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His Baby, Her Heart
Sue Swift
Outwardly icy Alex Chandler would do anything to fulfill his late wife's dream of creating a child. But why had she chosen her earthy, annoying, offbeat half sister to be the surrogate mom? True, Dena was devoted to her own twin tykes. Plus, she was warm, womanly and–hold it! Was Alex actually aching to make a family with Dena?Dena loved mothering. But make a baby for arctic Alex, then–shudder!–walk away? How could she? Especially when her swelling belly turned Alex's machismo into tenderness–and made her yearn to be more than merely the surrogate mother of his child?
Dena shivered.
She had never before understood the attraction between her half sister and Alex. But now she saw that, far from being a chilly Chandler, Alex radiated concern and kindness.
And his unexpected tenderness made her want to…want to…kiss him.
She tore her mind away from the thought. Alex didn’t care about her. He simply wanted this baby. She was merely the vessel.
Closing her eyes, Dena visualized a tiny baby implanting itself inside her. The baby had Alex’s chiseled good looks and a little lock of blond hair. She smiled at the idea of a mini-Alex growing inside her.
But suddenly she wasn’t visualizing baby Alex anymore and was instead thinking about his father. Making love to her.
Dena’s eyes popped open. She was having a romantic fantasy about arctic Alex Chandler?
She must be certifiable!
Dear Reader,
I’m dreaming of summer vacations—of sitting by the beach, dangling my feet in a lake, walking on a mountain or curling up in a hammock. And in each vision, I have a Silhouette Romance novel, and I’m happy. Why don’t you grab a couple and join me? And in each book take a look at our Silhouette Makes You a Star contest!
We’ve got some terrific titles in store for you this month. Longtime favorite author Cathie Linz has developed some delightful stories with U.S. Marine heroes and Stranded with the Sergeant is appealing and fun. Cara Colter has the second of her THE WEDDING LEGACY titles for you. The Heiress Takes a Husband features a rich young woman who’s struggling to prove herself—and the handsome attorney who lends a hand.
Arlene James has written over fifty titles for Silhouette Books, and her expertise shows. So Dear to My Heart is a tender, original story of a woman finding happiness again. And Karen Rose Smith—another popular veteran—brings us Doctor in Demand, about a wounded man who’s healed by the love of a woman and her child.
And two newer authors round out the list! Melissa McClone’s His Band of Gold is an emotional realization of the power of love, and Sue Swift debuts in Silhouette Romance with His Baby, Her Heart, in which a woman agrees to fulfill her late sister’s dream of children. It’s an unusual and powerful story that is part of our THE BABY’S SECRET series.
Enjoy these stories, and make time to appreciate yourselves in your hectic lives! Have a wonderful summer.
Happy reading!
Mary-Theresa Hussey
Senior Editor
His Baby, Her Heart
Sue Swift
www.millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)
For my parents,
Sheila and Sheldon Swift,
two extraordinary people
SUE SWIFT
A criminal defense attorney for twenty years, Sue Swift always sensed a creative wellspring bubbling inside her, but didn’t find her niche until attending a writing class with master teacher Bud Gardner. Within a short time, Sue realized her creative outlet was romance fiction. Since she began writing her first novel in November 1996, she’s sold two books and two short stories.
The 2001 president of the Sacramento Chapter of the Romance Writers of America, Sue credits the RWA, its many wonderful programs and the help of its experienced writers for her new career as a romance novelist. She also lectures to women’s and writers’ groups on various topics relating to the craft of writing.
Her hobbies are hiking, bodysurfing and kenpo karate, in which she’s earned a second-degree black belt. Sue and her real-live hero of a husband maintain homes in northern California and Maui, Hawaii. You may write to Sue at P.O. Box 241, Citrus Heights, CA 95611-0241. Or, you can contact her by visiting the author area of our Web site at www.MillsandBoon.co.uk (http://www.MillsandBoon.co.uk).
Dear Reader,
This letter is about milestones—milestones on the road of life.
I’ve been lucky. All my milestones have been joyous ones: school graduations; the beautiful afternoon in Hawaii when my husband asked me to marry him; our wedding day.
In terms of personal accomplishments, few milestones compare with the day my editor phoned to tell me Silhouette wanted this book for their Romance line. I was delighted to join the Mills & Boon/Silhouette “family” of writers.
Some manuscripts represent months, even years, of struggle. The book you hold in your hands was a pleasure to create. The first draft was written in two months. The birth of Alex and Dena’s story was one of the shortest, happiest labors in history. Certainly His Baby, Her Heart came into the world more easily than did baby Tami, their child.
This book is about a very special baby.
This book, my first for Silhouette, is a very special baby.
I worked hard on His Baby, Her Heart and hope you enjoy the fruit of my labor.
Best wishes,
Contents
Prologue (#uee31fde8-602a-5b69-9b5c-cca6da5ea901)
Chapter One (#ueee1ce59-8c91-54e5-b531-74501724f5bd)
Chapter Two (#u350e0975-4ab4-5a2b-836a-1efb7a219e8a)
Chapter Three (#u3c359f64-e0f9-56ee-b22a-27c0e7827e23)
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)
Chapter Thirteen (#litres_trial_promo)
Epilogue (#litres_trial_promo)
Prologue
“I, Tamara Cohen Chandler, being of sound mind…”
Alex Chandler sat, numbed to the last ritual accompanying his wife’s death. The presence of other family members in the wood-paneled law office receded to the back of his mind. He heard traffic outside the building bustling down Alhambra Boulevard, but the Sacramento rush hour seemed a thousand miles away.
“It is my dearest wish that my husband, Alexander Chandler, and my beloved half sister, Dena Cohen Randolph, cease the animosity between them.”
To Alex’s right, he could see Dena Randolph vainly brush at several dog hairs marring the sleeve of her black jacket. Alex tried to repress his disdain. Why couldn’t the woman ever make herself presentable?
He’d tried to hide his dislike for his sister-in-law from Tamara. Evidently he’d failed.
“I request that Dena act as surrogate mother and carry to term one of my embryos, fertilized by Alexander Chandler.”
“What?” Shock cracked Alex’s leaden wall of grief.
Dena jerked upright, as though zapped with a live cattle prod. “As if I don’t have enough problems already,” she murmured.
Alex reluctantly sympathized. With four-year-old twins and their disappearing father, Dena’s plate was full.
Her green eyes widened with bewilderment. “Did you know this was coming, Alex?”
He shook his head. “Tamara changed her will shortly after she was diagnosed. At the time, I didn’t know what she did, and I didn’t care. I was focused on her chemo, hoping she’d recover.” Alex frowned. He’d worshiped his wife, but knew that sweet, well-meaning Tamara had also been manipulative and very, very smart. What on earth had she planned? Why?
“Well, I…I can’t.” Dena placed a hand on her stomach, as if caressing an imaginary pregnancy. “I know Tamara wanted a baby, but…I just can’t bear a child and then walk away. Not even for Tami. Maybe you can find someone else, Alex.”
He breathed deeply, striving for calmness in the face of sudden chaos. He’d do anything to make his wife’s dreams a reality, however distasteful Dena Randolph might be. Why didn’t she feel the same commitment to Tamara’s memory?
“Further,” the attorney continued, “I bequeath my one-half ownership of said embryos to Dena Randolph with the specific instruction that only Dena be implanted with them.”
Dena went white, pale cheeks contrasting with her Titian-red hair. Alex couldn’t blame her. He felt faint himself. What had Tamara done? She’d snared them both. Now he and Dena owned the precious embryos.
“For medical costs, Dena’s support during the pregnancy, and for the support of the baby, I hereby provide the sum of three hundred thousand dollars, to be managed by Alexander Chandler.”
Dena blinked. Then blinked again, trying to reconnect with reality. Interiors by Tamara, her sister’s business, must have been lucrative. But Dena’s world revolved around her kids, not money.
She’d opened her mouth to turn it down flat when the attorney said, “In addition, I hereby bequeath the sum of two hundred thousand dollars to be held by Dena for the benefit of Miriam and Jackson Randolph, my beloved niece and nephew.”
Dena sagged in her chair. Tamara had known Dena would dig ditches with her teeth for her children, if necessary. But she wouldn’t have to, not with this generous bequest. The funds would pay for cars and college, maybe even help buy them homes, luxuries her small landscaping business could never support.
Tamara had adored the kids, so no strings were attached to the trust. But Dena’s conscience wouldn’t let her rest if she didn’t ponder her sister’s last request. How could she repay such generosity with a refusal to grant Tami’s dying wish?
Could she resist the money, which would provide so much for her sweet darlings?
Dena sucked in a deep breath, then peeked at Alex Chandler. With every blond hair in place, he sat rigidly, as if a poker had been shoved up his…
Yes, she could resist. Dena didn’t want Alex, the android accountant, in her life. Eyeing him, she hesitated. “I won’t have to sleep with you, will I?” She’d rather snuggle with a cyborg.
A glimmer of a smile twitched Alex’s set lips. “I don’t think so. Our fertilized embryos are stored at her gynecologist’s office. He defrosts them, implants a couple, and away we go.” He gestured, exposing a perfectly starched French cuff secured by onyx links.
Dena dropped her head into her hands, digging her fingers through her hair. “I can’t believe it. What if one of us says no?”
“No baby, and Tamara loses her lifelong dream.”
“Oh, no,” Dena moaned. Tears burned behind lids already swollen from crying. She fumbled for a tissue. “Oh, Tami. Why me?”
Alex flicked imaginary lint from his immaculate, pinstriped sleeve. Not a shred of emotion showed on his too-handsome face. “You’re her half sister and, in her opinion, a great mother. She remarked often that she admired how easily you carried the twins.”
“That’s true. It was pretty easy, considering everything.” Considering that Dena had been dumped by her cheating ex-husband, for whom Lamaze was something a mouse ran through to get cheese. She winced. “But another child? I have my hands full already.”
“It wouldn’t be your child, Dena, but mine. Tamara trusted you to carry our baby to term and then give him up for me to raise.” Alex’s blue eyes gleamed, vivid and intense.
“I’m not a—a brood mare. I don’t know if I can have a child and give it up.” Dena couldn’t keep a tremble out of her voice.
“You have to,” Alex said. “This was your sister’s last wish. How can you say no?”
Chapter One
Six months later
On a chilly, bright March day, Alex sat in his attorney’s office, waiting for Dena Randolph. She was late—as usual. If Tamara hadn’t selected her half sister as their surrogate mother, Alex would have found someone more punctual.
Alex sipped stale coffee and tried to squelch his irritation. Had Dena shown up on time, the meeting would have concluded during his lunch hour. More than anything else, Alex wanted to go back to his office, bury himself in his work and forget how much he still missed Tamara.
Attorney Gary Kagan passed a sheaf of papers across his desk to Alex. “You can review the contract while we wait for Ms. Randolph.”
Alex skimmed the closely typed pages. He’d wanted a contract so Dena would understand her place in the scheme of things. Dena, interfering and bossy, had off-beat ideas about child-rearing.
And her kids…Alex grimaced. He loved his niece and nephew, but the four-year-olds always seemed to be sticky, dirty, lost or in trouble. They were hardly poster children for Dena’s parenting style.
Alex flipped through the pages. He saw everything he’d requested: the clauses stating what Dena had to do during the pregnancy, and what she couldn’t do after the baby was born—namely, have unsupervised contact with his child or control over it. Gary had taken several months to draft what looked like a complex document.
“What happens if she doesn’t sign it?” Alex asked.
Gary shrugged. “Both of you own the embryos, see? If she doesn’t sign it, you don’t cooperate. If you don’t cooperate, no baby, and Tamara’s dream dies right here.”
Alex frowned. “That’s rather blunt.”
“That’s life. Let me tell you—”
A loud pop interrupted Gary.
