him. Then went to the stuffed animals and picked out a generic brown bear with sweet eyes. “And pair it with this. So you have something for mom and something for baby. Done.”
Vince nodded as if her explanation made sense and approved of her selection. After paying, they headed for the maternity ward. They rounded the corner and saw the balloons festooning the entrance to the room and suddenly, it occurred to Emma that she was about to meet the entire Buchanan clan as if she were a girlfriend or something more permanent than the true circumstances. A sadness pulled at her when she found herself wishing that it were true. Was this neediness a consequence of mind-blowing sex? She’d never felt this intense pull toward anyone in her life. Not to mention, she’d never been so insanely attracted to the same man she wanted to murder in the same breath. The whole situation was confusing. Even now, the idea of angry sex had begun to have some appeal. And that was plain crazy! One thing was for sure, she was going to have to gird her female loins because her hormones were dancing a lively tune that was hard to ignore, no matter all the good reasons why she ought to run as fast as she can in the opposite direction of wherever Vince was standing.
#
Vince didn’t know why he brought Emma along when he could’ve easily dropped her off with Laird but the idea of being separated from Emma didn’t appeal to him at all. He wanted her around to keep an eye on her, he told himself but deep down he knew that might be horseshit. He supposed if he was going to lie to himself, he ought to, at the very least, come with something more inventive.
When he looked at Emma, a hunger he’d never known curled itself around his insides and squeezed really hard, but instead of feeling as if it was killing him, it made him yearn for more. Weird, wacky shit — and he wasn’t happy about it. For a while he’d dabbled in illicit drug use and the way he felt about Emma reminded him of that time — intense, frightening and addictive. He wanted more of her. He wanted to know everything about her, from the mundane to her innermost secrets. Like that’s going to happen. She looked angry enough to spit nails in his direction.
Not that he blamed her. He’d been a dick. That was his specialty, of course. Breaking hearts, being heartless, either/or take your pick, he excelled in both.
But as he entered the hospital room, intent on making a perfunctory visit and then splitting with Emma, the moment he saw Dillon holding a tiny bundle, tears streaming down his brother’s face, everything slowed to a stop and became almost surreal. They were all there, Nolan and his wife and daughter, Dillon, Penny and the new baby.
“There he is,” Penny acknowledged with a tired smile, motioning them into the room. Her gaze moved to Emma with a faint question but she let it go and he was grateful. Penny was the only one who might raise an eyebrow and give him a ration for his actions. Thankfully, it seemed giving birth had taken the fight right out of her for the moment. Vince hugged her and pecked a chaste kiss on her cheek before pulling away and handing the gifts to her. Penny accepted the flowers and smiled. “Beautiful. Can you put them on the nightstand for me?”
“Of course,” Vince said, hastening to move them for her. He propped the bear up next to the lamp and moved to Dillon to peek at the baby. “Well? Boy or girl?”
Dillon looked at Vince with such pride as he answered, “A boy” that even Vince’s throat closed with emotion. “Robert Dillon Buchanan. Isn’t he perfect?”
Vince peered at the tiny bundle and before he could protest, Dillon put the baby in Vince’s arms. “Wait,” Vince said, terrified that he might break something so small and vulnerable. He shot an uncertain look at Emma and her small, almost reluctant smile shot something pure and sweet straight to his heart. For a blink he imagined what it might be like to be holding his own son in his arms and he never knew such unimaginable pain. What kind of father would he possibly make? He was corrupt to the core — willing to do whatever suited him to get his way — just like his own father had been. The baby made a cooing sound and yawned, his tiny fingers flexing beneath the blanket without a care in the world and Vince handed the baby back to his brother. “He’s perfect,” Vince agreed, his voice choked. “I’m sorry I missed the big event. I’ll put an extra ten thousand in his college fund for penance.”
“That’s not necessary,” Penny said, chuckling, then gestured to Emma. “Aren’t you going to introduce your friend?” She didn’t wait and if she saw the look Nolan and Dillon shared, she chose to ignore it. “Hi, I’m Penny. I’m sorry Vince has terrible manners but then he’s not known for his charm.”
“I’m Emma Winters,” Emma said, introducing herself. “Congratulations on the new baby. He’s precious.”
“Thank you.” Penny smiled with pure joy and then returned to Emma, which was Vince’s cue to make their exit. Penny would dig and dig until she found the answers burning up her brain because that’s just how Penny was. “So…you’re the girl who was attacked at the club?”
Vince glared, unable to believe Penny had just gone for the jugular like that. “Penny, you should rest. We’ll let you get some shut eye.”
“I’m not made of porcelain and if I was, pushing my sweet bundle of joy out of my lady parts would’ve broken me so don’t act all defensive with me. I know what’s going on. I need to know how Emma is doing. This is the first time I’ve had a chance to talk to her. In fact, why don’t you all go get a coffee or something while I chat with Emma for a minute.”
“Absolutely not,” Vince growled, hating the very idea of Penny spending any amount of time with Emma. Penny was a terrible influence and worse, she knew too much about him. He looked to Dillon. “Talk some sense into your wife, please. She’s plainly delirious.”
Dillon handed the baby to Penny and shuttled them all from the room in spite of Vince’s sputtered protests, saying, “If there’s one thing I’ve learned throughout this pregnancy, Penny will not be denied when she puts her mind to something. Let’s go get some coffee. It’ll give us a chance to talk, too.”
Vince caught Emma’s worried expression as he was dragged from the room. Yeah, he knew how she felt. He was worried, too.
-12-
“Come, sit by me,” Penny said, waving Emma closer and patting the bed. “I am so exhausted that I don’t know how long I’ll last before straight passing out. Don’t let anyone tell you that having a baby isn’t like pushing a bowling ball out of your vagina because it is.” She stopped a minute to stare lovingly at the baby, then added softly, “But one thing they do say and it’s true…all the pain is worth it.”
“Thanks for the advice but I don’t think I’m having kids anytime soon,” Emma said and inexplicably her thoughts shot to Vince. Ha! As if. Like he would want to be a daddy. Good lord, had her ovaries just tingled? “Pardon me if I seem rude but it’s hard for me to be all Kumbayah with you people when you know that Vince practically kidnapped me and is holding me hostage.”
“Yeah, that wasn’t very gentlemanlike of him but he’s a bit of a brute that way. Woman to woman, though…it’s a little hot, right? Vince was always a bit of a caveman dressed in an Armani suit.”
Emma’s cheeks flared. Was she less of an independent woman if she admitted that Vince was the hottest man she’d ever laid eyes on? “Not the point,” she answered, stubbornly refusing to admit to anything.
Penny sighed. “Honestly, I don’t have a lot of time before he comes to his senses and barges back into this room and drags you off. Here’s the thing, Vince is probably the most wounded individual I’ve ever known and that’s saying a lot considering I know all the Buchanan brothers and their secrets.”
“Yeah? And why is that?”
Penny chuckled and shrugged as she answered, “It’s a long story but suffice to say I know all three very well. Biblically you could say. And, well, they’re all good men but they try really hard to hide that fact. Vince more so than the rest.”
“Wait a minute…are you saying that you’ve slept with all three of the Buchanan brothers?” Emma asked, staring.
“Yes. I don’t reg
ret it either because if I hadn’t, I wouldn’t have realized that Dillon was the only one for me.”
“Oh, wait a minute.” Emma’s brain reeled with the shocking information. Had she just slipped into an alternate dimension? “I need to wrap my brain around that for a minute…you’ve slept with all three? Why?”
“They bought me. Well, the twins bought me but then when I realized I only wanted Dillon, I broke our arrangement. It’s a little on the sordid side but a great story. Probably one I won’t share with the kids, though. And do me a favor and don’t bring it up around Dillon because it makes him grouchy. He doesn’t like to share in the least.”
“Me neither,” Emma countered dryly, shaking her head at the crazy conversation they were having. But what the hell? Her life was completely unrecognizable at this stage and it was all because of the Buchanans. “So…why are you telling me all of this?
“Because I see the way you look at Vince and the way he looks at you. I’ve never seen Vince look at a woman like that. Not even me. But there might’ve been once, before my time…her name was Isabel. If you want to crack that wall around Vince’s heart, ask him to tell you about her. I think it’ll change your perspective. But here’s the thing, I love that man and I won’t let anyone hurt him. So if you’re planning to hurt him with the information, don’t go there. He’s been hurt enough. Okay?” Emma swallowed, shocked by the protectiveness in the woman’s tired, raspy voice. Penny settled the baby in her arms before adding, “I’m not saying what he did was right but deep down, in a place where he doesn’t want to admit, he had the best of intentions.”
“Kidnapping cannot be considered an act of benevolence.”
Penny raised her brow in a way that made Emma feel very small. “Really? Even if your life was in danger? Correct me if I’m wrong but didn’t someone nearly beat you to death?”
“Yes, but—“
“The way I see it, Vince is protecting you the best way he knows how. Perhaps a little less hostility would go a long way.”