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Overview
Colonel Mike Remington wasn'ta man who backed away froma challenge. But the tough,combat-hardened Special Forcesofficer knew he was way out of his league when hecradled an adorable baby in his arms—and an elegant,enticing lady lawyer told him he was the little girl'sbrand-new “daddy”….The only solution to his sudden baby problem wasmarriage—in name only—to the lady lawyer herself. Butthe more time he spent on a secluded Texas ranch withthe beautiful, sensual Savannah Clay—and the more“innocent” kisses they shared—the more he ached to seethis make-believe marriage turn into the real deal….
Product Details
| ISBN-13: | 9781426821141 |
|---|---|
| Publisher: | Harlequin |
| Publication date: | 10/10/2023 |
| Series: | Stallion Pass: Texas Knights , #1 |
| Sold by: | Barnes & Noble |
| Format: | eBook |
| Pages: | 192 |
| File size: | 547 KB |
About the Author
Read an Excerpt
Shut Up And Kiss Me
By Sara Orwig
Harlequin Enterprises, Ltd.
Copyright © 2004 Harlequin Enterprises, Ltd.All right reserved.
ISBN: 0-373-76581-9
Chapter One
What other weird thing will Special Forces get me into? Michael Remington wondered as he glanced around the elegant law office that was located on the main street of San Antonio, Texas.Dark wood walls, polished oak floor, comfortable leather chairs, and the attorney the most decorative part of all. He looked at her silky blond hair, hair that shouldn't be confined in the twist at the back of her head. From the first few moments, when she'd stood in front of her desk, he'd noticed that the lady had fabulous long legs. Besides her legs, she had a face and figure that made a man think of the bedroom-until he looked into her big blue eyes, cold and icy as a Nordic fjord.
He barely listened while she waded through legalese, reading John Frates's will. Mike's best buddies from Special Forces were seated beside him: tough Jonah Whitewolf, a Comanche, one of the best bomb experts Mike had ever known; and next to him, Boone Devlin, chopper pilot deluxe.
Not long after their rescue of John Frates, the three of them had been split up, and they hadn't seen one another until today, the first week of April. Mike was looking forward to their dinner together tonight. A reunion would be a blast, and they could thank John Frates for accomplishing the get-together. Only, John Frates and his wife were no longer living-both had died in a boating accident off the coast of Scotland. It was odd as hell to get remembered in a will simply because you did your job, Mike thought. They had rescued John Frates when he was held hostage in a Colombian jungle, but it had all been part of the mission.
When he heard his name read, Mike's attention returned to the attorney. She was a looker, but the minute he'd walked into her office, they'd clashed. Although he knew there were plenty of female attorneys, he had assumed from her letter, signed S. T. Clay, that she was male. But S. T. Clay was very much female and she had resented his mistaken assumption. If it meant that much to her, she should sign her letters as Savannah Clay. There was no wedding ring on her finger, and Mike wasn't surprised. She might be gorgeous, but she was none too friendly.
"'To Michael Remington,'" the attorney read in her brisk, no-nonsense voice, "'to whom I shall be forever indebted, I leave my most precious possession, the guardianship of my baby daughter, Jessie Lou Frates.'"
A jolt shot through Mike with the impact of a current of electricity. Stunned, he stared at Savannah Clay. He couldn't get his breath, he broke out in a sweat, his ears began to ring and he was unable to hear anything else she said.
Jessie Lou Frates? A baby? He was bequeathed the care of a baby girl? John Frates had called him about a will, but he hadn't said anything about a baby. As far as Mike knew, there hadn't been a baby at the time John called him.
Mike knew absolutely nothing about babies. He'd never wanted to be tied down that way. In his military career he had been through all sorts of life-or-death situations, and he had never felt as light-headed or as nervous as he was right now.
He barely heard the rest of the reading of the will, nor the questions the others asked when it was done. Finally Savannah Clay looked at him.
"You're very quiet, Colonel Remington. Any questions?"
He gazed into those crystal-blue eyes-fabulous eyes, he thought fleetingly. "Yes, I have a lot of questions. If you have a few moments, I'll stay when the others leave so I don't take up their time."
The guys protested, but with a wave of her hand Miss Clay silenced them.
It was another thirty minutes before she closed the door behind them and turned to him. When she did, he rose to his feet to face her across the office.
"I'm not taking any baby," Mike declared. "John Frates never said anything about a baby."
"I understood that he did call you," she replied smoothly.
"Several years ago he called me and said he had recently married and they were writing wills and he wanted to leave something to me, but he didn't say one thing about a child," Mike repeated stubbornly.
Savannah Clay studied Mike with a look that made him think she didn't believe him. "When Jessie was born, John and his wife rewrote their first wills." The attorney crossed the room to return to the seat behind her desk, and in spite of the shock he'd just received, Mike could not help noticing the sexy sway of her hips as she walked. She motioned to him. "Please sit down."
"I can't be responsible for a baby," Mike repeated, wondering how long it would take to get through to her.
"You'll be completely provided for by this will. You'll have the Stallion Pass house, a trust fund for Jessie, a trust for daily living and a million and a third dollars goes into your account tomorrow," she replied as if explaining something simple to a small child.
"Don't put anything into my account," Mike snapped.
"Aren't you listening? I'm not becoming a guardian to this child."
"The Frateses don't have any relatives," Savannah stated. "There is no one else to take her. She's only five months old." The color that heightened her cheeks only added to the good looks he was trying to ignore. She spoke slowly and firmly, as though he was hard of hearing or just too dense to get what she was trying to explain to him.
"She'll become a ward of the state otherwise."
"I'm sorry, but she'll have to become a ward of the state," he replied tersely. "It doesn't change how I feel. There are a lot of children out there that are wards of the state, but I'm not taking any of them, either."
Fire flashed in the depths of blue ice as Savannah's eyes narrowed. "John Frates had the very highest opinion of you, and he placed his faith and trust in you. He praised you beyond measure."
"That's certainly flattering, and I appreciate his opinion, but the guy was grateful because we rescued him. It doesn't change my decision." Mike's tone was forceful.
"Look at this." She shuffled through papers and yanked out an envelope, then came around the desk. She turned a chair and moved close beside him, and he caught a whiff of enticing perfume. When she crossed her legs, his attention was briefly distracted, caught and held momentarily by her long, shapely legs.
Savannah pulled out a picture and placed it on his knee, and the slight contact caused a different kind of jolt, one that settled in a region below his belt. "This is Jessie," Savannah said.
He looked at a picture of a smiling, dimpled baby with curly ringlets of black hair, twinkling blue eyes and rosy cheeks.
"She's adorable, but I'm not changing my mind."
"May I ask why?" Savannah twisted to face him. Their knees were almost touching, and he was aware of her as a very appealing woman, if an annoying one.
"I'm single. I value my freedom and I don't know anything about kids," he replied.
"Maybe it's time you learned."
His annoyance rose a notch. "No, this isn't the right time for a baby in my life. I'm getting ready to join the CIA. I'll be traveling. I can't be encumbered with a baby."
Her eyes narrowed. "That's incredibly selfish of you, Colonel Remington. You're turning down a generous income, a home, a precious baby, simply because you value your freedom?"
"You're getting it now," he said. The woman had the bluest eyes he'd ever seen and the most fabulous legs. And he couldn't wait to get away from her and this unwanted legacy.
(Continues...)
Excerpted from Shut Up And Kiss Me by Sara Orwig Copyright © 2004 by Harlequin Enterprises, Ltd.. Excerpted by permission.
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