The Tycoon's Misunderstood Bride (19 page)

She smiled, her eyes twinkling merrily.  “Oh, I sincerely hope so.  And if we could give them the evidence they needed in court, wouldn’t that help them win more money?”

Jason laughed and shook his head.  “You understand that means that there could be nothing left over for your children to inherit
?
”

She smiled and sighed happily.  “I don’t think that I’d like our children to inherit anything that comes from cheating.  Besides, money doesn’t really make people happy.”

Jason sighed with relief.  “You said ‘our’ children,” he replied cautiously.  “Does that mean that you might consider making this marriage real?  And having more than one child with me?”

At his first words, Emma f
roze, wondering if she’d made a
horrible error.  But as he continued, she relaxed, became excited with his words.  “I think that you’re a very honorable man.  I would be thrilled to sincerely marry you.”

Jason laughed and pulled her onto his lap.  “Damn, Emma!  You’re an amazing person!”  He pulled back slightly. “What if we never find your mother?”

She put a small hand to his cheek.  “We will.  And we’ll find your father as well.  We’ll just make it our special project.”

“We might still get the information through this search,” he said, looking back across the hallway at the office that was quickly turning into a mess. 

“Or we could have a son and we’ll get the information from my father’s solicitor.”

He grinned as he looked down at her.  “That’s very true.  I think we should start on that right now.”

She snuggled up closer to him.  “Not in this house.  Take me to yours,” she said softly, her green eyes looking up into his darker ones. 

“I love you, Emma,” he growled.  “After your rejection of moving into my house
last week
, I wasn’t sure how you felt about me, but I’m grateful that you’re just the most timid woman I’ve ever known.”

She laughed as she lifted her chin, giving him better access to her neck.  “I wasn’t too timid last night,” she gasped as his teeth found her ear lobe.  “You didn’t really give me a chance to be timid.”

“Damn straight!  There’s a place for everything and I only want the lusty side of you in our bed.  The one that’s much more demanding than the timid lady.”

She breathed in happily.  “Good.  Because you’ve gotten her.”

Emma sighed happily as the judge banged the gavel.  This was the last time, she thought.  As far as they could find, she and Jason had located all the victims of her father’s illegal or unethical business practices and helped them sue his estate
for compensatory damages.  Lily Mongrove turned and gave Emma a huge grin, then made her way through the crowd and hugged her.  “Thank you so much!” she whispered in Emma’s ear.  “We couldn’t have done this without you.”

“He was a bad person.  I’m just glad that you’re family will be able
to buy another house.  I’m terribly
sorry it wasn’t the house you grew up in.”

Lily shook her head as she held Emma’s hand.  They’d become friends over the last several months as the court cases made their way through the legal system. 
“I’m not.  Towards the end, there was so much stress in that house, trying to figure out how to stop the foreclosure
so
we are grateful for a fresh start.”

Emma put her hand to the back of the bench she’d been sitting on and hauled herself upright.  “Let me help you,” Lily said and put a helping hand on Emma’s back.  “When are you due?” she asked.

Emma placed a hand over her swollen abdomen and sighed with frustration as she waddled down the aisle to the courthouse entrance.  She knew Jason would be here any moment and she wanted to appear calm and collected.  But in reality, she was sore and aching, exhausted from the pains shooting across her belly.  All she wanted to do was to sink into the large soaking tub in Jason’s bedroom and let the warm water soothe her
tired body
. 

“
Officially,
I was due two days ago.  My obstetrician says if I don’t start labor in the next few days, she will induce the labor.”

“Where’s Mr. Montenegro?” Lily looked around, worried that her friend might go into labor at any moment.  She was definitely large enough for that
to happen. 

“He thinks I’m at home with my feet propped up.”

“He knows that you’re not at home with your feet propped up,” Jason’s deep voice said from behind her. 

Emma would have swung around but with this pregnancy, she wasn’t swinging anywhere.  She was grateful
when she could
waddle and that was as far as she could go, and as fast. 

“Jason!  What are you doing here?”

“More importantly, what are you doing here?  You promised me that you would be at home relaxing.”

She rested her hand on her back, her fingers trying to massage the painful muscles, but not letting Jason know because he would start to worry.  “I wanted to be here for Lily.  You and I are the only ones who know the whole story about what happened to all the victims.  If the lawyers needed any connection, I wanted to be there to help.”

Jason sighed and shook his head.  “Your back hurts, doesn’t it?”

Lily grinned, realizing where this conversation was going.  “I’m going to leave the two of you to negotiate this alone,” she said and
disappeared into the crowd going about their legal business.

Jason eyed Emma carefully. 
He knew she wasn’t comfortable and was trying to hide it from him.  He couldn’t help it though.  She looked so fragile and he couldn’t believe her tiny, slender frame could handle this pregnancy.  He loved her so much and was in pain himself because he couldn’t do anything to ease her discomfort. 
“You’re in pain, your back hurts,” he glanced down, “your feet are swollen and I bet you didn’t eat anything this morning, did you?”

Emma could tell that Jason was becoming more than a little irritated. “Jason, see it from my perspective.  I can’t just sit around doing nothing anymore.  I did that for the first twenty some odd years.  I don’t ever want to do that again.  Life is too short and too exciting.”  She moved closer to him and put her head on his chest, grateful when his arms automatically wrapped around her rotund form.  “Please don’t be angry with me,” she pleaded.  “And I’ll definitely go home now because I just don’t feel very good at all.”  She couldn’t stop the tear from slipping from her eyes.  “I’m really tired and sore.  Is Tony waiting outside?” she asked, praying with all her heart that he was so she didn’t have to wait for Tim to drive around from the parking lot where she’d sent him a few hours ago. 

“Yes.  Tony is outside ready to go.  Come along,” he said and pulled her closer, kissing the top of her bright hair.  “Where does it hurt?” he asked. 

“Everywhere,” she said and sniffed. 

Jason’s concern grew.  “Emma?”

She couldn’t really respond to his question since she’d stopped in the middle of the courthouse lobby, gripping his arm with all her strength as a massive contraction spiked through her stomach. 

Jason saw her face pale, noticed her arm gripping her stomach while her other one clenched to his arm.  “That’s it,” he growled.  “You’re going to the hospital.”  He bent down and lifted her into his arms, the additional weight of her pregnancy not really having much of an impact. 

Two minutes later, she was in the back seat of the limousine while Tony tore through the streets of London heading towards the hospital.  And twenty-four hours after that, Emma and Jason held their new son as he entered the world screaming and demanding his mother’s touch. 

Jason smiled down at his wife and his son,
Ethan,
amazed that they were both so perfect.  “This is one thing your father did that wasn’t infected by his evilness.”

She smiled up at his handsome face, amazed at how sweet he’d been throughout the entire labor process.  “You’re right.  His manipulations did bring us together
.  And we have this wonderful little guy as well.  I don’t think we really met his intentions, though.”

Emma laughed and shook her head. 

A nurse cleared her throat, nervous about interrupting such an intimate moment.  “I’m sorry to interrupt, but a man just dropped off these envelopes and said you had to have them as soon as possible.”

Emma glanced at Jason, wondering what could be so urgent.  “A business issue?” she asked carefully, wanting him to know that he could work if he needed to.

“No one would dare!”

The nurse placed the envelopes on the small table and left.  Jason lifted the first one and looked at it.  When he opened the envelope and read the document inside, his eyebrows went up.  “Your mother is a baker who lives in Dover.”

A woman who looked startlingly similar to Emma stepped into the hospital room, her hands shaking and tears streaming down her cheeks as she took in the trio. 
“I’ve actually been living here for the past year, wondering if it was safe to come closer.  I s
aw you in court yesterday, Emma.”  A startled cry escaped and she covered her mouth
, her eyes taking it all in and love shining through them. 
“Oh, Emma!  You were magnificent!  I was so proud of you and so grateful that Edward hadn’t broken your spirit.”

Emma sat up straight and looked across the hospi
tal room towards her mother.  “W
here have you been?” Emma demanded, cradling her son closer as if to protect him. 

Elizabeth stood just inside the doorway, her body shaking with the sobs she was trying to hold back so she could explain. 
“Your father sent me away.  He said if I ever came near you, he would kill you.  I couldn’t risk anything happening to you, Emma!  I loved you too much!” 

Jason slipped back and made room for Emma’s mother. 
Elizabeth took a step closer, her hand reaching out as if to plead or explain. 
“I know you can’t forgive me for leaving you.  I should have fought harder but I didn’t have any money and Edward had so much!” she sobbed.  “
B
ut I’ve kept track of you over the years.  I knew about your marriage and all those wonderful things you’ve done.  Until today, I wasn’t sure that you were freed from Edward’s control but you
are, aren’t
you?”

Emma nodded her head, crying herself. 
The relief that she hadn’t been abandoned, that her mother had actually been protecting her all these years, made her spirits soar!  There was no hesitation or doubt about her mother’s claims.  Emma
instantly
knew that her mother was speaking the truth.  She’d spent the last year showing others how to overcome her father’s illegal activities.  That made Emma and her mother just one more victim.  She wasn’t going to allow her father to
“Oh, mother!  I missed you so much!”

The two women embraced with the baby snuggled safely against his mother’s breast, unaware of the drama unfolding above him between his mother and
his newly discovered
grandmother. 

Emma saw Jason’s face and her happiness was countered by his lack of knowledge about his father.  “What’s in the other envelope?” she asked, holding her mother with one hand and her son with the other. 

Jason picked it up and opened the top.  Emma noticed Jason’s jaw clench with the stress because both of them knew that the envelope contained evidence of Jason’s father.  Or at least Emma prayed that it was in there. 

Jason slid the paper out of the envelope and read through the lines.  There wasn’t much to read.  Only a
few words and several pictures.  Jason stared at the images for a long time.  “That bastard!” he growled.

Emma was terrified that her father had gone back on his word and didn’t actually have evidence of Jason’s father.  But at that moment, a doctor walked into the hospital room.  This wasn’t any of the doctors that had been helping to deliver their son
, but he looked bewildered, as if he didn’t understand why he was here.  He too had the same pictures in his hand that Jason had been looking at.