The Father of Her Son. Kathleen Pickering

Чтение книги онлайн.

СКАЧАТЬ He had become the face most New Yorkers wanted to watch every morning at eight. Could he honestly become a family man when he had married his job?

      Perhaps. If his wife was as busy as he. His thoughts drifted back to Kelly, a rare breed that one. He didn’t want to change Kelly one bit. He just wanted to orbit the same world as her and Matt for a while to see if they and he matched.

      Evan craved to know what had happened in Kelly’s life to produce Matt. He had his suspicions. Given her insistence on remaining independent and self-sufficient, he could only assume she’d been bullied, or overcontrolled. He was pretty sure she would not lie, but would she omit information? Yes, she was certainly capable of editing answers with a tongue as smooth as a leprechaun’s. He’d continue to follow his hunches. With time, he’d ferret out the answer.

      He punched the elevator button in the lobby. Enough. Pushing Kelly and Matt from his mind, he started thinking about this next interview. Thoughts about Kelly had to be put on the back burner until Friday. Right. Like that was possible.

      * * *

      IT FELT LIKE a bit of hell not going to Neverland for breakfast for the rest of the week. The nature of his job had him on the set early and tying up loose ends afterward, but he’d always managed to shoot over to Kelly’s for breakfast before tackling the tasks after the show. This time, he dived directly into the after-show work instead of going to Neverland. He didn’t want to give Kelly a chance to back away from Saturday’s plans. He’d gotten this far, and he wasn’t about to blow it.

      His next show featured a man who fought the courts for custody of his son from his estranged wife. According to his guest, after a whirlwind courtship, he’d married a woman with the best of intentions only to discover, after a year of marriage, that she suffered from dissociative identity disorder—or multiple personalities. After consulting with psychologists, he decided to end the marriage only to have his wife announce she was pregnant. The man stayed on for three more years until he realized that, as the child got older, exposure to his mother’s condition would be detrimental for his development—especially since one of the wife’s personalities tended toward violence.

      Evan had learned that in child custody or children’s rights cases, the laws were often too broad to consider more delicate situations. Mothers were widely considered better nurturers for children than the fathers but laws were changing. His interviewee had gained full custody of his son.

      Forward thinking, the man had tailored his burgeoning business to accommodate a day care on site for his son and the children of employees. He hired a staff of two preschool instructors. He paid the insurance and offered child care as an incentive to his employees. Not only was he able to bring his son to work but the working mothers on his payroll did, as well. The man’s bottom line increased because his employees were happy to be at work. Evan had wanted to feature this heroic dad and introduce alternatives for working parents and employers willing to take the initiative.

      What drove Evan’s television interviews off the charts were these kinds of economic and social platforms that raised social consciousness. Talk show hosts talked about his topics for days afterward, many times pulling in the same folks he interviewed to follow up. But it was Evan who managed to find and interview these persons of interest first. Evan’s keen instinct for a good story kept his boss writing those bonus checks at the end of every quarter. He smiled when Steve knocked on his open office door.

      “How about breaking for lunch?”

      Evan checked the time in the corner of his computer monitor. Already past noon. “Where are you going?”

      Steve shrugged. “Neverland? I’m craving one of Jake’s Friday specials.”

      He needed to dodge the diner just one more day. “Hmm. Sounds great, but I’m putting the finishing touches on Monday’s show. I’m not coming in tomorrow.”

      Steve raised an eyebrow. “Now, that’s a first.”

      Evan met his friend’s concerned gaze. Steve came across as wily and distant like a silver fox, but Evan knew better. While Steve was Evan’s boss, the men had built a solid friendship during Evan’s time abroad. Steve had been an anchor at home, helping with story strategies and getting Evan the support he needed from the network while Evan roamed the continent on behalf of NCTV.

      Beneath that austere exterior, Steve had a sense of humor and the heart of a family man. He still loved his wife of thirty-five years, boasted about his three grown kids and was waiting on the birth of his first grandchild.

      “What’s the look for, Steve?”

      “Only a woman could keep you from your desk tomorrow.”

      Evan grinned. “Well, it is. And, she’s in Neverland and I don’t want to show up and give her a chance to back out.”

      Steve slapped the door frame. “Well, I’ll be damned. So you groveled and she said yes.”

      “You betchya, and proud of it.”

      “Okay, then, how about lunch at Tao?”

      Evan powered down his computer, leaving it in lock mode. He didn’t like to admit he couldn’t trust colleagues not to rifle through his files, but when it came to the ambitions of Dean Porter, anything could happen. He looked at his friend and decided, once again, against airing his concerns. Steve looked relaxed today. NCTV was running smoothly and up for an Emmy. No reason to throw darts at a balloon.

      “On second thought, let’s go to Neverland. Tao is uptown and I don’t have much time. Kelly won’t dare mess with our plans with you at the counter.”

      Steve chuckled. “That’s my man. I’d hate to miss Jake’s good cooking.”

      * * *

      THERE WERE ALWAYS new customers in Neverland. That was what made Manhattan so exciting. But Kelly didn’t like the way this particular man watched her while he ate Jake’s special corned beef sandwich.

      Not that he looked dangerous. Gray suit, navy tie, blue button-down shirt. Well groomed, indeed, but there was something predatory in his smile, which he flashed every time she glanced his way. Better to get it over with and confront the man. She preferred handling clowns like this head-on, rather than finding them lurking around later.

      She pointed to his empty glass. “Would you like another New Castle?”

      “Sure.” He pushed his glass forward as she pulled another beer from the icebox.

      She poured. “Everything fine with your meal?”

      “Everything, except a few answers.”

      She frowned, fully expecting a come-on. “What questions?”

      He pulled a business card from his pocket. “I’m Jay Doyle. I report for the New York Sentinel.”

      The gossip rag of the city. Good Lord, had someone spoken badly of Neverland? She offered him her most winning smile. “Lovely. What can I do for you?”

      “Well, it’s a long story, but I was chatting with a former administrative assistant to the senate’s newest presidential candidate and your name came up.”

      Her heart skipped a beat. Well, here we go. The devil himself was sitting at her counter with a smile thinking he’d lay a snare. Wouldn’t happen СКАЧАТЬ