“Very reassuring, thanks.” Carmen moved to the office and closed the door behind her, then sat in front of Stanley’s imposing desk, trying not to be distracted by the dazzling view of the La Vega skyline through the floor-to-ceiling windows behind him.

  The editor smiled as he noticed her gaze. “One hell of a view, eh?”

  Carmen nodded. “It reminds me why I moved here from Miami in the first place. Don’t get me wrong,” she added quickly, “Miami will always be home, but something about the life and the energy of this city is just… irresistible.”

  Stanley grinned. “I know exactly what you mean, kid. New York is supposed to be the city that never sleeps, but La Vega never even stops to catch its breath!” He reached for the copy of the Ledger on his desk and folded it open to her latest article. “In fact, that’s more or less why I called you in here. You’ve done good work for the paper in your time here, Carmen, nothing less than I’d expect from a magna-cum-laude grad of Florida State’s journalism school—but something tells me you’re less than satisfied with the caliber of the assignments I’ve given you thus far.”

  Something tells you, Stanley? I’ve told you, in every performance review!

  Carmen swallowed down her frustration. “Well, it’s just that there are so many stories in La Vega, just waiting to be uncovered…”

  “Stories more exciting than under-seasoned tuna tartare, I suppose.” Stanley smiled knowingly. “How about an extended series of profile pieces on one of the city’s most prominent personalities?”

  An exhilarated tingle ran down Carmen’s back. “Seriously? That’s my next assignment?” Her mind ran wild with possibilities. Was it the mayor? One of the billionaires in the beachfront mansions dotting the coastline? A sports star? As long as it wasn’t…

  Just as Carmen landed on a terrible thought, her worst-case scenario was confirmed. Stanley flipped to the Ledger’s sports page and turned it around so she could see the photo of the man who had been the face of the La Vega Vipers football team for the past fifteen years. “Meet Jason ‘Millstone’ Miller—though I’m sure he needs no introduction. I know there was something of a rivalry with your older brother Francisco when he was playing for the Miami Mantas…”

  Carmen shook her head, trying to look away from Jason Miller’s photo; he had the same smug look in his eye as when he and Francisco were competitors, and she’d always been irritated by the undeniable fact that he was movie-star gorgeous.

  “‘Rivalry’ doesn’t do it justice,” she said coolly. “The Vipers and the Mantas were sworn enemies when Jason and my brother were still playing, and I’ve been a Mantas fan my entire life. That’s why I’ve never asked you about doing any football coverage for the Ledger—my rooting interest would get in the way of writing an objective article.”

  “Well, if you want this assignment, you’ll need to put your team allegiance aside for at least a few months,” Stanley replied, not missing a beat. “And I highly recommend you do, Carmen. You know football inside and out, and think of the potential story angles: a Hall of Fame quarterback, now billionaire and part-owner of the team he once led to glory, dedicating his entire life to the game he loves, leaving no room for anything or anyone else… what makes him tick? What drives a man to be that single-minded and focused?”

  Carmen glanced down again at the photo of Jason’s chiseled, determined face. “Debilitating psychological issues?”

  Stanley grinned. “Entirely possible! And now it’s your job to go find out, kid—provided you can keep your Mantas fandom in check and handle yourself professionally. What do you say?”

  Carmen felt a pesky tinge of hesitation, and wrestled it into surrender. Her editor was right; this was an incredible opportunity to make a name for herself as a hard-hitting investigative reporter at the Ledger, as long as she could concentrate on Jason Miller’s football career and not his intense blue eyes… “I say, you’ve got yourself a new sportswriter.”

  Stanley beamed. “Glad to hear it. You might as well start right this minute—the Vipers should be having their morning workout down at the stadium, although they might not be taking questions from reporters until later on today.”

  Her competitive side flared up—that sounded like exactly the kind of challenge she loved. “We’ll see about that, Stanley.”

  She quickly stood and returned to her desk, and Emma looked over from next door with curiosity.

  “Well? Is there a Ledger-funded restaurant doggie bag in my future?”

  Carmen smiled. “You’re out of luck there, Em—but how about some Vipers tickets?” She quickly caught her friend up, and Emma’s eyes flashed enviously as she heard Jason Miller’s name.

  “So you’re going to be shadowing Millstone Miller for months? Lucky duck…”

  “It depends on how cooperative he is with my articles, I guess—but I thought you didn’t care about football.”

  “Not a bit!” Emma shot her a devilish grin. “But gorgeous, billionaire football players are a different story.”

  Carmen laughed. “Evidently. I’ll go find a hose to spray you down with in a minute—but work comes first.” She pulled out her phone and dialed, and in just a second her brother’s warm voice was booming out from the other end.

  “Hey, sis! I was gonna call you tonight—did you catch the Mantas game yesterday? First time we’ve beaten Atlanta since I was quarterback!”

  “Of course I saw it, Frankie, but actually, I’m calling about the Vipers—one Viper in particular. I need to hear everything you know about Jason ‘Millstone’ Miller…”

  His Shock Baby is available on Amazon now!

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  Also by Holly Rayner

  BILLIONAIRES OF LA VEGA

  * * *

  His Shock Baby

  SWEET SHEIKH SURPRISES

  * * *

  The Sheikh’s New Baby

  * * *

  A Second Chance for the Sheikh

  * * *

  The Sheikh’s Imposter Bride

  * * *

  The Sheikh’s Secret Twins

  KAYYEM SHEIKHS

  * * *

  The Sheikh’s Bride Deal

  * * *

  The Sheikh’s Surprise Delivery

  * * *

  The Sheikh’s Priceless Baby

  ROMANTIC ROYAL MYSTERIES

  * * *

  The Prince’s Baby Mystery

  * * *

  The Prince’s Devious Proposal

  * * *

  The Outlaw Prince's Captive

  * * *

  The Prince’s Scandalous Secret

  GREEK GODS

  * * *

  The Greek’s Green Card Bride

  * * *

  The Greek’s Fated Twins

  * * *

  Saved by the Greek Doctor

  * * *

  The Greek’s Hired Triplets

  SMALL TOWN COWBOYS

  * * *

  The Cowboy’s Quintuplet Surprise

  * * *

  The Cowboy’s Baby Bombshell

  * * *

  The Single Daddy’s New Arrival

  * * *

  My Sister's Cowboy Ex

  * * *

  The Cowboy’s Bride Bet

  BILLIONAIRE COWBOYS

  * * *

  The Single Dad’s New Twins

  * * *

  The Cowboy’s Surprise Baby

  * * *

  The Billionaire’s Convenient Bride

  * * *

  My Bestie’s Brother

  * * *

  The Cowboy’s All-Business Bride

  * * *

  Wanted by the Billionaire Cowboy

  BABIES AND BILLIONS

  * * *

  The Billionaire's Troublesome Triplets

  * * *

  The Jilted Bride’s Secret Baby

  * * *

  His Hush-Hush Baby

  * * *

  The Billionaire’s Illicit Twins

  * * *

  The Baby Pact

  * * *

  Accidental Billionaire Daddy

  * * *

  The Billionaire’s Lockdown Baby

  ALL HE DESIRES

  * * *

  The Sheikh’s Must-Have Baby

  * * *

  The Sheikh’s Stolen Bride-To-Be

  * * *

  Wifed by the Sheikh

  * * *

  The Sheikh’s Tempted Prisoner

  * * *

  Auctioned to the Sheikh

  RAVISHING ROYALS

  * * *

  Her Accidental Prince

  * * *

  His Royal Quadruplets

  * * *

  The Prince Next Door

  * * *

  The Royal Treatment

  * * *

  The Prince’s Long Lost Baby

 

 

  Holly Rayner, The Boss's Mile High Baby

 

 

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