The Baby Arrangement
Page 1
“Your timing is perfect,” Jared said, reaching for the baby bottle she’d brought.
Letter to Reader
Title Page
Dedication
Books by Moyra Tarling
About the Author
Letter to Reader
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Epilogue
Copyright
“Your timing is perfect,” Jared said, reaching for the baby bottle she’d brought.
When her fingers brushed his, it was all Faith could do to ignore the faint tremor of awareness that shimmied up her arm.
“He slept longer than I thought he would,” Faith commented as Jared walked to the rocking chair and sat down.
Mesmerized, Faith lingered near the door, watching Jared settle Nicky into a comfortable position against his chest.
“You don’t have to stay and supervise,” Jared told her in a low voice. “I assure you I’m quite capable of feeding and burping my son.”
Faith met his gaze. “I wasn’t—”
“Or are you hanging around for another reason?” he asked, his gaze drifting over her scanty attire.
Her breath caught in her throat at the blatant sexual undertone in his voice. He thought she was her identical twin—the mother of his child!
Dear Reader,
As spring turns to summer, make Silhouette Romance the perfect companion for those lazy days and sultry nights! Fans of our LOVING THE BOSS series won’t want to miss The Marriage Merger by exciting author Vivian Leiber. A pretend engagement between friends goes awry when their white lies lead to a real white wedding!
Take one biological-clock-ticking twin posing as a new mom and one daddy determined to gain custody of his newborn son, and you’ve got the unsuspecting partners in The Baby Arrangement, Moyra Tarling’s tender BUNDLES OF JOY title. You’ve asked for more TWINS ON THE DOORSTEP, Stella Bagwell’s charming author-led ministries, so this month we give you Millionaire on Her Doorstep, an emotional story of two wounded souls who find love in the most unexpected way...and in the most unexpected place.
Can a bachelor bent on never marrying and a single mom with a bustling brood of four become a Fairy-Tale Family? Find out in Pat Montana’s delightful new novel. Next, a handsome doctor’s case of mistaken identity leads to The Triplet’s Wedding Wish in this heartwarming tale by DeAnna Talcott. And a young widow finds the home—and family—she’s always wanted when she strikes a deal with a Nevada Cowboy Dad, this month’s FAMILY MATTERS offering from Dorsey Kelley.
Enjoy this month’s fantastic selections, and make sure to return each and every month to Silhouette Romance!
Mary-Theresa Hussey
Senior Editor, Silhouette Romance
Please address questions and book requests to:
Silhouette Reader Service
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THE BABY ARRANGEMENT
Moyra Tarling
Published by Silhouette Books
America’s Publisher of Contemporary Romance
For new mothers and fathers everywhere.
Enjoy every minute, because they’ll be all grown before you know it!
Books by Moyra Tarling
Silhouette Romance
A Tender Trail #541
A Kiss and a Promise #679
Just in Time for Christmas #763
All About Adam #782
No Mistaking Love #907
Just a Memory Away #937
Christmas Wishes #979
Finally a Family #1081
It Must Have Been the Mistletoe #1122
Twice a Father #1156
Marry in Haste #1242
Wedding Day Baby #1325
The Baby Arrangement #1367
MOYRA TARLING
was born in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. It was there that she was first introduced to, and became hooked on, romance novels. In 1968, she immigrated to Vancouver, Canada, where she met and married her husband. They have two grown children. Empty nesters now, they enjoy taking trips in their getaway van and browsing in antique shops for corkscrews and buttonhooks. But Moyra’s favorite pastime is curling up with a great book—a romance, of course! Moyra loves to hear from readers. You can write to her at P.O. Box 161, Blaine, WA 98231-D161.
Dear Reader,
Babies are indeed BUNDLES OF JOY, precious gifts to be loved, cherished and protected. In The Baby Arrangement Nicky is just such a baby. I knew when Faith saw her tiny, innocent and beautiful nephew, she would feel the same overwhelming love and need to protect that I felt when my newborn son was first placed in my arms.
It is heartwarming to know that most fathers, upon seeing their child for the first time, feel the exact same sense of wonder, the same deep love as well as a fierce need to protect.
Jared is that kind of man, that kind of hero. By bringing him and Faith together, I knew these two caring, loving people, committed to doing what was best for Nicky, deserved to fall in love. Deserved to become the family they both longed for.
I hope you enjoy reading The Baby Arrangement as much as I enjoyed writing it.
Much love,
Chapter One
He was too late. He’d been knocking on the door of the house for at least ten minutes, to no avail. He’d missed her. She’d vanished for a second time, taking his infant son with her.
Jared McAndrew cursed as he climbed into his car. He slammed his hands against the steering wheel as the familiar feelings of frustration and anger churned to life within him.
He’d come close...so close. Silently he vowed not to quit until he’d tracked down his newborn son, a son he’d never seen.
Muttering under his breath, Jared reached for the key to restart the engine.
It was at that precise moment he spotted the baby stroller as it turned into the leaf-covered driveway. His heart shuddered to a halt, and he felt his breath back up in his throat as he focused his gaze on the mother of his child.
He blinked several times, fearful his eyes were playing tricks on him. But there was no mistake. Reaching for the door handle, Jared was out of the car in a flash.
Faith Nelson slowed the baby stroller to a halt the minute she saw the sleek black car parked in her driveway. She watched as a tall, dark-haired man dressed in crumpled gray slacks and a navy sweater emerged from the front seat.
Her heart slammed against her ribs and a ripple of apprehension chased down her spine at the look of fury she could see etched on the stranger’s handsome features. Instinctively she tightened her fingers on the handle of the baby stroller as his long strides ate up the driveway.
“Hello, Paula,” the man said, coming to a halt a few feet in front of the stroller. “You look surprised to see me.” His voice was deep and resonant, but with an edge that could easily have cut glass.
Faith moistened lips that were suddenly dry. “I’m sorry. I’m not—”
“You’re sorry!” the man interrupted, his voice quavering with barely suppressed rage.
“You don’t understand,” Faith said, but before she could even begin to explain, his eyes flashed with a look of contempt that effectively silenced her.
“Oh...you’ve got that right,” he drawled. “But then I doubt I’ll ever understand how you could disappear without a word,” he said. “We had an agreement, remember? Did you really think I wouldn’t come looking for you?”
; At his challenging tone an icy rivulet slithered down Faith’s back, and she cast a quick glance toward the house.
“Don’t even think about it,” the man said, taking a step closer. “I’ve come for my son. I’m taking him home with me, and I’d advise you not to try to stop me,” he added, and dropped into a crouched position in front of the stroller.
“But you can’t...” Faith protested, looking around in the hope a police car might happen to be cruising the area.
“Just watch me,” he replied.
“Please, you don’t understand. I’m not...” Faith tried anew to explain, but the words dissolved in her throat when she saw the harsh angry lines on his face vanish, replaced by an expression of awe.
“He’s beautiful....” The words were a mere whisper of sound as Jared stared in wonderment at the tiny but perfect infant asleep in the stroller. Not even seeing the grainy pictures of his unborn son on the hospital sonogram had prepared him for this heart-stopping moment.
Gazing for the very first time at his own flesh and blood, his own son, an avalanche of emotions more powerful than anything he’d ever felt before gripped him, squeezing his heart and bringing tears to his eyes.
The intensity of his feelings caught him completely off guard, and so too did the sudden and urgent need to make sure he wasn’t dreaming. Reaching out, he gently touched his son’s smooth cheek.
At the contact Jared felt a tightening in his chest. As his glance drifted over the baby’s angelic face, he noted with some pride the shock of jet black hair peeking out from beneath a knitted blue bonnet.
Inhaling deeply, he caught the sweet scent of baby powder mixed with milky formula. He silently acknowledged that nothing in his thirty-seven years had prepared him for such a profound moment.
Jared released the breath he hadn’t realized he was holding. As he withdrew his hand he made a promise to his son, to be a loving, caring father—the kind of father he himself had longed for as a child.
Faith watched the array of emotions flitting across the stranger’s face and felt as if her heart were being torn from her body. Stifling a moan, she began to push the stroller toward the house.
“Hey! Just a minute.” Jared stretched to his full height and came marching after her. He grabbed the handle of the stroller, halting her progress. “You’re not running out on me again.”
He watched as tears pooled in her eyes.
“And you can cut the tearful act, Paula,” Jared continued, his tone scathing. “After what you’ve put me through these past two weeks, I’m not going to fall for that old trick. I’m here for one reason, and one reason only—to take my son home.”
Faith bravely met his fierce glare. That the stranger had mistaken her for her identical twin sister, Paula, was obvious, and from the description Paula had given her, he in turn could only be Jared McAndrew, the baby’s father. But why hadn’t Paula bothered to mention she’d been running away from the man?
“If you’d just let me finish...” Faith tried again, but this time her attempts to explain were suddenly drowned out by a baby’s cry.
Startled, they both stared at the source of the sound. The volume of the cries increased, and Faith quickly took control. Bending, she lifted the infant into her arms, hugging him to her. Rocking him gently, she crooned words of comfort.
Over the baby’s shoulder she met the stranger’s piercing gaze, daring him to challenge her. But when she glimpsed the anxiety shimmering in the depths of his blue eyes, her heart contracted.
“He’s hungry,” she told him. “And he doesn’t like to be kept waiting,” she added, moving past him toward the front door.
Faith dug in to her jacket pocket and located her keys. Opening the door, she threw a quick glance over her shoulder. It came as no surprise to see Jared McAndrew following her, bringing the baby stroller with him.
Once inside, Faith headed for the kitchen. Earlier that morning, before Nicky had awakened, she’d made up several bottles for him. Retrieving one from the fridge, she crossed to the sink.
“You’re not breast-feeding. Good. That will simplify matters,” the baby’s father said, standing in the doorway.
Faith fought down the bubble of hysterical laughter threatening to break free. “No, I’m not breast-feeding,” she responded, filling the bowl in the sink with hot water from the tap. Dropping the baby’s bottle into it, she turned to face the man hovering behind her like a vulture.
“He needs to be changed, then fed,” Faith said assertively. “When I’m finished feeding him, we’ll get this sorted out.”
“I’m not going anywhere,” he replied. “Besides, what’s there to sort out? I thought I’d made myself perfectly clear. Once you’ve finished feeding my son, I’m taking him home with me.”
A variety of emotions ranging from fear to frustration tugged at Faith, but she kept them in check. This wasn’t the time to argue, not when she had a hungry baby in her arms.
She strode down the hall and into her bedroom. After Paula had left for the airport last night, Faith had transported her dressing table into a makeshift change table by placing a thick bath towel on top of it.
Not for the first time since her twin had appeared on her doorstep twelve hours ago, Faith wondered what kind of mess her sister had gotten herself into.
Precocious and outgoing as a youngster, Paula had been the favorite child. Their parents had indulged her and encouraged her in her goal to become an actress. Faith, shyer and more introverted, had sat in the shadows, quietly developing her artistic talent, a talent that had led her to a career illustrating children’s books.
Throughout their teenage years Paula had landed herself in more scrapes than Faith cared to recall. She’d delighted in pulling reckless and sometimes dangerous stunts with no thought to the consequences.
Faith, a scant ten minutes older than her twin, had often been left to soothe ruffled feathers, pacify angry neighbors, or take the blame for things her sister had done.
After graduating from high school, Paula had moved to Los Angeles, where she’d worked as a waitress before landing a small part in a movie. From there she’d moved to New York to work in an off-Broadway show.
Faith in turn had won a scholarship to attend an artists’ college in Seattle. Living on opposite sides of the country, they’d drifted apart. Paula hadn’t been able to attend Faith’s small wedding. The last time Faith had seen her twin had been almost two years ago, at Erica’s funeral. After a brief stay Paula had returned to the East Coast, still chasing her dream of stardom.
But while Paula’s arrival yesterday had surprised her, it was nothing compared to the shock of having her twin thrust a baby into her arms and beg for her help. At the time, Faith had wondered if by some quirk of fate she’d stepped into a nightmare.
Suddenly Nicky’s cries grew more urgent, effectively bringing her thoughts back to the present. With quick, accomplished movements she changed his diaper all the while speaking softly to him till his cries subsided. As she gazed down at his cherublike face she noticed for the first time the faint cleft in his chin—a tiny replica of his father’s.
Snapping the sleeper back into place, Faith lifted Nicky from the dresser, carefully supporting his neck and head. The powdery scent of baby wrapped around her, filling her senses and storming her defenses. Suddenly a barrage of memories, memories of another baby—her daughter, Erica—washed over her. Erica had been born prematurely with a multitude of medical problems, problems that after only five days had resulted in her death.
Faith bit down on the inner softness of her mouth to stop the moan of pain and sadness threatening to escape. Blinking back tears, she firmly closed the door on the past, a past too painful to revisit.
Turning, she came to an abrupt halt when she found Jared McAndrew’s tall frame blocking the doorway.
“Excuse me,” she said, careful to avoid his gaze, unwilling to let him see her distress.
“I’m impressed, Paula,” he said moving aside. “You looked
like you knew what you were doing. Did you take a crash course in child care?” he asked, cynicism in his voice.
Faith made no reply as she headed for the kitchen.
“So tell me, who owns the house?” Jared asked as he followed her down the hall. “Is it one of your actor friends...or an old lover, perhaps?”
Faith ignored him. Grabbing a tea towel off the counter, she retrieved the bottle of formula from the sink. Continuing into the tiny living room, she sat down in front of the bay window in the rocking chair she’d bought during her own pregnancy.
With practiced ease she tested the temperature of the milk on the inside of her wrist Nicky was growing increasingly fretful, squirming in earnest now, undoubtedly aware nourishment was close at hand. Faith nestled the baby firmly against her breast, and in a matter of seconds his eager mouth found the bottle’s nipple.
Closing her eyes, Faith drew a steadying breath. As she gently rocked back and forth she listened to the soft sucking sound Nicky made, a noise she’d never thought to hear again, and one that made her heart ache anew.
After a few moments Faith ventured to open her eyes. The baby’s father had followed her into the living room and was slumped in the big old armchair opposite, eyes closed and a look of exhaustion on his face.
She let her gaze travel over his arresting features; the wide intelligent forehead, the straight nose, the mouth that was full and sensual, hair as black as ebony and the attractive cleft in his chin that Paula had mentioned.