by Tessa Radley
The time had come to use all the weapons in his armory.
And that meant confronting his brother.
It was not the path he had ever intended to take—for his brother’s sake. But Ella’s talk of transparency on Friday night had set him thinking.
Ella was right about one thing: Holly came first. The bond—because that’s what it was, a fast, blood bond—that tied him to the baby was as vital to him as breathing. He would not risk losing her.
Tonight, when he announced to his brother what he was going to do, there was a very good chance it was going to cost him their relationship. But Dmitri had Keira.
And Holly had no one...except him.
He already knew his actions were going to alienate Ella. He’d hoped to gain her cooperation by letting her see how much the baby meant to him, but it was finally starting to sink in that Ella would never be swayed from her viewpoint. She was not prepared to recognize what he had to offer Holly.
He had a claim to the baby—one that would secure his place in her life. He had the money and resources to fight Ella and win temporary custody. Up until now, the only thing that had stood in his way of using the brute force of legal muscle had been his brother—or, more accurately, his brother’s pride.
The Porsche swung easily into the next curve. Ahead, the group of cyclists had spread into a single file, and he nosed past.
In the previous ten days he’d grown to know and love Holly. He could not walk away. Yevgeny was all too conscious that tomorrow was D-Day, as he’d come to think of it. It would be his last chance to convince Ella that Holly belonged with him. Because the day after tomorrow, Ella would be legally able to sign a consent to allow Holly to be adopted by another couple. Once that was done, the decision would be final.
Sure, she’d said she was going to wait until after Christmas. But Yevgeny could not risk the danger that Ella might change her mind.
Then all would be lost.
Holly would be lost to him.
Forever.
Tomorrow was his best chance.
Tonight he would contact Dmitri far away in Africa to let his brother know of the decision he had made. Because he could not do what he had to do without letting his brother know. He’d left it too long already—because of his misguided confidence in his ability to convince Ella to come round to his point of view.
Time was fast running out....
Nine
The meeting dragged on.
Ella doodled on the legal pad in front of her and wondered what Yevgeny and Holly were doing in the park. Yevgeny had taken Holly alone, giving Deb a sizable block of time off for the first time in over a week. Now Ella was fretting. Had she done the right thing letting Yevgeny take the baby out alone? Of course she had. He was the baby’s uncle—he deserved some sort of relationship with Holly. The next worry popped up. Had Deb packed the bag? Would Yevgeny have remembered to take a bottle? To put sunscreen onto the baby’s fair skin? Her gaze slid to where her cell phone sat on the conference table beside her legal pad.
She could call him....
“What do you think, Ella?”
The question wrenched her out of her reverie. Ella set her pen down and forced herself to focus. This was important. But would it be important five years from now? Yevgeny’s lecture came back to her.
Ella gazed around the table. Two unsmiling executives dressed in pin-striped black suits stared at her. The older executive was the CFO, the younger was the corporation’s legal advisor.
Would the outcome of this meeting be important in five years? She considered the radical thought. Work—any work—had always been important. But this time? Ella wasn’t so sure. Originally she’d viewed this meeting as an opportunity to gain a toehold in bankruptcy law, and add another specialty to her expertise. But it didn’t fit with the rest of her family law practice. She was no longer sure she wanted to do the company’s work—she didn’t even like the CFO. She’d handled his sister’s divorce and received the referral. It had sounded like a great opportunity.
But she didn’t want to spend her days filing bankruptcy suits.
So what was she doing wasting precious time on this? Where had her ideals of building a quality practice doing work she loved gone? What was she doing representing corporate sharks? And for what? More money? More prestige? Longer hours?
Was it worth bargaining her soul for?
“Will you be able to do the work?”
“Sorry?” Ella struggled to grasp the implication of the CFO’s question. Was he doubting her legal ability? Both men were watching her across the polished expanse of the table. Her stomach knotted. She’d missed a crucial part of the dialogue. Now she was floundering. “I missed the last bit.”
“I heard you had a baby.” The CFO’s tone was patronizing. His gaze dropped to the legal pad in front of her, then lifted to meet hers. His expression said it all. She was losing her edge; her femininity was the problem.
Ella found herself flushing. She resisted the urge to cover the doodles, to deny every thought she read in his face. Then she caught herself.
Why should I feel ashamed?
She had been daydreaming...imaging Holly and Yevgeny out in the sunshine, then fretting about all the things—important things—Yevgeny might forget.
It had taken Holly less than twelve days to change her life.
For the first time in years she was focusing on what she wanted. Evaluating. Choosing.
What had happened to her dreams? When had her desire to only take on work she wanted to do become hijacked by visions of wealth and power? That had been the whole reason she’d left the large, city practice where she’d been a rising star. She’d wanted to be able to take cases that interested her—refuse those she didn’t wish to do. Not have her days...weeks...years dictated by billable hours.
It had worked out. She earned a good living...she had a retirement plan...her town house was paid off...she worked for herself and was answerable to no one.
She wanted for nothing.
But along the way she’d become more ambitious. Her schedule had become crowded.
There was no time left for...Ella.
When had she last taken a vacation? She’d always loved movies. When had she last taken the night off and gone to watch a movie and share a tub of popcorn with Keira or a friend? And, for that matter, when had she last actually met up with any of her friends? Ella couldn’t even remember. Most of the people she socialized with these days were her work colleagues.
“I don’t think I’m the right person for the job,” Ella found herself saying. “But I have a colleague who might be a perfect fit. Let me call your office later with his contact details.” There was immense satisfaction in watching the CFO sputter for words. Ella rose to her feet, and gave the pair her most gracious smile. “Thank you so much for considering me. I do appreciate it, but I think Mark Stanley will be a much better fit for your company.”
And she was going to rewrite her business plan to focus on the work she did best—and enjoyed most. But first she was going to see if she could find Yevgeny and Holly.
She was going out to play in the park.
* * *
Yevgeny spotted Ella approaching long before she reached them. There was something about the way she moved that had clued him in that it was Ella when she’d still been a speck in the distance.
“You were worried about the baby. You thought I’d screw up.” Partly annoyed by Ella’s inability to give up control but also pleased that she’d been worried enough about the baby to come to the park, Yevgeny grinned at her from where he was sprawled on a picnic blanket on the grass in the shade of an ancient oak.
“I wasn’t worried.”
Yevgeny didn’t believe that for one minute. “So why did you come?”
She glanced
away. “I thought it would be nice to be outside on such a lovely day.”
He snorted in disbelief.
“I did. Honestly! I—”
She was talking so fast that Yevgeny found his grin growing wider. “Slow down!”
Ella stopped talking abruptly and gave him a sheepish smile. Her dimples appeared. Then she sank down beside Holly, who was sound asleep on the blanket. She touched the baby’s cheek with one finger and Holly made a snuffling sound.
Ella quickly withdrew her finger. “I don’t want to wake her just yet.”
“How did the meeting go?” he asked.
“Fine.” Her face tightened.
Not fine, then. His good humor faded. “There was a problem?” He couldn’t help remembering his criticism of her priorities. It made him feel guilty.
“No.” She paused. “Not really.”
“There was a problem.” There was no doubt in his mind.
She turned to face him. The bright gold eyes were dulled by specks of unhappiness. Something was bothering Ella. And Yevgeny was surprised by the wave of protectiveness that swamped him.
“What went wrong?”
She hesitated. “Nothing. The meeting went fine. I was the problem.”
Stretching out beside Ella and the baby, he propped himself on his elbows. Keeping his eyes intent on her face, he asked, “What do you mean?”
“It’s hard to explain.” She shrugged.
“Try,” he prompted, sensing quicksand ahead.
“I’m not sure I understand myself.” She looked away.
Yevgeny sensed this was not the time to push her. Above them the wind rustled through the leaves. He could hear blackbirds chirruping.
“Something has changed.”
The admission surprised him. “You were treated different than usual?”
She shook her head. “That’s not it. It’s me—I’ve changed.”
He studied her, seeking signs of the change she was talking about.
The wind caught at her hair. One hand brushed a recalcitrant strand back behind her ear. Except for a mussing from the wind’s touch her hair was sleek and styled. The black business suit Ella wore was smart—even though by virtue of sitting on the picnic blanket she was showing far more leg than the designer had ever intended to be revealed in the office.
His eyes traveled down the length of leg encased in sheer stockings. Until he reached her feet. She’d kicked her shoes off. Already scraps of grass clung to the stockinged soles of her feet.
She might look the same...
But he would never have imagined that Ella he’d known before sprawled across a picnic blanket in a suit, her hair wind-tousled, her shoes abandoned.
She had changed.
“If you want the truth, I like the change.”
Her eyes widened. “You can see it?”
He found himself leaning forward. “You’re more relaxed—not so uptight.”
“Uptight?” She drew away. “I’m not uptight!”
The quicksand deepened. He drew a measured breath. “I meant that as a compliment, not a criticism.”
The look she flicked him was laden with uncertainty. An uncertainty that bothered him far more than he cared to admit. Had he been so critical of her? That she had to examine everything he said for hidden motive? Yevgeny didn’t like that thought at all. He always considered Ella opinionated and judgmental. Had he been every bit as bad?
Leaning forward, he brushed the grass cuttings from her stockings.
She wiggled her toes and jerked away. “Don’t!”
Acting on instinct, he grasped her foot and pulled it back to him. Then, on a wicked suspicion, he tickled the sole of the foot now resting against his leg.
She gave a shriek of laughter that she quickly bit off.
“You’re ticklish.” The discovery delighted him.
“Very.” She glanced at the still sleeping baby, then mock frowned at him. “Don’t you dare!”
“I never could resist a dare.”
Or the temptation of revealing this unexpected side of Ella....
She convulsed with laughter as his fingers descended. “I haven’t even begun,” he protested.
“No, no.” But she was laughing.
So he tickled more.
She writhed on the blanket, breathless with mirth. Her body rolled up against him, and Yevgeny went still. He had only a moment to make the decision...it was no decision. His fingers trailed away from her foot, his touch firming as he stroked along her leg.
Her laughter faltered, and her head turned. She must have glimpsed the intent in his eyes because her breath hooked in her throat.
The sudden silence was deafening.
Her lips moved. “Yev—”
Before she could protest he shifted his body and slanted his mouth across hers.
Then he waited.
She made no sound, no move rejecting him.
She gave a little gasp beneath his lips. Then her mouth opened like a flower.
Then a growling wail broke the tension.
“It’s Holly, she’s awake!” Ella pushed at his shoulders. “Let me up.”
Yevgeny rolled away onto his back, one arm flung across his eyes. The baby sure picked her moments....
“My God. Anyone could have seen us.” Ella’s breath was coming in shallow gasps. “What was I thinking?”
“You weren’t thinking....” Yevgeny lowered his arm to gauge her response “You were feeling.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Ella picked up the baby. “That I don’t feel? That’s what you believe?” She clasped the baby to her chest, rocking her. “That I have no feelings?”
It was hardly the time to confess that he’d considered all her feelings to be entombed in ice. Nor could he lie. He settled for, “I didn’t know you.”
“So you jumped to conclusions instead of trying to find out more.”
There was nothing he could say to refute her statement.
“So much for being someone who doesn’t react on impulse.”
Having his own words flung back at him was no more than he deserved. He tried not to flinch. “I still believe that is the best way—even though I am perhaps not the best example.”
“Well, at least you’re honest.”
“And you’re generous to concede that. Thank you.” Her shoulders sagged as she let out a deep breath. She hitched the baby higher.
He reached awkwardly forward. “Let me take her. She must be heavy.”
“I can manage.”
His arms fell away. For the first time he took in how comfortable Ella looked holding the baby. This wasn’t a picture of a woman who couldn’t wait to get rid of the child in her arms. Ella looked...maternal.
Surprise jolted Yevgeny.
He blinked. Looked again. Ella still looked perfectly at home. He waited for Holly to regurgitate the bottle he’d given her before she’d gone to sleep over Ella’s formal suit. But that didn’t happen. Instead, Ella continued looking down at the baby cradled in the crook of her arm with a curiously content expression.
Yevgeny couldn’t concentrate on anything except Ella.
Every time he turned his head, those golden eyes ensnared him. The rose-tinted mouth that was so much softer than he’d ever envisaged. The Ella he was discovering behind the professional dark suits and efficient manner was very different from what he’d built her into.
So much more.
Her humor. Her rounded, infectious laugh. The love for her sister. The way her eyes softened like melting honey when she looked at Holly and thought no one was watching.
She even possessed a degree of sensitivity and self-awareness he’d never expected—she knew she was changing.
Like one of his babushka’s matryoshka dolls where every layer opened to reveal something different. Something unexpected and new. Another layer that entranced him even further.
His chest tightened.
Yevgeny shook his head to clear the confusion. He must be dreaming...having such thoughts, such feelings about Ella.
But Ella was right about one thing: he knew far too little about her. And that was something he intended to remedy.
Starting now.
“What’s your star sign?”
Her head lifted, and her attention switched from Holly to him. “My what?”
“Your star sign.”
“I heard you, but I can’t figure out why you’d want to know. Surely you don’t follow astrology?”
He shrugged. “All women know their star signs.” Some that he’d dated consulted their horoscopes every day. He couldn’t understand why she was fussing about it.
“Because they hope that some vague prediction of good fortune will get them something that usually takes plenty of work.”
His mouth quirked up. He suspected that assessment fit a couple of women he had known. “You’re talking about finding a husband?”
“No! I’m talking about career and the financial benefits that come with hard work.”
“Ah, I should’ve known.” He had known. Of course that’s what she meant. But he couldn’t resist teasing her. She rose to the bait so beautifully. Every time.
She cast him a suspicious look. “I don’t read my daily horoscope.”
He didn’t grin. “I imagine you read the financial pages.”
“What’s wrong with that? At least I have a better idea where the real financial advantages lie.”
He held his hands up in surrender. “I’m not arguing with that logic.”
“Really?” She tipped her head to one side. “Are you saying you actually agree with me?”
“You’re surprised?”
Her lips curved up into a smile that attracted his attention to her mouth—her very kissable mouth, a mouth he was rapidly becoming addicted to. But with Holly now awake he had no chance of exploring that new obsession anytime soon.
Better to focus on getting to know what other surprises Ella had in store....