The Billionaire's Triplets (A Steamy Contemporary Romance Novel) by Mia Caldwell Page B

in his mind. Willa was more what he considered the high end of the rest of womankind—the best of the rest.
    The slender, petite German had good instincts. She’d accepted his morning ritual easily, seeming to understand that he was happy for her to come in at this time, but she wasn’t to speak until he greeted her, letting her know he was ready to put his brain into the business gear, and that for the moment he was in his own space and time. He’d mentioned that to her only once and from then on, she came in with her own coffee and her inevitable paperwork, to sit on his leather couch, crossing her lovely legs and waiting quietly. Her predictability was a comfort, and at the moment made him think more affectionately towards her than he felt towards Lissa.
    Willa had made herself an important part of his life, his business world. Her disciplined and competent mind let her organize and facilitate his daily work. She knew how to ask questions and then could add her own insights to whatever task was at hand. She was an attractive blonde who hadn’t pushed herself at him the way some assistants had. He was drawn to her, and acutely aware that the attraction was both sexual and because of their shared experience. She was someone he had let get close. She was a dedicated worker who never complained about overtime—even seemed to enjoy it—and was ready to travel for business at a moment’s notice. As far as he could tell, she had no personal life. She’d never mentioned a boyfriend or even family to him. They were joined together by work.
    He sensed that she was more ambitious than she liked to show. Every so often she appeared to be frustrated that she was executing his orders and not giving them herself. He wasn’t afraid of employees being ambitious. It often meant they were better workers, but one day it could become an issue. If she wanted more than he thought she was ready to take on, problems could arise. She was great at what she did, but he wondered if she would be a good leader.
    With these thoughts forcing his self-pitying concerns to the back burner, he was ready to face the day.
    “Good morning,” he said, swiveling his chair to face her and letting the sun warm his back. She sipped her coffee and nodded, an intelligent, alert, but enigmatic smile forming on her face. It wasn’t an unusual look for her, and it always made him think she was operating with some master plan that one day would be clear to him. For now he allowed himself to enjoy the mystery. His work had taught him that he could never understand or control everything in his world, so he learned to enjoy the pleasure of discovery. That made it possible to find excitement even in setbacks—something unknown or uncertain finally was revealed, another piece of life’s puzzle was known. The unknown quantity was to be appreciated.
    “You asked to be told if I was able to learn anything about Lissa Edwards.”
    His heart raced, irritating him. He didn’t want the mention of her name to excite him, but he couldn’t deny he still craved her. “And?”
    “She is in a hospital in New York.”
    It struck him like a blow. “Really? What happened?”
    “I don’t know the truth of things—the investigator confirmed just that much. Are you interested in the gossip?”
    He didn’t want to be, but a knotting of his stomach let him know that he couldn’t ignore it. “Tell me,” he said.
    “The story going around New York is that she was in rehab for a drug problem and recently released. She was checked into a private room in the hospital, but of course the doctors aren’t talking.”
    “Drugs?”
    “I don’t know. It’s just gossip. The detective in New York did confirm that someone named Joan Edwards was recently released. He discovered she has a sister by that name.”
    “Of course, if she wanted privacy…”
    “Personally, I wouldn’t use the name of a relative.”
    “Who knows what people do or why they do it? But did she register