Child of Her Heart Read online

  The delicious scent drifted upward as she rubbed it into her skin. Coffee? Meredith glanced at the bottle. Cappuccino, no less. Leave it to Chaney. Steam evaporated from the mirror in uneven patches, revealing parts of her body. Her waist wasn’t bad; she’d done hours of Pilates getting her shape back after Anna’s birth. Her left breast came into view, fuller than her pre-baby form and swollen.

  The mirror cleared and her right breast appeared, smaller than the other because it produced less milk. Two pink scars, both about three inches long, and the slight disfiguration were physical reminders that she was a survivor. Reminders she didn’t need. Not a day went by that Meredith didn’t think of herself as a survivor, and thanked God and technology and made a mental note to enjoy life to the fullest.

  She’d been engaged once. The thought still brought an ache to her chest when she remembered how Sean had deserted her after he’d learned that she had cancer. So much for true love, for the whole in-sickness-and-in-health bit. She’d told herself a million times it was better she’d learned Sean’s true nature before she’d married him.

  She wasn’t ashamed of the scars. She was proud of her victory. But she was afraid.

  Afraid that a man would never look at her without pity or revulsion. Afraid that she’d never again have an intimate relationship.

  Afraid that life would never be as full as she’d hoped.

  Six

  “Cappuccino body lotion, Chaney?”

  “Isn’t it yummy?”

  “Definitely, but I’ve been craving a latte since last night.”

  “Order up a decaf.”

  “You know it still has a jillion calories.”

  “Kiddo, you came through breast cancer with flying colors, I don’t think a few calories are going to kill you.”

  “I’ll stick with my juice and milk and an occasional black decaf, thank you.”

  “You party animal.”

  She sank onto the bed and traced the sailboat pattern on the coverlet with her index finger. “Hey, I’m eating for two.”

  “So am I. Drinking for two, as well, and I’ve never even been pregnant.”

  Meredith laughed at her friend’s quirky humor.

  “So what are you doing there by yourself all day? Isn’t the beach cold this time of year?”

  “It’s not bad. Anna and I have our fleece jackets.”

  “Oh, yeah, that pink-and-white number that makes her look like Neapolitan ice cream.”

  “Food again,” Meredith complained with a chuckle. “You’re comparing my child to food.”

  “So you wear your jackets and what, watch seagulls?”

  “Are you kidding? This place is a hopping tourist town. Yesterday we went for a ride up the coast and browsed through some wonderful shops. I bought a wind gizmo—you’ll love it. Then for dinner ate at a terrific restaurant. The salmon here is out of this world.”

  “And you don’t mind touristing and eating by yourself?”

  “Well…I wasn’t alone for dinner, actually.”

  “Really.”

  “Or for the road trip, either,” she confessed. “I met a family vacationing at the same inn.”

  “Oh?”

  “Yes, they’re from Portland, too.”

  “Middle-aged couple with kids or something?”

  Meredith got up and walked to the window, where she looked past the parking area and down a ways to the beach. The morning sun glistened on the sand. “No. Justin is a widower. He has two small boys, and their nanny is with them. Her name’s Mauli, and she’s a college student. She’s a gem.”

  “Meredith Malone. You were holding out on me!”

  “I didn’t want you to get the wrong idea.”

  “What, that you’re spending time with a single guy? How old is he? Is he hot? On a scale of one to ten.”

  “It’s strictly a family thing. We’re combining our little families to see the sights.” She paused. “He’s in his thirties, and he’s…well, he’s a nine-and-a-half.”

  “You wouldn’t have given him a nine-and-a-half if you weren’t interested,” Chaney argued. “Sean was only an eight and you were engaged to him.”

  “He was an eight because he had those funny little ears.”

  “Justin, huh? How tall is he?”

  “Six foot or better.”

  “Eyes?”

  “Brown.”

  “Good smile?”

  Meredith turned back into the room and sank onto the bed again. “Great smile. He does this half-smile thing, where just one side of his mouth turns up and it creases his cheek.” She flopped backward. “God, it’s sexy.”

  “Uh-huh. Just a family thing, my chubby booty. Is he interested?”

  “I don’t know. Sometimes I think so and other times I think I’m just imagining things.”

  “What kind of things?”

  “A little flirting maybe. That smile.”

  “What are you doing today?”

  “Whale watching.”

  “Cool. Call me with the details tonight. And, Mer?”

  “Yeah?”

  “Have fun.”

  “I will.” She turned off the phone, noting the time and left it on the desk as she had the day before. She finished dressing, pulled her hair into a ponytail and packed Anna’s diaper bag.

  By the time she was ready and had toted Anna and her paraphernalia to the foyer, the Webers were waiting for her, dressed in their warm jackets. Mauli reached for Anna and Justin took the other things, so Meredith followed behind with the boys. It was becoming second nature to accompany them, and the luxury of having help was pure bliss.

  This time the boys took the far rear area where they played with toy cars, and Mauli sat beside the baby in the middle, so Meredith sat up front with Justin.

  “Did you have a good night?” he asked.

  She nodded. “Anna’s getting so she only wakes once during the night, and after she’s fed she goes right back to sleep.”

  “And she’s only three months? That’s great.”

  “I’m really fortunate,” she replied. “In so many ways.”

  Justin put a CD in the player and music filtered through the interior of the vehicle. “Our charter leaves at ten,” he said. “I made the reservations ahead, just in case it was a busy day. We’ll get there a little early and stake out our positions.”

  “Have you done this before?” she asked.

  “Once during the migrating season in March. It was phenomenal.”

  “Now isn’t a good time?”

  “It’s a good time. March is best, but some pods of whales are residents and stay near the coast all year, so you see them anytime. And this is a much better season for the boat trip, because the water is so choppy earlier in winter.”

  She grimaced. “I’d pass, then.”

  Justin found the harbor where the charter service was located and parked in the lot. Mauli unbuckled Anna and handed her to Meredith, while Justin got the boys from the back.

  He indicated a small shingled building. “I’ll be right back.”

  “Justin,” she said, “I need to pay for my trip.”

  “It’s a group fare,” he said, walking away. “My treat.”

  She turned around and glanced at Mauli who just shrugged.

  Within a few minutes, Justin returned with their tickets. As he was explaining the boarding procedure, the boat’s horn blew, sending a ripple of anticipation up Meredith’s spine. Jonah and Lamond, obviously equally excited, took off at a run, and Justin called for them to wait.

  The Sandpiper was a deluxe sixty-five-foot excursion boat with two viewing decks and inside seating for nearly fifty people. There were only about half that many on today’s cruise, leaving plenty of room to roam about and select choice seating.

  They stood on deck in the warm sun as the boat pulled out into the harbor. Guides in bright orange jackets gave talks on the sea life and answered questions.

  About forty-five minutes into their trip, Anna grew hungry a
nd chewed on her fist.

  “I’m going to sit inside for a while and feed her,” Meredith said.

  “Want some company?” Justin asked.

  “Well, sure.”

  He guided her up a short set of stairs and they found seating near the front window. Justin observed the ocean while Meredith got Anna settled and herself modestly draped.

  “I thought it would be a lot colder,” she said, letting him know it was safe to turn and join her.

  “We managed to plan our vacations during a good stretch of weather,” he replied. “Well, mine had been postponed by a couple of weeks, so I guess it turned out for the best.”

  “What was the delay?”

  “Things kept coming up at work. I had a fire settlement to handle, and finally got that sewn up.”

  “Arson?”

  “No, insurance.”

  “So you’re not a criminal or divorce lawyer.”

  He shook his head. “Corporate law.”

  “Like The Practice?”

  “I know that’s a television show, but when I have time, I’m more of a CSI fan.”

  She turned her attention toward the expanse of water.

  From somewhere behind them, a female guide pointed out a few harbor seals. Then the boat slowed and came to a stop.

  “Captain must’ve spotted a whale.” Justin stood and stepped close to the window ledge and peered out at the ocean.

  The tourists aboard the boat murmured their excitement and Meredith looked out at the expanse of water in time to see a gray whale breaching. The sight was amazing, but it was Justin as he sat down beside her who set her heart beating faster.

  She glanced down at the deck, where the boys were jumping excitedly, Mauli standing devotedly beside them. “You’re fortunate to have Mauli.”

  “Yes. I am. You might want to give a thought to finding a nanny for Anna.”

  “I’ve already taken a few months leave from my job,” she told him. “I’d love to have a live-in, but my budget won’t allow for it.”

  “What will you do when you go back to work?”

  “Take her to the day care at the hospital where I work. That way I’ll be close by and can feed her on my lunch breaks. My dad offered to help out other times.”

  “Is your dad a widower?”

  Warmth crept into Meredith’s cheeks, and she didn’t want to admit or discuss Veronica. “No. My mother’s very much alive. She’s just not the nurturing type.”

  If he suspected there was more that she wasn’t saying, he didn’t let on.

  Anna had finished nursing, and Meredith adjusted her clothing and held her to her shoulder. Justin extended both hands. “May I?”

  Meredith handed Anna over.

  He seemed quite at ease with the infant, cradling her in one arm and gazing down at her. She studied him back, intently, her brows drawn into a frown of concentration, her dewy lips forming an O.

  “You sure are a pretty little thing, Anna,” he told her, touching a long finger to her chin. “Your mama will have to chase the boys off with a stick.”

  Anna’s expression crinkled into a beaming, toothless smile, and Justin chuckled.

  An ache yawned in Meredith’s chest, a sad yearning for the father she hadn’t thought important only a year ago. She’d planned this baby, known she was going to raise her alone and had been prepared to be the only parent her child needed.

  But that had been before. Before Anna had been born and Meredith had been faced with raising a child of mixed race. Before Veronica had rejected this precious baby. Before she’d seen Justin Weber with his children—and with Anna in his arms.

  It’s wasn’t as though there would never be a man in Anna’s life, she chided herself. There would be friends and Anna’s grandfather. But what about a father figure? her mind nagged her belatedly. That hadn’t been an issue for Meredith in the planning stages. She’d wanted a baby so badly that she’d figured no father was better than a jerk.

  Justin reached across the space separating them and touched a finger between her brows. “What’s the frown doing on that pretty face?”

  Her skin warmed like a schoolgirl’s.

  He chuckled. “I get a kick out of seeing you turn pink like that.”

  Meredith looked into his face, so different from hers, so darkly handsome and intriguingly expressive, and admitted a monumental truth to herself: she felt an attraction to this man. A fascination. Something strong and exhilarating. And physical.

  A sexual awareness she hadn’t anticipated.

  She was completely out of her comfort zone.

  It felt…incredible.

  Seven

  Terrence Logan faced the Children’s Connection’s board of directors with dread. It was no ordinary appointment, what with his wife, Leslie, sitting in on the meeting, as well as the other guest in their midst.

  Leslie gave her husband a supportive nod, her eyes infinitely sad with the knowledge of this problem that touched her at the core of her being.

  “You’re all wondering why I’ve called this special meeting,” he said once cups were filled with coffee and the members were seated expectantly.

  “I hope it’s good news regarding Mr. Weber’s progress with the Malone woman,” Albert Squires said, fingering a cigar he had taken from the breast pocket of his burgundy suit, but wouldn’t light until he’d exited the office building.

  Terrence didn’t want to tell them he hadn’t even raised the subject of Meredith Malone with Justin yet, so he took the conversation in another direction. “I’m afraid the Malone situation is going to look like small potatoes compared to what we have to tell you today,” he said on a tired exhalation.

  He turned to the tall, black-haired, blue-eyed director of the Children’s Connection who sat beside him. “You all know Morgan Davis.”

  “Out with it already,” John Reynolds said.

  Morgan looked from one face to the next, then gave the board the details. “One of the hospital’s nurses, a woman by the name of Nancy Allen, has gone to the police with her suspicions about a black-market baby ring operating out of Children’s Connection and Portland General.”

  The reaction was a collective inhalation followed by stunned silence.

  “Miss Allen came to me last month, and I found her fears and observations worth investigating,” Morgan said. “After some initial checking I met with the Logans and we called the police.”

  “Last month! Why weren’t we told about this sooner?” Dianna March demanded.

  Terrence spoke up then. “We had to be certain that an investigation was warranted,” he said. “We didn’t want to set out unprepared and make a mistake that could potentially harm the reputation of Children’s Connection.”

  “The police agreed that there were grounds for an investigation,” Morgan continued. “So the FBI has been called in.”

  Murmurs erupted around the table.

  “What exactly are they looking into?” Miles Remington asked. “What prompted this Allen woman’s suspicions?”

  “The Sanders kidnapping last month,” Garnet Kearn guessed aloud.

  Terrence nodded. “The baby the Summerses were going to adopt. There is reason to believe someone inside Children’s Connection or the hospital is behind the child’s disappearance.”

  “Is this Allen woman credible?” Wayne Thorpe asked.

  Morgan ran a hand through his hair and fielded the question. “Miss Allen hesitated to do anything to damage the reputation of Children’s Connection, but she’s convinced that to protect any more children from the same fate, the truth must be found. Her motivation is the safety of the children. And I’m sure we all agree.”

  “That’s not all, however.” Terrence glanced from person to person. “The FBI knows for certain that the black market is working in Russia and the U.S., and now they’re considering the possibility that the incidents with Elizabeth Duncan were somehow connected.”

  He referred to one of their adoptive parents who had traveled wit
h an agency representative to Russia to adopt a baby in June and while there met with several disturbing attempts to kidnap her new daughter.

  Oliver Pearson cleared his throat. “Of course we hold the children’s safety of utmost importance,” he said. “But we also have to consider the threat to Children’s Connection and the hospital if these suspicions are founded.”

  “The most important thing is that we cooperate with the FBI investigation,” Terrence said. “We all want the Sanders baby returned and the criminal apprehended.”

  He slanted a glance at his wife, and their eyes met in an exchange of grief and resolve. Not a person around the table was unaware of how close this situation was to the Logans’ hearts. Over twenty-five years ago their child, Robbie, had been kidnapped and later found dead.

  “Even if the investigation goes public,” Leslie Logan said, “we will have done our part in catching the criminals. Not a one of you could justify a secret that would only aid these kidnappings.”

  “All the more reason that we have to put this Malone thing to rest,” John Reynolds said. “We can’t have that lawsuit hanging over our heads at the same time this nightmare is unfolding. It will be our undoing if both hit the media. Our benefactors would leave us high and dry.”

  “How is Weber doing with Meredith Malone?” Dianna March asked. “She was pleased to accept our offer of the suite and expenses.”

  Terrence turned a gold fountain pen in his fingers. “We’ve let things develop on their own until now,” he said. “Perhaps it’s time someone spoke with Justin.”

  “Damn right it’s time,” Oliver said. “We need to know where she stands and we need to know soon. Things are in such a sorry state around here that we’re going to have to do some fast talking to keep our butts from being raked over the coals.”

  Every eye in the room turned to Terrence.

  He nodded his assent. “I’ll call him tonight.”

  “Watch Anna’s eyes,” Lamond said, giggling. He dangled the stuffed blue dolphin above Anna’s head, and her eyes widened as she followed its movements.

  They had stopped for hot chocolate and souvenirs, and were seated on white painted benches in a downtown courtyard.