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Damn, lately it seemed that he hurt people wherever he went, but he

had to start being honest with Emily. It was unkind of him to continue this

charade with her. He would not make her a good husband. And though Luc

didn‟t know why Alyssa was here, it didn‟t matter. If she was entering his

life again, even for a moment, as long as he had the possibility of being

with her, he would grab it with both hands. Maybe the hot flame of their

passion would burn out, but he didn‟t think so. Either way, they weren‟t

done. If she let him in her life again and came to trust him, he‟d tell her

about his sterility—and let the chips fall.

“You love her,” Emily said softly.

It wasn‟t a question, and Luc refused to insult her with a lie. “Yes.”

Her face crumpled. “You‟re not going to call me again, are you?”

Luc took her hands in his. “Would you really want me to?”

Sighing as a fat tear rolled down her face, she shook her head and

pulled her hands free. “I know it‟s best if you don‟t. For what it‟s worth . . . I liked you very much.”

Damn, he felt like such a prick. “You‟re a wonderful woman, and

someday, someone will make you very happy because he loves
you
, not

the idea of you.”

He bent and kissed her cheek. Then with a tight nod, she raced out of

the little room, spearing Alyssa with a glance as she exited the department

store and out to the crisp autumn afternoon.

The moment she was gone, Luc returned to Alyssa‟s side. She

stepped back as he approached, looking distressed.

“I didn‟t hear anything she said except . . . it‟s your birthday?”

Luc smiled encouragingly. “Having you here is a gift I didn‟t expect.”

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“I ruined your evening.”

No, she‟d saved it. “Not at all. Let‟s grab a bite, and we can talk.”

Luc expected her to refuse. Alyssa hesitated, then sent him a nervous

nod.

Pleasantly surprised at her agreement, he led her to his waiting car, a

new Jaguar he‟d purchased after signing the cable TV agreement two

weeks ago.

As they approached the vehicle, a photographer race-walked across

the sidewalk to reach him, camera flashing. Luc tried to shield Alyssa with

his body, thankful that she‟d donned sunglasses that hid half her face.

“Emily Adams left alone in tears. Is this your new girlfriend?” the

photographer shouted, snapping pictures all the while.

Ouch!
“No comment. Please stop.”

As they neared the car, the photographer followed, and Luc cursed

and ran, urging Alyssa along.

“I should follow you so you don‟t have to drive me back here . . . after,”

she suggested, keeping pace with him.

“I don‟t mind,” he insisted.

She sent him a brittle smile. “You will.”

What did that mean? Had Peter started misbehaving now that he was

out on bail and awaiting his trial? Jack hadn‟t said a word, damn it! He‟d

talked to Deke‟s business partner nearly every day.

“If we want to make a quick exit, it would be best if you just hopped in

the car,” he pressed, unlocking it with his key fob.

“I insist.”

Stubborn to a fault. “Okay . . . Two blocks east there‟s a quiet little

Italian place. I don‟t think the photographer will follow us there if we‟re

quick.”

“They hound you like that a lot now?”

He winced. “Just since I started doing the talk shows. I keep hoping

they‟ll go away. Does Italian sound good?”

“Sure.” The word itself was enthusiastic, but the tone was very

whatever
.

Luc gnashed his teeth. The suspense was killing him. Now he added

worry to the mix. Something was definitely wrong here.

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After she agreed to follow him to the restaurant, he waited for her to

pull around. The photographer ran after him until he couldn‟t jog fast

enough to chase their cars anymore.

The drive to Georgio‟s was the longest five minutes of Luc‟s life. Why

did Alyssa assume that he would mind being with her after dinner? What

the hell was going on? Why did she look so thin and tired? Was Bonheur

weighing on her? Had she come to him for advice?

Finally, he pulled into a parking spot in the restaurant‟s lot. The one

beside him was empty, but she parked farther down the row. Damn. If

Alyssa wanted distance between them, why was she here?

She remained silent until they were seated in a quiet corner. It was

early on Saturday afternoon, long past the lunch rush, but well before

dinner.

“How is Bonheur?” he asked, hoping to entice her to lift her nose out of

the menu and talk to him.

“Fine. I was pleased with the first month‟s tally. This month is looking

even better. Thank you for your help.”

Luc smiled for her, though the mystery of her visit chafed at him. “The

hard work was yours. I just provided a little name recognition opening

week.”

“And then some. I saw you on
Ellen
last week.”

He winced. “Still getting used to the TV thing.”

“You did well.”

“Thanks. The network has arranged a lot of these appearances. They

want maximum exposure before the show actually launches in January.”

The waiter came by and took their drink orders. He ordered a cabernet

sauvignon. She asked for water and refused a cocktail. He frowned, and

asked the waiter to return later for their dinner selections.

“Let‟s order now.”

This instant?
Was she hungry . . . or just didn‟t want to be in the same

room with him any longer than necessary?

Of course the latter. You treated her like a whore
.

Reluctantly, Luc agreed, and they placed their orders. The waiter

finally left them alone.

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Luc turned to Alyssa, willing her to say something. He wanted to touch

her so badly, but not against her wishes. He owed her at least that much.

She sat in silence for long moments, fidgeting nervously.

“Is this about Peter?” he prompted gently. “Jack told me he didn‟t rape

you. I know he‟s free and awaiting trial. The DA has a solid assault and

attempted rape charge.”

She nodded. “Peter still insists he didn‟t write the notes. I don‟t think

we‟ll ever know the truth. But that‟s not why I‟m here.”

He leaned forward, getting a closer view of just how pale and shaky

she was. His worry deepened. “What is it? You can tell me anything.”

“Hell of a birthday present . . .” Her eyes closed. Her face tightened as

she pressed her lips together, as if looking for strength. Then she stared at

him with the deepest regret. “I‟m pregnant.”

Luc recoiled, blinked, stared. “Pregnant?”

Why tell him? Was she trying to claim the baby was . . . his?

“Are you sure?”

Slowly, she nodded. “I missed my period a few weeks ago and thought

maybe it was stress. But days went on, and I noticed changes in my body.”

“Like?” He barked the question at her. Maybe she‟d made a mistake.

Even if she hadn‟t, this child wasn‟t his.

After a horrific teenage illness with a decimating fever, Luc had

learned from his doctors that he‟d been left with a very low sperm count

that made the likelihood of him impregnating someone statistically

insignificant. He‟d been seventeen then, and his reaction to the news had

been mixed, a vague sadness with a whooping cheer that he and his

girlfriend of the moment would never have an “oops.”

The green light to sex in his late teens and early twenties had given

way eventually. He‟d returned to his doctor to have a physical for insurance

purposes at twenty-seven, and he‟d asked to be tested again. Despite

having been involved in ménages with Deke for a few years, he‟d begun

wondering if, maybe, he could find the right woman and have a family of his

own. His doctor had quickly squashed that possibility. Luc had even taken

a prescription drug, clomiphene citrate, for a few months to see if his sperm

count might improve. Further testing revealed his chances of fathering

children were slightly better . . . but still virtually impossible.

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He hadn‟t been tested since. Why bother repeating something so

humiliating? So devastating?

But Alyssa either thought the child was his or wanted him to believe

so. He drummed his fingers against the table, a surge of jealous anger

jolting him. Without knowing Luc‟s secret, she probably thought there was a

fifty/fifty chance he had fathered her child. But apparently, that honor was

Tyler‟s. So why track Luc down in Texas to give him the news, rather than

name her bouncer the expectant father? Because he‟d been on
Ellen
?

Because he‟d signed a sweet cable deal? That didn‟t sound like stubbornly

independent Alyssa, but he couldn‟t think of another reason.

Damn her! As lies went, this one hurt so bad, his insides were about to

implode. The pain of her rejection six weeks ago had hurt like hell, and she

was paying him back in spades.

“My . . . breasts became tender,” she continued into the silence. “I—I

felt like I had the flu. All of a sudden, I couldn‟t eat spicy foods. I was—

am—tired a lot. I saw my doctor yesterday. I‟m pregnant.”

Not by me
. . . And didn‟t that reality taste bitter? He drummed his

fingers on the table again. What the hell did she want him to say?

Congratu-fucking-lations?

“I‟m . . . um, due June seventh.”

Luc had to give her credit. The math worked in favor of the child being

his. Though clearly she‟d been fucking Tyler that week as well.

“And . . . you‟re here because it‟s mine?”

She rolled her eyes. “Whether you believe me or not, you are the only

man I‟ve had sex with in nearly three years. So yes.”

Luc resisted the urge to laugh hysterically. It was either that or swallow

the reality that another man had impregnated the woman he loved and she

now lied to his face. His blood pressure rose, and he drummed his fingers

faster.

Luc opened his mouth to tell her the child couldn‟t possibly be his.

Then he stopped cold.
She’s having a baby who needs a father
.

He swallowed hard. His thoughts raced. What if . . . he didn‟t refute

her? There must be some reason she‟d chosen to pin this on him. Did the

why matter?

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Once, he‟d been eager to marry Kimber, despite the fact he hadn‟t

been in love with her, so he could be a father to the unborn baby she‟d

thought she was carrying. When Emily departed earlier, yet another chance

at fatherhood had walked out the door. Now Alyssa was dropping

opportunity right into his lap. And she came with a bonus; unlike Emily or

Kimber, he had deep feelings for her. More than he‟d ever felt for any

woman, lies and all.

Suddenly, he knew exactly what he wanted. He also knew that after

the way they‟d last parted in Lafayette, he had to play this carefully.

“Say something,” she choked.

Luc hesitated, thinking through his strategy. “Have you told anyone?”

She frowned, then started scooting out of the booth. “If you‟re worried

I‟m going to mess up your new image or screw up your relationship with

your girlfriend, don‟t be. I don‟t want anything from you. I thought I‟d just be

a decent human being and inform you. Duty done.”

Interesting tactic on her part. Reverse psychology?

Luc beat her out of the booth and blocked her path. “That‟s not at all

what I meant. I wanted to know if you‟d told anyone in Lafayette.”

Alyssa bristled. “Like Tyler? Why? There‟s zero chance this baby is

his, so no. I thought I owed you first. When I do tell Tyler, he‟ll probably

come up with some silly scheme to get married . . .”

Luc‟s guts fell somewhere around his toes. Alyssa married to Tyler?

The bouncer playing father to this baby? Over his dead body.

“Now that I‟ve told you about my pregnancy—” She pushed against his

chest.

He refused to budge. Finally realizing that he wasn‟t moving an inch,

she flopped back into her seat and glared at him.

“Now that I know, we should discuss our options,” he said, sitting

again. Luc tried for calm, but his heart raced.

“Options?” she all but shrieked. “I came to inform you in person,

instead of taking the chickenshit way out and phoning you. But I‟m having

this baby. You won‟t push your money off on me and persuade me abort—”

“That‟s the
last
thing I want!” The thought horrified him.

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“Oh.” She looked away. “Look, I‟m not asking for anything. It‟d be great

for the kid‟s sake if you wanted to be involved, but if not . . .” She shrugged.

“Plenty of single moms do it.”

She was independent and determined enough to go it alone. He

admired her tenacity, even as he wanted to shake her.

Luc chose his words carefully. “So you wouldn‟t marry Tyler if he

asked?”

“I haven‟t given it much thought. He hasn‟t actually asked; I‟m just

guessing he might.”

Fairly accurate guess, in Luc‟s estimation. Tyler loved her and would

latch on to any reason to make her his. Besides, the man could argue the

child was his. And he‟d be right. Luc wasn‟t going to allow Tyler that