Winning Wyatt (The Billionaire Brotherhood Book 1) (17 page)

“God, Kara.” He tore himself away from her. “I hope you call
me.”

Connecticut, present day

Two
weeks after Wyatt’s reentry into Kara’s life, she answered his knock on her
door primed and ready to tear into him. “You’ve got to make her stop,” she
demanded instead of greeting him.

“Okay.”
It pleased him to note that she looked particularly fetching with her eyes
blazing. And since he wasn’t the source of her annoyance, he would agree to
help her with any problem she named. “Make who stop doing what?”

“Your
mother!”

He
paused in the act of removing his jacket. “What’s she done?”

“She
keeps sending—” Kara waved her arms around in front of her like she couldn’t
think of a word big enough to encompass the offense. “Largesse!” she exploded. “Gifts,
presents, toys, clothes, you name it. Come and see.”
 

She
grabbed his arm and dragged him through the clutter of boxes and cartons in
every room. At least her current irritation outweighed her previous reluctance
to touch him.“We don’t need this stuff, we don’t want it, and some of it’s
entirely inappropriate. Does she think I haven’t been providing for him?”

Relieved
to discover his mother’s transgression wasn’t unforgivable, immoral or illegal,
he poked into a package that held the latest gaming system. “She’s just trying
to make up for the time she missed.”

“Well,
tell her she’s caught up until his high school graduation.” Kara kicked a box
containing a skateboard.

“Can
he use any of it?” Wyatt lifted up a wool dress coat more suitable to the Prime
Minister of England than an active two-year-old.

Wyatt’s
heart expanded when Sean rolled into the room dragging along a huge stuffed
yellow bird. He snuggled against his mom’s leg and peeked around far enough to
reveal his forehead and eyes.

“Hey,
scooter.” Wyatt shook the stuffed animal by the wing. “Who’s this guy?”

“Big
Bird.”

“Aptly
named.” Wyatt reached around to tug the little boy out from behind his mother.

“I’m
Elmo.” Sean giggled. “You’re Oscar the Grouch!”
 

Wyatt
raised his eyebrow at Kara as Sean raced away. “Are we pretending or does that
mean he doesn’t remember me?”

“Two-year-olds
don’t remember much past this morning.” She said it gently, as though she might
have a glimmer of sympathy for his feelings. “Unless a person or object appears
regularly on their radar screen, their memory banks fill up with the most
recent diversion.”

“Then
it’s time to become reacquainted.” Wyatt’s toe caught on another tower of
packages in the family room. He raised his hand like a traffic cop before she
raised another complaint. “Keep what you think Sean will like—” he nodded
across the room toward Sean banging a tambourine against a rocking horse
“—store what you think he might want in the future, and give the rest to
charity.”

“But
won’t your mother mind? Won’t it hurt her feelings?”

“I’m
not sure she has normal feelings, but if you’re worried about that, she’ll
never know unless you tell her.” He picked up a kaleidoscope and looked through
it, wishing the jumbled pieces of his relationship with Kara would fall as
easily into place. “And I’ll speak to her about limiting her gifts to special
occasions.”

“You
mean she’s not done?” Kara grimaced. “She’ll keep wanting to give him things on
birthdays and holidays, won’t she?”

If
he hadn’t experienced his mother’s persistence too many times to count, he
would have found Kara’s reaction more amusing. “Don’t your parents?”

“Yes,
but they’re his—” She cut herself off mid-sentence and bit her bottom lip.

Wyatt
filled in the blank. “Grandparents. And so is she.”

The
comment sent her whirling away to pick up Sean. She had a point about the
barrage of presents. He’d make an effort to keep his mother in check. But he
would also make certain Sean knew the relatives on both sides of his family
tree.

With
that in mind, he brought up the subject he felt certain had Kara shaking in her
shoes. “Are you ready for their visit tomorrow?”

She
tapped her foot against the hardwood floor and pulled their son tightly against
her chest. “Yes, but I still don’t know why I agreed to let them come here.”

“We’ve
already discussed this. Would you rather I take Sean to Atlanta?”

“No!”

“If
you don’t want my family to come to your house, I can take him to meet them at
the hotel.”

“You’re
not taking him anywhere.” Kara turned a shade of pale he’d never seen on her
before—or on anyone still breathing. “How many of them are coming? I’d like to
get the uninvited guest list straight, if you don’t mind.”

“Allie,
Xander, Mother.” Each name caused her to flinch. “They aren’t ogres, after all.
Not all of them, anyway.” Wyatt noticed a remote-control car amid Sean’s new
loot. Intrigued, he dropped to the floor and picked up the handset. “I told you
before I went to Atlanta this would probably happen. Do you have batteries for
this thing?”

Sean
pushed against her, trying to get down. “I thought I’d have more warning.” Kara
stood the child on the floor and opened a kitchen drawer to get a box filled
with batteries.

“You’ve
known for over a week.” Wyatt fished out the kind he needed to get the toy up
and running. As the car zoomed around the room, he stopped to enjoy watching
Sean try to catch it. “Since next week is Thanksgiving and I didn’t know what
your plans would be, I didn’t want to wait two to three more weeks for them to
meet him.”

Picking
up Big Bird, she hugged the stuffed animal to her. “What time will they be
here?”

“Whatever
is convenient for you. Mother has the jet ordered for nine AM. By the time they
check into a hotel, the earliest they could get out here would be, what? Two or
three o’clock?”

“Right
in the middle of Sean’s nap.”

Sean
backed up to Wyatt and plopped down in his lap, trying to take control of the
remote. Wyatt placed it in his tiny hands. “Do you know how to operate it?”

“Me
do it.” He pushed the big green button that sent the car racing. They laughed
when he pressed the red one that caused the car to screech to a halt.

“Very
good,” Wyatt praised before returning his gaze to Kara. “So, what time would
you prefer? My family will adjust their schedule accordingly.”

“What
color is this one?” Wyatt asked Sean the next day as Kara helplessly watched
them add another block to a tower being erected exclusively for the entertainment
of the rest of the Maitlands.

“Blue!”

“That’s
right!” Wyatt agreed before the boy rushed off to get another.

“What
color is this one?” Allie asked.

“Green.”
Sean beamed up at his new aunt.

The
group had assembled in the family room after the first awkward moments of
arrival. When Wyatt took charge of introducing his family to her child, Kara
became the sole audience member to an experimental play performed in her own
home. Aware of the tension clawing between her shoulder blades, Kara stiffened
her spine and sat up straighter.

As
Sean’s initial shyness wore off, he became an instant hit with his relatives.
Each Maitland vied for his attention. He had been comfortable with Xander from
the start, but her child’s natural friendliness and curiosity soon included
Allie and even Rosalie.

Xander
pulled out his cell phone and urged everyone to line up for a picture with his
new cousin. As Kara seethed over the way they had commandeered her son, Allie
took the phone, suggesting a picture of Xander with Wyatt and Sean.

The
handsome adult, the young man, and the small child looked so similar there
could be no doubt about the DNA that linked them. Envisioning her son’s
appearance in years to come, Kara felt an unwelcome tug on her heartstrings.
Before someone suggested taking her picture with Wyatt and Sean, she slipped
away to help Maria in the kitchen, although there was really nothing to do.
Wyatt’s assistant had ordered food and serving staff from a catering service
for the non-event.

“He’s
very intelligent.” Rosalie made the proclamation after tea had been served and
Sean’s knowledge of colors had been accepted as genius. “He should be given
every advantage possible.”

“Anyone
can see this is an excellent environment for a child. It doesn’t look like he
lacks anything a two-year-old could want.” Allie took in the assortment of
playthings Sean had dropped in her lap.

“He
has great toys.” Xander set off a whirl of buzzers and bells on a laptop
pinball machine.

Rosalie
sniffed like she was checking the air her grandchild breathed. “But material
possessions aren’t our major concern.”

Kara
clasped her hands in her lap to keep from stuffing Bob the Builder’s hammer
down the throat of the self-righteous witch who was had instigated the deluge
of material possessions. The tension between Kara’s shoulder blades climbed up
the back of her neck.

“He
gets plenty of love and attention, Mother.” Wyatt’s words of defense washed
over Kara, making her forget for the moment that it was his family causing her
this torment.

“I’m
sure Kara does her best, but can a single parent do enough? Doesn’t every child
merit the attention of two loving parents?” She picked up her teacup and sipped
demurely.

“May
I offer you anything else, Mrs. Maitland?” Kara pasted a smile on her face and
rose to pass a tray of treats. “Another scone?” One laced with arsenic?

Kara
carried the pastries around, but only Xander and Sean accepted seconds.

“Do
you intend to encourage a relationship between Wyatt and Sean, Kara?” Rosalie
asked when Kara resumed her seat. “A father can be such a formidable influence
on a child’s life.”

“Mother,
I told you.” Wyatt’s words were laced with a cautionary note. “Kara and I will
settle this ourselves.”

She
acknowledged the warning with a regal nod. “What steps are being taken toward
that end?”

The
tension in the back of Kara’s neck exploded behind her eyes into a migraine.
Pressing her fingertips against her temples, she took deep breaths and tried to
transcend the pain.

“I
can’t speak for Wyatt, but I can tell you my own intentions.” Kara made every
effort to remain calm. Dreadful as this scene was, it might be best to spell
out her reservations. “I’m waiting to see how serious Wyatt is about being a
father before I make any permanent concessions in that regard.”

“How
will you know if he’s serious or not?” Rosalie raised an imperial eyebrow. “Is
there a test?”

“Just
the test of time.” Kara held the attention of all the Maitlands, but she
especially felt the heat of Wyatt’s gaze. “At present, he’s fascinated with the
idea of being a father, but who knows how long that will last? Commitment has
never been his strong suit. Now, while the concept of parenthood is new and
interesting to him, he’s visiting Sean at every opportunity. But will that
dwindle into the occasional weekend and then to once or twice a year? I don’t
want my child getting attached to someone who considers him a passing and
easily discarded fancy. California is a long way away and Wyatt already divides
his time between the university and your company in Atlanta. Plus, he may have
other, uh, diversions, for all I know.”

Although
Kara directed her comments to Rosalie and refused to look at Wyatt, his
annoyance radiated to her from across the room.

“Those
are valid points, Wyatt,” Allie said. “Being a parent has its own rewards, but
it’s a lot of work.” She knit her eyebrows together, and Kara guessed that
Wyatt’s sister weighed her loyalties carefully. She remembered hearing that
Xander’s father hadn’t been a successful parent. “I wouldn’t want you to walk
away from a responsibility after you had accepted it.”

Wyatt
pushed himself to his feet and shoved his hands in his pockets. He went to
stand in front of the hearth where a fire flickered brightly. He and Kara may
as well have been alone in the room, because he focused entirely on her and
ignored the others. “I’ve requested a leave from Southern Cal. I’m moving here
to be near Sean.”