Holiday Baby Scandal

Laney wrapped her arms around his neck, nestling her face against the heat of his. She closed her eyes, relishing this pivotal moment. The baby would not be a tool in this path she was on to show Ryker how much she loved him, and that’s not what this moment was about. Right now, he cared about her.He wasn’t about to let her fall or get hurt. Laney only prayed by the time this was all said and done, that would still be the case.

She also refused to let him fall. She’d do anything to keep the man she loved safe. She was an O’Shea. The fact she was a female made no difference because she was brought up to be strong, fierce and resilient. Nothing could stop her from staking her claim.

“What happened?” Braden’s worried tone brought her out of her thoughts. “Did she fall again?”

Ryker brushed by Braden and into the warmth of the house. “No. She started getting dizzy.”

Ryker eased her down because it wasn’t as if he could hold her forever. Shame that. Plus, if she clung to him too long, Braden would get the idea something was going on. Which reminded her that they were going to have to tell her brothers soon. Their unknown reactions terrified her.

“I’m fine,” she assured them both, offering a smile. “See? Standing on my own two feet.”

“Did you eat breakfast?” Braden asked, his brows still drawn together in worry. “Go sit in the living room, and I’ll bring you something.”

“No, no.” She waved a hand, then opened the ties on her coat. “I ate. I must’ve just moved too fast, and with all that’s going on with work, I’m just stressed.”

Oops. Wrong choice of words. Ryker’s eyes darkened, narrowed. His lips thinned.

“You’ll be taking it easy. I’ll make sure of it.”

He delivered the threat in that low, sexy tone of his that left no room for argument. Laney merely nodded because now she was facing down two of the most alpha men she knew.

“Have a seat anyway,” Braden told her, gesturing toward the living room.

Laney headed into the room that screamed Christmas: from the sparkly garland draped over the mantel, to the twelve-foot-tall noble fir standing proudly in front of the old windows, to the various candle stands, berries and other festive decor.

Quite the opposite of Ryker’s house. Not one sprig of evergreen was to be seen there. A testament to what he came from. The child who didn’t do Christmas had turned into a man who didn’t, and it was one of the saddest things Laney had ever seen.

She took a seat on the high wing-back chair her mother had fallen in love with at an estate sale when she and Laney’s father had first gotten married. Patrick O’Shea had never been able to say no to his wife. Their love, though cut too short in Laney’s opinion, was something Laney wanted. That love, the family, the bond was what Laney dreamed of. And they weren’t little girl dreams. She was going into this situation with Ryker knowing full well she could get hurt, but the chance of a love and family of her own was worth the risk.

Weren’t O’Sheas built on all the risks they’d taken? A challenge was never avoided, but met head-on. And conquered.

“Ryker told me you had a call from the Bureau,” she started, not wanting to waste any time. “I don’t know what all you found out, but Viviana’s problem at the office was the system’s backlog. I was looking into that when I got Ryker’s text.”

Ryker leaned one broad shoulder against the mantel, crossing his arms over his chest. “Tell me what you found.”

Braden remained standing as well, right by the leather sofa across from her. The tension in the room was palpable.

“When I go into the records, there is nothing showing from before I changed systems,” she explained. “Everything should be in the files I added by year and then broke down into months. Before October, there is nothing.”

“Define nothing,” Braden said between gritted teeth.

Laney faced him, staring into eyes exactly like her own, exactly like their father’s. “Not one document is on there. Don’t worry, I have backups of everything at home. I’m not sloppy, Braden.”

“I never said you were, but what the hell is going on and what does this have to do with my call from the Feds?”

“When I first started digging to see what happened, it appeared someone hacked into our system. But that would be virtually impossible.”

There was no easy way to deliver such a statement, so she went for it.

“The only way someone could access the system is if they work for us. My security is so tight—”

“Not tight enough,” Braden growled.

Laney straightened her back, squared her shoulders.

“Chill, Braden.” Ryker’s warning couldn’t be ignored. “Respect.”

Braden turned his attention across the room. “She’s my sister, I can damn well say what I want.”