She’d almost made him believe she was innocent
Michael North knew Bree Oliver was a gorgeous gold digger after his brother’s fortune, so he seduced her in a night of lovemaking and swore he’d let her go. Then a tragic accident changed everything. Now he must honor a deathbed promise to his brother—to protect the one woman Michael can never trust.
But watching over the pregnant Bree tests the tycoon’s self-control. Is Bree as virtuous as she claims? Or is he a fool to fall for her act? Torn between desire and distrust, Michael’s walking a treacherous line, unaware of the shocking secret she’s carrying….
“Now who’s seducing who?”
Michael pushed Bree back against the wall, and his lips found hers. He kissed her hard and long. Glorious heat rushed through her veins as she kissed him back.
He lifted his head. Dazed, her heart racing, her eyes met the wildness in his gaze. He was the father of her unborn baby. In spite of all the walls she’d tried to erect against him, she still felt connected to him.
What she really wanted was for him to love their child and maybe someday love her, too. And when he kissed her like this, some idiotic part of her believed that could happen, that he might change someday, that he might see her as she was and be capable of respecting her…of loving her.
Dear Reader,
When Michael North’s younger brother, Will, who’s dying, begs Michael to protect Bree, his pregnant widow, Michael is torn, because eight weeks earlier he’d seduced Bree to protect Will from her gold-digging schemes. Not only had his brother married her anyway, Michael, who can’t forget her, is devastated that he’d meant so little. But how can he walk away when her unborn baby is his heir and the last living link to his brother?
One of my walking partners, who loves to cook, inspired Bree. A failing restaurateur, Bree is family-oriented and sensual and very tuned in to food. A successful businessman whom I admire recently told me how growing up without enough love negatively impacted his life. He inspired the character of Michael.
Love demands a surrender of self that is much harder for some people. Although Michael is drawn to the loving person he senses in Bree, he is too conditioned by his past to trust his emotions.
Then he finds out he’s the one who’s in the wrong. Suddenly, he feels so lost without Bree and her child, he has no choice but to surrender.
Happy reading,
Ann
Her Pregnancy Secret
Ann Major
ANN MAJOR lives in Texas with her husband of many years and is the mother of three grown children. She has a master’s degree from Texas A&M at Kingsville, Texas, and is a former English teacher. She is a founding board member of the Romance Writers of America and a frequent speaker at writers’ groups.
Ann loves to write—she considers her ability to do so a gift. Her hobbies include hiking in the mountains, sailing, ocean kayaking, traveling and playing the piano. But most of all, she enjoys her family. Visit her website at www.annmajor.com.
To Ted
I love you more
Contents
One
Michael North awakened with a violent start in the middle of the night.
His first thought was for the safety of the exquisite woman curled trustingly against him. She was warm and soft, beguilingly beautiful in the moonlight with her dark golden hair spilling across his pillow. He wanted to touch that hair and kiss her lips again, wanted it so much he had to clench his hands.
Ironically, he’d enjoyed his evening with her more than he’d enjoyed being with anyone in a very long time.
Maybe that was why his gut twisted as he experienced an uncustomary pang of conscience. After all, he’d seduced her for very deliberate, self-serving reasons.
Careful not to disturb her, he sat up and brushed a lock of thick black hair out of his eyes. Everything he’d done tonight—the seductive dinner at her failing bistro, the lovemaking in his penthouse, all the shared laughter and smiles—had been a lie.
He’d set her up so he could protect his naive younger brother.
But at some point Michael had forgotten about Will. His dinner date with Bree had begun with champagne served in sparkling flutes at Chez Z, the intimate French bistro she’d inherited from her famous brother, Johnny Z. She loved to cook and to eat, and Michael had loved watching her indulge.
She’d blushed when she’d drunk champagne. She’d sighed when she’d licked chocolate off her fingertips, and his. The wet, warm tip of her tongue against his flesh had almost been as good as having sex with her. Almost.
He’d loved the sound of her laughter, the glow of her cheeks when she teased him, the flash of intelligence in her slanting eyes when she’d made him feel clever and her wildness in bed. When had he had such a good time with anybody?
Surprisingly, Bree had given him more pleasure and tenderness and amusement during their evening than he’d ever imagined possible.
Because, first, she wasn’t his usual type. He went for cool, sophisticated glamour, for sleek, slim blondes who made heads turn and other men envy him. Bree was lush and earthy and wanton. She loved color and baubles and cheap scarves and probably didn’t bother to carry a comb in her purse.
And second, Bree Oliver, for all her seeming innocence and charms, was a gold digger. She’d targeted his foolish brother, thinking Will was the chump she needed to keep Chez Z from going into bankruptcy.
For Will’s sake, Michael had to finish her off. No matter how much he’d enjoyed being with her or how fabulous she’d been in bed, she deserved it.
If only Michael had been as smart five years ago when he’d fallen for Anya Parris. But, no, like a fool, when Anya had lied about being pregnant, he’d married her. He’d suffered through a hellish marriage