Free Claimed: The Pregnant Heiress by Day Leclaire Page A

wrapped around him, filled with dark, painful memories. “Let’s just say The Barron made me an offer I couldn’t refuse and leave it at that, shall we?”
    â€œBut—”
    He cut her off. “Which brings us to the issue of the baby. If it’s mine, I refuse to have my son or daughter raised a bastard.”
    â€œIf,” Emma repeated. She lifted an eyebrow at his sharp glance. “You still have doubts, don’t you? Even though you’re the one who’s hot to get married in order to spare our baby the humiliation of being called Worth’s Bastard, some part of you wonders if I’m really pregnant with your child. I mean, isn’t that what this is all about?”
    â€œYes.”
    â€œSo let’s say we marry…” She stepped behind her Princess Worth facade, making her expression impossible to read. “That means you’ll have to trust me when I say that the baby really is yours, because I’m not risking a miscarriage just to give you six-plus months’ worth of peace of mind.”
    He considered, weighed the odds for several long moments, then nodded. “Fair enough. I’m willing to accept the possibility of error and deal with the consequences if you’re mistaken. It’s more important to ensure the baby bears my name, even if we later establish that he isn’t mine.”
    â€œYou’re unbelievable, you know that?”
    She jerked the car door open and jumped out, slamming it behind her. Wrapping her arms around her waist, she crossed to stand along the edge of the bluff. Chase joined her, pulling her back a few feet from the crumbling sandstone. The beach below was riddled with rocks and pebbles while white-capped waves crashed toward the shoreline. A short way out intrepid surfers in wetsuits looked like seals lounging on their boards, waiting for the perfect wave.
    â€œLook, Emma, I know neither of us wants marriage. But we have to think of what’s best for the child. At least let me give him the protection of my name. If you want a divorce after he’s born, fine.”
    She stiffened within his hold. “You think divorce is better than illegitimacy?”
    â€œIn my book, yes.”
    She spun around to face him. “Well, not in mine. I’ve seen firsthand what an unhappy marriage can do to the children of that union. They’re the ones who ultimately suffer, and I won’t put any child of mine through that sort of trauma.”
    â€œWe’re not talking about a real marriage, merely a temporary one.”
    She lifted her chin in a proud gesture. “I don’t need to marry to give my baby legitimacy. The Worth name will protect him or her.”
    â€œThe Barron name didn’t protect me,” he shot back. “And it carries far more weight than your name does. Nor will I allow people to make snide comments about the bastard having a bastard. That’s just not going to happen.”
    â€œAnd how are you going to stop it?” she demanded. “You can’t force me to marry you.”
    â€œEveryone has their price, Emma. Even you.”
    He couldn’t have insulted her more if he’d slapped her. Bright color carved a path across her cheekbones. “You’re wrong,” she retorted in a tight voice.
    â€œAm I?”
    He closed the distance between them. He could see her pulse rate kick up, heard the unevenness in her breathing. Beneath her anger and outrage, desire lurked. She might resist, but it was there all the same. He leaned in, watching the conflict build in her eyes. Just as she teetered on the edge of surrender, he pulled back.
    â€œSee? It’s just a matter of finding the right price.”
    â€œI think this conversation has gone on long enough.”
    She gave him a wide berth on her return to the car. He wasn’t the least surprised when she started the engine with a roar, and reversed in a plume of sand and dirt. The tinted