these past couple of weeks with those two adorable babies.”
Royce Miller was a scientist of formidable reputation. She’d done her research on that score. But she’d been unprepared for the full effect of his appeal close up. He was tall and lean, his shoulders stretching the fabric of the simple cashmere sweater he wore over a T. Casual clothes, yes. But the fabric was rich, the tailoring custom. People like Royce and Naomi moved in a whole different world.
The towering guy had shutters in his eyes, a guarded, brooding aura. “Welcome, Ms. Jones.”
“Thank you. It’s been a wonderful, busy first day.” She passed the file and disc to Naomi.
Milla couldn’t help but notice Naomi wore embroidered leather boots without a care for the brutal Alaska weather, no doubt because she could afford to replace them at will. Her Italian leather handbag was the kind shopkeepers kept behind a locked counter. Milla thought she remembered it from last year’s fashion magazines, not that she’d ever been able to afford anything from the pages.
Naomi took the data and slid it into her briefcase. “Royce has been a tremendous help to the company—and to me.”
Gossip about Royce and Naomi had flowed through the break room at lunch earlier. There was even a betting pool over whether they would reunite. “I imagine twins are quite exhausting.”
Naomi’s tired face lightened with a smile. “And a blessing.”
“Of course,” Milla answered, curious, needing to get a solid read of the major players here, to effectively achieve her goal of sabotaging the merger. The six Steele offspring and four Mikkelsons would not be joining forces, not as long as she drew breath. “I don’t have children of my own, but I can imagine.”
The Twin Birthright Page 6
