see how she does over the next while, first. If she makes significant progress, the visits can be cut to once a week, then less often as she continues to improve.”
“If I were to drive her there, could she come to the clinic, instead of you having to come to the house?”
“Sure, if you can manage to get her there in one piece.”
“I’m not planning to trundle her down the hill in a wheelchair and risk tipping her into the gutter, if that’s what you’re implying! I’ll trade in my rental car for a minivan. I’m no doctor, but getting her out of that house, even if it’s only to come for a checkup, has to be a benefit.”
“I agree. But give her a few more days in bed first.”
“I heard you the first time, Dan. And even if I hadn’t, I’m not so blind that I can’t see she’s got a long recovery ahead of her.”
He shrugged. “Fine. Any more questions?”
“Not at the moment.”
“Then perhaps you’ll answer a couple for me.”
“Of course.” She dabbed at her mouth with her napkin and stared him squarely in the eye. “Fire away.”
“You haven’t said a word about your father. Why not?”
“Because I don’t care about him. I’d even go so far as to say I’m glad he’s dead. I’d have held my nose and attended his funeral if I’d known about it, but only because it would have made it easier for my mother to have me there.”
He blew out a breath. “You don’t believe in pulling your punches, do you?”
“I don’t believe in lying to save face.”
“In that case, you won’t mind telling me this: Why, if you’re married, do you still go by the name Paget, and why aren’t you wearing a wedding ring, Molly?”
CHAPTER THREE
“THAT’S two questions,” Molly said, amazed that she managed to sound perfectly sane when she was near to suffocating with panic. “Which one should I answer?”
“Both,” he said inexorably.
“It’s easier to get rid of a husband than it is to face the world without one,” had been her mother’s rationale the night before. “If people ask, you can always say he died or something. At least you won’t be condemned for being a widow.”
“In this town, I just might be!” Molly had said ruefully. “They’re likely to think I murdered him for his supposed fortune.”
“Well, if you’re going to have an imaginary husband, he might as well have money. Dream big, I always say. If folks are determined to gossip—and let’s face it, it’s what makes the world go round in these parts—give them something they can really sink their teeth into. And Molly Paget coming back to town respectable and rich is about as juicy a tidbit as they’ve chewed on in years.”
She’d laughed at that. They both had, the shared conspiracy forging another long overdue bonding between mother and daughter. But it didn’t seem so funny or clever now, with Dan scrutinizing her, feature by feature.
Mind racing, Molly tried to decide between presenting herself as a widow or a divorcée. Widowhood might promote a more sympathetic response, but it was also likely to invite further questions, especially from a doctor. Divorce, on the other hand, was common enough that it rarely aroused much interest.
She gave a tiny shrug, as much to disguise the fact that she was shaking like a leaf, as for theatrical effect, and settled for a lie of omission over outright deceit. “I’d have thought it was obvious. I don’t wear a ring and I go by my maiden name because marriage didn’t work out for me. I’ve been a single parent for years.”
“I see.”
She was afraid he did—far more than she ever intended he should. Subterfuge had never been her strong point and the flimsy evasions she’d handed out wouldn’t fool a half-wit, let alone a man of his intelligence.
“You have sole custody of your daughter, then?”
“Yes. Why do you sound so surprised?”
“Because it’s unusual in this day and age. Most courts award joint guardianship of minor children.”
“Only if it’s something both parents want.”
And you didn’t, Dan Cordell!
“Let’s face it, sweet Molly,” he’d said, that hot August evening he ended their affair by trying to make it sound like a mutual decision, “it’s as well we’re calling it quits now because we wouldn’t have lasted much longer anyway. Next month I’m off to Europe for a year, maybe two. Even if I weren’t, I’m not ready to settle down and you…” He’d sighed and tried to look properly pained, as though to say, This is hurting me more than it’s hurting you, which was a laugh and a half! “You’re only seventeen. Much too young to be thinking about anything long-term, especially with a guy who still hasn’t figured out what he wants to do with his life.”
The new and reformed Daniel Cordell, M.D., swung his head in bewilderment. “I don’t understand how any man could turn away from his child. I’ve probably delivered close to a hundred babies over the last few years, and each one’s as big a thrill as the first. I don’t mind telling you, being there to watch my firstborn come into the world is something I look forward to with the utmost pleasure.”
“You talk as if it’s a fait accompli that you’ll father a child.”
He laughed. “It’s not a done deal, if that’s what you mean. I’m conventional enough to believe marriage comes before children.”
These days, maybe! But where were your fine scruples when you seduced me and forgot to use a condom?
“Are you planning to get married soon?” It shouldn’t hurt so much to ask, but it did. Pain shot through her like a live wire, leaving her winded from the shock of it.
“We’re in no hurry. We’re both busy with our careers. It’ll happen when the time’s right. What about you? Ever think of remarrying?”
“No,” she said. “I’m too busy raising a daughter and running a business—and now, looking after my mother. I don’t need the complication of a husband.”
He dropped two lumps of sugar in his coffee, added a dollop of cream and stirred thoughtfully. “But you must have been glad of one when you were pregnant, and especially when you gave birth?”
Straightforward enough, at least on the surface, the question slipped between the cracks in her defenses, and laid open a wound too grievous to endure a second time.
In the blink of an eye, it all came back. The fear, even though there’d been three nurses and two doctors in attendance—kind, competent professionals every one. The pain which nothing could assuage. The terrible, aching loneliness, even though Rob had been there the whole time, cheering her on.
But Molly had wanted Dan. Wanted
