Page 5 of The Baby His Secretary Carries

“I know you’ve been taking meetings with headhunters, Molly,” Gio said with a jaded blink.

“What?” It truly felt as though the room was spinning, she was so disoriented by this conversation. “What makes you think that?”

“Valentina said you’ve booked personal time during work hours lately. Afternoons here and there. I respect that.” He shrugged it off. “Everyone should test the waters now and again to find out what they’re worth. Now you’re better prepared for this meeting.”

She really wasn’t. A bubble of hysterical laughter was trapped in her throat because those meetings had been about engaging her for something far more personal than “assistant.”

“Of course, now I’m also prepared,” he said dryly as he tapped a few more keys. “If I must compete for your loyalty, I’ll bring more to the table. This is the salary I’d like to offer with a signing bonus if you commit to at least two years. You’ll hire your own assistant, of course. Valentina said you seemed to like Yu, but she pulled a handful of other résumés she thought might be a good addition to this floor. You’ll have an allowance for wardrobe, since you’ll accompany me constantly. Also, a company expense account and use of a car service. I think you’ll find I’ve been very generous, but by all means, let’s negotiate. No one is irreplaceable, but I’d rather not replace you. Not when we’re so comfortable with each other.”

Comfortable? That was the last thing she felt around him!

Dear Lord, those numbers on the screen were positively blinding.

Whydid he have to offer her dream jobnow? She had not only agreed to be a surrogate for Sasha, but she was also three months pregnant with the couple’s baby!

She couldn’t take this job. Not only was it demanding as hell, but she also couldn’t become visibly pregnant, take a few weeks off, then come back without a baby. There would be alotof questions.

The thought of refusing made her want to cry, though.

“This is a lot to take in,” she managed to say in a cracked voice. “I won’t leave you in the lurch now that Valentina is gone, I swear. But I’d like a few days to give more thought to all of this.”

He sat back, tongue sliding across his teeth behind his closed lips as he used his laser vision to x-ray her insides. Could he see the baby?

For some reason she blushed and dropped her gaze, feeling transparent in other ways. Could he see how deep her crush went?

“Are you romantically involved with someone?” If there was gruff dismay in his tone, it was work-related, she knew that, but his question made her nerves go taut.

“No.” Her throat was hot. She watched her own fingers torture themselves. Dating was a nonstarter. She compared everyone to him, but she couldn’t help pointing out, “Not that you’re allowed to ask that.”

“I was asking as a friend.” His tone was heavy with irony. “I understand why you want time, Molly. That’s another reason I know you’re right for this job. You’re not impulsive. You manage a crisis with a cool head and not a lot of hand-wringing. Typically.” His gaze penetrated the marble desktop as though he knew she was knitting an invisible scarf in her lap.

She could have laughed uproariously at his judgment of her. He should have been in that stateroom with Sasha eight months ago, when a mere hour after reuniting with her friend, she had declared, “I’ll do it. I’ll be your surrogate.”

She had no regrets. None. But she hadn’t thought she would inconvenience Valentina with her absence. An assistant to an assistant was an easy job to cover. Executive assistant to a man like Gio required near twenty-four-seven accessibility. Travel at a moment’s notice. He needed to be comfortable granting access to his most personal details—which woman required flowers after staying over, for instance.

A potent silence grew between them as she searched for some way to explain her reluctance. Dare she explain that her recent meetings were medical in nature? That’s what she had been planning to tell Valentina. She had a note from a doctor and everything.

The burble of an incoming call had him glancing at the screen and hitting a button.

“Valentina,” he said crisply. “Molly is here with me and she’s being modest, trying to persuade me that she’s not qualified.”

“Gio, I’m so sorry.” Valentina’s cultured, boarding-school accent had never sounded so pained. “Ilario called me. He didn’t know that I’ve been sent to— It’s your grandfather. He’s very ill and refuses to see a doctor. Would you like me to meet you in Genoa or...?”

As Molly watched the color drain from Gio’s swarthy complexion, her heart was nearly pulled from her chest. It was well known that he was estranged from his parents. His grandfather had raised him and the pair were very close.

She snapped into the reliable assistant she had trained so scrupulously to become.

“I’m here, Valentina. I’ll arrange everything and go with him. It sounds like you have your hands full, but please keep your line open. I’d like to know I can call with any questions that might arise.”

“Absolutely. Thank you, Molly. Keep me posted.”

“I will.” Molly stood and reached across to hit the button that ended the call. “I’ll have the jet readied.”

“Signor.”Ilario was themaggiordomohere in Gio’s grandfather’s Portofino villa. He had worked for the family since Ottorino’s marriage sixty years ago.

“He’s in his room?” Gio asked.

“Sì.”

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