Stella Bagwell - The Baby Truth

The group of men surged forward, all of them talking in an excited rush. Except for one. The older, silver-haired man was standing a few steps away from the rest of the group, his expression grim as his narrowed eyes burned a hole in her.

As the younger men reached to shake her hand and offer their greetings, Sassy tried to ignore the daunting figure and focus on each name and face. But after a moment, the outsider plowed his way through the men and fixed an angry glare at Jett.

“Get this woman out of here! Now!”

The outburst caused a hush to come over the group, and feeling as though a knife had been rammed into her chest, Sassy turned to Jett and clutched his arm.

Before she could beg him to take her away, Orin walked over to the older man and latched tightly on to his arm. “What the hell are you doing, Dad? You’re behaving like a rude bastard!”

Turning into Jett, she muttered close to his ear, “I don’t want to stay here. We’d better go.”

Overhearing her reaction, Finn quickly protested, “You’re not going anywhere, Sassy.” He stabbed his grandfather with a burning glare, then turned toward his father and three brothers. “Is she, guys?”

“Not by a long shot,” the one named Clancy replied. He stepped forward and reached for her hand. “Come along, Sassy, and have a drink with us. It’s really nice to have a woman in the house again. I think I can say that for all my brothers.”

“Absolutely!” the brother named Rafe exclaimed. “Bowie, the baby of the bunch, isn’t here. He’s in the Marines and down in southern California now, but I can safely say he’d be happy to meet you.”

Evan, the one with chestnut-colored hair and broad shoulders, rubbed his hands together with gleeful anticipation. “This is a treat. Let’s break out the best brandy and have Tessa bring in the cake that Greta made for our special guest!”

Seeing that his order was being totally ignored, Bart Calhoun jerked away from Orin’s grasp, then turned on his heel and stalked out of the room. At the same time, Clancy was pulling Sassy deeper into the room and she glanced helplessly up at Jett, who was staying close by her side.

“What am I supposed to do now?” she asked.

He shot her a wry smile. “Maybe you should let the Calhoun family tell you that.”

Chapter Four

Wondering if she was being led into a den of wolves, Sassy moved along with the Calhoun men until they reached a furniture grouping placed strategically near the roaring fireplace.

“Sit here, Sassy.” Clancy, the tawny-haired one, maneuvered her over to a big armchair covered in cream-colored leather. “It’s real comfy and you’ll be nice and warm.”

“Not there, Clancy!” Rafe quickly protested. “If she sits there none of us can sit next to her.”

Clancy shot a droll look at his younger brother. “Precisely. She doesn’t need you or Finn cozying up to her.”

“Hey, that’s not fair,” Finn protested. “Sassy’s here because of me. I should get to sit next to her.”

“Sassy is here tonight because I brought her,” Jett suddenly reminded the group. “Maybe the whole bunch of you ought to remember that.”

Standing near the fireplace hearth, Orin leveled a pointed look at Jett. “I don’t think you’ll have to remind Bart of that fact.”

From the corner of her eye, Sassy watched one of Jett’s brows arch with speculation and though he said nothing in response to Orin’s remark, she couldn’t help but wonder what he was thinking. From what Jett had told her, he’d worked exclusively as the Calhoun family lawyer ever since he’d passed the bar. If her coming here had jeopardized his position, she’d feel worse than terrible.

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