The Baby Arrangement. Moyra Tarling

him squirm a little in his sleep.

      She watched a shadow pass over Jared’s handsome features at her words, and a look of anger darkened his eyes.

      “Don’t play the innocent with me. You know damned well what I’m talking about.” His tone was icy as he held out his hands toward her. “If you’ll give me my son, we’ll get out of your life.”

      Faith stared in bewilderment at the man’s outstretched hands. Regardless of the deal he’d referred to, a deal she had no knowledge of and one he’d made with Paula, Faith simply couldn’t bring herself to hand Nicky over to him and let him walk out.

      She’d made a promise to look after Nicky until Paula returned from L.A.... It was a promise she intended to keep.

      “I can’t do that,” Faith stated with a calmness she was far from feeling. “Where Nicky goes, I go!” she blurted out, and had the satisfaction of seeing Jared McAndrew’s blue eyes widen with surprise.

      Chapter Two

      Jared held Paula’s gaze for several long seconds. Her announcement had caught him off guard, but what he found even more disturbing was the protective, almost possessive way she was holding on to the baby.

      “Don’t you have an audition to go to?” he asked. “I thought you were anxious to get back to L.A. and your career.”

      “Not at the moment,” Faith responded, yet knowing her twin’s trip to L.A. undoubtedly had everything to do with Paula wanting to resume her acting career. “Besides, how are you proposing to take care of Nicky while you drive? I didn’t see a proper safety seat in your car. Maybe you were planning to toss Nicky into the back seat and let him fend for himself.”

      Jared bristled at her sarcastic tone. In his race to reach San Francisco before she disappeared again, his only thought had been to find his son. He hadn’t considered the need for a car seat to transport the baby home.

      “And where would I find a car seat?” he asked.

      “There’s a baby store in the mall a couple of blocks away. You could drive there now,” she suggested, pleased he appeared concerned with Nicky’s safety.

      “And while I’m driving around looking for a store that probably doesn’t exist, you’ll take Nicky and run,” he countered in a cynical tone. “I don’t think so. But nice try.”

      Faith shrugged her shoulders. She wasn’t lying—the store she’d mentioned was located in a shopping mall only a few blocks away—but his mocking tone left her in no doubt he didn’t trust her...or more accurately, he didn’t trust Paula.

      Somehow she’d have to stall for time, at least until Paula called...if she called. Faith bit back a sigh, wishing that Paula had told her more about the mess she was in, and about the angry, cynical and distrustful man who was Nicky’s father.

      “You’re not serious about coming back to Grace Harbor, are you?” Jared’s question startled her, and she met his gaze head-on.

      “Of course I’m serious,” she responded, anger edging her tone.

      “I thought you couldn’t wait to get out of there.”

      The baby shifted in her arms as if to remind them both of his presence. “Nicky’s only two weeks old. He needs me.”

      Faith saw the pulse throbbing at Jared’s jaw, and knew by the tension emanating from him that he was fighting an internal battle. “How long will it take to get the baby ready?” he asked abruptly. “We have a long drive ahead.”

      Relief spiraled through her. “Half an hour, maybe more,” she said, and without waiting for a reply she swept past him into the hallway.

      Jared let out the breath trapped in his lungs. He didn’t know what to make of Paula’s behavior. She’d sounded sincere just now when she’d said the baby needed her.

      It had to be an act! Giving birth couldn’t possibly have brought about such a dramatic and profound transformation, awakening the maternal instincts she’d assured him she didn’t possess.

      A leopard couldn’t change its spots. And if he’d learned anything about the woman during the five months she’d spent under his roof, it was that while she might have a conscience—why else had she gone through with the pregnancy instead of aborting the child?—her ultimate goal of becoming an actress remained unchanged.

      Jared cursed under his breath. His thoughts drifted back to the first time he’d met Paula. He’d still been living in L.A. then, and they’d been seated next to each other at a dinner party given by one of Jared’s clients. Beautiful and confident, she’d dazzled him with her smile. He’d admired her determination to succeed as an actress.

      Though as a rule he avoided dating would-be starlets, he’d accepted her invitation about a week later to partner her to a party. They’d gone out several times after that, but lost touch once he moved to Grace Harbor.

      But on a visit to L.A., he’d run into her at one of his old favorite haunts. She was celebrating her birthday with friends and insisted he join them. On impulse he’d invited her back to his hotel room for a nightcap. They’d had several, and later he wasn’t sure who had seduced whom....

      When she’d tracked him down to tell him she was carrying his child, he’d asked her to marry him.

      She’d laughed and turned him down. He’d quickly realized she had an agenda all her own, an agenda that didn’t include raising a child.

      That’s when the lawyer in him had taken over. He’d drawn up an agreement, one he believed was in the child’s best interests, one stating she would give him full custody of the baby once it was born.

      The reason he’d wanted to put everything in writing was to protect his son. That desire had stemmed from memories of his own childhood, a childhood spent being dragged around the country by his mother, a struggling actress, who’d been bent on chasing her own dream of stardom.

      He’d grown to hate the life-style she’d subjected him to, the instability, the nomadic existence, and he’d been adamant no child of his would suffer as he had.

      Paula had seemed relieved at his willingness to assume full responsibility for the child. She’d signed the papers without protest, assuring him acting was all she’d ever wanted to do, and that he needn’t worry about her changing her mind. Under the terms of the agreement, Paula had moved in to the guest room at his home in Oregon to await the birth of the baby.

      She’d stuck rigidly to the high-protein diet and regular exercise the doctor had recommended, succeeding in keeping her weight gain to a minimum. But that hadn’t stopped her grumbling about her expanding waistline and complaining daily about how the pregnancy was ruining her figure.

      She’d grown restless and impatient for the birth to be over, and as her due date drew near, Jared had awakened several times during the night to hear Paula talking on the phone. Everything had been going according to plan, and he’d convinced himself she was simply making arrangements for her return to L.A.

      But two days before the baby’s due date, she’d suddenly and inexplicably disappeared, leaving him shaken, confused and very angry.

      After hiring a private detective to find her, he’d called every hospital in Oregon and Washington in an attempt to locate her himself, to no avail.

      The only explanation he could think of for her abrupt departure was she’d had a change of heart... and had decided to keep the baby after all.

      While he longed to reject the notion out of hand, he found he couldn’t dismiss it altogether, not after watching the loving way she’d changed and fed the baby. Nor could he quite forget the hint of sadness he’d glimpsed in the shimmering depths of her green eyes...a sadness that puzzled him.

      Jared frowned. If he didn’t know better, he would almost swear Paula had changed...that she was a different person altogether.