Devin struggled to keep up. They were on their way back now, but the mansion was at least a mile away.
She brought herself abreast of him, but he sped up. She did it again, and he went faster still.
Her breathing was becoming erratic, and she’d long since lost any semblance of her regular pace. She was running on adrenaline and frustration, in a futile attempt to keep Lucas from beating her.
“You might want to save your strength,” Lucas finally mused. The rat didn’t even sound winded.
“I’m fine,” she gasped.
He turned around and jogged backward. Even through her humiliation that he could do it so easily, she couldn’t help but be grateful that they’d slowed down.
“Don’t be stupid, Devin.”
She let a glare do her speaking for her.
“This isn’t the hill to die on.”
“Then why…do you…care who wins?”
He shrugged, allowing a sheepish grin. “It was fun watching you try.”
“Rat.”
“Guilty.” His eyes darkened. “You might want to remember that.”
The mansion was closer now. The pool deck a beacon spurring her burning leg muscles forward.
Why, oh, why had she waited for him? She should have set off jogging by herself, done her usual two miles, and been in the shower by now, maybe even in bed, asleep, catching a few precious hours before Amelia woke up, and she started all over again.
Her days were beyond hectic. It had been weeks since she got any decent amount of writing accomplished. Her new self-help book on setting priorities, Snarled Traffic in the Information Age, was due to her publisher in three months. And she had eight more chapters to go.
Her feet pounded on the bark mulch.
A hundred yards to go.
Fifty.
Twenty-five.
Thank goodness.
She slowed to a walk, gulping air, keeping well away from Lucas in the hope that he wouldn’t see how winded she’d become.
He’d slowed his run, taken it down to a jog, coming to a walk when his feet hit the concrete deck.
Devin took her time joining him, feeling a rush of relief when her lungs slowed back to normal. Her legs were still rubbery, but it was much easier to hide that weakness.
As she approached Lucas, he tossed her a chilled water bottle. She caught it in midair. Obviously someone had set them out while they were away running. What a life the man led.
Devin cracked the seal and took a long, satisfying drink. Her heart rate was getting back to normal, but she knew she’d have some very sore muscles in the morning. She’d give her eyeteeth for a miracle where Amelia slept until seven.
Lucas flopped down on a lounger, gesturing to a low table between it and another identical chair. “Care for some fruit?”
Devin realized she was famished, and the fruit platter looked delicious. The temptation to rest her weary legs was too much to resist. She took the other lounger and stretched out.
Lucas popped a grape into his mouth and munched. “You have everything you need in the nursery?”
Devin selected a slice of pineapple. “It’s a dream nursery.”
It was.
From the custom-made crib to the designer sheets, to a rocking chair she could practically live in, to a state-of-the-art baby monitor, paintings, mobiles, curtains and the thickest white carpet she’d ever stepped on, Amelia might as well have been a princess.
Devin nibbled the edge of the pineapple. “You must have been pretty confident you’d need it.”
“I was.” He turned his head to watch her. “I am.” He paused. “You should really give up now.”
“Sure.” She shrugged. “Why not. Who needs the grief, anyway? All those lawyers, a court date, fighting you—and you’re clearly a superior human being. I might as well just call it quits.” She popped the rest of the pineapple into her mouth.
He grinned, and plunked his head back on the lounger, closing his eyes. “Ah, Devin. You’re entertaining. I’ll give you that much.”
She sucked the pineapple juice from her fingertips and tried to stay angry with Lucas. It seemed like too much of an effort. “Okay if we use the pool tomorrow?”
Living on a lakeshore, Devin had already decided to get Amelia accustomed to the water as early as possible. She might as well make the best of being a prisoner at the Demarcos.
“Do anything you want,” Lucas answered without opening his eyes. “I’ll make sure the staff all know who you are. The cooks will help you with breakfast, or you can feel free to make whatever you want. Give them a list of foods for Amelia, or yourself for that matter. Try out the horses, take out a boat, swim, play tennis—”
“Amelia’s a little young for tennis.”
“I meant you. There’s an army of people here who can babysit.”
“Teresa is listening to the baby monitor right now,” Devin said.
It felt supremely self-indulgent to take advantage of the Demarco staff, but without Lexi next door, Devin knew she’d need at least occasional help. Hopefully, the times would be few and far between. She’d needed to tire herself out before bed tonight, but she certainly wouldn’t be abandoning Amelia to take tennis lessons.
“I’d like to spend some time with Amelia,” said Lucas.
His statement caught Devin’s attention. “Why?”
Lucas opened his eyes and turned. “She’s my niece.”
“You’re afraid of her.”
“I am not,” he denied. “Okay, I’m a little afraid of the slimy bits.”
Devin fought a smirk. “The slimy bits are what make her a baby.”
“I prefer clean, dry babies.”
“Those are called adults.”
Lucas frowned. “I want her to get to know me.”
“I know. So I won’t have an advantage over you in court.” She shook her head and gave a dry chuckle. “She’s not a puppy, Lucas. We’re not going to put her down between us and see who she runs to.”
Lucas’s eyes hardened, but he didn’t answer.
She helped herself to a slice of kiwi. “But how very Machiavellian of you to think that way.”
“She’s Konrad’s daughter.” All traces of humor and friendliness were gone from his voice.
“And a ten-percent shareholder of Pacific Robotics. I understand completely.”
His jaw tightened, and a muscle ticked next to his eye. “You haven’t a clue.”
Oh, but she did.
While he might occasionally appear to let his guard down, Lucas was single-minded in his objective. And that objective was Amelia. And Devin was the only protection the little girl had.
Three
Amelia kicked her tiny feet and gurgled happily in the Demarcos’ pool the following afternoon. She looked darling in a red-and-white striped bathing suit, and she’d taken immediately to splashing and ducking.
“I may have a solution,” said Lexi on a happy sigh from where she was bobbing around in the deep end on a yellow air mattress. She wore a turquoise one-piece that accented her healthy body. Lexi wasn’t one to exercise, but she was on the go so much that she stayed in great shape. A pair of big sunglasses covered her eyes.
“What’s your solution?” Devin asked, smiling as she blew a puff of air into Amelia’s face. The baby sucked in a breath and scrunched her eyes shut, then Devin gently ducked her underwater.
“Lucas can adopt me instead.”
“What a great idea,” Devin singsonged as she lifted Amelia back out of the water.
The baby squealed and kicked in delight, nearly wiggling out of Devin’s grasp.
“A win for you,” said Lexi. “A win for me.”
“Not so much for me,” Lucas said in a dry voice.
Lexi popped her sunglasses up onto her head to squint at Lucas where he stood on the deck, while Devin turned in the pool so that she faced him. He should have looked out of place in his business suit, feet braced apart, tie neatly knotted at his throat. But for some r
eason, the outfit made Devin self-conscious of her aqua-colored bikini instead.
Lexi didn’t miss a beat. “I don’t see why not. I don’t throw temper tantrums, and I’m fully potty-trained.”
“I can vouch for that,” said Devin.
Lucas shook his head, apparently unamused. “I’ll be out for an hour or so. Do you need anything?”
“We’re fine,” said Devin, keeping her attention on Amelia, wishing she didn’t find Lucas so attractive. She had absolutely no business thinking about him as anything other than an enemy.
She could feel Lucas’s gaze on her for a long moment. Then she heard him turn away, and she dared to look up as he took the staircase to the concrete pathway, walked past the garden, below the sprawling oak tree, and disappeared into the mansion.
“He’s even better looking than Konrad.” Lexi sighed.
“You think?” asked Devin, taking Amelia’s chubby hands in hers and drawing the baby forward in a front float.
“Don’t pretend you didn’t notice,” Lexi admonished, lying back and stroking a hand through the water, recentering herself in the deep end of the pool.
“I didn’t notice,” Devin lied. “I was too busy fighting him in court.”
“Doesn’t mean you can’t look.”
“It means there’s absolutely nothing about the man that I like.”
“I liked his ass,” teased Lexi.
“Then you are a cougar.”
“And I am sorely disappointed to hear that,” came a drawling voice, a clear thread of amusement running through it.
Devin glanced up to see Byron, arms crossed over his chest, feet planted firmly apart, staring openly at Lexi while she sunbathed. He wore faded blue jeans, a denim shirt with the sleeves rolled up and a pair of brown cowboy boots.
“Eyes front, old man,” said Lexi with a waggle of her finger. “I’m not here for your visual entertainment.”
Byron didn’t look away.
Devin lifted Amelia from the water and cradled her cool body against her chest. “Byron, this is my friend Lexi. Lexi, Byron is Lucas’s…what do I call you? Widowed stepfather?”
“I’d say we can go with ‘friend’,” Byron responded, still staring openly at Lexi where she lay on the air mattress.
Lexi pushed her sunglasses back up to the top of her head and propped herself on one elbow. “Do you have a reason for being here?”
Devin coughed out a laugh at Lexi’s blunt manner.
“I believe I do.” He turned his attention to Devin. “I was hoping to have a little talk with you, young lady.”
Devin hesitated, not really anxious to be grilled by Byron. “About…?” she asked.
“Come on up here, and I’ll tell you all about it.”
Devin stayed put.
“I’m not gonna bite you,” he assured her with a grin.
She glanced down at Amelia and saw that the tiny girl was worn out. They were going to have to get out of the water soon anyway. And she had a feeling Byron would wait.
“Why not?” she muttered. The man clearly had something to say. She might as well get this over with. She made her way toward the wide staircase at the end of the pool.
She took a butter-yellow towel from the rack at the edge of the pool deck and wrapped it around Amelia to keep her from getting chilled.
Byron watched her approach. Then he gestured to a lounge chair. Devin accepted his offer, stretching out her legs, draping the ends of the big towel across her bare stomach and thighs.
The sun was warm on her wet limbs and her rapidly drying hair.
As Byron sat down in the lounger on the other side of a small square table, his glance flicked critically to Lexi. Devin didn’t offer to ask Lexi to leave. Whatever the man had to say, he could say in front of her friend.
Byron seemed to accept the situation. “I hear tell you’ve met Steve Foster.”
“I have.” She focused her attention on adjusting the towel, making sure Amelia’s pale, delicate skin was protected from the sun.
After a moment, she looked back up into the silence to see Byron regarding her with penetrating hazel eyes and a grim line of a mouth.
“You know there’s been some trouble between those boys.”
Devin gave a small shrug. “Steve’s helping me out. Lucas is fighting against me. Is that the trouble you’re talking about?”
Water sloshed in the pool as Lexi came off the air mattress.
“More to it than that,” Byron corrected.
Devin steadfastly met his gaze. “Anything else is none of my business.”
“I’d be willin’ to bet that it is.”
She shook her head in denial as Lexi made her way through the shallow end and out of the pool.
“You’re the latest pawn in a feud that goes back a considerable long time.”
“I’m not going to be anybody’s pawn.” Devin couldn’t care less about the emotional and financial entanglements of the Demarco family. She was fighting for Amelia, and that was the end of it.
“What is it you’ve got in mind for an endgame?”
Devin didn’t understand.
Lexi wrapped a towel, sarong-style, around her dripping wet body and slicked back her blond hair as she moved toward them.
Byron’s gaze tracked Lexi until she sat down. Then he glanced back to Devin. “What is it you’re hoping to get out of this?”
“Amelia,” Devin answered.
Byron’s skepticism came through in his squint. He leaned forward. “Just between you, me and the hitching post?”
Devin leaned toward him. “Amelia,” she repeated.
There was a long pause.
“And you think ol’ Steve can give you a hand with that.”
“We think he’s the only one who’s offered,” said Lexi, from the lounger next to Devin.
Byron stared first at Lexi and then at Devin. “And why do you supposed he’s offered to help?”
Devin kept her voice low since Amelia was drifting off to sleep. “I don’t particularly care.”
Steve’s lawyers were giving her a fighting chance against Lucas.
“Altruism?” Byron mocked.
“A concept you’re obviously unfamiliar with,” Lexi retorted.
Byron ignored Lexi and spoke directly to Devin. “He’s sidling up to you like some slick ol’ polecat. He helps you now. You help him later. If you know what I mean.”
Devin blinked. “Have I done something to make you think I’m stupid?”
Byron drew back in obvious surprise.
“I’m taking Steve’s offer at face value. I haven’t made him a single promise.”
In fact, she’d offered an outright deal to Lucas to manage the shares if he’d let her keep Amelia, but he didn’t trust her enough to agree.
And who was to say Steve was the bad guy in this little family drama anyway? So far, she’d put the black hat firmly on Lucas’s head. He was the one who’d plotted with Konrad to trick Monica and produce an heir to their grandfather’s company shares. Devin hadn’t forgotten that.
“Steve would steal your last dollar as soon as look at you,” Byron warned.
“As opposed to Lucas?” she asked.
“Lucas lets you see him coming.”
Devin gave a nod to that. Lucas had certainly been up front about the fact that he wanted to take Amelia away from her. He’d also been pretty clear that his interest in the baby was financial.
Devin found her hold tightening on Amelia.
“Listen up,” said Byron, shifting in the lounger so he faced Devin more directly.
“No, you listen up,” Lexi interrupted. “You are not going to convince Devin to give up her lawyers.”
“I had no intention—”
“Of course you did. That’s what this whole pretty, ‘don’t trust the evil Steve’ speech was leading up to. And it’s not going to work.”
“I’m simply suggesting she might want to be careful.”
Lexi crossed her arms over
her chest. With a glance at Amelia’s sleeping form, she lowered her voice. “We are being careful.” She paused. “We don’t trust anyone…including you.”
Devin agreed with Lexi on that point. There wasn’t a single member of the Demarco family she could afford to trust. She was on her own in this. Well, except for Lexi.
Byron heaved a large sigh. “I guess there’s nothing left for me to say.”
“No,” Lexi agreed. “There’s not.”
Byron glanced back to Devin. “I’m on your side.”
She coughed out a laugh of disbelief. “You’re on Lucas’s side.”
“Lucas is an honorable man.”
“An honorable man wouldn’t try to rip an innocent baby from the arms of her loving aunt.”
Byron’s gaze moved briefly to the sleeping Amelia and then back to Devin. “You’re here, aren’t you?”
“It was his Hail Mary play in court,” she responded. “He only made the offer because he knew the judge was about to rule for me.”
Byron came to his feet. He gave his head a small shake, making a clicking sound in his cheek that transmitted his disagreement with her statement. “You can’t trust Steve,” he said simply.
“Funny,” Lexi responded. “That’s exactly what Steve says about the rest of you.”
“You cannot leave Amelia with these people,” Lexi stage-whispered after Byron had disappeared into the house.
“No kidding,” Devin responded.
She poured herself a glass of iced tea from a pitcher that someone had placed on the table. Devin felt a twinge of guilt for letting herself be waited on by the Demarco staff. But she was thirsty, and she didn’t want to disturb Amelia.
Lexi followed suit. “Why can’t rich people be nice?” she asked as the ice cubes clinked against her glass. “If I was rich, I’d still be nice.”
“That should be my new book proposal,” Devin mused, getting another twinge of guilt when she talked about writing. She was behind on her manuscript, and her deadline was looming. “Nice and Rich,” she said, trying a title on for size. “The Art of Doing Them Both Together.” It actually wasn’t half-bad.
Lexi lifted her glass in a mock toast. “The rich truly do need your help.”
Billionaire Baby Dilemma Page 4