Grant rocked away from the desk and stalked around to his chair. Ill take your case.
Ariana batted her eyes in surprise.
Just like that? Hed take her case.
He yanked a legal pad from beneath a neat stack on his desk. Mr. Poodle will do his part to look after your children. You have my word on that.
Grant furiously scribbled notes on the pad, letting his mind drift over the bits of information Ariana had shared. He did plenty of pro bono cases, especially for company employees, and he enjoyed doing them. Those were the cases that made him feel like a true champion of the law, serving those in need. But he hadnt taken Arianas case out of altruism, not totally anyway. If there was one thing he knew about it was ugly domestic cases in which one partner cheated the other and then tried to skip out scot-free. No one should have to live through that kind of pain.
He raised his eyes to the woman who knew exactly how that felt and was struck again by her smooth skin. Though every previous conversation had been business related, hed noticed Ariana before. She was lovely. Almond-shaped eyes that defied him to name the color. And dark brown hair that floated around her shoulders with a rich, natural shine. Always warm and friendly even to the biggest jerks in the building, she had a dark beauty that would fascinate any man who still had a heart in his chest. Which left him out since a great gaping hole occupied the area in his rib cage where a heart once resided.
He tried not to look at her stomacha near impossible task. Hed never seen anyone quite so pregnant. Behind the brave thrust of her chin and the steady gaze, he saw the tear-stained cheeks and detected the vulnerable quiver of her full lower lip. All his protective urges leaped to the fore. Urges he hadnt acknowledged for a long time. And though they disturbed him no little bit, hed be hanged if this fiancé of hers got away without taking equal responsibility for those children.
Do you know this Benjy characters current address?
I know where he works. She gave him the address. But dont expect him to be cooperative.
The idea angered him. What kind of worthless scum refused to acknowledge his own offspring? Children didnt deserve to be pawns in domestic litigation. If hed been fortunate enough to have a child
He put the brakes on that thought immediately. Just as hed closed the door on love, hed promised not to dwell on what could never be.
He pushed a pad toward Ariana. Will you write that address down? Along with the correct spelling of Mr. Walburns name?
The element of surprise was always important in these cases, so he needed to make certain he had every last detail, right down to the correct spellings. He was nothing if not thorough.
Ariana gripped the chair arms and rocked several times, her off-center body not cooperating. When he started to offer his assistance, she held up one hand to stop him, and shook her head. I can do this.
She rocked again and then again. On the next try she stood. Hiding a smile, Grant exhaled, unaware hed been holding his breath. Her stubbornness appealed to him.
He watched her move toward the desk, a light green dress billowing softly around her legs. Except for the enormous midsection, Ariana Fitzpatrick was actually very small and graceful. Tiny hands, slim shoulders, fine-boned, heart-shaped face with the kindest eyes hed ever seen. An odd twist wrenched his gut. Sympathy pains surely, though he wasnt prone to such feelings. A man couldnt find a woman appealing when she was pregnant with someone elses baby. Could he?
Absolutely not.
Taking the pen, Ariana leaned over the paper. Her hair spilled forward, inches from his nose. He inhaledpurely a function of normal biologyand filled his lungs with the faint scent of flowers. Gardenias, he thought.
Nature forced another breath. Ah, lovely. So clean and fresh. He studied her profile, admiring the graceful angle of her neck, waiting for the moment she lifted her head so that he could study her delicate face more closely. Purely for professional reasons, of course. An attorney gained a lot of information from a clients eyes.
As she straightened, her naturally dark complexion paled, and she grabbed for the edge of the desk.
Whoa, she whispered and weaved sideways, knocking his nameplate to the beige carpet.
Grant was out of his chair and around the desk faster than a guilty
criminal could say appeal. He slipped an arm around her middle and had the novel experience of feeling a stomach move beneath his fingertips.
Instead of the aversion hed expected, his own stomach quivered in awed response. He shook off the sensation. Sentimentality had no place in attorney-client relations.
Are you all right? His voice sounded gruff.
Fine. She panted a few times, then took a deep breath. A little dizzy. Thats all.
He backed her to the chair and very gingerly eased her down, then remained standing in front of her, studying the pale line around her mouth. Has this happened before?
A little pink tongue flicked out over dry lips. She closed her eyes and let her head fall back. Occasionally.