Free When She's Bad by Leanne Banks

mine, then it’s only fair that we discuss yours. What did you say your employment experience was?”
    Lilly resisted the urge to squirm. “I worked as my father’s personal secretary one summer and I’ve been active in charity work.”
    Delilah nodded. “So you worked for your father and for charity.” She shook her head. “The problem with charity is you don’t really have to make a profit, but when you operate a business, you do.”
    Lilly wanted to scratch out Delilah’s smoldering come-hither eyes that turned men to putty. She swallowed the hard knot of her envy. “Speaking of profit, your expansion plans will cut into profits.”
    “For the short term, but long-term projections indicate—”
    “The problem with projections is they’re just projections. Not a guarantee.”
    “There’s no such thing as a guarantee,” Delilah said, her gaze womanly wise and worldly.
    For a second, Lilly wondered how she’d gained that wisdom. Something told her that whatever it was hadn’t been a source of pleasure. She stopped her thoughts. There was no room for compassion or any other gentle emotion for Delilah Montague. She was trash and the garbage needed to be put out on the curb to be taken away.
    “I’m going to need more information before I’ll agree to expansion in Dallas.”
    She watched Delilah’s gaze turn to steel and felt a moment of trepidation. What if she couldn’t get rid of her?
    “Fine,” Delilah said crisply. “I don’t have time right now, but give me a list of your questions and I’ll let you know when I have the answers. In the meantime, if you’ll excuse me, I must leave.”
    Delilah stood and walked out of the room, leaving the three men with their tongues hanging out of their mouths. Disgusted, Lilly stood. “I’ll see you gentlemen later. Have a good day,” she said and walked toward the front of the spa.
    As she rounded the corner, she nearly bumped into Delilah as she held a baby. A baby boy, she presumed, taking in the blue jacket and hat that didn’t quite cover his jutting ears. She instinctively lifted her hand to make sure hers were covered.
    The baby extended his hand to her and gurgled.
    Lilly felt a vague softening inside her. She wanted babies with Robert. “Cute baby,” she said. “Who does he belong to?”
    “A friend,” Delilah said vaguely, sighing as she hoisted a diaper bag over her shoulder.
    The sight was an odd one. Delilah the vamp with an infant and for the first time Lilly glimpsed dark circles under her father’s mistress’s eyes. “Why do you have him?” she couldn’t resist asking.
    Delilah met her gaze. “Because I promised I would.”

Babe In Total Control Of Herself aka Bitch.
—D ELILAH’S D ICTUM
    Chapter 6
    A fter feeling as if Lilly had poked her like a voodoo doll, Delilah collected Willy and drove back to the condo praying that Benjamin would be there as he’d agreed. No guarantees, she told herself. When the going got tough, rich white boys didn’t always keep their promises. Her mother had learned that the hard way when two men had bailed on her after she’d gotten pregnant. Delilah’s father had been one of them.
    Holding her breath and propping Willy on her hip, she pushed open the door to the sight of Benjamin sitting across from a woman with a great deal of facial hair who was dressed like a bag lady.
    Benjamin stood and she felt a little tickle in her stomach that he was still there. Anyone else in their right mind would have run screaming in the other direction. He met Delilah’s gaze with a deliberately neutral expression. “Delilah, this is Ms. Cannady. Nanny Finders sent her.”
    “Oh, okay.” She passed Willy to Benjamin and extended her hand to Ms. Cannady. “Thank you for coming on such short notice. Please have a seat while we talk,” Delilah said, trying to form appropriate questions quickly. The woman’s facial hair, however, was very distracting.
    “I was just telling your man that I’ll take care of