Kristin Morgan - The Daddy And The Baby Doctor

Letter to Reader Dear Reader, You’ll find the heartwarming themes of love and family in our November Romance novels. First up, longtime reader favorite Arlene James portrays A Bride To Honor In this VIRGIN BRIDES title, a pretty party planner falls for a charming tycoon...whom another woman seeks to rope into a loveless marriage! But can honorable love prevail? A little tyke takes a tumble, then awakes to ask a rough-hewn rancher, Are You My Daddy? So starts Leanna Wilson’s poignant, emotional romance between a mom and a FABULOUS FATHER who “pretends” he’s family. Karen Rose Smith finishes her enticing series DO YOU TAKE THIS STRANGER? with Promises. Pumpkins and Prince Charming. A wealthy bachelor lets a gun-shy single mom believe he’s just a regular guy. Will their fairy-tale romance survive the truth? FOLLOW THAT BABY, Silhouette’s exciting cross-line continuity series, comes to Romance this month with The Daddy and the Baby Doctor by star author Kristin Morgan. An ex-soldier single dad butts heads with a beautiful pediatrician over a missing patient. Temperatures rise, pulses race—could marriage be the cure? It’s said that opposites attract, and when The Cowboy and the Debutante cozy up on a rustic ranch...well, you’ll just have to read this TWINS ON THE DOORSTEP title by Stella Bagwell to find out! A hairdresser dreams of becoming a Lone Star Bride when a handsome stranger passes through town. Don’t miss the finale of Linda Varner’s THREE WEDDINGS AND A FAMILY miniseries! Beloved authors Lindsay Longford, Sandra Steffen, Susan Meier and Carolyn Zane return to our lineup next month, and in the new year we launch our brand-new promotion, FAMILY MATTERS. So keep coming back to Romance! Happy Thanksgiving! Mary-Theresa Hussey Senior Editor, Silhouette Romance Please address questions and book requests to: Silhouette Reader Service U.S.: 3010 Walden Ave., P.O. Box 1325, Buffalo, NY 14269 Canadian: P.O. Box 609, Fort Erie, Ont. L2A 5X3 Title Page The Daddy And The Baby Doctor Kristin Morgan www.millsandboon.co.uk Acknowledgments Special thanks and acknowledgment are given to Kristin Morgan for her contribution to the Follow That Baby miniseries About the Author KRISTIN MORGAN lives in Lafayette, Louisiana, the very heart of Cajun country, where the French language of her ancestors is still spoken fluently by her parents and grandparents. In addition to her writing, she enjoys cooking and preparing authentic Cajun foods for her family from recipes passed on to her through the generations. Her hobbies include reading—of course!—and flower gardening. She loves walking in the rain, newborn babies, all kinds of music, Christmas, chocolate desserts and love stories with happy endings. A true romantic at heart, she believes all things are possible with love. Letter to Reader Dear Reader, Being a Silhouette author means a lot to me. Silhouette has been a constant and steady support to me since they published my first novel in 1991. As a reader of romance novels, I love books about heroes and heroines who have strong emotional conflicts. As a Silhouette author, I enjoy writing stories about characters who steal my heart away in their struggle to find everlasting love. When my agent called to say that Silhouette was inviting me to participate in a special cross-line series entitled FOLLOW THAT BABY, I was thrilled. This would be my first time to write for a special project that involved other Silhouette authors. As it turned out, it was a wonderful, fun experience. Thanks, Silhouette, for everything. And thanks to all my readers for your patronage. I wish you all the romance your heart desires. Enjoy! Chapter One Chapter Two Chapter Three Chapter Four Chapter Five Chapter Six Chapter Seven Chapter Eight Chapter Nine Epilogue Copyright

Powerful, prominent, proud—the Oklahoma Wentworths’ greatest fortune was family. So when they discovered that pregnant mom-to-be Sabrina Jensen was carrying the newest Wentworth heir—and had vanished without a trace—they vowed to...Follow That Baby!

Sam Arquette: Once, recon and freeze-dried meals comprised his day.

Now this ex-soldier was cooking, cleaning and caring for two little girls.

And his code of honor had him tracking a fallen buddy’s runaway lady to the offices of a beguiling baby doctor....

Amanda Lucas: Babies were her greatest joy... and her greatest sadness. Because she could deliver countless cuddly bundles, but she could never conceive.

And now a dedicated daddy was challenging her code of confidentiality—and chipping away at her guarded heart....

Jack Wentworth: The millionaire navy hero was presumed dead, but a diamond ring suggested the soldier stud had been thinking about marrying his mysterious sweetheart....

Sabrina Jensen: Amanda didn’t know where her pregnant patient had gone, but the Wentworths’ powerful clout yielded the next lead from a small-town sheriff....

Don’t miss

THE SHERIFF AND THE IMPOSTOR BRIDE by Elizabeth Bevarly, next month’s Follow That Baby title, available in Desire.

Dear Reader,

You’ll find the heartwarming themes of love and family in our November Romance novels. First up, longtime reader favorite Arlene James portrays A Bride To Honor In this VIRGIN BRIDES title, a pretty party planner falls for a charming tycoon...whom another woman seeks to rope into a loveless marriage! But can honorable love prevail?

A little tyke takes a tumble, then awakes to ask a rough-hewn rancher, Are You My Daddy? So starts Leanna Wilson’s poignant, emotional romance between a mom and a FABULOUS FATHER who “pretends” he’s family. Karen Rose Smith finishes her enticing series DO YOU TAKE THIS STRANGER? with Promises. Pumpkins and Prince Charming. A wealthy bachelor lets a gun-shy single mom believe he’s just a regular guy. Will their fairy-tale romance survive the truth?

FOLLOW THAT BABY, Silhouette’s exciting cross-line continuity series, comes to Romance this month with The Daddy and the Baby Doctor by star author Kristin Morgan. An ex-soldier single dad butts heads with a beautiful pediatrician over a missing patient. Temperatures rise, pulses race—could marriage be the cure? It’s said that opposites attract, and when The Cowboy and the Debutante cozy up on a rustic ranch...well, you’ll just have to read this TWINS ON THE DOORSTEP title by Stella Bagwell to find out! A hairdresser dreams of becoming a Lone Star Bride when a handsome stranger passes through town. Don’t miss the finale of Linda Varner’s THREE WEDDINGS AND A FAMILY miniseries!

Beloved authors Lindsay Longford, Sandra Steffen, Susan Meier and Carolyn Zane return to our lineup next month, and in the new year we launch our brand-new promotion, FAMILY MATTERS. So keep coming back to Romance!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Mary-Theresa Hussey

Senior Editor, Silhouette Romance

Please address questions and book requests to:

Silhouette Reader Service

U.S.: 3010 Walden Ave., P.O. Box 1325, Buffalo, NY 14269

Canadian: P.O. Box 609, Fort Erie, Ont. L2A 5X3

www.millsandboon.co.uk

Special thanks and acknowledgment are given to

Kristin Morgan for her contribution to the

Follow That Baby miniseries

KRISTIN MORGAN

lives in Lafayette, Louisiana, the very heart of Cajun country, where the French language of her ancestors is still spoken fluently by her parents and grandparents.

In addition to her writing, she enjoys cooking and preparing authentic Cajun foods for her family from recipes passed on to her through the generations. Her hobbies include reading—of course!—and flower gardening. She loves walking in the rain, newborn babies, all kinds of music, Christmas, chocolate desserts and love stories with happy endings. A true romantic at heart, she believes all things are possible with love.

Dear Reader,

Being a Silhouette author means a lot to me. Silhouette has been a constant and steady support to me since they published my first novel in 1991. As a reader of romance novels, I love books about heroes and heroines who have strong emotional conflicts. As a Silhouette author, I enjoy writing stories about characters who steal my heart away in their struggle to find everlasting love.

When my agent called to say that Silhouette was inviting me to participate in a special cross-line series entitled FOLLOW THAT BABY, I was thrilled. This would be my first time to write for a special project that involved other Silhouette authors. As it turned out, it was a wonderful, fun experience.

Thanks, Silhouette, for everything.

And thanks to all my readers for your patronage.

I wish you all the romance your heart desires.

Enjoy!

Chapter One

Sam Arquette paused momentarily to study the engraved brass nameplate on the office door. It read, Amanda Lucas, M.D. Turning the knob, he stepped inside and in one swift glance saw that the waiting room was full.

Full of pregnant women.

Well, he had been halfway expecting as much. Amanda Lucas’s reputation as one of the best OB-GYN specialists in Mason’s Grove, Oklahoma, was almost godlike. If he had learned anything at all about her in the past few hours, it was that she was considered the town’s baby doctor extraordinaire. But the truth of the matter was, he wasn’t here to see Amanda Lucas because the good folks in Mason’s Grove thought the world of her. He was here as a favor to a friend.

Once again, Sam made a quick scan around the small crowded room, only to discover that he had become the center of attention. That didn’t bother him. Over the years he had found there were times when his six-foot-two-inch frame made him an imposing presence to others. And as luck would have it, it seemed, this was going to be one of those times.

A moment passed. Then another. Eventually, Sam got the feeling that it was more than just his stature that had made him the center of regard. Apparently, he had stepped into a world that didn’t necessarily welcome strangers—particularly, he surmised, male strangers—and for just one fleeting moment, he wished that his two young daughters were with him, although he had no earthly idea what good they would have done him, except that their being female might have somehow helped to improve his image.

And who said it was a man’s world? he asked himself with a smirk.

But in spite of that wry observation, Sam felt a flush rise to his cheeks. As an ex-Navy SEABEE, he thought that he had been trained to handle any situation. But, apparently, not one where a roomful of pregnant women were scrutinizing him so warily. He felt like an alien. Like an invader of the worst kind.

Well, ex-c-u-s-e me, he thought to himself. But wasn’t this a free country?

Damned right, it was.

And, frankly, he had fought more than his share of battles on foreign soil to help keep it that way. He had as much right as anyone to go anywhere he pleased.

Right?

Without a doubt.

So how, then, had he gotten himself into this...this impregnable situation, anyway?

Better yet, how could he get himself out?

Thanks a bunch, Josie, he told himself a moment later, mentally chastising his good friend, Josie Wentworth. If it hadn’t been for the favor she’d asked of him, he would have been at home right this minute, doing chores around his small farm while enjoying the company of his two young children. It was his way of life these days, although sometimes the fact that it was still surprised him.

In truth, he really didn’t mind doing this favor for Josie. He wanted to help the Wentworths all he could. He and Jack Wentworth, Josie’s older brother, had been the best of friends. Now Jack was dead, killed only recently while on an undercover mission for the government. It seemed impossible that it could be true, but it was. And now the Wentworths were looking for a young woman whom they believed was involved with Jack right before his death. But, according to Josie, the woman had literally disappeared. Luckily, Josie had come across a doctor’s statement that suggested the woman might be living in Mason’s Grove. And since he now lived in the small Oklahoma town, Josie had asked him to look into the matter for her.