Free The Billionaire's Baby Arrangement by Charlene Sands

excited at the prospect of starting her own business.
    She served the meal and silence ensued. With Leah on her lap, she dug into the omelet and tasted. Not bad. Then she glanced at Nick’s plate to find he’d gobbled up the omelet already and was working on the potatoes. “Want another?” she asked.
    â€œIn a heartbeat. Finish yours first. I’ll work on what’s left on my plate.”
    A few minutes later, Brooke started cooking Nick’s second omelet and Nurse Jacobs took Leah outside for a little stroll.
    Nick leaned over the black granite counter, elbows folded, watching her put the bell peppers, onions, bits of ham and grated cheese onto the egg mix and top it off with avocado. “So we’re good, about last night. No hard feelings?”
    Brooke met his gaze, waiting for the hurt, anger and bitterness to emerge. When it didn’t appear, her heart lifted. She and Nick came from different worlds. They were never destined to be together and maybe…just maybe she might believe that he had spared her that night. Yet her initial thoughts from her high school days hadn’t changed. He was way out of her league. If she were looking for a man, he wouldn’t be last on her list—he wouldn’t be on it at all. He wasn’t a man to stick around. Nick was a player and Brooke had already played the game and lost. And while that might be okay for her, it wasn’t all right for Leah. Her daughter’s needs always had to come first.
    â€œNo hard feelings. But we have to talk about something else. Have you heard back from your mechanic?”
    â€œI have.”
    â€œAnd? What’s the bad news?”
    He frowned. “Your car might live.”
    â€œThat’s not bad news! That’s great.”
    She flipped the omelet over and lifted it with a spatula then grabbed Nick’s plate from the table. “I was hoping it wasn’t totaled.” She loaded the omelet onto the dish and set it in front of him.
    He took his fork and began eating. “How do you do it? This is better than the last one and that one was pretty damn good.”
    â€œI’m amazing. I can make an omelet.”
    Nick scoffed. “You’re a good cook, Brooke. Admit it.”
    â€œI do okay. So how much is it gonna cost for the repairs?”
    â€œIt’s taken care of.”
    She blinked and stood completely still. “No, Nick. It’s not. Both of our cars were damaged. I owe somebody, something. I plan to pay. Do you have an estimate?”
    â€œI do.”
    â€œWell, where is it? Show it to me,” she ordered.
    Nick scratched his head and stared at her. She glared back and held her ground. He reached into his pocket and pulled out two pieces of paper from Napa Auto Body Works. Unfolding the papers, he laid them onto the counter and turned them her way.
    â€œThirteen thousand dollars for your car! You can practically buy a new car for that!” Of course she’d had to collide into Nick and the most expensive car on the planet.
    â€œMy insurance will cover most of it.”
    Relieved about that, Brooke peered at her estimate. “Forty-eight hundred dollars.” She breathed a heavy sigh. That would cut heavily into the money she had saved to start her business, not to mention fixing up the place. The broken interior door would have to wait, and so would the painters and new linens she’d need for the beds. And fixing the bathrooms. Still, she couldn’t make any repairs without her car. She needed wheels. “When can I have my car back?”
    â€œMaybe you should get another car. Randy said it was borderline. He could fix your car but it’s almost not worth it.”
    â€œI can’t do that. I can’t afford a newer car.”
    Annoyed that Nick would think it just that easy for her to buy a car, she turned away, working out her frustration by scrubbing the frying pan in the sink.
    A long minute stretched out in