The Billionaire's Baby Arrangement Read Online Free PDF Page B

take over the family business and once Tony left to race cars and Joe took off to New York to develop software for a global company, the youngest son got the brunt of his father’s manipulations.
    Santo had done a number on him and Nick had taken a hard fall.
    â€œI’m not interested in Brooke Hamilton. Hell, give me a break, Joe. I’m doing a good deed here, not looking for an instant family.”
    Damn it! Nick glanced up to find Brooke standing behind Joe. The baby bottle she held slipped from her hand. Flustered, her face turned color and Nick couldn’t tell if she was angry or embarrassed.
    Angry, he decided.
    Joe swept up the bottle quickly and handed it to her. “Here you go. Hi, I’m Joe.”
    â€œI remember. Hi, Joe.” She took the bottle graciously and smiled at him. Those knock-out hazel eyes, the shade of tropical waters, lit up her whole face.
    â€œSorry to hear about the accident,” Joe said. “I hope you recover well from your injuries.”
    â€œThank you.” As if she had forgotten about her head injury, she touched her forehead. “I’m doing okay.”
    â€œShouldn’t you be resting?” Nick asked. He’d shown the nurse to their room an hour ago and she’d promised to watch over both mother and child.
    She glanced at him and the light in her eyes faded as fast as her smile. “I couldn’t calm down so I thought I’d get some air.”
    â€œWith that?” Nick pointed to the baby’s bottle. Seemed she only had a smile for Joe.
    â€œOh, I was on my way to the kitchen to store this. It’s expressed breast milk.”
    Nick blinked. “Expressed?”
    â€œI think this is my cue to leave,” Joe said, adjusting the glasses on his nose. He darted glances at both of them then bid them good-bye and left.
    â€œSorry to bother you,” Brooke said to him, not sounding sorry at all as she turned to leave.
    â€œBrooke?”
    She stopped and whirled around. “It’s not as if Leah and I have a choice in this, Nick. I don’t mean to sound ungrateful, but I don’t want to be here anymore than you want us here.”
    â€œIf I didn’t want you here, you wouldn’t be here. Why couldn’t you calm down?”
    Brooke fidgeted with the bottle in her hands. He didn’t want to think about how she’d expressed the milk into the bottle. Some things were beyond male comprehension. She glanced away, looking at the pool, then the grounds, and finally back at him. “I, uh, it’s the accident. I keep replaying it in my head. Every time I close my eyes, it’s there. I hear it. I see it.” She took a swallow and her voice cracked then lowered to a bare whisper. “And when I think what might have happened to Leah…”
    Nick walked over to her and put his hands on her shoulders. “But nothing happened to Leah. You’re going to be fine.”
    â€œMy brain knows that.” She closed her eyes for a second, then when she opened them again, granting him a soft look, something pierced through his gut. It was something that he didn’t recognize. Something that was new and strange to him.
    He touched her cheek and got lost in her eyes. He had a need to protect. To comfort. He brought his mouthclose and brushed his lips to hers. The kiss was meant to reassure, to help her find some peace, but Nick didn’t expect the sensations to rip through him. He didn’t expect to want more. Sure, he’d once been attracted to Brooke. She’d been different than the other girls he’d been with in high school. There was substance to her, a depth that other girls didn’t have at that age. She hadn’t been a party girl. Maybe that’s why Nick had been attracted to her. She was unique and special and Nick had realized that during the one night they’d spent together when he’d almost taken her virginity.
    For years after, he’d