Accidental Father

Accidental Father
Lauren Nichols

OUT OF THE SHADOWS…Sarah Harper gasped when she saw the rugged lawman on the porch of her bed-and-breakfast. She didn't know his last name, but for three years his blue eyes had haunted her. She saw them every night in her dreams–and every morning, twinkling in her toddler's face….Jake Russell sought only a roof over his head and a warm bed. He never expected it to be her roof…or her bed. But Sarah had a hold on him, and he couldn't turn his back on her. Not when he suspected she was in danger–and that her child was his child, too….

Sarah’s heart broke into song. Jake wanted to marry her.

“Is that a yes?” he gasped, breaking from the kiss and burying his face in her hair. “If we go into this with our eyes open, there won’t be any disappointments. We can give Kylie the family she needs, and we can enjoy this chemistry between us forever.”

But chemistry tended to blur reasonable thought.

Sarah paused to sift through Jake’s entire speech, trying to recall something close to the words a woman needed to hear from the man she loved….

Yes, he loved their daughter…but Jake didn’t love her, and the last thing she needed was another sham of a marriage….

Dear Reader,

As Silhouette Books’ 20

anniversary continues, Intimate Moments continues to bring you six superb titles every month. And certainly this month—when we begin with Suzanne Brockmann’s Get Lucky—is no exception. This latest entry in her TALL, DARK & DANGEROUS miniseries features ladies’ man Lucky O’Donlon, a man who finally meets the woman who is his match—and more.

Linda Turner’s A Ranching Man is the latest of THOSE MARRYING MCBRIDES!, featuring Joe McBride and the damsel in distress who wins his heart. Monica McLean was a favorite with her very first book, and now she’s back with Just a Wedding Away, an enthralling marriage-of-convenience story. Lauren Nichols introduces an Accidental Father who offers the heroine happiness in THE LOVING ARMS OF THE LAW. Saving Grace is the newest from prolific RaeAnne Thayne, who’s rapidly making a name for herself with readers. And finally, welcome new author Wendy Rosnau. After you read The Long Hot Summer, you’ll be eager for her to make a return appearance.

And, of course, we hope to see you next month when, once again, Silhouette Intimate Moments brings you six of the best and most exciting romance novels around.

Enjoy!

Leslie J. Wainger

Executive Senior Editor

Accidental Father

Lauren Nichols

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

This is a story about family,

and I’ve been blessed with the very best.

For my children, Mike, Colette and Laurie, and the wonderful

people who love them. Stephanie, Matt and Bob.

And for the sweetest grandkids in the world,

Nicholas, Lexi and Lena.

And always, for Mike.

I love you all.

LAUREN NICHOLS

fell in love with Montana nearly two decades ago when she and her husband took their three children out West to see “cattle country.” Montana has owned a chunk of her heart ever since. In addition to writing novels, Lauren’s romance and mystery short stories have appeared in several leading magazines. She counts her family and friends as her greatest treasures. When she’s not with them, this Pennsylvania author is either writing, trying unsuccessfully to give up French vanilla cappuccino or traveling with her husband, Mike.

Contents

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Epilogue

Chapter 1

“Be right there!” Sarah Harper gave up looking for her favorite spatula, then shoved the electric mixer to the back of the countertop, handed her two-year-old daughter an icing-covered beater and hurried to answer the doorbell.

If the caller wanted to sell her encyclopedias or a vacuum cleaner he was in big trouble. A hundred cookies sat on the kitchen’s butcher-block work island waiting to be frosted, there were more in the oven, and Sarah was running behind. She’d been rushing ever since returning to town after spending two weeks caring for her aunt, who’d had surgery.

Dazzling Montana sunshine spilled through the screen as she opened the pretty Victorian’s inside door and squinted up at the tall man on the porch. As her eyes adjusted to the morning’s brightness, she got a quick impression of faded jeans, a blue plaid shirt and good shoulders on a lean, rangy frame.

Suddenly, shock razed Sarah’s nerve endings, and all thoughts of her catering business, wedding cookies, mini quiches and sherbet punch vanished in a rush of panic. Quickly, she schooled her expression—tried to pretend she didn’t remember the cowboy on the porch. But as she watched his cordial smile fade and saw stunned recognition rise in his eyes, she knew pretending was a waste of time. He knew her too.