âThis Is My Baby, Cole,â
Regan said.
âMine. Iâd already planned on being a single mother, which is why I went to be inseminated. I have no intention of shuttling my child back and forth between me and the father. Thatâs not what I want for my baby.â
âOur baby,â he corrected her. âAnd I agree completely.â
âDoes that mean youâ¦that you will relinquish your rights and let me raise the baby?â
Her words hit him like blows. After all, it wasnât the first time he hadnât been found good enough, he reminded himself. In her eyes, for a child to have no father would be preferable than to have him as one. âSorry to disappoint you, princess, but thatâs not what I had in mind. I think a child belongs with both parents.â
âBut thatâs not possible.â
âSure it is. All we have to do is get married.â
Dear Reader,
Twenty years ago in May, the first Silhouette romance was published, and in 2000 weâre celebrating our 20>th anniversary all year long! Celebrate with usâand start with six powerful, passionate, provocative love stories from Silhouette Desire.
Elizabeth Bevarly offers a MAN OF THE MONTH so tempting that we decided to call it Dr. Irresistible! Enjoy this sexy tale about a single-mom nurse who enlists a handsome doctor to pose as her husband at her tenth high school reunion. The wonderful miniseries LONE STAR FAMILIES: THE LOGANS, by bestselling author Leanne Banks, continues with Expecting His Child, a sensual romance about a woman carrying the child of her familyâs nemesis after a stolen night of passion.
Ever-talented Cindy Gerard returns to Desire with In His Loving Arms, in which a pregnant widow is reunited with the man whoâs haunted her dreams for seven years. Sheikhs abound in Alexandra Sellersâ Sheikhâs Honor, a new addition to her dramatic miniseries SONS OF THE DESERT. The Desire theme promotion, THE BABY BANK, about women who find love unexpectedly when seeking sperm donors, continues with Metsy Hingleâs The Baby Bonus. And newcomer Kathie DeNosky makes her Desire debut with Did You Say Married?!, in which the heroine wakes up in Vegas next to a sexy cowboy who turns out to be her newly wed husband.
What a lineup! So this May, for Motherâs Day, why not treat your momâand yourselfâto all six of these highly sensual and emotional love stories from Silhouette Desire!
Enjoy!
Joan Marlow Golan
Senior Editor, Silhouette Desire
For Jimmy and Julie Hingle,
my darling son and his lovely wife, and their very special âBaby Bonus,â Caroline Josephine Hingle
celebrates her tenth book for Silhouette with the publication of The Baby Bonus. Metsy is an award-winning, bestselling author of romance who resides across the lake from her native New Orleans. Married for more than twenty years to her own hero, she is the busy mother of four children. She recently traded in her business suits and a fast-paced life in the hotel and public-relations arena to pursue writing full-time. Metsy has a strong belief in the power of love and romance. She also believes in happy endings, which she continues to demonstrate with each new story she writes. She loves hearing from readers. For a free doorknob hanger or bookmark, write to Metsy at P.O. Box 3224, Covington, LA 70433.
Prologue
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Epilogue
âIâm pregnant?â Regan St. Claire repeated, her nails digging into the palms of her hands. She stared across the desk at her aunt, New Orleansâ noted fertility specialist, Dr. Elizabeth St. Claire. âYouâre sure, Aunt Liz? I mean thereâs no mistake?â
The older woman shook her silvery-blond head and smiled. âIâm sure. Ran the tests myselfâtwice. Youâre definitely pregnant, dear. Based on the date I performed the insemination procedure, youâre just shy of five weeks along.â
Regan squealed with delight. Too excited to sit still, she shot to her feet and raced around the desk to hug her aunt. âIâm going to have a baby! A baby,â she said again in awe, dancing them both around in a circle.
âRegan, child. Slow down,â her aunt admonished, laughter in her voice.
âI canât. Iâm too happy,â she countered, tears of joy stinging her eyes. Even now she could hardly believe that a diagnosis of endometriosis and possible infertility had spurred her down this path that had resulted in aâ¦a miracle. Because thatâs what this baby was. A miracle. âIâve wanted a baby for so long. Ever sinceâ¦â Ever since she had miscarried her first childâColeâs childâall those years ago.
As though reading her thoughts, her aunt offered her hand. Regan clasped it, drew strength from the woman who had filled the role of mother for nearly all of her twenty-nine years. âHoney, itâs still early days,â Aunt Liz cautioned. âThat tiny life inside you has a long way to go before he or she makes a debut.â