CHAPTER ONE
CHANCE MONTGOMERY PULLED his SUV up to the big black iron gates that protected his mother’s estate. He punched in the code she’d given him, and, after the gates opened, drove along the winding lane, not surprised that nothing had changed. The leaves on the tall trees that lead to the mansion had turned red, yellow and orange, the way they always did in October in Pine Ward, Pennsylvania. The brown and gray stone mansion, his childhood home, looked exactly as it had on his eighteenth birthday, when he’d run away.
He’d left because his life was a mess. A rope of days, months and years braided together with betrayal and lies. Ironically, he was returning for the same reason. The woman he’d thought was the love of his life had left him when she realized she was pregnant with his twins. She’d never loved him, only used him as a stepping stone to get where she wanted to be in her career. Nine months later, she’d had their babies and seemed to mother them adequately for six or so months. Then suddenly two weeks ago, she’d brought them to his house and said she didn’t want them back.
Odd that it took her giving up the kids to reinforce the valuable lesson he’d learned when he’d discovered his adoptive father was actually his biological father. People couldn’t be trusted. Most looked out for themselves. He should have remembered that when she told him she’d only been with him to use him. But, no. He’d actually held out hope that even if she didn’t love him, she could love their kids.
He was an idiot.
He pulled the SUV in front of one of the garage doors, clicked off the ignition and jumped out. As if she’d been waiting for him, his mom hurried over.
“Chance, darling!” Her snow-white hair was cut short in a neat and elegant style. Her black trousers and black turtleneck with pearls made her look like the socialite that she was.
She enfolded him in the kind of embrace only a mother can pull off without looking foolish. When she stepped away, her eyes were filled with tears. “I’m so glad you’re home.”
He cleared his throat. He wished he could say the same, but the truth was he wasn’t happy to be here. He wasn’t happy he couldn’t handle his twins. He wasn’t happy his babies’ mother didn’t want to be in their lives. He wasn’t happy that every person in his life hurt him, cheated him or lied to him.
Except Gwen Montgomery. The devoted wife his father had tricked into adopting him. A woman who, even once she’d found out he was her husband’s illegitimate son, hadn’t stopped loving him.
“It’s good to be home.”
Okay. That was a bit of a lie. But how could he tell the happy woman in front of him the truth? That this house reminded him of a dad who couldn’t be trusted. That his life sucked…
He couldn’t.
She clapped her hands together. “So let me see them!”
He reached for the back door of the SUV just as a tall redhead walked out of the mansion. He would have been lying if he said he didn’t notice her face was pretty. Big brown eyes, a pert nose and full, lush lips always added up to pretty. But she wore a plain white blouse, gray pants and ugly—truly ugly—black shoes.
His mother said, “By the way, this is Victoria Bingham. She likes to be called Tory. I hired her to be your nanny.”
Normally, he would have reached over and taken the hand she extended to shake his. Instead, he turned to his mom. “I told you, Mom, I want to raise the kids myself. I came here for help from you, not an outsider.”
Gwen straightened as if he’d mortally wounded her. “Well, of course, I’ll help you. But you also need a nanny for things like diapers—”
“I can change diapers. I’ve changed thirty thousand in the past two weeks. These kids were abandoned by their mom. They’re not going to lose their daddy too.”
She laid her hand on his cheek. “Oh, darling. We are not going to let these kids go without love. You had a nanny until you were four. And you don’t think I love you any less than a baby raised without a nanny, do you?”
He shook his head. Gwen’s love had been proven a million times over when she accepted her husband’s infidelity a lot better than Chance had.
“So, you see? Nannies are perfectly suitable help.”
He mumbled, “I suppose,” turned to the SUV door, opened it and revealed his two true pride and joys. Little bruiser Sam yelped indignantly as if he resented being stuck in his car seat while everybody else talked. Cindy gurgled happily.
“Oh, darling! They’re gorgeous!”