Sterling raised an arched brow. "Breast-feeding? What about it?"

"Anyone will tell you breast milk is the best source of nutrition for a baby, and I have every intention of breastfeeding. Six weeks won't be long enough. Who'll continue after I'm gone? Surely you won't be able to."

"No, of course I won't, but-"

"And another thing," she went on, "you and I both know you travel a lot. Most of your time is spent out of the country. Who'll take care of my child while you're away? Even if you hired someone, no one will do a better job of taking care of it than me. I'll give it the best possible care."

Seeing that for the moment she had Sterling at a loss for words, Colby pressed on. "And what if you decide you want another child later? What will you do? Enter into a similar arrangement with someone else? And what about how things will look? If I leave too soon after the child's birth, the media will wonder why we got married in the first place. Remember the speculation regarding Michael Jackson's marriage and the birth of his children? Do you want to go through something like that? And then there's another thing."

She hesitated for a moment but his silence gave her courage to continue. "I could be a good wife to you," she said in a soft voice, her gaze holding his without flinching. "I know I'm not like a lot of the women you're used to, but I believe I could be a good wife." Colby wished she felt as confident about that as she sounded.

Sterling felt a deep stirring of unease. He had a feeling she probably could if given the chance, but he would not do that. He didn't want any woman to have a permanent place in his life.

"Have you ever been married before, Colby?"

"No."

"Then how do you know you could make me a good wife? You have no idea what I'd want in a wife if I were the least bit interested, which I'm not. I don't need a permanent wife nor do I want one. Our marriage will be a temporary one. And as far as being a mother, I must again repeat myself, my child will not need one."

"I'm sorry," Colby offered quietly a few minutes later.

Sterling frowned. "For what?"

"For whatever your mother did to make you hate the entire ent.i.ty of motherhood."

"You have nothing to be sorry about, so save your pity for someone else," he said coldly. "And I don't hate the entire ent.i.ty of motherhood. There're some good mothers out there. I don't believe all women are as cold and heartless as the woman who bore me."

"Name one."

"Name one what?"

"Give me the name of a woman you consider a good mother."

His response, to her surprise, was quick. "Kimara."

"Kimara?"

"Yes, Kimara Garwood. She's the wife of Kyle, my best friend, and the mother of my four G.o.dchildren."

Colby was silent for a moment, then she asked, "And you consider her a good mother?"

"Yes."

She lifted her chin and glared at him. "Do you want to know what I think?"

"Not really, but I have a feeling you're going to tell me anyway," he said, raising a fresh cup of coffee to his mouth.

Colby chose to ignore his barb. "I think on the issue of good mothers, you see Kimara Garwood as an exception and not the norm. As far as I'm concerned, you still think unkindly of motherhood. I wonder what some of your loyal fans, especially the ones who're single mothers without the help and support of the father of their child, would think of how you feel. I bet if you were to take the time to check, you'd find there're more men who shirk their responsibilities as fathers than there are women who shirk their responsibilities as mothers. Maybe that's something you need to think about, Sterling Hamilton."

She looked at him a moment longer before saying in a pleading voice, "All I'm asking is that you at least think about allowing me to be a part of my child's life for more than six weeks."

"No," Sterling answered without hesitation. "Agree to the terms the way I've offered them to you or don't agree to them at all. The choice is yours."

Colby didn't say anything for the longest time. When she finally spoke, her voice sounded battered and defeated. It was as if his response had somehow broken her fiery spirit.

"I'll marry you, Sterling, for the sole purpose of saving Wingate Cosmetics." She stood. "If you'll excuse me, I'd like to be alone." She walked across the room to leave.

When she reached the door she turned back to him. "Edward Stewart was wrong. You're not a decent person. Earlier you referred to your mother as cold and heartless. In that case, you're definitely her son. You've turned out to be the same way."

Then she walked out, closing the door behind her.

Chapter 6.

Colby's words had cut him to the core.

The last person Sterling wanted to be compared to was Angeline Hamilton Chenault.

He stood from the table. His suite suddenly felt dark and empty, a lot like his life had been since the death of his father. Even with the constant flow of beautiful women in and out of his life, the huge box-office draw of his movies and the financial success of his business ventures, he'd felt something was missing.

He had inwardly longed for something more. Something more substantial and meaningful. That's when he had made the decision to become a parent. He wanted to channel his energy into the happiness of his child-just like his father had done for him. After he'd made the decision, he had thought it would be enough, and that the arrangement would be simple, ha.s.sle-free with no complications.

But that was before Colby Wingate.

He shook his head. He had to give it to her, she was one gutsy woman. Never in his life had he encountered a woman like her. She'd even had the nerve to inform him at the beginning of lunch that, just to set the record straight, he wasn't her favorite actor, Denzel Washington was. In fact, she had continued to tell him that she had seen his latest movie and personally didn't think, like most women, it was all that.

At the time, he couldn't help but laugh at her frankness. In fact, he had laughed more since meeting her than at any other time in his life. He was a fool to admit it, but he was fascinated with her and that smart mouth of hers. She could give just as good as she got. He had a feeling that with her around, his life would never be dark and empty. It would always be bright and full.

But that was the crux of his problem.

That part of him that served as a protective shield against pain and rejection didn't want her in his life. That was the part of him that saw her as a threat to his very existence. He had learned a long time ago how to avoid setting himself up for disappointments. He knew women clung to him because of who he was. His status intrigued and captivated them.

He had given up all hope that there was a woman out there who would love him just for himself-who he was deep inside. His real mother hadn't. And she had proven it by abandoning him and never looking back. Then later when he'd seen her face-to-face for the very first time, she had wasted no time rejecting him.

As a child, the pain of that rejection had stayed with him for a long time. He had even gone so far as to believe the reason she hadn't wanted him was because she thought he was a bad boy. So he had done everything within his power to be good. He was the pride of his teachers, he excelled in school and sports and was the kid around town that everyone liked. But all of that hadn't made his mother come back or want to love him.

He shrugged off the past and once again settled his mind on Colby. He didn't want to, but he suddenly thought about twenty-one years with her. She had a lot of nerve to even suggest such a thing. Very few celebrity marriages lasted that long. Most couldn't survive the harsh reality of the media invading their personal lives. But he had a feeling to remain close to her child, Colby would beat the odds or die trying. She would do whatever was necessary.

Already she had thrown factors into the equation he hadn't even thought about, like breast-feeding, for instance. She had raised some important questions. Who would continue to breast-feed his child once she was gone? And up to what age did you continue to breast-feed?

Sterling rubbed the top of his head, clearly recognizing he had no answers about such things. Luckily, he knew someone who would. Crossing the room he picked up the phone and began dialing. Moments later a feminine voice came on the line.

"h.e.l.lo?"

"Kimara?"

"Sterling? How are you?"

"Fine. And you?"

He could hear her soft chuckle. "Busy as usual. With the kids there's never a nonbusy moment around here. If you want Kyle, you just missed him. He left for the airport a few minutes ago."

"No, in fact you're the person I need to talk with."

"Oh? What's up?"

"I have a few questions about breast-feeding?"

There was a pause and Sterling could just imagine the curious look on Kimara's face about now. "Breast-feeding?" she finally asked.

"Yes, breast-feeding. Do you have a few minutes?"

"Sure, what do you want to know? I should consider myself an expert on the subject."

"First of all, is it absolutely necessary?"

"No, but medical and health reports have shown that breast-fed babies are less likely to encounter childhood diseases and illnesses than those that aren't. And women who decide to breast-feed feel it's important to give their child that edge."

Sterling nodded. He remembered his father telling him how sickly he'd been as an infant. In fact, by his first birthday he had been hospitalized at least twice. He couldn't help but wonder if perhaps that could have been avoided if his mother had hung around to make sure he'd gotten the proper care as a baby.

"What's the normal period for breast-feeding? It's done up to what age?" he asked.

"It depends. Most mothers stop at one year. Some continue as long as eighteen months. Anything beyond that would be too risky."

Confusion lit Sterling's eyes. "Too risky? Against what?"

"Sharp teeth."

Sterling chuckled when understanding dawned. "I can see your point."

"Sterling?"

"Yes."

"Why are you interested in breast-feeding?"

"It's a long story. Look, I have to go. I'll get back with you later. Give the kids hugs for me." He quickly hung up the phone before Kimara could ask any other questions.

He took a long, thoughtful breath. Sitting down he slumped back against the sofa, first staring up at the ceiling and then glancing down at his hands. A warm feeling touched him when he looked at the platinum ring he'd worn since his twenty-first birthday. It had been in the Hamilton family for generations and just like his father had pa.s.sed it on to him, he wanted to pa.s.s it on to his son or daughter.

Sterling smiled good-naturedly. More than likely he would be pa.s.sing the ring on to a son since there had not been a female born into the Hamilton family in over four generations.

Then he thought about his father. His dad had been a deeply caring and concerned parent with strong principles, who had tried raising him to be a man of integrity and honesty. Colby was wrong, he was nothing like his mother. Just because he didn't want a permanent wife in his life did not make him an indecent person. At present, his main concern was the well-being of the child he desperately wanted.

And for that reason and that reason alone, he would extend Colby's time in his life from six weeks to at least a year. He wasn't too crazy about the idea, but there was no way around it.

Picking up the phone again, he placed a call to Edward Stewart.

Hours later Colby's eyes were still red-rimmed and puffy from all the crying she'd done. Getting up off the bed, she knew she had no more tears left to shed. What good would they do anyway? Further crying wouldn't change her situation.

She couldn't help but think about what she had agreed to do. To save her brother's company she would marry Sterling. It was a decision she would have to live with for the rest of her life, and the impact of that decision left her shaking.

She took a deep breath and momentarily closed her eyes, willing her body to stay calm. Somehow she would get through this. She was known around school as the one person who could turn a negative situation into a positive one. She refused to let Sterling destroy her and all the things she held most dear. And the essence of marriage and motherhood were two on the top of her list. Although she hadn't had any immediate plans to engage in either, she'd always known that one day she would eventually settle down and become a wife and mother.

She stood and began pacing the floor. She couldn't help but think of her childhood, when her parents were still alive, her life with James after they had died, her present life and her future. She knew in her heart that if G.o.d ever blessed her with a child she could not give it away to Sterling or anyone else. She just couldn't. She had never felt more sure of anything in her life.

So how was she going to deal with Sterling Hamilton when that time came? Now that she had agreed to his proposal, no doubt he was fairly confident she would not cause problems and do everything stipulated in his ironclad contract. But somehow she would try to work around that. In time, he would discover she was unlike any of the other women he'd ever been involved with. She was determined that somehow during their marriage she would convince him to keep her and not send her away. Ever.

A timid knock sounded on the door that connected her room to Sterling's, interrupting her thoughts. "Maybe if I ignore him he'll just go away," she mumbled to herself.

No such luck she found out moments later when he said, "Colby, I know you're in there so open the door."

"No. Just leave me alone. I told you I wanted to be by myself for a while."

"You either open this door or I'll let myself in," was his reply.

Colby rolled her eyes to the ceiling wondering what else was new. Seeing the lock on the door was firmly in place, she went into the bathroom.

When she came out moments later, she halted in her tracks. Sterling was leaning against the opened door frame. Her eyes narrowed at him.

"Why didn't you open the door, Colby?"

"I'm not in the mood for visitors, especially the likes of you."

Sterling's face didn't reveal a flicker of emotion, but Colby could tell he wasn't pleased with what she had said. He stood leaning against the doorjamb, his hands in the pockets of his pants. He had changed into a shirt that she thought clearly showed how well-defined his physique was, especially his broad, muscular shoulders and upper arms. With great difficulty she tried not to concentrate on his well-built muscled body, but on the upheaval this man intended to place in her life.

He was glaring hard at her, so she decided to glare right back.

"Come here, Colby."

"Get lost, Sterling."

"We're going out to dinner."

His arrogant a.s.sumption riled her. "I'm not going anywhere with you."

"Suit yourself. I'll order room service then."

"Make sure it's just for you and that it's delivered to your suite, not mine."