The Billionaire Baby Bombshell Read Free Page A

Bella’s tiny rosebud mouth latched onto the bottle, something deep and primeval sucker-punched her low.
    Fierce and total adoration engulfed her as she gazed down at the feeding baby. She’d do anything for Bella. Her world began and ended with this little girl.
    “So what’s this business trip you’re taking?”
    Yelena’s gaze remained riveted on Bella, smiling at the baby’s gentle slurp. “Just a new client.”
    “For how long?”
    “I should be back next Monday.”
    “So…” Melanie frowned. “Who’s going to look after Bella for a week? Your mum?”
    Yelena shook her head. “Can you honestly see her coping with a baby?” And I wouldn’t dream of leaving Bella with a woman who rarely had time for her own children. “No, Bella’s coming with me.”
    “Wow.” Melanie crossed her arms and perched her bottom on the arm of the one-seater. “I didn’t know B&H had a nanny service. I’m so in the wrong profession.”
    “They don’t—the resort we’re staying at has. And as it’s extended travel, B&H foot the bill. Anyway,” Yelena said, grinning and gently wiping drool from the baby’s mouth,“don’t tell me you’d rather work in my frivolous, soulless profession than go back to your thankless, underpaid teaching career.”
    Melanie’s grin matched her friend’s at their shared joke. “Nah. And it’s not like Matt can’t afford to keep me, being head of oncology and all. Plus I get to be a hands-on mum and pick Ben up from kindy. Best of both worlds.”
    “Well, after this client, I’m expecting that promotion to kick in.”
    “And about time, too. You work twice as hard as anyone in that firm. But I will miss Bella—she’s adorable.” She gently stroked the infant’s downy head before winking at Yelena. “Even if she does look like her mother.”
    Deep protectiveness surged, and Yelena answered with a smile. “Hey, can you do me a favor and pack a few things for her while I finish up here?”
    While Melanie gathered up clothes and feeding equipment, Yelena burped Bella. Sitting here in the comfort of her daughter’s girly lemon-and-white bedroom, it was so very easy to ignore the world. Bella was her whole world, from the moment she’d been born. She’d made a promise to that squirming little bundle, wrapped warmly in a birthing blanket.
    I’ll protect you, keep you safe from harm. And I will always, always be there whenever you need me.
    She’d been doing fine until Alex Rush had waltzed back into her life and demanded her complete attention.
    Bella sneezed and Yelena gently turned her, bringing the chubby face in line with hers. The baby’s thickly lashed brown eyes stared right at her, the tiny mouth working an invisible pacifier.
    Yelena studied Bella as she gurgled, her gummy grin stretching. Yet she couldn’t squash the trepidation fluttering around in her belly.
    Alex was a smart man: once he saw Bella he’d do the math.There’d be no going back. Yet leaving Bella at home was not an option. Her childhood, all those years of emotional neglect, had seen to that.
    “If Alex Rush wants me, then he’ll have to deal with you too, sweetheart.”
    You can do this . She put entirely too much emphasis on what she’d meant to Alex. He’d moved on from what they’d been to each other, just as she had. He didn’t care enough to hate her. What mattered now—what had always mattered—was doing her job. Turning the tide of public opinion was his sole purpose. Whatever he felt about her would only be temporary, just as this campaign was.
     
    Alex settled into the luxurious comfort of Rush Airline’s private Cessna, trying to focus on the work spread in front of him but failing.
    His grievances against Yelena’s brother had been gathering momentum ever since his father’s accidental-death ruling. Alex had left the sanctuary of Diamond Bay in June, returning to Canberra to discover the huge ripple effect William Rush’s death had wrought. The speculation, the