“That’s good.”
“Good Lord, Ash, look at your hair,” Anita fussed, smoothing down her daughter’s disheveled pigtails.
“Aw, leave the girl alone, Nita,” Ava chided. “Let her finish playing.”
But her sister was already removing a brush from her handbag to repair Ashleigh’s hair.
Ava gave her niece a sympathetic look, then turned her attention to her nephew. She scooped the four-year-old onto her lap and began tickling his ribs, making him giggle so hard that others seated at nearby tables couldn’t help looking over and smiling.
Anita pouted. “How come he never laughs like that when I tickle him?”
Ava grinned conspiratorially at her nephew. “Because you don’t have the magic touch.”
“Whatever.” But Anita was smiling as she watched her sister and Toby playfully rub noses. “You’re going to make an excellent mommy someday, Ava. But first we need to find you a new man.”
Ava snorted. “I don’t think so.”
Anita laughed. Finishing Ashleigh’s hair, she glanced toward the crowded play area, her brows furrowing when she spied her stepdaughter flirting with an attractive twentysomething man.
“Aw, hell no,” Anita hissed under her breath. “I can’t let that girl out of my sight for one damn minute.”
“Oooh!” Ashleigh exclaimed, pointing accusingly at her mother. “You said a bad word!”
“Two bad words,” Toby corrected, equally scandalized.
Ava laughed, watching as her sister jumped up and marched off to snatch Destiny from the clutches of a guy who probably hoped like hell that the beautiful, overdeveloped adolescent was legal.
As Ashleigh scampered away to resume playing, Ava glanced down at the drowsy little boy in her arms. “I think it’s someone’s nap time,” she said in a singsong voice.
Toby shook his head, even as a huge yawn escaped his mouth.
Ava smiled softly, kissing the top of his close-shaven head. As he snuggled closer, an ache of tender longing washed over her.
Without warning, her mind flashed on an image of her holding another child. A sturdy, handsome child with skin the color of dark chestnut and beautiful obsidian eyes.
Shaken by the realization that she’d conjured Colby’s child, she leaned back against the seat. Her sister’s sage warning echoed through her mind. Because she chose her high-powered career over having a family, she’s spent most of her adult life being lonely and miserable.
As much as Ava wanted to make partner, she wondered if it would be enough for her. Would she eventually want more? A doting husband, healthy and happy children, a lovely home—the whole nine yards?
What if having it all wasn’t in the cards for her? How would she cope with wanting something she couldn’t have?
Ava sighed deeply.
Only time will tell….
Chapter 7
A chorus of adoring feminine sighs greeted Colby as he reached the open doorway of Marcus Wolf’s corner office on Monday morning. A crowd of women was huddled around the enormous mahogany desk, cooing delightedly over Marcus’s newborn daughter who was fast asleep in her plush baby carrier, oblivious to her admirers.
“Will you just look at her. She’s absolutely gorgeous, Marcus!”
“Look at all that beautiful black hair!”
“Look at those chubby cheeks. I just want to pinch them!”
“Look at her cute little baby-doll dress and leggings. She’s already a fashionista!”
“What do you expect? Her grandmother’s a famous fashion designer!”
“Did your mother-in-law dress the baby this morning, Marcus? Or was it your wife?”
Marcus, beaming with pride and adoration as he gazed upon his sleeping daughter, chuckled softly. “As a matter of fact, I’m the one who dressed her.”
“Uh-huh,” an amused voice intoned. “But I bet her mommy is the one who picked out her clothes.”
When Marcus grinned sheepishly, everyone laughed.
As they resumed oohing and aahing over Milan Wolf, Colby said with a smile, “I guess no one will be getting any work done today.”
Everyone turned to watch as he sauntered into the large room. While several of the women gave him inviting smiles, Mrs. Akonye—Marcus’s childhood babysitter turned personal secretary—wagged her silvered head at him.
“Now don’t you start with us, Colby,” she warned in her thickly accented voice. “You’ve been around enough women to know that the mere sight of babies makes us lose our minds.”
Colby grinned as the others laughed in hearty agreement.
When he reached Marcus, they exchanged brotherly handshakes. The boss looked well-rested and casual in a gray sweater, dark blue jeans and dark boots.
“You just couldn’t stay away from the office, could you?” Colby teased him.
Marcus grinned. “Can you blame me? My house has been overtaken by women. No offense,” he said to his female employees, who guffawed and ribbed him good-naturedly.
“Don’t get me wrong,” he explained. “I’m very grateful for all the love and support we’ve received since Milan was born. Samara and I haven’t had to worry about a thing, and the boys love all the attention they’ve been getting. But with my mom, Asha, Aunt Prissy and Mama Wolf under the same roof, things have been rather, ah, intense.”
The women responded with understanding nods and murmurs.
Colby grinned teasingly. “So how did you sneak baby girl past the guards?”
Marcus laughed. “It wasn’t easy,” he admitted, sounding as if he were about to describe a daring prison escape. “First I had to convince them to let me take Milan to her checkup today so Samara could get some rest. After they took a vote and reluctantly agreed, they followed me outside to the truck to make sure the car seat was properly installed and that Milan was safely strapped in.” He shook his head wryly. “You would think she was my first child instead of my third.”
As the women laughed sympathetically, Colby grinned and clapped Marcus on the shoulder. “You know it takes a village to raise a child.”
Marcus chuckled. “So the villagers keep reminding me.”
“Oh, look,” someone whispered excitedly, “Milan’s waking up!”
Everyone turned to watch as the newborn opened her tiny mouth to yawn. As her eyelids slowly lifted, she stared in puzzlement at the faces hovering above her.
“Hi, angel,” Marcus murmured tenderly.
Recognizing her father’s voice, the baby turned her head and looked at Marcus. Almost at once, her lips curled into a cherubic smile that drew exclamations of delight from the gathered women.
Even Colby melted. “She’s amazing, Marcus,” he marveled, reaching down to stroke the newborn’s silky crown of curls. “You’re in serious trouble.”
“I know,” Marcus admitted, gently lifting his daughter into his arms and kissing her forehead. “She’s already got me wrapped around her little fingers. All ten of them.”
Colby smiled softly. “Not hard to believe.”
When the others began clamoring to hold the baby, Marcus chuckled. “Tell you what, ladies. After I give Milan her bottle, I’ll bring her out so all of you can bond with her.”
Amid the disappointed grumbles, Mrs. Akonye offered, “You know I’d be more than happy to feed her for you, Marcus.”
He smiled at her. “I know you would, Mrs. Akonye, and I appreciate that. But I hardly ever get a chance to feed her at home, so I like to do the honors whenever I can.”
“Of course, dear.” Mrs. Akonye affectionately patted his cheek, then kissed the top of the baby’s head and smiled. “Let me get her bottle ready for you. Did you bring the warmer like I told you to?”
“Yes, ma’am,” Marcus said, nodding toward the pink diaper bag on his desk.
As the others reluctantly took their leave—some winking at Colby as they passed by—he asked Marcus, “Want some privacy?”
Marcus grinned. “For what? I’m not breast-feeding. Pull up a
chair so we can talk shop while I feed Milan.”
After Mrs. Akonye left the office, Colby claimed one of the visitor chairs and proceeded to bring Marcus up to speed on his biggest cases.
As they went back and forth, Colby couldn’t help marveling at the sight of the precious newborn cradled protectively in Marcus’s arms. Milan stared trustingly into his eyes as she drank from the bottle, her tiny hand absently stroking his wrist. As Marcus gazed down at her, the bond between father and daughter was so fiercely touching it brought a hard lump to Colby’s throat.
In the middle of explaining a counterstrategy he’d successfully used for one of his clients, he lost his train of thought and found himself thinking of Ava. He wondered if she liked kids and if she wanted any of her own. And then he went a step further and imagined her with a serenely rapturous expression on her face as she nursed a beautiful baby girl who looked just like her.
“Yo, Austin? You there?”
Pulled out of his reverie, Colby blinked rapidly to clear the enticing vision from his mind. “Sorry,” he murmured. “Got sidetracked for a minute.”
Marcus chuckled. “I could tell. You had a weird smile on your face. What was that about?”
“Uh, nothing.” Clearing his throat, Colby shifted uncomfortably in the chair. “What was I saying?”
“Actually, it’s what you haven’t been saying that I find interesting. When are you gonna tell me about the Southern Pacific lawsuit?”
“I was getting around to that.”
“Okay. So how are things going?”
“Good. Great.” Colby chuckled, stretching out his long legs. “We had a meeting on Friday. Bert Lusskin was there.”
Marcus raised a brow. “The CEO? Not the supervisor or HR manager?”
“Nope. Just the CEO.”
“Hmm. Interesting.”
“I thought so, too. Anyway, they rejected our asking price.”
“Surprise, surprise.”
“I know. But I have a feeling we’ll be hearing from their attorney sooner rather than later.” Colby paused for a moment. “Because you seem to know every lawyer in Atlanta, have you ever heard of Ava Cameron?”
Marcus shook his head. “Can’t say that I have.”
“She’s really good. Smart, sharp, idealistic but tough. And she’s a hometown girl. Grew up in Clayton County and graduated from Emory. Finished in the top three percent of her law class.”
“Impressive.”
“Definitely.” Colby hesitated, then added offhandedly, “I think she’d be a good fit here.”
Marcus gave him an amused look. “Poaching attorneys from the enemy? Tsk-tsk.”
Colby grinned, shrugging a shoulder. “We could always use fresh meat in employment and labor.”
“True.” Marcus eyed him speculatively. “Is there anything else I should know about Miss Cameron?”
Belatedly realizing that he may have revealed too much—Marcus never missed a thing—Colby drawled, “Nah, I think I covered everything. Are you ending your leave a couple weeks early?” he asked, wisely changing the subject.
“Nope,” Marcus replied, carefully laying his daughter over his cloth-draped shoulder so he could burp her. “You, Quentin and the other partners are holding down the fort just fine without me.”
“Uh-oh.” Colby shot him a look of mock alarm. “You’re not thinking of retiring and becoming Mr. Mom, are you?”
Marcus chuckled. “Not quite,” he answered, gently rubbing his daughter’s back. When she let out a soft burp, he smiled and tenderly kissed the top of her head.
Colby watched him closely. “Why do I sense a ‘but’ in there somewhere?”
Marcus chuckled again. “I’m too young to retire, and I know I’d miss practicing law too much.” His expression softened as he gazed down at Milan, who’d burrowed into the crook of his neck and drowsily closed her eyes. “I won’t lie, though. The thought of taking a long sabbatical has definitely crossed my mind more than once.”
“Really?”
Marcus nodded. “Becoming a parent changes you, makes you reassess your priorities in life.” He lifted his head and met Colby’s gaze. “You’ll see.”
Colby gave him a wry look. “How do you know?”
Marcus smiled enigmatically. “I just do.”
* * *
We are so screwed. Ava fumed as she strode toward the bank of elevators located on the top floor of Southern Pacific’s downtown headquarters building.
She’d just concluded a meeting with the company’s human resources manager, Gladys Frost, who’d confirmed Colby’s revelation about two former employees who’d been fired shortly after they revealed their pregnancies. Gladys had explained to Ava that the reason she hadn’t disclosed the terminations was that they’d occurred before she started working for Southern Pacific, hence she hadn’t known about them.
Of course, that didn’t make Ava feel any better, especially once she learned that the same supervisor was responsible for firing the three pregnant women. One termination could be dismissed as coincidence, but three? Over a span of just fifteen months?
Ava shook her head, impatiently pressing the elevator button.
Within minutes of meeting the supervisor that morning, she’d known that she couldn’t allow him to be deposed. The man, quite frankly, had come off as a sexist asshole. If she’d had a hard time buying his reasons for firing the pregnant women, she knew Colby would totally dismantle him under cross-examination. And if Stephanie Atwood and Dawn Everett decided to join Johnae Kearse to form a class-action lawsuit, then Ava was really screwed.
“Damn it,” she muttered under her breath as she boarded the elevator and pushed the button for the lobby. Just as the metal doors began to close, she heard a male voice call out, “Hold the elevator, please!”
Ava pressed the button to keep the doors open for the stranger who stepped into the cab and flashed a grateful smile at her.
“Thanks,” he told her.
She nodded. “No problem.”
He was an attractive light-skinned man who appeared to be in his early forties. His tailored navy suit told Ava he was either there for a job interview, or he worked in senior management.
Openly returning her appraisal, he said, “Ava Cameron, right?”
Surprised, Ava stared at him. “Do I know you?”
“Not exactly.” He smiled, thrusting out a hand. “Scott Dunleavy, vice president of products and marketing.”
So she’d been half right. He was senior management. “Nice to meet you,” she said politely, shaking his hand.
“The pleasure’s mine, Miss Cameron. I want to thank you for representing our company against that woman’s frivolous lawsuit. It’s a shame that we live in a litigious society that encourages people to blame others for their personal shortcomings and failures.”
Ava was taken aback by the mini tirade, which suggested a familiarity between them that she hadn’t invited. “Well, considering that our ‘litigious society’ keeps me employed,” she quipped, “it’d be rather hypocritical of me to complain.”
Scott laughed, the artificial sound setting her back teeth on edge.
She was more than relieved when the elevator reached the lobby.
“Have a nice day, Mr. Dunleavy,” she murmured.
He smiled smoothly. “Same to you, Counselor.”
As Ava stepped off the elevator and started across the lobby, she could feel the man’s gaze boring into her, making her skin crawl.
By the time she reached the parking lot, however, she’d forgotten about Scott Dunleavy, her thoughts returning to the important matter that had brought her to Southern Pacific that morning. In light of what she’d just learned, she needed to be proactive. She didn’t want Colby to begin discovery because she now knew what he merely suspected: Johnae Kearse’s supervisor had discriminated against her and two other pregnant employees.
So now Ava just had to find a way to do damage control, which meant minimizing the financial hit to her cl
ient and keeping the controversial lawsuit out of court and, by extension, out of the media.
Easier said than done, Ava thought cynically as she climbed into her car and dug her cell phone out of her leather Birkin bag.
She sat there for several moments, every part of her dreading the phone call she had to make. Because even though she knew what was at stake—knew what was required of her—she honestly wasn’t sure that she was up for the task.
She’d spent the weekend alternatively castigating herself for having sex with Colby again and reliving every wickedly erotic moment of the encounter.
She was ashamed of herself. She’d violated the rules of professional conduct she was sworn to uphold, thereby putting her client’s interests in jeopardy. She should do the right thing and recuse herself from the case. But her stubborn pride kept her from tucking her tail between her legs and slinking off in disgrace.
She’d made a grievous mistake, no doubt about it. But it wasn’t too late for her to redeem herself. She was an experienced professional, a skilled litigator who’d never backed down from any challenge. Sure, she’d never encountered a challenge that presented as many dangerous pitfalls as her attraction to Colby Austin. But there was a first time for everything.
Either she was ready for the big leagues—or she wasn’t.
Drawing a deep breath to shore up her resolve, Ava lifted her phone and dialed Colby’s number.
He answered on the third ring.
“Ava.” The sound of his deep, dark voice made her shiver. “What can I do for you?”
She closed her eyes, leaning back against the headrest. “Do you have some time to talk?”
“Of course—”
“Great—”
“—but not at the moment. I’m headed into a meeting.”
“Oh.” Ava paused. “Okay, well, just call me back when you’re available. I’d like to resume negotiations.”
“All right.” He didn’t sound surprised, which annoyed her to no end. “Can you come to my office at two?”
She frowned. “Actually, I was thinking we could just—”
“I don’t discuss business over the phone.”
“What?” Her frown deepened. “Why not?”
Merry Sexy Christmas Page 25