The Baby In The Back Seat

He brushed her cheek with his fingertip. “Not what you think, although it’s worth consideration.”

Laura tried to be nonchalant, but her body warmed just being in Sam’s arms. “Are you saying I’m safe with you?”

“For now.” His wicked grin belied his words.

“You’ll warn me if things change?” she asked.

Sam sat down and put his arms behind him. “Look, you could do anything to me, and I won’t touch you.”

Laura’s gaze locked with is. “Anything?”

“Anything.”

Gathering her courage, Laura brushed his cheek the way he’d brushed hers. He didn’t blink. She bent to his upturned face and kissed his mouth. When she felt his lips respond to hers, she drew back. “Maybe that’s enough for now.”

“Yes,” he agreed in a throaty voice that told her he was just as affected by the kiss as she was.

She gazed at him quizzically, wondering where to go from here.

Dear Reader,

Welcome to Harlequin American Romance, where you’re guaranteed upbeat and lively love stories set in the backyards, big cities and wide-open spaces of America.

Kick-starting the month is an AMERICAN BABY selection by Mollie Molay. The hero of The Baby in the Back Seat is one handsome single daddy who knows how to melt a woman’s guarded heart! Next, bestselling author Mindy Neff is back with more stories in her immensely popular BACHELORS OF SHOTGUN RIDGE series. In Cheyenne’s Lady, a sheriff returns home to find in his bed a pregnant woman desperate for his help. Honor demands that he offer her his name, but will he ever give his bride his heart?

In Millionaire’s Christmas Miracle, the latest book in Mary Anne Wilson’s JUST FOR KIDS miniseries, an abandoned baby brings together a sophisticated older man who’s lost his faith in love and a younger woman who challenges him to take a second chance on romance and family. Finally, don’t miss Michele Dunaway’s Taming the Tabloid Heiress, in which an alluring journalist finesses an interview with an elusive millionaire who rarely does publicity. Exactly how did the reporter get her story?

Enjoy all four books—and don’t forget to come back again in December when Judy Christenberry’s Triplet Secret Babies launches Harlequin American Romance’s continuity MAITLAND MATERNITY: TRIPLETS, QUADS & QUINTS, and Mindy Neff brings you another BACHELORS OF SHOTGUN RIDGE installment.

Wishing you happy reading,

Melissa Jeglinski

Associate Senior Editor

Harlequin American Romance

The Baby in the Back Seat

Mollie Molay

www.millsandboon.co.uk

To the Baby’s godmothers, Betty, Joan, Aline, Linda and Ann and RisaLee for ten long years of friendship.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

After working for a number of years as a logistics contract administrator in the aircraft industry, Mollie Molay turned to a career she found far more satisfying—writing romance novels. Mollie lives in Northridge, California, surrounded by her two daughters and eight grandchildren, many of whom find their way into her books. She enjoys hearing from her readers and welcomes comments. You can write to her at Harlequin Books, 300 East 42nd St., 6th Floor, New York, NY 10017.

Books by Mollie Molay

HARLEQUIN AMERICAN ROMANCE

560—FROM DRIFTER TO DADDY

597—HER TWO HUSBANDS

616—MARRIAGE BY MISTAKE

638—LIKE FATHER, LIKE SON

682—NANNY & THE BODYGUARD

703—OVERNIGHT WIFE

729—WANTED: DADDY

776—FATHER IN TRAINING

799—DADDY BY CHRISTMAS

815—MARRIED BY MIDNIGHT

839—THE GROOM CAME C.O.D.

879—BACHELOR-AUCTION BRIDEGROOM

897—THE BABY IN THE BACK SEAT

Dear Reader,

My father used to say children were life’s dividends, and grandchildren were bonuses.

The first time I fell in love with my own little dividend was when my first daughter, Elaine, was put into my arms. When my second little dividend was born, I named her Joy. Because that’s what she and her sister were and are to me.

My grandchildren, my little bonuses, have brought love, laughter and meaning into my life. Although most children learn to walk, talk and give hugs, when mine did, it seemed unique.

I’ve included each of them and their exploits in each of my stories in some way. There is an Annie, and I hope you enjoy her as much as I do.

Mollie Molay

Contents

Prologue

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

Epilogue

Prologue

Sam Harrison stood in front of the house and gazed stoically at the SOLD banner nailed across the FOR SALE sign on the manicured green lawn. The small three-bedroom tract home wasn’t a mansion by any stretch of the imagination, but he’d been proud to present it to Paige as a wedding gift. Too bad his flight-attendant wife had been more excited about gaining a slot on a Denver-to-London flight than about having a home.

Living solo hadn’t been very rewarding. Thursday he’d been in Europe, Friday in Florida, and today he was home in Colorado. Except he had no home anymore.

Fifteen months ago he’d been happily married.

Fourteen months ago he’d learned he was to be a father.

Six months ago baby Annie came into the world and crept into his heart at first glance.

He’d been hurt, even humiliated at the divorce, but it was all his fault. He should have taken the time to find out if Paige had a nesting instinct, not an unfulfilled case of wanderlust.

The unexpected arrival of an infant daughter had been another gift that hadn’t pleased his ex-wife for long. The “friendly skies” still seemed to hold a greater charm than motherhood.

He didn’t mind losing the house, nor, now that he was able to think of it more dispassionately, did he mind the divorce. After Paige had announced their marriage had been a mistake, he’d taken no pleasure in staying where he wasn’t wanted. It was losing out at fatherhood that hurt.

After being persuaded a newborn baby was better off with her mother, it had been leaving Annie, a small part of himself, that broke his heart.

His ex-wife appeared in the doorway. “Good. You’re just in time. The movers will be here any moment.”

Sam took a deep breath and strode to meet her. “Sorry. I would have shown up sooner, but I had an assignment to finish.”

“You always have an assignment to finish,” she answered with a shrug. “Come on in—this won’t take long. I have your things here inside the door.”

Sam followed her into the house and briefly thought of the broken dreams the house represented. “I’ll leave as soon as I say goodbye to Annie.”

Under Paige’s watchful eye, he went into the bedroom where Annie was sleeping on her back with a tiny finger in her rosebud mouth. She looked so peaceful he didn’t have the heart to wake her. Instead, he tucked the blanket closer around her tiny shoulders and leaned over to place a kiss on her forehead. He held his breath when Annie stirred. For a hopeful moment Sam thought she was about to open her eyes. Instead, a frown appeared on her forehead, and she fell back to sleep.

Paige lingered by the doorway. “You really go for this fatherhood bit, don’t you?”

Sam swallowed the lump that threatened to undermine his reluctant acceptance of the status quo. He’d wanted to be a father from the moment he’d lost his own father as a young boy. A loving father who would be there for his child. To watch over his child in good times and in bad and to give it the security he hadn’t been lucky enough to know himself.

For too short a time marriage to Paige and Annie’s arrival seemed to fulfill that dream. As for leaving Annie, he understood a baby needed to be with her mother, but at least he’d gotten visiting rights. Maybe even weekend custody or holidays when she grew older.

Ignoring Paige’s comment, he took in the heart-shaped baby face, the golden-brown eyelashes, the tendrils of light-brown hair and the tiny lips that had accepted him without question. What would he do without her?

He turned to look at Paige. “Can’t we stay friends? For Annie’s sake if not our own?”

Paige hesitated, glanced at the sleeping baby. “Sure, I guess.”

With a last look at his infant daughter, Sam straightened. “Thanks. By the way, you will let me know when you get to your mother’s, won’t you? I’d like to made some arrangements to see Annie as often as I can.”

His ex-wife shrugged. “Sure.”

Sam went to the door, lifted a box that contained some of his personal belongings and headed for his rental car just as a moving van drove up. “I’ll be back in a minute,” he said over his shoulder. “I want to make sure I get the photography equipment I left in the garage.” Paige went into the house.

Fifteen minutes later Sam reappeared around the front of the house with a box in his arms. The rest of his belongings and his suitcase had been moved. Paige stood by the side of his SUV.

“I had one of the movers put your things in the car for you,” she said, and held out her hand. “I guess this is goodbye.”

“Thanks,” he answered dryly as he shook her hand. With a last regretful glance at the house, he got into the SUV, waved once and drove away.

Chapter One

A baby cried.

Clicking off the car radio, Sam peered anxiously at the map furnished by the car-rental agency in Grand Junction and frowned. He didn’t know what bothered him more: finding himself on an unmarked county road or the unwelcome reminder he’d left his infant daughter behind with his ex-wife a few hours ago.

As much as he would have liked to be a real father, he’d never managed to spend more than an hour or two with Annie. First, because he’d never felt welcome in his own home, and second, because his obsession with photography kept getting in the way. Which condition had contributed to his divorce was beyond him, but this proposed shared custody when Annie was older twisted in his gut.

He consoled himself with the thought that he’d be able to see the baby between assignments. And that when she got old enough for him to care for, he’d call in his shared-custody rights. Until then, she was better off with someone who knew how to take care of her.

Suddenly aware he should have been at his destination by now, his thoughts turned to the immediate problem.

As a photojournalist, he’d flown, driven and hiked to more offbeat and secluded places than he could count. He’d won half-a-dozen awards for his photo stories and had the trophies to prove it. Heck, he was even an internationally known photojournalist.

Until today, he’d managed to find his way around without a problem. So how in hell had he managed to get himself lost on a dirt road on the western slopes of the Colorado Rockies?

He didn’t really mind getting lost, he told himself as he peered out the window, trying to pinpoint his present location. The surrounding terrain was beautiful and so photogenic his fingers itched to grab his camera. He’d start shooting the miles of fresh green grass that, after last night’s rain, glistened in the afternoon sun. Or he’d capture the shadows cast by the ragged mountains just beyond the horizon.

Too bad he’d packed his cameras in the back, he thought wryly. He couldn’t reach one without pulling off the road and rummaging through the boxes packed on the back seat of the car. Or in the cargo space, which was full of his belongings.

With a rain-soaked dirt road under the wheels, capturing on film the majestic green peaks was tempting, but it would have to wait until he reached his destination. If ever.

Getting lost really bothered him. Losing control. He was a man who wrote his own rules, traveled when, where and how he wanted and lived the good life. In his book, that meant being in charge.

To his growing disgust, he wasn’t in charge now.

In the background, he heard a baby whimper.

Sam frowned and checked the car radio. It wasn’t on. With a shrug he laid the sound down to an overactive imagination triggered by a guilt trip at having driven away from the one person he loved more than life itself—Annie.

The baby whimpered again, a demand for attention if he’d ever heard one, he thought miserably as he glanced through the rearview mirror.

The sight of the back of an infant car seat buckled on the back seat sent his adrenaline into overdrive.

A baby? Annie? If this was Paige’s idea of a joke, it was a damn poor one.

His attention momentarily diverted, the large white rented SUV bumped into a pothole, slid and, to his mounting horror, shot across a narrow ditch and aimed straight for an ancient weathered fence. His heart thundered as he threw all of his 180 pounds into stomping on the brakes. To his mounting dismay, the car skidded on the muddy road and continued on its wayward course straight for the fence.

Cursing his luck, Sam broke into a cold sweat. A giant stab of pain tore at his forehead. Terror washed over him as he realized the wheels had no traction. Heaven only knew where he would wind up. Or, if he was lucky, that the SUV would end up in one piece.

It wasn’t himself he was thinking about—it was the baby in the back seat he’d heard crying. He gritted his teeth.

Instead of coming to a stop, the SUV tore through the fence rails, careered up a small slope and crashed into a small water tower, with predictable results. As if in slow motion, the tower swayed, toppled and showered the car with a torrent of water. With a muffled curse, he wrested the door open, bounded out and headed for the rear door to rescue the baby in the back seat.

The baby was indeed Annie, and she was demanding attention in the only way she knew how. Tears rolled down her pink cheeks. Hiccups shook her tiny frame. To his relief she opened her eyes and smiled through her tears when she saw him.

Shielding her from the water with his body, Sam hurried to unfasten the baby carrier, grabbed it in his arms and stumbled away from the soaked SUV to dry land.

Annie’s brown eyes, golden-brown hair and teary smile brought a lump to his throat and questions to his mind. How had Annie gotten into the SUV?

A close look revealed a note pinned to her blanket.

“Sam,” he read with dismay, “I saw the way you looked at Annie when you said goodbye. I realized then she was better off with you than with me. By the time you read this, I’ll be on my way to Paris. Don’t bother to call me. I’ll call you. Paige.”

His heart beat double-time as he realized this was the reason Paige had been so anxious to help him load his belongings and to send him on his way.

He managed to muster a smile to reassure his infant daughter. There was no use scaring her, he thought as he regarded tiny teeth between quivering lips. A little dimple on her chin, a duplicate of his own larger one, clinched the deal. Annie was his responsibility.

Annie had been the unplanned result of a brief visit home fifteen months ago. Because of his commitments, he’d only seen her twice since she’d been born six months ago. Once, when she was born and her mother had shocked him by telling him she planned a divorce. The second, a few short hours ago when he’d kissed Annie goodbye.

His heart finally slowed enough so he could take a deep breath. It wasn’t only the accident that gave him pause. It was the thought of taking on the responsibility of raising a child on his own. Especially one as young as Annie.

One thing for sure, fatherhood had to be a daunting experience under any circumstances.

In his case, he honestly knew zip about babies. If Annie didn’t fit into her mother’s schedule, she didn’t fit into his own nomadic career, either.

He gazed at his infant daughter. She might have been unplanned and her presence in the SUV unexpected, but he loved every tiny inch of her.

His lifestyle was definitely going to have to change.

His immediate problem, aside from having Annie with him, was the car’s busted radiator. He wasn’t going anywhere anytime soon.

He took a deep breath to calm his nerves and smiled his reassurance at the baby. Good thing she couldn’t know he hadn’t the foggiest idea of what to do now. Not with her or the car, either.

Shouts, the excited barking of a dog and the sound of a galloping horse drew his attention. In the distance he saw a rider bearing down on him. Thank God, he thought as he jiggled the baby carrier; help was on its way.

He drew a deep breath and fought to think of a lucid answer to the question that was surely coming. What in hell had caused him to crash through the fence and take down the water tower?

A baby’s cry? No one in his right mind would believe him. After all, from his limited experience he knew babies cried all the time.

He hadn’t known the baby was there? How could he explain he hadn’t known Annie was in the back seat until he heard her cry? True, but no one would buy that story, either.

Explain that his ex-wife must have put the baby in the SUV while he was picking up the last of his belongings and about to leave home for the last time? That was the truth but just as unbelievable.

The rider bore down on him. There was something about the guy’s body language that told him not to expect a welcome. He clutched the baby carrier and took a step back.

“Just what did you think you were doing?” the irate rider shouted. He pulled the horse to a halt inches away from Sam’s nose and glared down at him.

Sam swallowed hard. He didn’t blame the guy for being angry, but the look on his face was more than anger. The guy was furious.

“Sorry, mister,” Sam began, then stopped short when he realized the person confronting him was a woman. And not an ordinary woman. This one had a rifle resting in the crook of her elbow and looked ready to use it.

He did a double take and took another step backward. He couldn’t help himself. Up close the woman looked interesting, if dangerous. She was dressed in a well-washed blue cotton shirt and tight worn jeans. Long trim legs were encased in soft leather boots that, like the ranch behind her, had seen better days. From her boots to her gold windblown hair, she was all woman. A woman with sparkling green eyes that would have reminded him of green meadows in springtime if she hadn’t been so angry. Right now, her eyes looked like twin tornadoes.

Her eyes widened when she finally focused on the infant carrier in his arms. She let loose with the barrage of questions he’d known were coming. “What in heaven’s name were you thinking? How could you drive so irresponsibly with a baby in the car?” Before he could answer, she went on, “Is the baby all right? You’re lucky the two of you weren’t killed!”

“I didn’t know she was there,” Sam protested when the woman stopped to catch her breath. He straightened his back and attempted a smile. What was he apologizing for? After all, he was innocent. “That is, I didn’t know she was there until I heard her cry. Her crying startled me and made me lose control of the car.”

Behind him, the last wooden support of the water tower fell with a thud, and the last of the water it had contained drained out like a creek that had broken through its banks.

Sam and the woman on the horse surveyed the scene in silence. He was trying to think of something to say when she spoke for him. “Great driving,” she finally said with a look of disgust.

Sam had intended to try to charm his way through the confrontation, but it was obviously no use. The lady was mad as hell at the destruction of her property. He looked back over his shoulder at the muddy tire skids, the broken fence, the pile of wood and corrugated tin that had been a water tower. Considering the amount of devastation he’d caused, he couldn’t blame her. He hoped she had no thoughts of using the gun she held. “Don’t worry. I’ll pay for the damages.”

“You didn’t know the baby was there?” she echoed, ignoring his offer. Her eyes narrowed, and she studied him closely. Close enough to make him shiver under his soaked clothing, even though the sun was shining. “Been drinking?”

“No way!” Sam answered, juggling the carrier so that Annie wouldn’t think he’d forgotten her. “The God’s honest truth is that my ex-wife put the baby in the back seat of my car without telling me.”

“Try again,” his inquisitor said dryly. “Sounds like a custody argument to me. Are you sure you didn’t take the baby when your ex wasn’t looking?”

Sam was insulted. He’d been called a lot of things, but never anything as bad as this. “Good Lord! Do I look like a kidnapper?”

When the woman raised an eyebrow, Sam felt like a fool. She was right. He might not look like a kidnapper, but he did look foolish.

Between the damaged SUV, his own wet and muddy condition, the baby in the carrier and the woman on horseback holding a gun, things were beginning to look like a TV sitcom. Only he didn’t feel like laughing.

“It’s the truth. When I stopped to pick up my belongings at my ex’s request, Paige must have put the baby carrier with Annie into the car. I swear, this came as a complete surprise.”

The rider’s raised eyebrows suggested her disbelief, but he was beyond caring. It was beginning to look as if this mishap could wind up as a case of life or death. Or jail.

He was ready to admit that in his case truth was stranger than fiction. He might be innocent of kidnapping, but he sure hoped smashing a fence and a water tower weren’t shooting offenses around here.

Now that she’d cooled down, Laura had to bite her lip to smother a laugh. The man’s story was too ridiculous to be a fabrication, but it didn’t get him off the hook. The damage he’d caused couldn’t have come at a worse time. She silently surveyed the destruction. Repairing the fence and putting up a new water tower would set her back months if he didn’t have the funds to do the job. She saw hundreds of dollars, maybe thousands, in repairs facing her. Money she didn’t have and wasn’t likely to borrow in time to prevent the loss of her herd, small though it was.

As for the baby smiling at her from the infant seat, she definitely had her father’s coloring and, in any case, was too cute to ignore. From the way things looked, she was in need of some tender loving care.

Laura studied the baby’s father. She’d been around men long enough to sense he was a man’s man, even if he didn’t know how to drive. He was larger than life, handsome, tall and lithe. A brown-and-white shirt was stretched taut across his chest. Long legs were encased in stone-washed jeans and ended in brown leather boots. His clear chocolate-brown eyes, so like the baby’s, met hers in a way that made her all too aware of him. So what if his glance and the muscular chest showing under his wet shirt warmed her middle? She had more important things to think about than a sexy man.

Keeping her mind on saving the ranch from being sold from under her was her number-one priority, and he wasn’t helping.

She smothered a sigh. Whatever the outcome of his unexpected arrival, the stranger was someone she wouldn’t easily forget after he was gone. As for the baby…well, she couldn’t afford to dwell on her, either.