A Passionate Proposal

A Passionate Proposal
Emilie Rose

After drowning in a slow-burning kiss with Tracy Sullivan at their high school reunion, an enamored Cort Lander realized she'd blossomed from a bookworm into a sultry beauty with a body made for lovin'. His lovin'.Whoa! That wasn't what the doctor ordered. Now that he had a baby boy in tow, the ambitious bachelor had taken a brief leave of absence from his prestigious medical residency to get his life together in his rural Texas hometown. Hiring Tracy as his son's temporary nanny was one thing, but embarking on an explosive no-strings-attached summer fling was quite another.As they burst into flames in the bedroom and bonded as a family on the homefront, would Cort sacrifice his love for a small-town girl to follow his big-city dreams?

Their Ragged Breaths Mingled. “There Could Be More Where That Came From…If You’re Willing.”

Cort’s shoulder muscles tensed beneath her fingers. “Exactly what are you suggesting, Tracy Sullivan?”

She gathered her courage. “I’m not looking for a husband. You’re not looking for a wife. But we’re both adults with—” Heat prickled her skin “—needs. We could um…explore those.”

“Are you propositioning me?”

What if Cort turned her down? How would she face him for the rest of the summer? “I’m suggesting that perhaps we could fulfill those needs for each other.”

He hesitated. “You sure about this? You wouldn’t rather have some guy who could give you the ring, the white picket fence and the whole nine yards?”

“Yes.”

Cort curled his long fingers around hers and lifted her hand to his mouth. His breath and then his lips whispered across her knuckles. “Then we have a deal. You’d better hold on to your shorts, Ms. Sullivan, because it’s going to be a long, hot summer.”

A Passionate Proposal

Emilie Rose

www.millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)

EMILIE ROSE

lives in North Carolina with her college-sweetheart husband and four sons. This bestselling author’s love for romance novels developed when she was twelve years old and her mother hid them under sofa cushions each time Emilie entered the room. Emilie grew up riding and showing horses. She’s a devoted baseball mom during the season and can usually be found in the bleachers watching one of her sons play. Her hobbies include quilting, cooking (especially cheesecake) and anything cowboy. Her favorite TV shows include Discovery Channel’s medical programs, ER, CSI and Boston Public. Emilie’s a country music fan because there’s an entire book in nearly every song.

Emilie loves to hear from her readers and can be reached at P.O. Box 20145, Raleigh, NC 27619 or at www.EmilieRose.com.

Pattie, thanks for pitching them over the plate.

Candy, Kim and Sally, you gals make this business more fun than it ought to be.

And to Diane, thanks for the insight into your job.

Contents

Prologue

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Prologue

Middle-of-the-night calls never brought good news.

Cort Lander smacked his cheek in an effort to wake himself and grabbed the phone before the second ring. “Hello?”

He squinted at the digital clock. Just because his last seventy-two-hour shift had only ended three hours ago didn’t mean the hospital wouldn’t call him to come back if one of his patients took a bad turn. He preferred it that way.

“Is this Cort Lander—former…companion of Kate Simms?”

A bitter taste filled his mouth. He hadn’t heard from Kate in over a year. Who would be calling here for her? “Yes.”

“I’m Helen McBride from Du Page County Social Services. I’m sorry to have to inform you that Ms. Simms was killed today.”

His heart stuttered. He struggled with the tangled sheets and sat up.

“Kate’s dead?” Bold and aggressive Kate. She’d vowed that nothing would stand in the way of her becoming the best criminal attorney to ever hit Chicago. He hadn’t realized at the time that she’d considered him an obstacle. “How?”

“A client managed to get a gun into the courthouse. When the verdict didn’t go his way, he—but that’s not why I called, Mr. Lander.”

“Doctor,” he corrected automatically.

“I called to ask you to take custody of your son.”

“My what?” Certain his sleep-deprived brain had misunderstood, he shoved a hand through his hair, shook his head to clear it and then turned on the bedside lamp.

“Joshua, your son.”

“Kate and I didn’t have any children.”

“Before she passed away, Ms. Simms told us where to find you and asked us to make sure you came for the boy. You are his only living relative.”

The hair on the back of his neck stood up. He had a son? Impossible, unless Kate had been pregnant when she left Durham to take the job in Chicago. She’d surprised him with a Dear John letter four months later, but she’d never mentioned a pregnancy. Hell, she hadn’t even bothered to mention why she’d dumped him.

“I haven’t seen Kate in—” he mentally counted back “—almost sixteen months. How old is the boy?”

“Nine months. I’m sorry. I know this is quite a shock, but you are named as the father on his birth certificate, and Ms. Simms listed you as Joshua’s guardian in her will. You must come and get him.”