The Heir's Unexpected Baby Read online

  Will this billionaire boss fall for his assistant...and her baby?

  Putting his ravishing assistant in danger makes billionaire investigator Jack Carson uneasy. Till now, Jack’s cared only about running his security company and bringing down the notorious O’Shea family. But using Vivianna Smith to infiltrate their organization has complicated his priorities. And burying himself in work is no longer protecting him from his feelings.

  The seismic attraction he’s been suppressing has been tough enough. But watching Viv care for the baby she’s fostering stirs up emotions from his tragic past. Despite Jack’s certainty that Viv is hiding something, his raging desire is driving him to the limits of his self-control...

  “Exploring this tension between us isn’t a good idea.”

  Wait...what? Jack thought Viv was about to bring up the chemistry between them? He clearly thought of her in that way or this wouldn’t be an issue.

  “I was—”

  “I don’t like tension in my work space.”

  “And you think there’s a problem between us?”

  Why was her whisper suddenly husky like some seductress? She certainly wasn’t trying to seduce him. Not that she’d mind.

  “I think you drive me out of my mind.” Jack took a half step closer. “I blame myself for my thoughts, but I blame you for making me want things I have no business wanting.”

  “I’m not trying to do anything to you. I’m attracted to you, but I know you’re my boss and that’s a line we can’t cross, even if you were interested in me that way.”

  Jack muttered a curse, took a step forward and had her pinned between his hard chest and the wall.

  “If I was interested?” he repeated with a laugh of disbelief. “Do I look like a man who isn’t interested, Viv?”

  * * *

  The Heir’s Unexpected Baby is part of Harlequin Desire’s #1 bestselling series, Billionaires and Babies: Powerful men...wrapped around their babies’ little fingers.

  Dear Reader,

  Welcome to the final Mafia Moguls book, which is also a Billionaires and Babies novel! I hope you’ve enjoyed the journey so far, because Jack and Viv have quite a few twists and turns in store for you—and the infamous O’Shea family.

  These two characters came to me before the first book in this series was ever written. I knew Viv would heal my stubborn, widowed hero. I loved her strength, her determination and her sass from the beginning.

  Jack heals Viv, as well. He’s broken, but refused to face the reality until he’s forced to—and that’s when things get interesting. Poor Jack. He’s fought for years not to fall for his assistant, but he can’t deny the truth any longer.

  I’m so excited to save them for the close of this series and truly believe you’ll love watching them fall into each other. This was one of those books that really pulled my emotions from deep down. The path wasn’t easy—for my characters or me—but we made it to the end! Thank you for coming along for the ride.

  Happy reading,

  Jules

  JULES BENNETT

  The Heir’s Unexpected Baby

  National bestselling author Jules Bennett has penned over forty contemporary romance novels. She lives in the Midwest with her high-school-sweetheart husband and their two kids. Jules can often be found on Twitter chatting with readers, and you can also connect with her via her website, julesbennett.com.

  Books by Jules Bennett

  Harlequin Desire

  What the Prince Wants

  A Royal Amnesia Scandal

  Maid for a Magnate

  His Secret Baby Bombshell

  Mafia Moguls

  Trapped with the Tycoon

  From Friend to Fake Fiancé

  Holiday Baby Scandal

  The Heir’s Unexpected Baby

  Harlequin Special Edition

  The St. Johns of Stonerock

  Dr. Daddy’s Perfect Christmas

  The Fireman’s Ready-Made Family

  From Best Friend to Bride

  Visit her Author Profile page at Harlequin.com, or julesbennett.com, for more titles.

  Join Harlequin My Rewards today and earn a FREE ebook!

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  To everyone who has opened their homes and hearts to foster children...you are truly a blessing.

  Contents

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Epilogue

  Excerpt from Forged in Desire by Brenda Jackson

  One

  “What are you doing here so early?”

  Jack Carson brushed past Vivianna Smith and stepped into her apartment, trying like hell not to touch her. Or breathe in that familiar jasmine scent. Or think of how sexy she looked in that pale pink suit.

  Masochist. That’s all he could chalk this up to. But he had a mission, damn it, and he needed his assistant’s help to pull it off.

  Wouldn’t life be so much easier if Viv were only his assistant? He’d avoided the unwanted attraction for four years, yet the longer she worked for him, the more difficult that was proving to be. And lately, he’d been having dreams. Okay, fine. Fantasies. And she starred in every single one of them.

  How the hell could he even have these thoughts about her? It was flat-out wrong, not to mention unprofessional.

  “I need you to use that charm of yours and get more information.” He turned to face her as she closed the door to her apartment. “You’re going to have to dig deeper into the Parkers’ lives.”

  Clint and Lily Parker were a young couple who had been killed two months ago in a robbery gone wrong. The perpetrators set the Parkers’ house on fire. The only survivor was a sweet infant named Katie...a baby Viv now fostered.

  The burn in his chest was still crippling. Jack wasn’t going down the baby path, not even in his mind. He admired Viv for reaching out and helping a child, as she had so many times over the years. But babies weren’t for him. They never could be if he wanted to keep his heart intact.

  “You’re positive the O’Sheas had something to do with that crime?” Vivianna asked, moving around him to head down the hall.

  With no option but to follow her swaying hips, he fell in right behind her. He was human, and a guy. Where else could he look but those hips? She always had on those damn body-hugging skirts...he believed she referred to them as pencil skirts. Those curves would be the death of him.

  “I know they did,” he confirmed.

  The infamous O’Shea family of Boston was always slipping around the law, ignoring the basic rules of human decency. Jack’s main focus in life was bringing cocky bastards like that down. Every time he went against those believing they were above the law, he saw the person who had killed his wife and unborn child...and still ran free.

  The O’Sheas might run a polished high-society auction house known around the globe, but he knew th
ey were no better than common criminals. And Jack was about to prove to this arrogant family who was in charge. He would bring them down in a spectacular show of justice. And his ticket was the woman who fueled his every fantasy.

  A year ago, Jack had set up the perfect bogus background for Viv. She was working only part-time for the notorious family, but that’s all he needed for her to gain intel.

  The FBI had sought him out, needing someone with his experience and resources to infiltrate the O’Sheas. Since Jack was the best in the business of investigating, of course they needed him. That wasn’t vanity, either, just a fact. Jack could get things done when others couldn’t.

  The millions he’d made hadn’t rolled in by him sitting back and delegating responsibilities. He’d worked his ass off, throwing himself into his work and opening Carson Enterprises when he got home from Afghanistan ten years ago.

  He’d returned to find that he’d lost his entire family while he’d been overseas. What else had there been to live for other than seeking justice anywhere he could?

  Since he’d already made a fortune, he often turned down jobs when they didn’t appeal to him. But the O’Sheas were right in his wheelhouse. They had been in talks with the Parker couple about acquiring some of their antiques when the robbery happened. There wasn’t a doubt in Jack’s mind that this tight-lipped family knew what really went down that tragic night.

  Viv went into the nursery. Heart clenching, Jack opted to wait in the hall—demons and all that.

  He commended Viv for her love of children, the way she fostered with open arms. Over the time he’d known her, he’d seen her with various children, but never an infant. He couldn’t get involved in any of that. The wounds he’d lived with for so long had never healed...probably never would.

  Viv stepped back into the hall, Katie’s head resting against her shoulder. “I need to drop her off at the sitter next door and get to work.”

  Viv was lucky that her next-door neighbor was a retired teacher and widow. She loved kids and took care of Viv’s foster kids when she was working.

  “I’m doing what I can, Jack.” Her eyes held his and he hated how tired she looked. Beautiful, sexy as hell, but still tired. “They’re already suspicious because of the missing data. If I press too hard, they’ll know I’m not who I say I am.”

  Jack hadn’t wanted to put her in this position. But he couldn’t back down when he had a job to do. And that job wasn’t staring at the V in her suit jacket as baby Katie tugged at the opening.

  A flash of a white lacy bra taunted him, making him want to undo those few buttons to see if the lace...

  Damn it. Get a grip.

  She stepped forward, and Jack had to force himself to focus on her face. Which wasn’t a hardship. Viv was part Native American. Her grandmother had been in the Sioux tribe, so Viv had inherited high cheekbones, long, dark hair and deep brown eyes. He’d seen more than one man do a double take her way...and each time, Jack had wanted to throat punch the stranger.

  Guilt banded around his chest like a vise. He shouldn’t be lusting after another woman. He’d had the love of his life; she was gone. Gone because he hadn’t been there to protect her or their baby.

  Getting drawn to Viv was just a by-product of working together for so long. She was the only woman he associated with, other than his housekeeper-slash-chef, Tilly. He admired Viv because she was strong, with an undertone of vulnerability. Add in her striking looks and perfectly shaped curves and it was only natural he be attracted to her. But he had to keep his emotions beneath the surface where he could control them.

  “I’m on your side here,” she told him with a soft smile, pulling him back to the moment. “Why don’t you come over this evening and we can talk more.”

  “I have a conference call this evening with some clients in the UK.”

  Viv gave a slight nod. “Oh, okay. Then tomorrow? I’ll make dinner and we can figure out our next step.”

  Dinner? With her and the baby? That all sounded so...domestic. He prided himself on keeping work in the office or in neutral territory. But he’d come here this morning to check on her...and he couldn’t blame it all on work.

  Damn it. The longer this case went on, the more protective he became—the more possessive.

  “You can come to my place and I’ll have my chef prepare something.”

  There. If Tilly was on hand, then maybe it wouldn’t seem so family-like. Viv often fostered kids who had no place else to go. He had no idea why she’d never settled down and started a family of her own, when it was so obvious she loved caring for children. But that was none of his business. Just because they were associates didn’t mean he had a right to pry into her life. Clearly, she didn’t want to discuss such things or she would’ve brought them up.

  “I can do tomorrow,” she told him, her smile widening. “Katie and I would love to get out of the house. I get off work around four, so I’ll pick her up and be right over.”

  Jack hadn’t had her over with a child before. On the rare occasions he and Viv got together outside the office, it was usually just the two of them. In the past couple years, ever since he started really noticing Vivianna as more than his assistant, he’d tried to keep their social interactions to a minimum.

  “Any requests?” he asked.

  Did her gaze just dart to his lips? She couldn’t look at him with those dark eyes as if she wanted...

  No. It didn’t matter what she wanted, or what he wanted for that matter. Their relationship was business only. Period.

  “Um...no requests.” She shook her head, offered a smile. “Whatever you have will be fine.”

  Jack rubbed his damp palms against his jeans. He needed to get out of here. Between that telling look she’d thrown him, the precious baby still sleeping in her little pink onesie and his lack of sleep from working, his mind was throwing all sorts of impossible scenarios at him.

  Jack crossed to the door and gripped the doorknob. He glanced over his shoulder as Viv closed in behind him. “Be careful, Viv. I don’t want you to take unnecessary risks.”

  She shifted the sleeping baby and tipped her head. “You’ve taught me how to look out for myself. I promise I’ll be fine. See you tomorrow.”

  Jack paused, soaking in the sight of her in that prim little suit, holding the baby. Definitely time to go before he forgot she actually worked for him and took what he’d wanted for months. He didn’t need any more heartache or distractions in his life.

  * * *

  It was finally four o’clock and Viv couldn’t wait to get out of her office at O’Shea’s and go see Jack. Ridiculous, this infatuation she had with her boss. Clichés were definitely not her thing, yet she’d be diving headfirst into his sheets if he gave her the green light.

  Sad. She was a sad woman hoping her boss would notice her. Like she had time for a torrid, steamy affair. She was caring for a child, an infant. There was nothing sexy about the haggard, overworked-mom look. But Viv would never give up fostering. She could still be a mother, yet not get too emotionally attached.

  The heartache of knowing she’d never have her own children was somewhat pacified, yet the underlying hurt was never too far below the surface. But work kept her busy and her attentions focused elsewhere. It wasn’t as if she didn’t have a full load at the moment.

  Viv started at O’Shea’s part-time, which was perfect for her fostering schedule, not to mention that she still worked for Jack, as well. Being single, she had only a handful of people she could count on. Her parents were no longer around and she was an only child. She’d learned some time ago how to be independent, but even so, she needed some help when caring for a child and working outside the home.

  Her quirky neighbor, Martha, was an adorable elderly lady who watched Katie most of the time, but when Viv was in a bind, she’d simply take Katie into the office. Well
, her office with Jack.

  Oh, she “worked” at O’Shea’s, but that was only a cover created by Jack to get her on the inside, up close and personal. Her real employer was one sexy, rich investigator who couldn’t move beyond his heartache to see there was still life out there.

  If it wasn’t work, he wasn’t interested...which was the only reason he’d shown up so early at her house yesterday morning. The man had been through so much pain in his life, it was no wonder he was married to his job. He’d lost his mother when he’d been around nineteen, then he’d seen battle in war. His wife had been killed and he’d never known who his father was... Viv knew just enough details for her heart to break for him, but she wished he would try living again. She’d love to be the one to show him that not everything was harsh and cold...if he would only let her in.

  Viv headed toward the back office of O’Shea’s. Laney, the youngest O’Shea and the only female sibling, was out front dealing with a potential client. Since they had discovered some information had been leaked to the Feds, at least one member of the infamous family was here at all times...which made Viv’s snooping a tad more difficult, considering she was here only about twenty hours per week.

  Circling the antique desk that had been assigned to her in the office, she opened the top left drawer to find a pen. She wanted to jot down some items she needed to pick up from the store or she’d forget.

  Katie was teething and the nights were getting longer and longer. Poor baby. She’d lost her parents and now she wasn’t sleeping. Viv wanted to comfort the sweet girl while she was in her care.

  All kids that came into Viv’s home were precious, and they were all hard to say goodbye to. But Viv stayed strong for them. With this being her first baby, she worried how much more difficult it would be, both emotionally and logistically. She already had a demanding schedule, but she couldn’t turn away this poor orphan who’d just lost both parents.

  At the moment, Katie needed more pain reliever for her swollen gums, and Viv was out of nearly everything. Grocery shopping wasn’t high on the priority list right now. Saving kids, helping Jack, trying to get Jack to notice her as more than a friend...would he ever? Her to-do list seemed to grow by the day.