The Ten-Day Baby Takeover. Karen Booth
to add to her contacts. As soon as she got Oliver’s dad to accept his paternal responsibility, she’d force herself to forget the string of digits that led to an office somewhere in this building, most likely the top floor. There would be no maintaining ties with Aiden Langford. Their connection was temporary, albeit of paramount importance. She had his son and he was going to take custody, even if it killed her.
“Yes. Hello. It’s Sarah Daltrey. I’m calling for Aiden Langford. Again.”
One of the two security guards manning the lobby gave her the side-eye. Meanwhile, the woman on the other end of the phone line expressed equal disdain with her snippy tone. “Mr. Langford has told me a dozen times. He does not know you. Please stop calling.”
“I can’t stop calling until he finally talks to me.”
“Perhaps I can help you.”
“No. You can’t. This is a personal matter and Mr. Langford should appreciate that I’m not sharing the details of this situation with his assistant. I outlined it all in the email I sent to him.” More like seven emails, but who’s counting? “If I can just have five minutes of his time, I can explain everything.” Five minutes was a lie. She’d need at least an hour to walk Mr. Langford through Oliver’s schedule, his likes and dislikes, and to make sure he was off to as good a start as possible.
“Mr. Langford is very busy. I can’t put through the call of every person who claims to need his time.”
“Look. I just spent four hours on a train from Boston to New York and I’m downstairs in the lobby, caring for a ten-month-old sorely in need of a nap. I’m not leaving until I speak to him. I’ll sleep here if I have to.”
“I can have security escort you from the building, Ms. Daltrey. Surely you don’t want that.”
“Does LangTel want the embarrassment of their security removing a kicking and screaming woman with a baby from their lobby?”
Mr. Langford’s assistant said everything with her momentary silence. “Can you hold, please? I’ll see if there’s anything I can do.”
Sarah had very little hope for this, but what other options did she have? “Sure. I’ll hold.”
Just then, a statuesque woman with glossy brown hair dressed in a tailored gray dress and black pumps came through the revolving door. Sarah might not have noticed her, but she had a baby bump that was impossible to miss. The security guard beelined to her, taking the stack of papers in her arms. “Good afternoon, Ms. Langford. I’ll get the elevator.”
Anna Langford. Sarah recognized her now, from the research she’d done on the Langford family while trying to find a way to get to Aiden. Anna was one of two LangTel CEOs, along with her brother Adam. She was also Aiden Langford’s younger sister.
Oliver dropped his favorite toy, a stuffed turtle, and unleashed a piercing wail. Sarah cringed, crouching down, scooting across the carpet in her wedge sandals, scrambling for Oliver’s toy while cradling the phone between her ear and shoulder. Anna came to a dead stop and turned her head, zeroing in on Sarah and Oliver.
Great. Now we really are going to get kicked out of the lobby.
Anna frowned and strode closer, but when she removed her sunglasses, there was only empathy in her eyes. “Oh no. Somebody’s unhappy.”
Certain that she’d been banished to the land of horrible hold music, Sarah ended her call and tucked her phone into the diaper bag. “Sorry about that. It’s nap time. He’s tired.” When she straightened to face Anna, she felt as if she needed a step stool. Anna was tall and in heels, while Sarah was height challenged even in her strappy sandals.
Anna shook her head. “Please don’t apologize. This is the highlight of my day. He’s adorable.” She reached for Oliver’s pudgy hand and smiled. He responded by gripping her finger, his head resting on Sarah’s shoulder. “I’m Anna Langford, by the way.”
“I’m Sarah. Daltrey. This is Oliver.” Sarah watched as Oliver smiled shyly at Anna. He was such a sweet and trusting boy. Saying goodbye to him was going to be heartbreaking, especially after three weeks of caring for him all on her own, but that was her charge and there was nothing to be done about that. She was done with being a nanny, and caring for a child that wasn’t her own, regardless of the circumstances, felt far too much like her old life.
Anna’s eyes didn’t stray from Oliver. “Nice to meet you both. I’m due to have my own little one in about six weeks. Middle of June. I have baby fever right now, big time.” She studied the baby’s face. “Your son’s eyes are incredible. Such a brilliant shade of blue.”
And exactly like your brother’s.
Sarah cleared her throat. “He’s not mine, technically. I’m his legal guardian. I’m in the process of connecting him with his father. That’s why I’m here.”
Confusion crossed Anna’s face. “At LangTel. The father works here?”
Sarah had committed herself to discretion for the sake of everyone, especially Oliver, but this might be her one real chance to get to Aiden. She was getting nowhere with his assistant. “I came to see Aiden Langford. He’s your brother, right? I need to speak to him about Oliver, but he won’t take my phone calls.”
“Oh.” A flicker of surprise crossed Anna’s face as her eyes darted between Oliver and Sarah. “Oh. Wow.” She kneaded her temple with the tips of her fingers. “The lobby doesn’t seem like a good place to talk about this. Maybe you should come upstairs with me.”
* * *
Aiden’s assistant buzzed his extension. “Mr. Langford? Your sister is here to see you. She’s brought a visitor.”
Visitor? “Sure. Send them in.” Aiden set aside the LangTel global marketing report he’d been skimming, easily the driest thing he’d ever read, which was saying a lot. With more than a dozen years in business under his belt, he’d digested his fair share of dull financial projections and legal briefs. He preferred to rely on his gut when making decisions. Billions later, the strategy had served him well.
In walked Anna with a blonde woman he didn’t know. To say the stranger was eye catching would’ve been dismissive. With full pink lips and big blue eyes, wearing a black sundress, she was natural femininity embodied. Their gazes connected and he noticed the faintest of freckles dotting her cheeks. His tastes in women were wide and varied, but this woman ticked off more of his “yes” boxes than he cared to admit. Unfortunately, one thing about her made her absolutely not his type—the baby asleep in her arms. As a skilled avoider of emotional entanglements, moms were not on his list of women suitable for dating.
“Aiden, I want you to meet Sarah Daltrey,” Anna said softly.
That name ended all thought of sexy sundresses and freckles. “You’re the woman who keeps calling. You just called from the lobby. How in the world did you get to my sister?”
Anna shushed him. “The baby. He’s sleeping.”
The baby. His brain whirred into overdrive. He’d read Sarah’s email. Well, one of them at least. That was enough to help him decide he shouldn’t speak to her. He’d had false paternity accusations thrown at him before. When you have a vast fortune and come from a family well-known for success, you might as well have a target on your back. “This isn’t right.” His gut told him this was all wrong. “I don’t know what Ms. Daltrey is after, but I’m calling security.” He reached for the phone, but Anna clapped her hand over his.
“Aiden. Don’t. Just listen. Please. It’s important.”
“I don’t know what she’s told you, but it’s all lies.” His pulse throbbed in his ears.
“Five minutes is all I ask, Mr. Langford.” Sarah’s voice suggested nothing less than calm professionalism. Not exactly the approach of someone unbalanced. But a baby? Oh, no. “If you don’t believe me and what I came to tell you, you won’t need to call