Emma Valentine turned her attention away from the tall man who’d just made the flat statement and focused on the feel of the unfamiliar, wonderful weight of the baby in her arms. Her son, barely one day old, took her breath away. All the months of waiting, of worrying, of planning. All were wrapped within the soft blue blanket, contained in the eight pounds of perfectly formed baby. She drew her finger along his velvety cheek, not wanting to wake him, but unable to resist touching.
“Miss Valentine, did you hear me?”
She bent over and pressed her lips ever so gently against her son’s perfect forehead. Her son. She straightened when the door behind the man swished open and Nell Hastings, one of Emma’s favorite nurses, appeared to take the baby back to the nursery.
Emma reluctantly surrendered Chandler. And only after the door had swished closed again did she turn her attention back to the man.
Her arms felt woefully empty, and she folded them across her chest, painfully aware of the sight she must present to the man who looked so flawless he could have stepped from the pages of a men’s fashion magazine. She shifted gingerly in the cushioned side chair and wished she had more clothing covering her than her pink chenille bathrobe and pale hospital gown. “I’m sorry. Mr….?”
“Montgomery. Kyle Montgomery.”
Emma nodded. Dennis Reid, the chief of staff at the Buttonwood Baby Clinic, had introduced him when he’d stopped by. Obviously Dr. Reid had come by with the intention of introducing this man to Emma, though she couldn’t fathom why. Up until now, Emma’s only contact with Dr. Reid occurred when the man went into Mom & Pop’s. The diner where she waitressed was located across from the medical complex and she knew a lot of the clinic’s staff.
She studied the man standing in her room, from the cuffed hem of his black pleated trousers that broke ever so perfectly over his gleaming leather boots to the white shirt flowing over an impressive set of shoulders. The button at his throat was unfastened, but Emma figured he probably had a tie in his car or his briefcase. She knew instinctively that this was a man who’d been born wearing imported suits and silk ties. Even his chestnut hair had fallen precisely back into thick waves when he’d raked his fingers through it.
“Dr. Reid was saying something about you needing assistance with a job?” she asked. It helped to look in the vicinity of his ear, she decided, rather than into his starkly handsome face. Because then she didn’t feel quite so much like a wrung-out dishrag in the face of his masculine elegance.
“I don’t know how I can help,” she went on. “As you can see, I’ll be busy for the next little while, and after that…” She trailed off.
After that it was back to her two jobs and the worry about paying the hospital bill. She’d already determined that the tuition for her next semester of college courses would have to wait.
“I believe we can help each other, Emma.”
She swallowed the dart of nervousness that rose when he crossed the room, passing the other bed—empty for now—before pulling out the chair opposite her.
Almost as if he recognized her reaction, he seemed to consciously relax his rigid stance. He sat, rested his arms on his thighs. Clasped his long fingers together. Almost smiled, but didn’t quite make it. “As I was saying, I need a wife. A family.”
Good gravy, he smelled nice.
The thought shocked her. She moistened her lips. “Mr. Montgomery, I really don’t know what you—”
“Kyle.” He halted her confused words. “And I can explain. But it’s occurred to me that this isn’t the best time. You’re tired, and my offer might be better received after you’ve had some rest.”
“Mr. Montgomery…” Emma tugged self-consciously at the lapel of her robe, then flushed when his startling green gaze followed the movement of her hand. She’d been blessed, as her mama termed it, with a curvaceous figure by the time she’d turned fourteen. Becoming pregnant and having a child had only increased the problem.
She swallowed and tried again. “Kyle, I really can’t imagine how I can help you find your family. But you might as well tell me what’s on your mind now, because I’ll be leaving the hospital this afternoon and I—”
“Already?” Lush black lashes narrowed around his intense gaze. “Surely you’re not up to being released yet.”
She wondered if she’d accidentally been given some type of drug other than acetaminophen, because this was surely the oddest conversation she’d ever had. Mr. Mont—Kyle seemed distinctly annoyed. As if he suspected she was receiving inadequate care. “Women don’t spend days and days in the hospital anymore when they give birth, Kyle. I’m healthy, as is my baby. Everything went just fine.” Thank heavens. “And studies show—”
“I wasn’t casting aspersions on the medical care you’re receiving. I was just surprised.” He sat back in his chair, laying one arm on the minuscule table beside it. Emma had the strongest impression he was mentally drumming his fingers against the tabletop. “Right. I apologize for the timing here, but Dennis Reid seemed to think you might be able to help me, and I’m running short of time.”
“Do you think I know your wife? What is her name?”
“I don’t already have a wife, Emma.” He hesitated for a fraction of a second. Just long enough to make her stomach drop to her toes. “I need one. And I’m hoping you’ll be her.”
Thank goodness she was sitting. Because if she hadn’t been, she’d have ended up on the floor. “Mr. Montgomery,” she said firmly, “I don’t know what Dr. Reid led ya’ll to believe about me, but—”
“I’m going about this wrong.” He sat forward again, bringing with him that tantalizing scent of expensive aftershave. No drugstore brands for this man. He was strictly the charge-by-the-quarter-ounce type.
He linked his fingers together again, regarding her with eyes that gave no hint of the manic mind he must possess. “Dennis said I could count on your discretion.”
He seemed to be waiting, so she nodded hesitantly. The call button was just out of her reach, but if she leaned to the side, she could probably get to it. She would get to it, because she was a mother now. She would protect her child with every fiber of her being, and that meant she also had to protect herself. Even from a sinfully attractive madman.
“I run ChandlerAIR,” he continued calmly. “Have you heard…Yes, I can see by your expression that you’ve heard of us. I’m in the middle of some delicate negotiations with a company we are acquiring. The founder of this company has some old-fashioned ideas about how he likes to do business.” Kyle paused, as if she needed a moment to digest what he was saying.
She nodded, since she didn’t know how else to respond.
Kyle’s lips twisted slightly and he turned his attention to his hands. “He refuses to deal with anyone who is not the fine upstanding family man he is,” he elaborated. “Acquiring this other company will benefit ChandlerAIR, but it will also help the economy here in Buttonwood. Provide jobs. Increase tourism—”
“I understand the economic benefits, Mr. Montgomery. Surely this other man would understand that, as well, wouldn’t he?” She brushed back a lock of hair and was dismayed to realize her hand was trembling.
“Payton Cummings is perfectly happy to retain control of his company as long as he needs to until he finds the right opportunity. The right—”
“Family man,” Emma murmured.
“Exactly.” Kyle’s lips tightened for a brief moment. “I’m more determined to see this acquisition through than Cummings is. Assuming the trappings of a family man is something I’m prepared to do to attain my goals.”
“But…but why me? Someone in your company, your girlfriend…”
“I