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Nine Months
BEVERLY BARTON
As a devastating summer storm hits Grand Springs, Colorado, the next thirty-six hours will change the town and its residents forever…
Sex with a stranger isn’t what Paige Summers expects when she is trapped in an elevator with hot cowboy Jared Montgomery, but he unleashes her wild side. It all seems like a great adventure. Until two days later when she reports to her new boss, J. L. Montgomery—her elevator cowboy in a suit and tie!
Jared is on the fast track to success. It’s time for him to settle down, but his adorable redheaded assistant is more bedroom than boardroom. Still, he can’t get her and the stormy night they shared together out of his mind.
When Jared overhears Paige telling a friend she’s pregnant, he wants to do the right thing. But Paige isn’t willing to settle. Marriage means love—and until that’s on the table, there’s no deal.
Book 10 of the 36 Hours series. Don’t miss Book 11: A dangerous mudslide leads to disaster—and a chance for Karen and Cassidy to heal their broken marriage in The Parent Plan by Paula Detmer Riggs.
Nine Months
Beverly Barton
www.millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)
Contents
Prologue (#u964a95e5-d278-54f6-9d3b-406ba4f36dcb)
Chapter One (#uf61682f7-aca4-5dd6-b1f3-a3f4598fc589)
Chapter Two (#u24a1ec3d-0032-55c1-bb48-c7587ab63255)
Chapter Three (#u1dc516db-f14f-5926-93e2-b5a0ded1cf10)
Chapter Four (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter Five (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter Six (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter Seven (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter Eight (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter Nine (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter Ten (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter Eleven (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter Twelve (#litres_trial_promo)
Epilogue (#litres_trial_promo)
About the Author (#litres_trial_promo)
Prologue
The elevator doors swung open. Since it was after office hours on a Friday, Paige Summers had expected the elevator to be empty. But a lone man occupied the small space. Tall and lean, with an aura of masculine strength surrounding him, the stranger stared at Paige, inspecting her from head to toe. Forcing herself to ignore his interest, she quickly ran her gaze over the handsome cowboy.
His faded jeans fit like a glove, and with one more washing his plaid work shirt would need to go into a ragbag. A sweatband circled the base of his black Stetson.
Although he dressed like dozens of other men in Grand Springs, Colorado, one glimpse told Paige that this man was unlike any she’d ever met.
When she glanced back at his face, he smiled at her and her stomach did an evil flip-flop. He did possess a killer smile. A wide, sensuous mouth. Full, tempting lips. And beautiful, perfect teeth, sparkling white against the dark, suntanned skin of his face.
“If you’re worried about getting on an elevator with a stranger, I can assure you, you’ll be safe with me.”
The man spoke with a drawl. Oklahoma or Texas, maybe, she thought.
Paige forced a smile to her lips. “I’m sorry. It’s just that I didn’t expect anyone to be here still.” She stepped inside the elevator, but deliberately avoided eye contact. She was a quiet, private person, who didn’t normally find herself lusting after a stranger.
Lusting after? Good grief, Paige, how could you think such a thing? He’s attractive. That’s all. You’ve never lusted after a man in your life.
She glanced at the cowboy again, unable to stop herself. His dark brown hair brushed his collar. Strands of gray streaked his thick sideburns. He grinned and tipped his hat at her. Paige looked down at her feet. A guy with his looks and charm could be dangerous.
The elevator doors closed.
Jared Montgomery couldn’t remember the last time he’d been instantly attracted to a woman, and never this strongly attracted.
She was lovely, in a fresh, unspoiled sort of way. He liked that she was a good deal shorter than he, and that every inch of her five-and-a-half-foot body was filled out in lush, curvaceous proportions.
The elevator jolted to a sudden halt, shaking Jared instantly from his thoughts and tossing him sideways. Acting purely on instinct, he grabbed the young woman the moment he realized they were both falling. She clutched the front of his shirt, accidently ripping off two buttons. Quickly maneuvering her around, Jared took the brunt of the fall as they hit the floor. The black Stetson flew off his head and landed a few inches from his right shoulder. The impact of his big body sandwiched between the hard surface beneath and the woman on top momentarily knocked the breath out of him.
The red emergency lights came on, coating the interior of the elevator in a rosy pink glow. Paige realized she was lying on top of the stranger, her body intimately aligned with his. Her breasts crushed against his muscular chest. Their bellies pressed together. Their legs entwined.
A fluttering, quivering sensation began in the depths of her femininity. It quickly spread through her entire body, and she became embarrassingly aware that the man lying beneath her was aroused. His hardened sex pulsated against her.
She rolled off his chest and onto the floor beside him. “Are you all right?” she asked, her voice deceptively calm. She shook like a leaf in the wind.
Jared stared up into the woman’s big brown eyes, concern evident in her gaze as well as her voice. She hovered over him, her large, round breasts almost touching his chest. God, she was gorgeous.
“Fine.” He sat up too quickly and groaned.
“You’re hurt.”
“I said I’m fine. How about you?”
“Okay, I guess.” She wriggled against him. “What happened?”
“Well, I’d say the power went out.” He rubbed his forehead, then ran his hand across his stinging cheek. “Ouch.”
“What is it?” In an effort to see what was wrong with him, she leaned too close and her breasts brushed his arm.
His body tightened even harder. “I think I bruised my cheek when we fell. No big deal. Are you sure you’re all right?”
She scooted away from him. “I’m perfectly all right, thank you. Just…well, just a little unnerved.”
“Yeah, sure. Having an elevator go dead in mid-descent is enough to unnerve anybody.” Jared placed his Stetson on his head, then stood up slowly. Glancing down at the woman on the floor, he held out his hand.
Paige stared at his hand—an obvious offer of assistance—and hesitated.
“You are the most cautious woman I’ve ever met,” the man said. “Come on.” He wiggled his fingers back and forth. “I promise I won’t bite you.”
“I didn’t think you would.” Her cheeks flushed. Retrieving her purse off the floor with one hand, Paige reached up with the other. She allowed him to help her stand, then immediately took a careful step backward.
The stranger grinned. The bottom fell out of her stomach. Turning his back to her, he checked the telephone.
“No answer,” he told her.
They both checked their cell phones. No service.
“Isn’t there any other way to get help?” she asked. “How will anyone know we’re in here?”
Noting the slight panic in her voice, Jared tried to reassure her. “Hey, there’s nothing to worry about. The minute the power went out, the emergency generators kicked in to keep the lights and the ventilation working. The maintenance crew should have things going again pretty quickly.”
“But it’s Friday evening. Don’t you think everyone who works in this building has gone home?”
“No. There should be at least one maintenance man on duty twenty-four hours a day.”
“What if the outage isn’t just in the Wellman Building?”
“There’s no way to know,” he said. “But one way or another, we’ll get out of here, so stop worrying, honey.”
Jared stood quietly for a while, silently fidgeting and trying not to look at the woman. But when he glanced at her, he noticed her actions mimicked his.
“Are you sure the air is circulating in here?” She tugged on the collar of her suit jacket. “It feels awfully warm to me.”
“The air-conditioning probably isn’t on, if that’s what you mean,” Jared said. “But the air ventilation is working just fine. Relax, honey.”
“Would you please not call me honey.” The woman glared at him, her chin tilted defiantly, as if she were a schoolmarm scolding a naughty little boy.
“Sorry, but since I don’t know your name—”
“Paige. My name is Paige.”
“Hello, Paige.” He smiled and held out his hand. “I’m Jared.”
Paige stared at his hand, but this time she didn’t accept it. Instead she crossed her arms over her waist and tapped her fingers up and down on her elbows. Glancing around the elevator, she sought a means of escape. She couldn’t stay here any longer, trapped inside this tomb.
She unbuttoned the top two buttons of her suit jacket, clutched her throat and took a deep breath. She couldn’t fall apart. Not in front of this stranger. After all, they weren’t in any real danger. They had air and light, and sooner or later someone would rescue them. Sooner, she hoped. “Jared, please find a way to get us out of here!”
“I’ll do what I can, hon—Paige. Maybe I can open the doors.” Pressing his hands flat against the metal surface, he positioned his fingertips along the sealed edges and pushed. “We could be stopped right at floor level.”
“What if we aren’t?”
“Then we’ll either climb up or step down.”
“All right.” Forcing a smile, she nodded affirmatively. She’d suffered mild attacks of claustrophobia all her life, but she usually managed to avoid situations that might trigger her problem. Unfortunately, using elevators was a necessity. And if she hadn’t stopped to call and tell her mother about her new job, she wouldn’t be stuck in this elevator—with a rough and rugged cowboy!
“They’re opening!” Jared pried the doors apart, then cursed under his breath. “It appears we’re trapped between the mezzanine and the first floor. And if I remember correctly, the first floor is about forty feet high.”
Paige stared at the solid wall behind the open door. “Then we are trapped, aren’t we.” She rung her hands together.
“We aren’t trapped.”
“But you said—”
“Sorry. Poor choice of words. But there’s no reason to panic.” He took a couple of tentative steps toward her.
Paige backed away from him. “I think I should tell you something.”
Lifting his eyebrows, he looked quizzically at her. “Let me guess. You’re claustrophobic. Right?”
“Sort of. But I’m only slightly claustrophobic.”
“Oh, I see.” Hell, it was just his luck to get stuck in an elevator with a young, nervous and shy woman who was only slightly claustrophobic.
Paige couldn’t help but notice that Jared’s devastating smile had vanished and been replaced by an intimidating scowl. “I haven’t cried or screamed or anything foolish, but you’re angry with me, aren’t you?”
“I’m not angry.” He was not angry. He was frustrated. And he had to admit that the thought of dealing with a potentially hysterical woman unnerved him.
He tossed his Stetson to the floor and looked up. With his arms held straight above his head, he jumped toward the ceiling.
Paige let out an astonished cry. “What are you doing?”
He jumped again, then again. “I’m trying to reach the emergency hatch up there.” He pointed toward the sealed square in the roof. On his fourth attempt, he shoved open the vent.
“Damn!” He cursed loudly.
Paige’s gaze followed Jared’s line of vision. “Oh, no. I can’t climb up there. We must be at least twenty-five feet from the mezzanine level.”
Jared saw the panicked look in her eyes and realized he really was going to have a hysterical woman on his hands if he didn’t do something to distract her. And in his experience, there were only two ways to gain a woman’s complete attention. Either make love to her or make her fighting mad. He decided on the latter.
“I know it looks like a long way, honey, but I can boost you up to the opening, you can grab onto the—”
“Have you lost your mind?” She glared at him in disbelief.
“I know you’re claustrophobic—”
“Slightly claustrophobic!”
“But you don’t suffer from acrophobia, too, do you?”
“No, I am not afraid of heights!”
