Baby Of Fortune. Shirley Rogers

to her, either, and she’d held back her own thoughts and feelings. It was also obvious that he still wanted to control everything around him.

      However, in the past year she’d changed, grown independent. She was used to making decisions for herself.

      Deep in thought, Heather was unaware of how close Justin had come to her until he reached for her and drew her against him. Caught by surprise, she put her hands flat against his hard-muscled chest. In the past, they’d settled many problems in each other’s arms—the last being when she’d gotten pregnant with Timmy. But she wasn’t going to let him get away with it now.

      Not this time.

      Leaning backward, she put enough pressure in her arms to break his embrace. He frowned, and his lips flattened into a thin line. But he let her go. She stepped farther away, enough to feel as if she could breathe normally again. She hated the way he had of stealing her breath with his mere presence.

      “One month, Heather.”

      The ringing of the telephone startled them both. Heather murmured an apology. “I have to get that,” she said, suspecting it was her mother. Quickly moving across the room, she picked up the telephone receiver on the end table.

      “Hello,” she said. “Oh, Mom. Yes, I know I’m late. I’m sorry.” She glanced at Justin before quickly looking away.

      He watched her talk on the phone with her mother. He’d always liked Kathryn Watson. She was warm and attentive without being controlling or smothering—the kind of mother that he’d always yearned for, the kind of mother he’d never known. Now that he’d met Miranda, Justin thought she, too, seemed to be kindhearted and caring. She’d made an effort to get close to him, but so far he hadn’t been able to totally let his guard down around her—or any of the other Fortunes.

      His reserve around his extended family didn’t include his sister Emma. He and his twin shared a certain respect for each other, a bond that only twins could feel. He’d been amazed by her easygoing nature, despite her troubled past. When they’d met, he’d learned she was on the run from an abusive ex-boyfriend. Had he not been reassured by Sinclair that Emma would be safe with him, Justin would have taken care of her himself. The thought of someone hurting her infuriated him. Justin was pleased that Emma had found Flynn, who loved her and her newborn daughter.

      “I have some unexpected company.”

      Heather’s voice drew his attention, and he wondered what Kathryn would say if she knew it was him. He strained forward to hear what he could of the conversation, and it was obvious she was avoiding telling her mother about him. Well, that was okay. Kathryn would know soon enough that he wanted to reconcile.

      His wife sighed heavily. “It’s Justin, Mom.” She listened for a moment. “I’m going to be a few minutes longer, if that’s okay.” More silence, and her foot tapped the floor nervously. “Thanks, Mom. I really appreciate it.”

      Heather hung up the telephone, then turned to face him. Her expression was shadowed, probably out of a need for self-preservation. But Justin didn’t miss the brief glimpse of awareness in her eyes, and he took that as a sign that she still felt something for him.

      She ran the pink tip of her tongue over her upper lip, and he bit back an oath. He wanted nothing more at that moment than to pull her to him and make love to her, to show her there was an underlying spark between them that they could build on.

      She represented everything he’d worked for in his life—and everything he’d been unable to hold on to. He’d lost the woman he’d loved, his home, and with her unfortunate miscarriage, the family he’d wanted so badly. They’d had a chance once. Was it irrational to believe they could have another?

      He resisted the urge to pull her back into his embrace, and as though she needed to put space between them, she stepped farther away from him and stood beside one of the big overstuffed chairs that decorated the room.

      Her hands tightened on the back of the chair, her knuckles turning white. She looked…wary, and Justin could understand that. He’d deeply disappointed her once, although he’d thought he was doing the right thing by giving her her freedom. It was going to be hard for her to put those unpleasant memories to rest and consider his proposal.

      She held her head high and looked him directly in the eyes. “This is so like you,” she commented. “I mean, showing up so suddenly, making decisions and expecting me to agree to whatever you want.”

      Annoyed by her words, Justin grimaced. “I called and left you a message, letting you know that I’d be coming over.”

      Heather’s gaze swung to the answering machine sitting on the table. The little red message light was blinking. “I haven’t had time to check my messages. As soon as I came in the door, Paul arrived.”

      “Would it have made a difference if you’d known I was coming?”

      “I don’t know.” She searched his face, wishing for even a hint as to what he was thinking. “We didn’t exactly part on good terms.” Truthfully, they hadn’t exactly parted on any particular terms. He had simply walked away from her one day.

      Later, he’d contacted her through his lawyer, who had informed her he would be sending her a monthly check. Once she’d realized that he wasn’t coming back, she slowly started putting her life back together.

      Then she’d discovered she was pregnant again.

      They’d made love one of the last evenings they’d spent together. On her part, it had been a desperate attempt to regain some closeness between them. Heather hadn’t taken precautions, and neither had Justin. Even up to the very end, she’d hoped to have another child. She had foolishly thought another baby would help her marriage, had hoped Justin would love her if she gave him a child.

      But he’d left, anyway. It wasn’t long afterward that she had started missing her periods. When she’d found out she was pregnant, she was elated, yet deeply saddened by the irony of her situation. She realized she was going to have the baby they’d always wanted—only Justin wouldn’t be there to share the joy with her.

      She’d hoped he’d contact her, give her some idea he still cared for her. But he hadn’t, and she had decided at that point not to tell him about her pregnancy. She’d thought about it long and hard. But dealing with his rejection had been so difficult, and she’d known he would have come back to her only because of the baby. Heather just couldn’t live with him knowing that her love wasn’t enough to make him happy.

      For a while, she’d been worried he’d find out somehow, or that their paths would cross and he’d discover the truth. Fortunately, Pittsburgh was a very big city. Justin’s office was across town in the Pittsburgh Plate Glass building, and their house in the elite suburb of Fox Chapel was far enough away that she’d hoped her secret was safe. Apparently she hadn’t had to worry about it. Justin had never even tried to see her—until now, and the friends they’d had had dropped out of her life when she no longer traveled in the same circles.

      Justin’s lips curved into the bare resemblance of a smile. She hadn’t seemed surprised when he’d shown up. “My intent in coming here wasn’t to run roughshod over you.” His gaze was direct. “My motives aren’t suspect. I’m asking you to give us another chance.”

      When she didn’t answer right away, he felt his heart stop. His plans for a reconciliation depended on getting Heather alone with him so he could convince her to give their marriage another try.

      “I don’t know. I need to think about this,” she stated frankly.

      Though he didn’t necessarily like her answer, he decided not to pressure her. He’d give her some time to think about it, then see where that got him. He had a tenacious nature and wasn’t one to give up easily if something was important to him.

      That had a lot to do with his past. It hadn’t been easy getting past abandonment and growing up in foster care. Justin had never been fortunate enough to live with a family who cared about him.

      He