She was kissing her boss.
More than that, she was making out like a crazed teenager with the very man judging her professionalism.
Maybe this was a test. It was probably a test. She'd passed weapons proficiency only to fail miserably at self-control. Mila scrambled to salvage the situation, seizing on the first idea she had. âWhat about me going to South America with the team?â
âAre you kidding me?â
She brazened it out, walking her fingertips up his chest. âI speak pretty good Spanish.â
Troy trapped her hand with his, squeezing it tight. âYou're telling me that kiss was just about persuasion?â
She looked him straight in the eye. âOf course it was persuasion.â
âYou're lying.â
* * *
The Baby Contract is part of Mills & Boon>® Desireâ¢âs No.1 bestselling series Billionaires and Babies: Powerful menâ¦wrapped around their babiesâ little fingers.
One
Troy Keiser halted his razor midstroke, glancing to the phone on the bathroom counter.
âSay again?â he asked his business partner, Hugh âVegasâ Fielding, sure he must have misheard.
âYour sister,â Vegas repeated.
Troy digested the statement, bringing the cell to his ear, avoiding the remnants of his shaving cream. Sandalwood-scented steam hung in the air, blurring the edges of the mirror.
âKassidy is here?â
His nineteen-year-old half sister, Kassidy Keiser, lived two hundred miles from DC, in Jersey City. She was a free spirit, a struggling nightclub singer, and it had been more than a year since Troy had seen her.
âSheâs standing in reception,â said Vegas. âSeems a little twitchy.â
Last time Troy had seen Kassidy in person, he was in Greenwich Village. A security job with the UN had brought him to New York City, and the meeting was purely by chance. Kassidy had been playing at a small club, and the diplomat heâd been protecting wanted an after-hours drink.
Now, he glanced at his watch, noting it was seven forty-five and mentally calculating the drive time to his morning meeting at the Bulgarian embassy. He hoped her problem was straightforward. He needed to solve it and get on with his day.
âYouâd better send her up.â
He dried his face, put his razor and shaving cream in the cabinet, rinsed the sink, and pulled a white T-shirt over his freshly washed hair, topping a pair of black cargo pants. Then he went directly to the kitchen and poured himself a cup of coffee, downing it to bring his brain cells back to life.
His and Vegasâs side-by-side apartments took up the top floor of the Pinion Security Company building in northeast DC. The first two floors housed the companyâs reception and meeting areas. Floors three to seven were offices and electronic equipment storage. The computer control center was highly secured, directly below the apartments. The basement and subbasement were used for parking, target practice and storage for a vault of weapons.
The building was state-of-the-art, built after Troy sold his interest in some innovative security software and Vegas hit it big at a casino on the strip. After that, their company had grown exponentially, and theyâd never looked back.
The buzzer sounded, and he crossed the living room, opening the apartment door to find the six-feet-four, barrel-chested Vegas standing behind his sister, Kassidy, who, even in four-inch heels, seemed barely half the manâs size. Her blond hair was streaked purple, and she wore three earrings in each ear. A colorful tunic-style top flowed to a ragged hem at midthigh over a pair of skintight black pants.
âHello, Kassidy.â Troy kept his voice neutral, waiting to ascertain her mood. He couldnât imagine it was good news that brought her here.
âHi, Troy.â She slanted a gaze at Vegas, clearly hinting that he should leave.
âIâll be downstairs,â said Vegas.
Troy gave his partner a short nod of appreciation.
âIs everything okay?â he asked as Kassidy breezed her way into the penthouse foyer.
âNot exactly,â she said, hiking up her oversize shoulder bag. âI have a problem. At least I think itâs a problem. I donât know how big of a problem.â
Troy curbed his impatience with her roundabout speaking style. He wanted to tell her to spit it out already. But he knew from experience that rushing her only slowed things down.
âYou got any coffee?â she asked.
âI do.â He cut through the vaulted-ceilinged living room, heading for the kitchen, assuming sheâd follow and hoping sheâd compose her thoughts along the way.