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“Where are you going?” Lucas cried, embarrassed by the high pitch to his voice.
“To get her a bottle.”
“But—” The baby squirmed against his grip, but he was afraid to hold her closer. Her nose was running, and shiny drool was smeared across her chin.
He was wearing a Savile Row suit, for pity’s sake.
Then she suddenly stopped howling. She stiffened. Her face scrunched up, and a horrible rumble emanated from her little body. The stench that filled the air nearly made him gag. He breathed shallowly, through his mouth, glancing frantically around the room for a place to put her down.
Thankfully, Devin emerged from the kitchen.
“That’s a good girl,” she cooed, shooting Lucas a glare, retrieving the baby and cuddling her close, barely flinching at the smell.
Lucas took a very large step backward, silently acknowledging Devin’s fortitude.
“Do you need a change, sweetheart?” she asked the baby.
Lucas thought fumigation might be more in order. But when Devin laid Amelia on her back on the floor and reached for a bright blue diaper bag, all he could think about was escaping.
He darted toward an open window.
“Would you like to change her?” Devin asked sweetly.
Lucas’s jaw dropped open. He could probably count on one hand the number of times in his life he’d been rendered speechless. But this was one of them.
“Since you’re going for sole custody,” Devin continued, “you might as well get in some practice.”
“She’ll have a nanny,” he pointed out.
Devin tugged off Amelia’s stretchy pink pants, revealing a white diaper. “You don’t plan to change her diapers?”
Lucas turned away, gazing across the wooden deck and the sloped lawn to the calm waters of the lake. Devin’s neighbor had a dock with a sleek speedboat tied up. A few dozen houses were visible along the curve of the shoreline, front yards neatly landscaped, while evergreens covered the hillsides behind. It was actually quite beautiful here.
“Lucas?” Devin prompted.
“I don’t expect it to be necessary,” he said, answering her question. There was a very good reason why nannies were invented.
“There’s a girl,” Devin cooed, and Lucas dared to look back to where Amelia stood on chubby bare feet, hand grasping Devin’s hair for balance.
Devin tucked away the change pad and handed Amelia a bottle of juice. The baby promptly plunked down on her fresh diaper and popped the bottle in her mouth.
“Why do you want custody?” Devin asked, coming to her feet, brushing her palms across her backside and finger-combing her hair where Amelia had mussed it. Her T-shirt was wrinkled, and several damp spots dotted its front. It was no wonder she went for plain, serviceable clothing. He could only imagine the havoc Amelia would wreak on linen and silk.
Still, the plain clothing couldn’t hide her gorgeous figure. She was short, maybe five-five. And the absence of heels made her seem even shorter. But her legs were lithe and toned, her waist nipped in and breasts rounded and in perfect proportion to everything else.
He didn’t know what she did for exercise, but it was working.
“You don’t seem particularly interested in Amelia,” Devin continued.
“She’s a Demarco.”
“So?”
“So, I have a responsibility—”
“Can’t you at least be honest?”
“I am being honest.” He owed it to his brother to keep Amelia safe. If Lucas had died with a daughter in such a vulnerable position, he’d expect no less of Konrad.
“You want her ten percent of Pacific Robotics, Lucas, controlling interest. You don’t give one whit about Amelia as a person.”
“You’re dead wrong about that.”
“I’ll do whatever you ask for the company,” she pledged. “I promise I won’t interfere.”
He wished he could believe her. “What did Steve say?”
“I can’t tell you that.”
Lucas threw up his hands. “I know what he said.” He’d offered her a deal. If she won guardianship of Amelia, Steve would make it worth her while to support his plans for expansion into South America.
“Then why ask me?”
“I wanted to know if I could trust you.”
She moved closer. “You’re lying. You’ll never trust me. You wanted information to use against me.”
She was close.
He’d wanted information to use against Steve. “I can see this is getting us nowhere.”
“I’m way ahead of you, Lucas. I’ve known for weeks that we were going nowhere.”
He gazed into her crystal blue eyes, unable to help noticing her dark lashes, prettily arched brows, small, straight nose, bow lips and creamy smooth skin. She was a beautiful woman. She was also feisty and passionate, making her a frustrating opponent.
But he’d defeated frustrating opponents before. And he’d win this battle, too. She might know how to change a diaper, but Amelia needed more than hugs and a fresh bottom. She was a Demarco. She would one day control a significant percentage of a corporation worth hundreds of millions of dollars.
She needed education, advice and experience, and she needed the security and savvy that went along with her future position in life. Lake Westmire might be a fine place to raise most children. But it wasn’t enough for Amelia.
Two
Devin was more than pleased with the lawyer Steve had provided for the temporary custody hearing. The man made his points to the judge concisely and eloquently, describing Devin’s bond with Amelia, how Devin had been present during her birth and that Amelia had lived in Devin’s house since coming home from the hospital. He provided testimonial letters from friends and neighbors speaking of Devin’s parenting skills, the nursery she’d outfitted for Amelia and her attention to Amelia’s health and well-being.
He’d then contrasted Lucas’s lack of parenting experience, his plans to hire a nanny instead of being hands-on himself and the fact that he’d spent almost no time with Amelia since her birth. He acknowledged the security concerns around a child from such a wealthy family, but pointed out there were many options to ensure her safety.
Devin had to admit, she’d never thought about the potential of someone kidnapping Amelia for ransom. Did that even still happen in America? It had been a long time since the Lindbergh case.
She’d thought he’d done a stellar job, thought they were sure to win. But then at the last minute Lucas’s lawyer stood up to address the judge.
He acknowledged Devin’s bond with Amelia, talked about the portability of Devin’s career as a self-help book writer, then suggested what he called a compromise—that both Amelia and Devin take up temporary residence at the Demarco mansion. Amelia could be with Devin, but she’d also have the advantage of the Demarco security.
Devin’s gaze flew to Lucas’s face. His smug expression told her he’d planned this all along.
He’d known he couldn’t beat her in a straight-up fight, and he’d come up with an underhanded way to snatch her victory. By the time permanent guardianship was considered, Lucas would have built a bond with Amelia. And Devin’s best advantage would be gone.
She opened her mouth to protest, but she knew there was no way out. Any argument she put forward would make her sound unreasonable. This same judge would eventually decide permanent guardianship, and Devin couldn’t afford to yield the moral high ground to Lucas. On the face of it, he was offering a reasonable solution.
In reality, he had outmaneuvered her. Amelia would be under his roof, and under his care, and Devin knew he would pull out all the stops to make the Demarco mansion a perfect home for the baby.
“Ms. Hartley?” asked the judge, her hand going to the gavel.
Devin’s lawyer spoke up. “We can’t support that kind of disruption to Amelia’s life. She’s already lost her mother. Ms. Hartley’s house is the only home she’s ever known.”
The judge’s gaze moved to Devin. “You’re a writer? You work from home?”
Devin had no choice but to nod.
“Do you have other children?”
Devin shook her head.
“Do you object to coming to a compromise?”
Devin recognized a trick question when she heard it. Next, the judge would want to know why she objected to better security for Amelia. She shook her head in capitulation.
The judge brought the gavel down. “So ordered. Temporary custody goes to Ms. Hartley, provided she and the child reside at the Demarco mansion. Open visitation is awarded to Mr. Demarco. I trust you will arrange for security, sir?”
“Of course, Your Honor.” Lucas nodded.
Devin’s lawyer leaned sideways. “Sorry about that.”
Devin shook her head. “You couldn’t have seen it coming.”
“Lucas is a good strategist.”
Devin scoffed. “In my neighborhood, we call that conniving.”
“That’s what we call it in my neighborhood, too.” He placed the file folders back in his briefcase. “But it works.”
“It works,” Devin agreed. And she had no one to blame but herself. She’d underestimated Lucas. She’d make sure that never happened again.
“Devin?” Lucas stepped across the courtroom to her table, his shadow coming over her.
“You’re a piece of work,” she said as she gathered her purse and pushed back her chair.
“So I’ve been told.”
“You backed me into a corner.”
“Yes, I did.”
Devin looked up. “You play dirty.”
He didn’t even bat an eye. “Only when it counts.”
“Why do I get the feeling it counts a lot?”
“I play to win.”
“This isn’t a game, Lucas.” A little girl’s future was on the line. Amelia wasn’t some pawn to be passed around at the whim and convenience of the adults in her life.
He paused for a moment, expression hardening, obviously taking offense at Devin’s candor. “That’s why it counts.” He rapped his knuckles decisively on the tabletop. “How long will it take you to pack?”
She stood to confront him. She’d worn two-inch heels, but she wished she had a little more height. He was easily over six feet, neatly trimmed hair, freshly shaved, an expensive suit, fine silk tie, everything pressed to within an inch of its life. The man positively reeked power.
“You mean in days?” she asked sarcastically, thinking she’d need a couple of weeks.
“I meant in hours.”
She did an expression check to see if he was joking. He wasn’t.
“When you say jump, do people generally ask how high?”
He tented his fingers on the table and leaned slightly forward. “I try not to say jump unless I have to.”
She refused to flinch under his attempt at intimidation. “I need a week.”
“No problem.”
She blinked in surprise.
“I’ll take Amelia with me now, and you can catch up.”
“Don’t be ridiculous.”
Lucas turned to Devin’s lawyer, who had been watching the exchange with obvious interest. “Bill? Is there a countdown to the judge’s order? Some sort of implementation period?”
Devin looked to Bill. “No countdown,” he admitted with an apologetic glance in Devin’s direction. “The order takes effect right away.”
Lucas turned his attention back to Devin. “How long will it take you to pack?” he repeated.
She couldn’t let him win again. Certainly not this early, and definitely not this decisively. She frantically searched her brain for a comeback.
Then it came to her, and her shoulders relaxed with relief. The man was bluffing.
Instead of answering his question, she reached into her purse for her cell phone, flipped it open and pressed the speed dial for Lexi.
Lexi picked up after a single ring. “How’d it go?” Her voice was breathless.
