The Billionaire Baby Bombshell ~ Paula Roe

Silhouette Desire
June 2010 (USA) / July 2010 (ANZ)

Who was the father of Yelena Valero’s baby?
Billionaire businessman Alex Rush had no clue the woman he’d once loved was now a mother. And, after doing the math, he discovered Yelena must have already been pregnant – with another man’s child – when she was declaring her love for Alex.

Although he’d tracked her down for an entirely different reason, uncovering the truth became Alex’s top priority. Would seduction bring him closer to Yelena’s secrets, or create even more confusion? Suddenly, determining the paternity of one baby girl could destroy a relationship just about to ignite…

 

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BEHIND THE BOOK…

Not the outback.

Like Robbie, I’ve had no real experience in the outback.  I’ve lived in my fair share of small country towns and bustling suburbia, worked in busy cities, holidayed along the coast.  Even ventured up into the mountains and hiked about in the bush.  But honest-to-goodness back-of-beyond red-dirt country?  Where having your car break down can mean life or death?  Where numerous reptiles and mammals can sting, bite and/or eat you?  Nup.

bathroom... yum!!

I had planned to take a research trip to Ayers Rock’s famous Sails in the Desert Hotel in August (the time of year The Billionaire Baby Bombshell was set) but it clashed with conferences and school. So all I can say is, thank goodness for Google Earth!  That handy program got me into the outback and let me scout the area.  Then I went to YouTube and found a few videos of Uluru (Ayers Rock) at sunset.  I also googled the local fauna, plus spent simply ages drooling over the bathrooms of Dubai’s Burj Al Arab hotel, which was the inspiration for Diamond Bay’s multi-star bathroom interiors.  You can see a few of my results below.

I have however, taken a few trips to our nation’s capital, Canberra, were my heroine, Yelena, currently lives.  Even though it’s a major city, it feels more rural that any other in Australia… maybe because after driving through often-bare country, it’s suddenly there, surrounded by rugged plains and mountains, wetlands and nature parks.  Also called the ‘city of roundabouts’, it’s beautiful, elegant and very peaceful, full of galleries and museums, shopping and dining… our politicians don’t deserve it!

my idea of Alex (thanks, Justin Chambers!)

I love writing about my characters.  I love researching pictures, clothes, homes and digging about in their pasts, trying to find just the right fit for each person.  A while back I read an article on Reginald Ansett, one of Australia’s richest men and founder of the now-defunct Ansett Airlines back in the 1930s.  While outwardly, the Ansetts lead privileged lives of the uber rich, behind closed doors a completely different story was happening.   That article sparked an idea, and that idea formed the basis for my hero, Alex Rush, and his fractured family.   And while Yelena is every bit his social equal, her past is just as troubled as his.

Yelena Valero is gorgeous Megan Gale.

I had great fun creating the twists and turns of their past, throwing in a worthy villain in the shape of Yelena’s brother Carlos (with Antonio Banderas as the visual inspiration!) and finally giving Yelena and Alex their special happy-ever-after!

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