Inheriting His Secret Christmas Baby by Heidi Betts Page B

Christian. I love that man, but I swear he’d fly me to Galapagos if I asked him to, just to be married and done with it already.”
    “Great,” Trevor responded, relief washing through him. “You two can arrange a face-to-face later, but for now, will you mind telling her that yourself?”
    He held the phone out to Haylie and waited for her to take it. She did, reluctantly putting it to her ear.
    “Hello?”
    He couldn’t hear the other side of the conversation, but Haylie nodded and offered his sister her name. For the next minute there were a lot of affirmative sounds and more nodding, followed by, “All right. I’d like that, thank you.”
    Hitting the disconnect button, Haylie handed the phone back to him. He knew her chat with his sister had gone well, but her expression was curiously blank.
    “So?” he prompted, raising a brow.
    “I’m apparently having lunch with your sister tomorrow to discuss the planning of her wedding.”
    “Excellent.”
    Haylie watched Trevor return the phone to its cradle, then collect the open bottle of wine and cross to the low coffee table where he poured a couple more inches for himself. Her glass was still nearly full, so he didn’t offer to top her off.
    Excellent? For him, maybe. She wasn’t so sure about herself. She’d come to Aspen looking for a father for her nephew, not a new job.
    Should she even help his sister with her wedding preparations, or should she back out of the impromptu lunch meeting she’d just agreed to? She could definitely develop a decent argument for temporary insanity, since not only her day but her entire life was beginning to feel very surreal and out of control.
    On the other hand, they were talking about a Jarrod wedding here. A Jarrod wedding!
    Celebrity-event planners would beg, borrow, steal and commit bloody murder to land a Jarrod wedding, and she was standing in the middle of Trevor Jarrod’s living room being handed one on a silver platter. Even if they didn’t pay her a dime, having a Jarrod wedding in her portfolio could take It’s Your Party to a whole new level. From putting together mostly children’s birthday parties and bar mitzvahs, to garden parties, high-society anniversaries and even more high-profile weddings.
    The thought was so overwhelming that for a second she couldn’t breathe, and the lack of oxygen caused tiny starbursts to flare in front of her eyes.
    Forcing herself to take a deep breath before she did something truly embarrassing like fainting dead away while Trevor stood less than a yard from her, sipping his merlot, she reminded herself that she was projecting, blowing the entire situation way out of proportion. At the moment, the only thing her business future held was a harmless lunch date with Trevor’s sister…and a decision to make.
    Steeling her spine and her nerves, she fixed him with a firm glance and said, “I’ll stay the night and meet with your sister tomorrow, but I’m not promising anything more than that.”
    “Fair enough,” he agreed with the shrug of one shoulder. “Though I think once you talk to Erica, you’ll decide that sticking around Jarrod Ridge for a couple of weeks isn’t the worst idea in the world. And in case you’re worried about losing profits while you’re away from Denver, rest assured that we’ll pay you well for your services. Very well,” he added, winking at her over the rim of his wineglass.
    Agreeing to stay overnight at Trevor Jarrod’s house and actually following through were two entirely different things, Haylie soon learned.
    For one, she had packed the car and made arrangements for a day trip, nothing more. She had enough formula and diapers for Bradley to get through the next few hours. If they were lucky.
    For another, she had nothing with her for her. No nightgown or toothbrush or makeup remover, and only the clothes on her back to wear to her lunch with Erica the next day.
    It was enough to make her reconsider her decision, that was for