Page 33 of A Baby to Make Her His Bride

“Jasper,” Hunter said in a tone that held a bevel of warning. “You’re also working on the weekend?”

“I was,” Jasper said, shaking Hunter’s hand in greeting.

“What can I get you to drink?” Hunter moved to the bar.

“It’s so funny to me that you two already know each other,” Amelia said, taking Peyton when the baby reached for her, but dividing her attention between Vienna and Jasper. “It’s a dream come true for me to have you both here. Do you know that? Even when Jasper was missing, I would promise myself that one day he would join my new family for dinner and here we are.” She beamed a huge, emotive smile at the pair of them.

“We can’t stay,” Jasper said flatly.

Amelia’s face fell. “What? Jasper!”

“Jasper,” Vienna urged softly.

“Vienna and I have things to talk about,” Jasper said.

“What things?” Amelia demanded.

“Use my office.” Hunter waved toward the stairs.

“No. We’ll go to my place. Sorry, Melia.” Jasper tried to kiss her cheek, but Amelia brushed him off.

“I made Mom’s meatloaf. Youaskedme to,” she said with annoyance.

“Good thing it freezes,” he muttered. “Let’s go.” He jerked his head at Vienna.

“I’ll have some later,” Vienna promised. If she survived.

She veered her gaze from Amelia’s shocked expression to her brother’s grim, suspicious one before she followed Jasper out the door.

“We could have talked there,” Vienna said beside him as Jasper drove toward his penthouse. “What are they going to think?”

“Who the hell cares what anyone thinks?”

She gasped as if he’d struck her. “That’s really unfair, Jasper. I’ve never had the luxury of not caring what anyone thought about me.”

“I guess you’re right because Ithoughtyou couldn’t get pregnant.” He was still in shock. Feeling tricked. Behind that frontline anger was a closet loaded with emotions he had sealed a long time ago. The ones he was trying to keep at bay while he absorbed this news.

“I didn’t lie to you! For heaven’s sake, Neal—” She cut herself off, covering her eyes in anguish.

He swore silently. He knew what she was referring to. The way Neal had aired that particular detail about their marriage had been inordinately cruel, especially when Jasper had witnessed how devastated Vienna had been over her inability to conceive. He knew the lengths she’d gone to when it came to trying for a baby.

He was searching for the right words to apologize when she cried, “Would youslow down?” She clasped the handle above the door.

He grappled himself under control, easing up on the accelerator, but he took the shortcut with the illegal left turn so he arrived at his building sooner.

He parked and would have come around to her door, but she flung hers open and threw herself from the car, marching wordlessly across the underground parking lot toward the elevator.

She looked really good. That was what he’d been thinking since seeing her on his sister’s sofa, hair loose, minimal makeup, smiling warmly at the baby. Now he took note of the way her blue jeans cupped her ass. He’d already admired the way her bohemian-style top hugged her breasts. On first look, he’d taken it as a comfortable shirt for the changeable temperatures of an early fall day, but now he saw how its loose drape down to her hips made it a subtle and trendy maternity blouse.

How was he supposed to process this?

For the last month, he’d immersed himself in work, finalizing his takeover of REM-Ex while pushing for the investigation that was needed into Saqui’s death. Did he blame Vienna for the fact that Orlin had sailed off into the horizon without facing the consequences for his crimes? Not exactly. Neal had pulled a fast one and was the one who had exposed Jasper, not Vienna. Despite a last-minute scramble for a new plan, Jasper was still able to make headway on cleaning up REM-Ex. Now that he had full access to his finances, he had also ensured Saqui’s family was as comfortable as possible.

What he did resent was how persistently Vienna stayed on his mind. She chased him into his sleepless nights and her name was attached to any headline about him. The trolls and bots had figured out they were a sure-fire combo when it came to clicks.

Even his sister insisted on dropping her name into his consciousness.

Vienna’s home from Germany.

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