Reunited By A Secret Child. Leigh Bale

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СКАЧАТЬ talk about it,” he said, trying not to sound too abrasive. After all, it wasn’t their fault.

      “I understand. Are you headed into town?” Katie asked.

      “Yeah,” he said, glancing around. Where was Ed?

      During high school, Katie had tutored him a couple nights each week. He’d been smart enough, but he’d talked her into doing his homework and writing his research papers. She’d stared at him with doe-eyed adoration. He could have talked her into doing anything, and he had. He’d used her, taking her most precious gift. Now he felt guilty and embarrassed by it all. He’d been such an idiot. He never should have taken what belonged to her husband. He should have studied harder. Should have been kinder, more diligent and responsible.

      “You used to wear glasses,” he said.

      She nodded. “I wear contact lenses now.”

      He paused, liking the change. “Are you home visiting your family?”

      “No, I still live here,” she said. “In fact, I never left town. I...I work for my father at his motel and also write articles for the Minoa Daily News.”

      Reese tensed. Another reporter. Just what he’d come here to avoid. But he couldn’t figure out why she’d stayed in Minoa. Why she’d chosen to be a journalist for a shabby newspaper office when she could have gone to almost any college and studied biology or physics. Her father owned the Cowboy Country Inn, one of the two motels in town. In fact, Reese had made a reservation to stay there while he was visiting. But he couldn’t envision this attractive woman cleaning rooms for a living.

      He brushed past her. “Sorry, but I don’t have a story for you.”

      “That’s not why I’m here,” she called to his retreating back.

      He stopped. Turned. “Then what do you want?”

      She hesitated. “This is Chrissy.”

      Standing behind the little girl, Katie rested her hands on the child’s slender shoulders. Chrissy smiled, showing a tooth missing in front. She lifted a hand to wave, her long reddish-blond ponytail bouncing. Very cute. A smaller version of her mother. With startling green eyes.

      Reese waved back impatiently. “Hi, there, Chrissy. Glad to meet you.”

      And he was. She was a child, after all. Looking at him with an open honesty and casual frankness that told him she didn’t want anything from him. Probably the first person he’d met in the past two weeks that didn’t want a news story, a special feature, or to know the details of what had happened to him. She just wanted to be friends. But the introduction didn’t explain what Katie was doing here. Not that Reese cared. He’d rather not ask. It wasn’t his business, after all.

      “Do you need a ride?” Katie asked.

      Since Ed still hadn’t appeared, Reese released a pent-up breath and resigned himself to accepting her help. “I guess I do. Are you headed into town?”

      “We are.” She took Chrissy’s hand and stepped out into the sunshine.

      Reese followed as she walked toward a blue midsize hatchback parked nearby. At the vehicle, he paused.

      “One thing, though,” he said.

      She opened the driver’s door and helped Chrissy climb into the back seat. “And what’s that?”

      “No questions about the fire. I don’t want to talk about it anymore. Not to anyone. Especially not a reporter.” His voice sounded low and grumpy. He didn’t mean to be so harsh, but he thought maybe it was for the best. He had to set some boundaries.

      She frowned. “Okay, I got it.”

      She turned to buckle Chrissy into her booster seat. Without asking, he tossed his duffel bag into the back and climbed into the passenger seat. Katie got in and started up the engine, put the car in gear and backed out of the parking place.

      As they rode into town, he gazed at her pretty profile. She stared out the windshield, her shoulders squared, her delicate hands gripping the steering wheel like a lifeline. Just two weeks ago, he might have thought about asking her out on a date. But right now, all he wanted was to be left alone.

      * * *

      He was watching her. Katie could feel Reese’s eyes on her as she headed out onto the county road that would take them into town. A glint of sunlight struck the black asphalt. Momentarily blinded, she blinked and tried to ignore the man sitting so close beside her. Trying to remember why she’d come here in the first place.

      Focus! she told herself. She mustn’t forget that her main priority was Chrissy, not a drop-dead-gorgeous hunk from her past. Until last night, she hadn’t been sure that Reese would come home. Not until her father had told her about his motel reservation. He knew she needed to speak with Reese in a place where there weren’t lots of people around. Not many flights came into the quiet airport, so it was easy to find out when he might be landing.

      Thinking he might need a ride, she’d driven out here to pick him up. But nothing had prepared her to see him again. The shock. The resentment. The longing. Those feelings were still tied up inside her stomach like knots of rope.

      There’d been a time during high school when she would have given anything to have him notice her. Back then, she’d been happy to do his homework. Delighted that he needed her for something. She’d loved him from afar, hungering for his attention. A girlhood crush. And when his date at the graduation dance had flirted with another boy, they’d quarreled. In retaliation, Reese had taken Katie’s hand and pulled her outside the school gymnasium with him. Katie had known he was trying to make his girlfriend jealous, but she’d gone along willingly, euphoric when he’d kissed her in the dark shadows. At the time, she hadn’t cared about his reasons or the consequences. But his affection had been short-lived. The very next day, she’d learned that he’d left town without even saying goodbye to his mom. Katie had sold herself short, but never again. Now she had a child to raise, and Chrissy was everything to her.

      “Can I turn on the air?” he asked.

      She nodded. “Of course.”

      He reached out and twisted a knob on the dashboard, hiking the air conditioner to high. The whooshing sound seemed to taunt her.

      She glanced at Reese, longing to study the subtle changes to his face. She hadn’t seen him in seven years. Gone was the teenage kid she’d known in high school. Now he was a fully matured man. Shockingly handsome, with short dark hair and an endearing half smile that still had the power to melt her frozen heart. He’d filled out more, his chest and shoulders wider and more muscular. He had big hands and quiet eyes. As though he were keeping a dark secret hidden from the entire world.

      His eyes also held a glint of insecurity and deep, wrenching grief. He seemed to have lost his way, which couldn’t be true. Reese Hartnett had always been so self-assured. Living in the moment. Louder and bigger than life. Never caring about anything or anyone. And Katie hated that she had loved him once. Hated that she was compelled to come and see him now. No matter how much she regretted the past, it was finally time to tell him the truth.

      “How long are you in town for?” she asked, forcing herself to focus on the road ahead. His reservation at the motel was “open,” which meant he had no scheduled departure date.

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