“I can’t tell you what it means to me to see you so happy.”
He kissed her forehead. “You don’t have to. Now that I have kids, I finally get it.”
“Good.” She pushed him away, called out to Beth’s husband to pour her some wine and then told Jake, “Go. Don’t make your wife wait.”
Smiling to himself, Jake went to the basement, got a couple boxes of wipes, then headed back upstairs. As he went, he looked into the great room at his extended family. There were lights and candles and cookies and wreaths and a gigantic tree and damned if it all didn’t look perfect.
From the kitchen came the amazing scents of a roasting turkey and the sounds of Anna sneaking Luke an extra cookie that Jake was sure would be shared with Boston. Claudia was in the study on the phone with one of her friends and Dave and his wife were out in the stables while their kids napped upstairs. Anna was in her glory with so many kids to look after, and she kept sending parents out of the room so she could have as much fun as she wanted to.
With the noise of a stereo playing Christmas carols and conversations rising and falling, Jake shook his head and took the stairs two at a time. He went directly to the nursery beside the master bedroom.
Pausing on the threshold just to watch his wife and child, Jake knew he would never get enough of this view. Cassie sat in a flowered rocker, nursing their daughter as snow fell softly outside the window. A small lamp beside the chair threw pale, golden light across his girls. When Cassie heard him, she looked up and smiled and everything inside Jake went completely still.
She was his everything.
“How’s our girl doing?” he asked, walking into the room to squat down in front of the rocker.
“Rachel is almost finished with her dinner, aren’t you, sweet girl?”
He’d had his wish and spent nine months watching Cassie grow with their child and he’d loved every minute of it. Labor and delivery were tougher than he would have imagined, but he learned again just how strong his wife was. She was already talking about having another one, and Rachel was only three months old. That was fine with Jake, though. They both wanted a big family.
The baby gurgled, gave a milky smile, then reached out and grabbed hold of Jake’s finger, curling her tiny fingers around his. His heart squeezed painfully and as he dropped a kiss onto the baby’s forehead, he looked up at Cassie. Briefly he remembered his life before the chaos, when peace was all-important and silence ruled his days and nights. He couldn’t even understand the man he used to be. He was simply grateful that man was gone.
Looking into fog-gray eyes, he whispered, “Thank you for saving the loner on the mountain.”
“Merry Christmas, Jake.”
* * * * *
If you liked THE COWBOY’S PRIDE AND JOY, check out USA TODAY bestselling author Maureen Child’s other BILLIONAIRES & BABIES stories!
HAVE BABY, NEED BILLIONAIRE
DOUBLE THE TROUBLE
Available now, from Harlequin Desire!
If you liked this BILLIONAIRES & BABIES novel, watch for the next book in this Number 1 bestselling Desire series, THE MISSING HEIR by Barbara Dunlop, available December 2014.
Keep reading for a special excerpt from THE SECRET AFFAIR by Brenda Jackson.
Ten years ago one devastating night changed everything for Austin, Hunter and Alex. Now they must each play their part in the revenge against the one man who ruined it all.
Austin Treffen has the plan… Hunter has the money… Alex has the power!
Read each of their stories in the captivating Fifth Avenue trilogy,
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Avenge Me by Maisey Yates (June 2014)
Scandalize Me by Caitlin Crews (July 2014)
Expose Me by Kate Hewitt (August 2014)
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SPECIAL EXCERPT FROM
Here’s a sneak peek of
THE SECRET AFFAIR
by New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author
Brenda Jackson
Dr. Aidan Westmoreland entered his apartment and removed his lab coat. After running a hand down his face, he glanced at his watch, frustrated. He’d hoped he would have heard something by now. What if…
The ringing of his cell phone made him pause. It was the call he’d been waiting for. “Paige?”
“Yes, it’s me.”
“Is Jillian still going?” he asked, not wasting time with chitchat.
There was a slight pause on the other end, and in that short space of time knots formed in his stomach. “Yes, she’s still going on the cruise, Aidan.”
He released the breath he’d been holding as Paige continued, “Jill still has no idea I’m aware that the two of you had an affair.”
Aidan hadn’t known Paige knew the truth either, until she’d paid him a surprise visit last month. According to her, she’d figured things out the year Jillian had entered medical school. She’d become suspicious when he’d come home for his cousin Riley’s wedding and she’d overheard him call Jillian Jilly in an intimate tone. Paige had been concerned this past year when she’d noticed Jillian seemed troubled by something that she wouldn’t share with Paige.
Paige had talked to Ivy, Jillian’s best friend, who’d also been concerned about Jillian. Ivy had shared everything about the situation with Paige. Which had prompted Paige to fly to Charlotte and confront him. Until then, Aidan had been clueless as to the real reason behind his and Jillian’s breakup.
When Paige had told him about the cruise she and
Jillian had planned and she’d suggested an idea for getting Jillian on the cruise alone, he’d readily embraced it.
“I’ve done my part and the rest is up to you, Aidan. I hope you can convince Jill of the truth.”
Moments later he ended the call and continued to the kitchen, where he grabbed a beer. Two weeks on the open seas with Jillian would be interesting. But he intended to make it more than just interesting. He aimed to make it productive.
A determined smile spread across his lips. By the time the cruise ended there would be no doubt in Jillian’s mind that he was the only man for her.
Find out how this secret affair began—and how Aidan plans to claim his woman in THE SECRET AFFAIR by New York Times and
USA TODAY bestselling author Brenda Jackson.
Available December 2014, wherever Harlequin® Desire books and ebooks are sold!
Copyright 2014 © by Brenda Streater Jackson
ISBN-13: 9781460341834
The Cowboy’s Pride and Joy
Copyright © 2014 by Maureen Child
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