Whose Baby?

Chapter Three

“Did you hear what I said?” Kelly asked.

Somewhere in the middle of her crucial explanation about blood types, Nick Lattimer had taken a mental hike. Sweet heaven, he was either totally heartless, or he didn’t have a clue what this was doing to her.

“I heard you.” He slid his hands into the pockets of his perfectly tailored tux and strolled to one of the bay windows that flanked the fireplace.

“Then you no doubt understood that Joseph can’t be my biological son.”

He made a sound that could have meant anything, and continued to stare out the window.

Because she had no choice, Kelly kept trying. “That’s why I need to do the DNA test on William.”

She felt the tears threaten again and forced them back. She wouldn’t cry. Not in front of him, anyway. Showing such weakness might make him go for her jugular, and right now she felt way too exposed.

“There have already been DNA tests done on William,” he let her know.

“Yes, but those were to prove that he isn’t your son. We need to do another one. A maternity study, they call it. So we can compare William’s DNA to mine.”

“And then what?” he fired back.

Kelly fully understood the implications of that simple question, and she didn’t like it any better than he apparently did. “I don’t know. Honestly, I don’t. But I can’t just forget what I’ve learned. I can’t walk away and pretend this never happened. Believe me, I’ve tried.”

“I’ll bet you have.”

“So, we’re back to the sarcasm.” Kelly didn’t let it deter her. “Look, I don’t have all the answers, but this test is a start. We’ll get the results and go from there.” She waited a moment, hoping her voice would remain steady. “If there are any existing DNA samples for Meredith, I could have them compared to Joseph’s.”

“There are no samples. Meredith was cremated at her request and her ashes scattered on the grounds of her childhood home.”

Well, that was that. Another roadblock. Or else another stonewall attempt. Either way, it was a very hard place for her to get past.

But not an impossible one.

“Then, what about the biological father?” Kelly had to take a hard breath before she could continue. “Is there a chance he’d try to take Joseph if he finds out about him?”

She braced herself for whatever Nick Lattimer was about to tell her. It could easily be a bombshell that she wasn’t ready to have dropped on her. But he didn’t say a single word. He just kept his stiff back turned to her while he looked out the window.

Kelly groaned. “Look, this silent treatment is getting on my nerves. This might sound like a bad cliché, but I’m not even sure if I can handle the truth. Still, I have to know, all right? I can’t go on wondering if I have a son that I’ve never even met.”

He glanced at her over his shoulder. She thought she might have seen some sympathy in his eyes, a sliver of it anyway, but if so, he didn’t get a chance to voice it. There was a knock at the door. One sharp rap.

“Come in, Cooper,” Lattimer ordered, not even bothering to verify that’s who was at the door.

However, it was indeed the bald-headed giant who’d made an appearance earlier. He gave her a considering glance. And a distrustful one. The feeling was mutual. Kelly didn’t trust him either. Of course, that probably had something to do with the fact he worked for Nick Lattimer.

“I’ve got the preliminary background check,” Cooper told his boss.

“Read it.”

The bald guy gave her another glance. “Out loud, sir? With her in the room?”

“Read it,” Lattimer insisted, the impatience straining his voice.

Those repeated two words and the stark edginess were apparently enough for the man to spring into action. “Her name is Kelly Baker Manning. I confirmed it with the photo on file at the Department of Motor Vehicles. Age twenty-eight. No criminal record. Self-employed as a photographer—she does mainly weddings and birthday parties. Widowed. Spouse was Louis Manning, vice detective, San Antonio PD. Killed in the line of duty. She has a thirteen-month-old son, Joseph Louis Manning. I also have her address and phone number.”

All the information was correct. Kelly checked her watch. Less than ten minutes, it’d taken him to get her life story. Well, most of it anyway. In this case, the bare facts didn’t really tell what she’d been through.

Or what she was no doubt facing.

“She didn’t lie on her job application to the caterer,” Cooper went on. “Not that I can tell anyway. I’ll keep digging though.”

No surprise there. By morning, she’d be an open book to them. Which wasn’t necessarily a bad thing. Maybe then Lattimer would believe some of what she’d told him and allow the DNA test.

Of course, maybe he’d have her arrested for trespassing.

“She asked the nanny about the baby and the location of the nursery,” Cooper explained further.

“I know,” Lattimer informed him. “And the nanny purposely gave her false information and then alerted me as she’d been instructed to do.”

That’s how Lattimer had known she was there in the fake nursery. So much for her plan. She’d underestimated him right from the start.

Cooper aimed a scowl at her. “Should I call the authorities or escort her off the ranch?”

“No. I’ll take care of the situation.” There was an unspoken adios and get-lost at the end of Lattimer’s remark, and Cooper obeyed without so much as batting an eyelash.

“Satisfied that I’m not some criminal?” she asked Lattimer the moment Cooper shut the door.

“No.”

Mercy. It was like banging her head against a wall.

Just when Kelly thought that things couldn’t possibly get any more frustrating, she felt the phone vibrate in her pocket.

“What’s wrong?” he asked.

Only then did she realize that Nick Lattimer was looking at her. And not just looking, either. Staring at her. The way he’d done when they first laid eyes on each other.

“That’ll be from my sitter.” She took out the phone just long enough to glance at the text message to verify that’s indeed who it was. “I told her to text me if Joseph woke up in the night. He did. He’s not used to me being gone, and I didn’t want him to be frightened.”

He stayed quiet a moment. “Do you need to go to him?”

“Not really. He’s not crying or anything, or she would have said. He should be all right.”

A muscle flickered in his sleek jaw. “Still, there’s no reason we have to work out all of this tonight. You should go home to him. I’ll have someone drive you.”

“That’s not necessary. My car is already here. Besides, I don’t want to be brushed off. I want to know—”

“I’ll consider your request for another DNA test for William, and I’ll inform you of my decision as soon as I’ve made one.”

The abrupt about-face along with her tangled nerves nearly caused Kelly’s legs to give way. “Why the change of heart?”

“Because you’ve caught my attention. Hopefully, you haven’t caught anyone else’s.” He didn’t add more regarding that ominous comment. “If I do consent to the test, I’d prefer to have a complete picture. Or as you so cleverly put—a start. That means you’ll allow me to have your son’s DNA tested, as well.”

It made her ache to think of someone, some stranger, out there who might have a legal claim on Joseph. However, she understood his request all too well, since she felt the same need to find out the truth about William. Blood wasn’t necessarily thicker than water, but she couldn’t deny the pull it had on her.

“Do you happen to know who Joseph’s biological father is?” Kelly asked, dreading the answer, but knowing that she needed it.

The muscles went to work again in his jaw. “No.”

She was either paranoid, or that was a lie. “Meredith and I talked a few times. She didn’t mention him, other than to say he wasn’t in the picture.”

“She didn’t talk about him to me, either,” he insisted, his voice tight.

So, unless the father was dead, he was out there somewhere. But what Kelly had going for her was that he hadn’t tried to claim William so far, and that meant he probably wouldn’t try to claim Joseph, either.

She prayed.

And that was one of the reasons she hadn’t wanted this baby switch in the hands of the police. Or the press. Newspapers tended to pick up that kind of story, and while she couldn’t keep Joseph’s biological father from seeing him, she truly hoped Meredith was right—that he wasn’t in the picture.

This way, Kelly could proceed with her plan. First, verify that William was her son. Then petition the court for custody of both boys.

Well, she could after she got past one more obstacle.

“You said you had no plans to adopt William.” She paused, and mentally wrestled with how she should say this. “Is that because you don’t want children?”

Nick Lattimer turned, faced her. Behind him, the rain and the wind assaulted the window. There was even a dramatic slash of lightning across the night sky. He stood in the center of the glass. Calm. Except for one thing. His right hand had clenched into a fist.

“You honestly don’t know about my brother?” he questioned.

Confused, she shook her head, not sure where this was leading. “I know you have one,” she said. Kelly tried to recall her research notes. She’d read a mention or two of his brother, but that was it. She couldn’t imagine what he had to do with any of this.

“Among other things, Eric is possessive,” he explained. He shoved his hands back into his pockets. “With things, not people. He inherited the bulk of the family estate, which, according to the terms of my mother’s will, he doesn’t have to share with me.”

Oh. She got it. Kelly quickly filled in the blanks. “But Eric would have to share with your heirs?”

He nodded. “Except he wouldn’t share. My brother is a violent, dangerous man.”

That sank in quickly, too. Kelly flattened her hand over her chest and dropped back a step. “Are you saying he would hurt a child of yours?”

Nick Lattimer walked closer, his footsteps punctuated with a roll of thunder. “Not hurt. Eric would eliminate the child.”

That sent her heart to her knees and stole her breath. “I’m sorry. So sorry. Now, I understand why you were concerned. You thought your brother sent me here to get the DNA sample.”

“It wouldn’t be the first time. But I thought that after three tests, one of which I let his personal physician perform, that Eric’s fears would be put to rest.”

It was a chilling revelation, but Kelly couldn’t help but think this would fuel her case to get custody of her son. Nick Lattimer might even welcome having William away from his brother’s paranoid watchful eye.

Kelly knew she would welcome it.

She didn’t want her son associated with a would-be killer, and as long as William remained at the Lattimer ranch, he would be in danger. It was sickening to think of it. She wouldn’t go through that again.

She couldn’t.

She hadn’t been able to save her husband, but she could certainly do something to save their child.

“May I see William?” Kelly had to clear her throat and repeat it so it would have sound.

Lattimer didn’t respond. Seconds passed. Very slowly. And even though there were no overt signs of the debate he was having with himself, Kelly knew there was indeed a debate. But after what he’d just told her, she could understand why. Maybe he still didn’t trust her. Maybe he thought she was working for his brother, Eric.

And maybe he simply realized that he could lose William to her.

After all, he’d raised William for thirteen months and no doubt loved him as she loved Joseph.

“A photo will do for now,” Kelly added. “If you agree to the test, well, maybe then…”

He hitched a shoulder toward the doorway where she’d first spotted him. “Follow me.”

She did, after Kelly got past the initial shock and after she got her legs to cooperate. Nick Lattimer had already given her a huge concession just by agreeing to think about doing the DNA test. She certainly hadn’t really expected him to allow her to see William.

The adjoining room was just as lavishly decorated as the fake nursery. A sitting room of sorts. With another fireplace, a pair of oversize cushiony chairs, and a great view of the formal gardens. It’d be an ideal place to spend some quiet time with a child.

All along, since the moment she’d known she would be coming to the ranch, Kelly had tried not to think of how her biological son was being raised. Literally, in the lap of luxury. There was no way she could compete with this.

Yet, even that certainty wasn’t enough to stop her from getting the truth. Or from getting custody. Because she could give William something that Nick Lattimer couldn’t. She could give him safety, away from Nick’s brother.

He pressed something on the underside of the mantel, and the serene pastoral painting above it disappeared. It’d been a hologram on a thin screen. A very convincing one. Another room appeared.

A nursery.

A real one.

Without saying a word, he pressed more buttons beneath that mantel so that a camera zoomed in on the crib. No blue-satin-trimmed blanket this time. The child was covered with a very homey-looking quilt. A mobile of colorful butterflies dangled overhead.

Kelly had tried to prepare herself in case this moment ever came, but there was nothing that could have prepared her for this. William lay there, sleeping. And thanks to the high quality of the surveillance camera, she could see him clearly.

She pressed her fingertips to her mouth to muffle the sound that was trying to make its way past her throat. He was, well, precious for lack of a better word. A round angelic face. Golden-blond hair that tended to curl. His lips were pursed slightly. He seemed healthy. And perfectly content.

That didn’t do a thing to lessen the guilt that was starting to roar through her.

The guilt went up a significant notch when she caught sight of Nick Lattimer’s expression. Definitely not the face of a heartless, callous businessman.

It was the expression of a loving father.

And it cut her to the bone.

Because she could factor in many elements. The fact that Joseph’s birth mother was dead. The fact that his biological father likely wouldn’t challenge her for custody. But Kelly couldn’t discount that Nick Lattimer loved this child as his own.

A child that was almost certainly hers.

That love for William was the ultimate obstacle that wouldn’t be easy to overcome. But she would.

Somehow.

Kelly was resolute about that. But that didn’t mean she was immune to that loving, fatherly look in Nick Lattimer’s eyes.

“I should go,” Kelly managed to say. Mercy. Now, she was really feeling guilty. “I need to get home to Joseph.” She didn’t wait for Lattimer’s response. She headed out the way they’d come in.

He followed her. Of course. And he caught her arm just before she made it to the door. “I don’t want you to say anything about this to anyone,” he insisted. “Understand?”

“Of course.” Probably because he didn’t want Joseph’s biological father or anyone else to get word of it before they could figure out what to do. And then there was the issue of Eric. She definitely didn’t want his creepy brother thinking there was a competing heir.

She stood there a moment. Their gazes connected. Those gunmetal eyes no longer seemed as lethal as they had minutes earlier. Even though she figured it was temporary. Lattimer hadn’t gotten his steely reputation by accident.

“Thank you,” she told him. “I think.”

The corner of his mouth lifted. Just slightly. And for only a split second. It wasn’t an expression of amusement but more of irony.

Since the moment quickly became awkward, she fluttered her hand toward the door. “I’ll just go.”

And she did. She hurried out of there before he could stop her. Kelly raced down the back staircase and grabbed her purse and keys from the kitchen. Thankfully, everyone was busy with the preparation for serving dessert, so no one said anything to her as she walked out.

The late-autumn rain pelted her as she hurried out of the house and to her car. She made it all the way off the ranch before the tears came. With them came the doubts and the sickening feeling in the pit of her stomach. With all his money and contacts, would Nick Lattimer fight her for custody even if she proved that William was her son?

Those questions repeated in her head, and Kelly began to think of all the things Lattimer could do to prevent her from assuming custody. However, even with the tears, the violent storm and the painful question, she didn’t miss the other car.

The black SUV appeared less than a minute after she drove through the massive wrought-iron gates that fronted Lattimer’s property. The vehicle stayed steady behind her on the country road. A safe distance away so that most people might not have noticed.

She noticed.

And it sent a deathly chill over her.

God, what had she done?

Chapter Four

Nick took the turn on Old Cypress Road, noted the parked dark-green car with the heavily tinted windows and let the bit of information he’d just learned sink in. Well, as much as information like that could sink in. Now the question was—was it relevant to Kelly Manning’s visit to the ranch?

“She was under psychiatric care at St. Mary’s Hospital a little over a year and a half ago,” Cooper added, his voice clear on the tiny speaker of Nick’s cell phone. “For severe depression. She was treated and released after just two days, but she still sees a therapist a couple of times a month.”

Nick moved those details around in his head, fitting them to the other facts he already had in place. “A year and a half ago. That was about the same time her husband was killed.”

“Yes. About a week after.”

“So, it’s reasonable that she might need professional care to get through something that traumatic. Especially since she was only a few weeks pregnant.”

“I suppose. But there’s the fact that it took me too many layers to find anything about this particular hospital stay. Someone buried her file, sir. Trust me, that’s not easy to do these days.”

Nick had no doubts about that. Especially since he had the resources to dig through layer after layer of anything that a person might want to hide. However, a brief stay in the mental ward of a hospital didn’t make Kelly Manning insane.

Nor did it exonerate her of anything.

She could still be a liar. An opportunist. Or a half dozen other unsavory things, including but not limited to Eric’s employee.

On the other hand, if she truly was an innocent party in all of this, then God help her. She’d just wandered into a viper’s nest.

And he was one of the very vipers that could end up getting her killed.

“Sir, I’m asking you to rethink this visit,” Nick heard Cooper say. “You shouldn’t go to see this woman alone.”

But that was the only way this visit would happen. It was too dangerous otherwise.

“I’ll be fine, Cooper. Besides, you have one of your men posted nearby.” It wasn’t a question. Nick had seen the security guard in the dark-green car and knew it was one of his vehicles and employees.

“I do. But he won’t be inside.”

“Nor do I want him there,” Nick insisted, making sure he got his point across. He appreciated Cooper’s concern, but this visit had to happen solo. The authoritative tone was a surefire way to make certain Cooper backed off.

Nick brought his car to a stop one block up from her house. He took his phone off the speaker function, got out of his car and, despite the crisp air from the cold front moving in, walked the rest of the way. Best not to announce to the world that he was there, by parking his car right in front of her house.

“Keep looking for more of Ms. Manning’s layers and whatever turns out to be beneath them,” Nick instructed Cooper. “If she’s hiding anything, or if you find even a remote connection to Eric, I want to know immediately.”

Nick ended the call and stopped in front of Kelly Manning’s house. It was an odd little place. Though it was still on the fringes of the city, it was almost like a fairy-tale cottage with its charcoal-gray-slate-tiled roof, pristine ivory exterior, pale yellow shutters and cobblestone walkway. There were now empty flower beds beneath the pair of front bay windows, but he imagined that in the spring those beds would be bursting with color.

The only thing missing was a white picket fence.

However, the picture wasn’t quite so pastoral to Nick. For one thing, the house was isolated on a huge lot choked with thick trees and shrubs. Securing it would be a nightmare. Yet it would have to be done.

And soon.

Nick checked his coat pocket to make sure William’s DNA sample was there. It was. He also had two other sterile buccal swabs enclosed in their equally sterile containers. One was for Kelly Manning. The other for Joseph. Even now, nearly thirty-six hours after her visit, Nick was still debating if he should give William’s DNA sample to her. A refusal might lessen the danger.

Maybe.

Or maybe it would just make her dig even harder to get to the truth.

Digging in this case wouldn’t be a good thing. If her search alerted Eric’s people, and it almost certainly would, then it’d be more than her life at stake. So, it was probably best to give her the sample and then monitor anyone who had access to the results. If worse came to worst, then he could always alter the tests to keep everyone safe.

Nick followed the cobblestone walk to the front porch. He paused a moment, to make sure he could pull off his famous iceman act, but the door opened before his pause had hardly started.

And there she was.