Dylan and the Baby Doctor. Sherryl Woods

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СКАЧАТЬ “Now there’s a thought to make a man’s heart go pitter-patter.”

      “Anything to motivate you,” she retorted just as dryly.

      For the first time in what had been a very grim couple of hours, Dylan actually found something to laugh about.

      “You and I are going to make a helluva team, doc.”

      Startled, she stared. “A team?”

      He nodded. “From now on, you and I are going to stick together like glue.”

      It was the only way he could think of to be sure she didn’t do something crazy to get her son back.

      Chapter Three

      Even as the words came out of his mouth, even as he mentally tried to justify them, Dylan cursed himself for the impulsive suggestion that he and Kelsey team up. Wasn’t it enough that he was already operating cheek-by-jowl with a sheriff? Now he wanted to add an amateur into the mix. He was breaking every one of his long-standing, ironclad rules tonight.

      Maybe it was because she’d purposely baited him, deliberately tried to establish boundaries. Hell, he liked boundaries. Loved them. And now he was pushing at them as if he couldn’t wait to see them topple.

      Oh, he recognized it for what it was. It was a male-female thing and this was definitely not a male-female situation. This was a job and he did not involve amateurs, especially clients, in his work. They lacked skill and objectivity, damned dangerous shortages. There went another hard-and-fast rule. Obviously, he’d lost it. He figured it had to be the eyes. He was a sucker for sad, sea-green eyes.

      Truthfully, though, Kelsey didn’t seem any more pleased by the idea than he was. In fact, she looked shocked.

      “What do you want me to do?” she asked, regarding him with justifiable wariness.

      He decided to back off in a hurry, just for the moment, not as if he were running scared, but just to establish a few of his own boundaries. There were things she could do to help…just not in the same place he was heading.

      “Right now I’m going to the police station to run some checks. I want you to sit tight here. Make a list of questions to ask your ex when he calls. If he puts Bobby on the line, even for a second, ask what he’s had to eat. Maybe he’ll say something about a burger place we can trace or maybe he’ll mention a specific diner. Ask what the room looks like or what he can see. Kids notice more than we give them credit for. And in case your husband is listening, try to make it sound as if you’re just interested in hearing how Bobby’s getting along. Know what I mean?”

      Chin up, she nodded. “I think so. Post-preschool conversation, right? The sort of thing we’d talk about over milk and cookies?”

      “Bingo. You catch on quick.”

      “Believe me, I am highly motivated.” For an instant she looked lost again and very, very frightened. “I can’t mess this up. I just can’t.”

      Dylan tried to steel himself against the sympathy he was feeling. Still, he couldn’t seem to prevent himself from giving her hand a reassuring squeeze. “You won’t. You’re doing fine, Kelsey.”

      She was, too. He was impressed with her despite himself. She was bright and tough. Love for her son, concern for him, radiated from her, but she hadn’t allowed herself to give in to hysterics except for that one brief moment after her ex-husband’s call. Nor was she giving in to Dylan’s pressure to reveal whatever secret she was determined to keep. He didn’t like it, but he had to admire her tenacity in clinging to whatever misguided principle she felt was so important.

      He figured, though, that he’d gotten everything from her he could for the moment. He needed some distance to sort through what he’d learned, put it into perspective, and maybe get some cold, hard facts about Paul James from the computer at the sheriff’s office.

      “Want me to clear out some of these people before I go?” he asked.

      She shook her head. “They just want to help. Lizzy will get them out later.”

      Another woman who could manage a small nation if she put her mind to it, he thought wryly. Lizzy had the Adams strength, as well as the family’s fierce loyalty and protectiveness. He was definitely leaving Kelsey in good hands.

      He ripped a piece of paper from his notebook and jotted down his beeper number. “If anything turns up, if you get another call, if you think of something, or if you just need to talk, call me.”

      She took the paper, holding it as tightly as if it were a lifeline. “Thank you.”

      “Get busy on those questions,” he reminded her. “Be ready, in case he calls back.”

      “I will.”

      Dylan found himself fighting an odd reluctance to go. He knew there were better uses for his time, but he wanted to stay right here, offer whatever comfort he could. But Kelsey didn’t need comfort from him. She needed his help in finding her son.

      “I’ll be in touch,” he said and headed for the door, tucking his notebook into his back pocket as he went.

      At the small but well-equipped sheriff’s office, he was greeted by the dispatcher, who’d clearly been expecting him.

      “Justin said you could use anything you need,” Becky told him. “The computer’s in his office. We’ve got several lines, so you won’t be tying things up if you need to make calls. Don’t worry about charges since you’re making ’em as part of a case we’re handling. You need anything, holler. There’s coffee in here by me. It’s strong and there’s plenty of it.”

      “Thanks. I think I will have a cup. It could be a long night.”

      She poured it into a mug and handed it to him, then grinned. “Part of the service this time. After this, you’re on your own.” She winced as the radio screeched static. “Whoops! Got to go. I swear Billy Ray does that just to shoot my nerves to hell.”

      Dylan went into Justin’s office and settled into the chair in front of the computer. He flipped through his notebook until he found the instructions Justin had given him for logging on. For the next few hours, he searched for any trace of Paul James, any mention of him no matter how insignificant. Credit information showed a man who paid his bills, mostly on time. He had no police record. There were no mentions of him in the Miami press.

      He got on the phone and called a contact who could trace any credit-card activity. He woke the man out of a sound sleep, but by dawn he had a callback. Paul James wasn’t using his credit cards, at least not so far. His last charge had been made a week ago, in Miami. He’d bought three new suits on sale at an upscale department store.

      “Anything?” Justin asked, coming in and dropping wearily into the chair opposite Dylan. He looked as bad as Dylan felt.

      Dylan shook his head. “Nothing. The credit-card trace was a bust, though I have to wonder why a man who planned on kidnapping his son would go out and buy three expensive new suits.”

      “Maybe he figured his next shopping trip would be a long time coming,” Justin suggested.

      “Or the sale was just too good СКАЧАТЬ