Kitabı oku: «The Ten-Day Baby Takeover»

One

The lobby of LangTel’s Manhattan headquarters was practically a shrine to order and quiet restraint. It was not the place to bring a fussy baby. Sarah Daltrey had done precisely that. Marble floors, towering ceilings and huge expanses of windows facing the street made any sound, especially baby Oliver’s errant cries, echo and reverberate like crazy.

Sarah kissed his forehead, bouncing him on her hip as she paced in the postage stamp waiting area. For such a massive building, taking up nearly an entire city block, LangTel had been distinctly stingy with the amenities for the uninvited. Two chairs and a ten-by-ten rug sat opposite a closely guarded bank of elevators. It was clear that no one occupying this space should stay for long.

Oliver whimpered and buried his head in her neck. Poor little guy—none of this was his fault. Oliver hadn’t asked to take a four-hour train ride that morning. He certainly hadn’t asked to come to an ice-cold office building in the middle of his nap time. More than anything, Oliver hadn’t asked to lose his mother three weeks ago, nor had he asked to have a father who refused to acknowledge his existence.

Sarah took her cell phone and dialed the number she’d memorized but wasn’t about to add to her contacts. As soon as she got Oliver’s dad to accept his paternal responsibility, she’d force herself to forget the string of digits that led to an office somewhere in this building, most likely the top floor. There would be no maintaining ties with Aiden Langford. Their connection was temporary, albeit of paramount importance. She had his son and he was going to take custody, even if it killed her.

“Yes. Hello. It’s Sarah Daltrey. I’m calling for Aiden Langford. Again.”

One of the two security guards manning the lobby gave her the side-eye. Meanwhile, the woman on the other end of the phone line expressed equal disdain with her snippy tone. “Mr. Langford has told me a dozen times. He does not know you. Please stop calling.”

“I can’t stop calling until he finally talks to me.”

“Perhaps I can help you.”

“No. You can’t. This is a personal matter and Mr. Langford should appreciate that I’m not sharing the details of this situation with his assistant. I outlined it all in the email I sent to him.” More like seven emails, but who’s counting? “If I can just have five minutes of his time, I can explain everything.” Five minutes was a lie. She’d need at least an hour to walk Mr. Langford through Oliver’s schedule, his likes and dislikes, and to make sure he was off to as good a start as possible.

“Mr. Langford is very busy. I can’t put through the call of every person who claims to need his time.”

“Look. I just spent four hours on a train from Boston to New York and I’m downstairs in the lobby, caring for a ten-month-old sorely in need of a nap. I’m not leaving until I speak to him. I’ll sleep here if I have to.”

“I can have security escort you from the building, Ms. Daltrey. Surely you don’t want that.”

“Does LangTel want the embarrassment of their security removing a kicking and screaming woman with a baby from their lobby?”

Mr. Langford’s assistant said everything with her momentary silence. “Can you hold, please? I’ll see if there’s anything I can do.”

Sarah had very little hope for this, but what other options did she have? “Sure. I’ll hold.”

Just then, a statuesque woman with glossy brown hair dressed in a tailored gray dress and black pumps came through the revolving door. Sarah might not have noticed her, but she had a baby bump that was impossible to miss. The security guard beelined to her, taking the stack of papers in her arms. “Good afternoon, Ms. Langford. I’ll get the elevator.”

Anna Langford. Sarah recognized her now, from the research she’d done on the Langford family while trying to find a way to get to Aiden. Anna was one of two LangTel CEOs, along with her brother Adam. She was also Aiden Langford’s younger sister.

Oliver dropped his favorite toy, a stuffed turtle, and unleashed a piercing wail. Sarah cringed, crouching down, scooting across the carpet in her wedge sandals, scrambling for Oliver’s toy while cradling the phone between her ear and shoulder. Anna came to a dead stop and turned her head, zeroing in on Sarah and Oliver.

Great. Now we really are going to get kicked out of the lobby.

Anna frowned and strode closer, but when she removed her sunglasses, there was only empathy in her eyes. “Oh no. Somebody’s unhappy.”

Certain that she’d been banished to the land of horrible hold music, Sarah ended her call and tucked her phone into the diaper bag. “Sorry about that. It’s nap time. He’s tired.” When she straightened to face Anna, she felt as if she needed a step stool. Anna was tall and in heels, while Sarah was height challenged even in her strappy sandals.

Anna shook her head. “Please don’t apologize. This is the highlight of my day. He’s adorable.” She reached for Oliver’s pudgy hand and smiled. He responded by gripping her finger, his head resting on Sarah’s shoulder. “I’m Anna Langford, by the way.”

“I’m Sarah. Daltrey. This is Oliver.” Sarah watched as Oliver smiled shyly at Anna. He was such a sweet and trusting boy. Saying goodbye to him was going to be heartbreaking, especially after three weeks of caring for him all on her own, but that was her charge and there was nothing to be done about that. She was done with being a nanny, and caring for a child that wasn’t her own, regardless of the circumstances, felt far too much like her old life.

Anna’s eyes didn’t stray from Oliver. “Nice to meet you both. I’m due to have my own little one in about six weeks. Middle of June. I have baby fever right now, big time.” She studied the baby’s face. “Your son’s eyes are incredible. Such a brilliant shade of blue.”

And exactly like your brother’s.

Sarah cleared her throat. “He’s not mine, technically. I’m his legal guardian. I’m in the process of connecting him with his father. That’s why I’m here.”

Confusion crossed Anna’s face. “At LangTel. The father works here?”

Sarah had committed herself to discretion for the sake of everyone, especially Oliver, but this might be her one real chance to get to Aiden. She was getting nowhere with his assistant. “I came to see Aiden Langford. He’s your brother, right? I need to speak to him about Oliver, but he won’t take my phone calls.”

“Oh.” A flicker of surprise crossed Anna’s face as her eyes darted between Oliver and Sarah. “Oh. Wow.” She kneaded her temple with the tips of her fingers. “The lobby doesn’t seem like a good place to talk about this. Maybe you should come upstairs with me.”

* * *

Aiden’s assistant buzzed his extension. “Mr. Langford? Your sister is here to see you. She’s brought a visitor.”

Visitor? “Sure. Send them in.” Aiden set aside the LangTel global marketing report he’d been skimming, easily the driest thing he’d ever read, which was saying a lot. With more than a dozen years in business under his belt, he’d digested his fair share of dull financial projections and legal briefs. He preferred to rely on his gut when making decisions. Billions later, the strategy had served him well.

In walked Anna with a blonde woman he didn’t know. To say the stranger was eye catching would’ve been dismissive. With full pink lips and big blue eyes, wearing a black sundress, she was natural femininity embodied. Their gazes connected and he noticed the faintest of freckles dotting her cheeks. His tastes in women were wide and varied, but this woman ticked off more of his “yes” boxes than he cared to admit. Unfortunately, one thing about her made her absolutely not his type—the baby asleep in her arms. As a skilled avoider of emotional entanglements, moms were not on his list of women suitable for dating.

“Aiden, I want you to meet Sarah Daltrey,” Anna said softly.

That name ended all thought of sexy sundresses and freckles. “You’re the woman who keeps calling. You just called from the lobby. How in the world did you get to my sister?”

Anna shushed him. “The baby. He’s sleeping.”

The baby. His brain whirred into overdrive. He’d read Sarah’s email. Well, one of them at least. That was enough to help him decide he shouldn’t speak to her. He’d had false paternity accusations thrown at him before. When you have a vast fortune and come from a family well-known for success, you might as well have a target on your back. “This isn’t right.” His gut told him this was all wrong. “I don’t know what Ms. Daltrey is after, but I’m calling security.” He reached for the phone, but Anna clapped her hand over his.

“Aiden. Don’t. Just listen. Please. It’s important.”

“I don’t know what she’s told you, but it’s all lies.” His pulse throbbed in his ears.

“Five minutes is all I ask, Mr. Langford.” Sarah’s voice suggested nothing less than calm professionalism. Not exactly the approach of someone unbalanced. But a baby? Oh, no. “If you don’t believe me and what I came to tell you, you won’t need to call security. I’ll leave on my own.”

Anna eyed her brother, asking his opinion with an arch of her eyebrows.

With pleas from two women who were obviously not going to give up, what choice did he have? “If it will put an end to this, then fine. Five minutes.”

“I’ll leave you two to it.” Anna stopped at the door, turning to Sarah. “Stop by my office when you’re done. I’d love to get the title of that book you mentioned about getting a baby to sleep through the night.”

Sarah nodded and smiled as if she and Anna were best friends. What was he in for? “Yes, of course. Thanks so much for your help.” The door clicked shut when Anna left, leaving behind a suffocating silence. Sarah cleared her throat and stepped closer, the baby’s head still resting on her shoulder. “It would be great if I could sit. He’s really heavy.”

“Oh, sorry. Of course.” Aiden offered a seat opposite his desk. He didn’t know what he was supposed to do with himself—stand, sit, cross his arms. Nothing felt right, so he settled on his chair.

“I know this is strange,” she started. “So I’ll just get right to it. Oliver’s mom was my best friend from high school. Her name was Gail Thompson. Does that ring a bell? She told me she met you at the Crowne Lotus Hotel in Bangkok.”

Aiden’s shoulders tightened. These tidbits of information hadn’t been in Sarah’s email. She’d only mentioned that she was guardian of his baby. To his knowledge, nobody knew about his brief affair with Gail. They’d met in the hotel bar and spent three days together before she went back to the US. That was the last he’d ever heard from her. “I do remember the name. Yes. But that doesn’t mean anything.” He shifted in his seat. He knew exactly where this was going. And that made his stomach lurch.

“Nine months after you and Gail had your little tryst in Thailand—” she fluttered her hand at him “—Oliver came along. Eight months after that, Gail called me and told me she had late stage cancer. I was the only person she could sign over guardianship to. She had no siblings—her parents died in a car accident when she was in college. She knew that I used to be a nanny and it just made sense. She said she tried to call you, but had even less luck than I did. It’s hard to be persistent when you’re dying.”

Aiden swallowed hard. Sarah’s email had mentioned that the baby’s mom had fallen ill. He’d assumed that she was still alive and that this was a scam for money to pay medical bills. “She passed away?” An inexplicable tug came from the center of his chest as his vision drifted to the child. All alone in the world. He’d known that feeling well when he was young, and he despised the idea of any child growing up that way.

“Yes.” Sarah pressed her lips together and nodded. She cupped the back of Oliver’s head and kissed him softly on the cheek. “That left Oliver with no mom. I was left in charge of finding you so I can sign over guardianship. I think it’d be best for everyone if we kept this as simple as possible and try to wrap it up today.”

Today? Did she say what I think she said? No. That was not happening. “You expect to waltz into my office, hand me a baby I’ve never seen in my life, and then what? You go back to wherever you came from and I’m expected to raise this child? I don’t think so, Ms. Daltrey. You aren’t going anywhere until I know for certain that the baby is mine. We need lawyers. Paternity tests. I’m not convinced this isn’t a big fat hoax.”

Her lips pressed into a thin line, but she otherwise seemed unfazed by his reaction. “First off, it’s Sarah and his name is Oliver. And I understand you’re shocked, but that’s not my fault. If you’d taken my phone call, you could’ve been prepared for this.”

“I seriously doubt I would’ve felt prepared. It’s the middle of the workday. I’m a single man and an incredibly busy one at that. I am not prepared to care for a baby I didn’t know about five minutes ago.” Anger bubbled up inside him, but it was more than this inconceivable situation. He disliked his own dismissive tone. Considering the way his father had treated him, he didn’t want to reject the little boy. No child deserved that. Especially one who didn’t know who his father was.

“I understand you’ll want a paternity test, but I think that the minute you see him awake, you’ll realize he’s yours. He looks just like you. Especially his eyes. Plus, he has the same birthmark you have on your upper thigh.” A flush of pink colored her cheeks. She cast her eyes at her lap, seeming embarrassed. Despite the nature of their conversation, Aiden found it extremely charming. Sarah seemed to be the sort of person who wore her heart on her sleeve, a quality that made her incredibly sexy, too. “I mean, Gail told me you have one. And that’s where Oliver gets it.”

Sarah carefully hitched up the baby’s pant leg. The child must’ve been incredibly tired—he hardly stirred when she revealed the mark. Aiden’s breath caught in his throat. He rounded the desk, dropping down on one knee before them. He had to see it up close. He had to know this was real. The shape and size of the birthmark were indeed the same as his—an oval about the height of a dime, tilting to one side. The dark brown color was a match. Is this possible?

He reached out to touch the mark, but stopped himself. “I’m sorry. I’m a little taken aback.”

“It’s okay. He’s your son.” Sarah’s voice was sweet and even. Given the impression he had of her from that first email, she was not at all the woman he’d envisioned.

The boy’s skin was powdery soft and warm. Aiden gently tugged his pant leg back down, then studied his face. His eyelids were closed in complete relaxation, lined with dark lashes. His light brown hair had streaks of blond, admittedly much like Aiden’s, although Oliver had baby-fine curls and Aiden’s hair was straight and thick. Still, he knew from his own baby pictures that his hair had once been like Oliver’s. Was this possible? Was this really happening? And what was he supposed to do about it? He had no idea how to care for a baby. This would change his entire life. Just when he was getting settled back in New York and trying to find a place for himself in his own family.

Oliver shifted in Sarah’s arms, and for an instant, he opened his eyes and looked right at Aiden. The familiar flash of blue was a shot straight to Aiden’s heart. It was like staring into a mirror. Oh my God. He’s mine.