Heart in Waiting (Heart's Intent Book 5) Read online

  “Don’t go anywhere yet. I need to talk to all three of you, and it appears as if it’s my lucky day to find you all here in one place.”

  Great. She had good luck. Why the fuck couldn’t he have a little bit? Carter pinched the bridge of his nose. “By all means, come inside, Ms. West. You have our attention.” The sad thing was, she always had his attention. Something about her always caught his eye. She was beautiful, intelligent, and a pain in the ass.

  “Good to know.” She breezed past Dane and Carter then went straight to Reese and handed her an envelope. “I brought your tickets to the fundraiser.”

  “Shit.” Reese grabbed the envelope and opened it. “I completely forgot about this.”

  “I thought you might have.” Olivia had the smuggest smile Carter had ever seen on her face. “And you have to go. You’re the guest speaker, and therefore have to.”

  “She can’t,” Carter said. “It’s not safe. The logistics for a large event like that would be impossible. There is no way we’d be able to pull that off.” He hoped Reese wouldn’t insist. There would be a lot of people there, and it would be easy for Nolan to sneak into that event. “Please tell me that you’re not going.” He met Reese’s gaze, but she was already slowly shaking her head.

  “I have to.” She shoved the tickets back into the envelope. “This event is to help raise funds for my research project. There’s a lot of kids depending on me, and I can’t let them down.”

  “You can’t help any of them if you’re dead.”

  “Don’t be so dramatic. It’s unlikely Nolan is going to attend a black tie event.”

  She wasn’t going to see reason. What the hell was he going to do? “I don’t suppose there are still tickets available to this shindig?” He would have to go to help protect her. Dane would need a ticket too. They would both have to be there to help watch for any possibility Nolan would show up.

  “No, it’s completely sold out.” Olivia grinned. “I can see the wheels turning already. You want to go, and make your boy over there go too.” She waved at Dane, who was leaning against the wall doing his best impression of being a mute thug.

  “Yes,” Carter agreed. He gritted his teeth and did his best to be cordial. “Something tells me you have a plan for that.”

  “As a matter of a fact, I do.” She strolled past him and sat in a chair. She crossed her legs and placed her hands in her lap. “I know Reese over there has an extra ticket for a date, and I do too. You can both go as our dates.”

  There had to be a catch. Why was Olivia being so damn accommodating? He could go as Reese’s date, and Dane could go with Olivia. “What’s in it for you?”

  “You’re planning on making Reese take you as her date, aren’t you?” Olivia tapped her fingernails on the arm of her chair. “But that doesn’t work. Let Dane be her date so people don’t pity her. I’m sure you can handle putting up with me for a few hours.”

  “I agree,” Reese said. “Dane is capable of making sure I arrive safely. I don’t want people to think I couldn’t get a date of my own and had to take my brother.”

  Carter glanced at Dane and asked, “You don’t have anything to say about this.”

  He threw up his hands in the air. “I stopped trying to argue with your sister hours ago. I’m too tired for any of this. When is this damn thing anyway? And please tell me I don’t have to wear a tuxedo.”

  Carter hadn’t even considered that. He at least had one because his mother insisted on it. Dane, however, didn’t have any reason to have one. He owed his friend and partner a lot. He was going above board to help keep Reese safe.

  “It’s this Saturday,” Olivia said. She stood and handed Carter a piece of paper. “That’s my address for you to pick me up, and Dane dear, it’s black tie. At least wear a suit.”

  With those words, she strolled out of the office. Reese leaned down, placing her face into the palm of her hands. “My life sucks.”

  Carter couldn’t agree more. Her life and his, by extension, currently did suck. He shoved the paper Olivia handed him into his pocket. Dane glared at them and then silently followed Olivia out. What else could possibly go wrong? Perhaps he shouldn’t tempt fate and ask questions like that. He was forced into a date with the one woman who drove him mad, and his little sister was determined to make herself a target. He had to find Nolan and put him where he belonged. Otherwise, he feared the worst might happen...

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  Another day of Nolan at large, and also another one of Reese being difficult—there was a time when Dane would have loved spending so much time with her. Reality hadn’t lived up to his fantasies. She’d ignored him the night before, and it had been an evening filled with eerie silence. He didn’t push her to talk, but he had hoped she’d quit her silent temper tantrum. She never did. Now it was the next morning, and he had to once again ensure she made it to work without incident.

  Dane drove his car into the parking lot and slid into an empty spot. He shifted the gear and then turned the car off. Then, he glanced over at Reese who remained quiet for the entire trip from her condo. It was his second shift staying with her, and the tension remained thick. They had barely said two words to each other. She’d chosen to leave her car at her mother’s since she wouldn’t be driving it until Nolan was caught.

  Reese pushed her door open and glanced over her shoulder. “Thanks for the ride. I can make it inside by myself.”

  “Not so fast,” Dane yelled after her. “That’s not how this works.” Reese either didn’t hear him or chose not to. He bet it was the latter. Her attitude drove him insane, and he had no idea how to change it. Why was she being so careless with her safety? He jogged to catch up to her as the doors automatically slid open. “Can you stop for a minute?”

  She glanced at him long enough to roll her eyes and then kept walking. Dane took a deep breath and rushed to keep up with her. She would have to stop at some point—probably once she reached her office. At least, he hoped so because she was going to listen to him whether she liked it or not. She slid past a group of people exiting the elevator and went inside. Before Dane could get on it, the doors clicked shut.

  “Fuck,” he cursed. Then spun on his heels to take the stairs to the third floor—at least she didn’t work on the top floor. Otherwise, he’d tie her up and make her stay home until Nolan was caught. This had skated past ridiculous two days ago and slid right into total rage with her attitude since they both opened their eyes earlier. He had to find a way to shake some sense into her before she did something so monumentally stupid she wouldn’t be able to come back from it.

  Dane raced up three flights of stairs until he reached the third floor, then pushed the door open. He took note of where he was and turned in the direction of Reese’s office. She better be there...

  “Dane!” a female shouted.

  He paused to figure out who was calling him. It wasn’t Reese, but it was definitely a woman. He glanced over his shoulder and met Paige Morris’s gaze. “Oh, hey—shouldn’t you be in bed or a wheelchair?”

  “I have to walk some in order to be released on my own.” She glanced past him. “Halie’s on this floor and I wanted to check on her.”

  That all may be true, but somehow he doubted they wanted her to travel between floors unaccompanied or not in a wheelchair. “How is Halie doing?” Maybe Reese could wait a little bit longer and he’d take the time to escort Paige to her daughter’s room. He’d nearly forgotten about them once he found out about Nolan’s escape. Paige had always been a good friend to him. The least he could do was check on her, and Halie. They didn’t have too many people that they could count on.

  “She’s good.” Paige fidgeted and stared down at the floor. When she glanced up she didn’t quite meet his gaze. “They ran some tests and kept her while they’re figuring out what’s wrong with her.”

  “Do they have any idea what it is?” Reese had seemed to think that Halie was being abused. Dane couldn’t believe that Paige would ever hurt her d
aughter. She loved Halie too much and had since the day she’d been born. He didn’t know who Halie’s father was, and Paige had never offered the information.

  Paige shook her head. “The doctor didn’t want to scare me, so she said she’d tell me when she had answers.”

  Reese was Halie’s doctor. Perhaps there was another reason for him to track her down. She might be able to put Paige’s concerns to rest. He looped his arm around Paige’s. “Let’s go see your little one. I bet she’s missing her mama.”

  Paige’s smile wobbled a little bit. “She looks so tiny in that bed—I was up here last night while she slept. I wish I could have saved her from all this pain.”

  “You can’t predict drunk drivers, Pay,” he said in a soft voice. “You’re not responsible for what someone else does.”

  She had a faraway look to her gaze. Her caramel blonde hair was stringy and matted. She was probably more concerned about Paige then herself. Something else he’d have to look into. Maybe talk to Lana—she might be able to talk her into showering. Paige had to stop ignoring what she needed, or she’d never be able to take proper care of her daughter.

  “I realize I didn’t make Abel drive drunk,” she replied. Her voice was filled with grief as she spoke. “But I was distracted myself and didn’t see him coming. I could have done a better job of looking out for my baby.”

  “Halie is going to be fine,” Dane tried to console her. “She has the best doctors looking out for her.”

  “I hope so.”

  They made slow progress down the hall. Dane had no idea where they were heading, and he should probably ask. The last time he’d seen Halie, she’d been in the emergency room. He hadn’t thought to visit her in the room she’d been moved to since they admitted her. Paige was already skittish, and he wanted to make her feel as comfortable as possible. In some ways, she was still that girl next door to him. She hadn’t changed much over the years, and he didn’t expect she would any time soon.

  Some people got stuck in their circumstances and didn’t seem to be able to find their way out. Paige was young when she had Halie, and somehow, he didn’t think she had much time for anything other than working and making sure her daughter was taken care of. Paige’s life mirrored his mother’s and her mother’s as well. She was the next generation of single moms fighting to survive, and it killed him that there wasn’t a damn thing he could do about it.

  “How are you doing?” He wanted to say more than that. To tell her he’d help, but she wouldn’t accept. Pride was the darnedest thing, and hers would put up an impenetrable wall. Offering her help would make her push him away. She would only take so much, and none of it would be what she considered charity.

  “I’m fine,” she said. “I was watching the news before I decided to give this walking thing a try.”

  “That’s a bad habit. These days there’s nothing good for those anchors to report on.” They were probably broadcasting far and wide that Nolan was on the loose. People did need to realize there was a dangerous man out there; however, he hated to hear about it himself. It grated on his nerves that his evil brother was free to harm someone else.

  “They said your brother escaped.” She had no tone to her voice. Dane had complained about Nolan often enough to her that she, more than anyone, realized how much he hated him. Paige had always strived to make Dane try harder with him. She said Nolan couldn’t be that bad, and she’d love it if she had a brother or sister. Paige was like a sister to him—more of a family than his only brother had ever been. He loved her, but Paige didn’t realize what an awful person Nolan was. Hell, Dane hadn’t realized quite how bad the bastard could be. No one could have predicted what he would do.

  “I’m afraid so.” He hated that he had to confirm it.

  “I’m sure you’re doing all you can to find him.” She nodded absentmindedly. “Do you have any leads?”

  He couldn’t tell her what they were even if he had some to tell her. Where the heck was Nolan hiding, and more importantly, what did he have planned? “I’ve left most of the digging to Carter and the other detectives. I’ve been on guard duty.” That wasn’t entirely true. He’d done some searching when Carter was with Reese. Telling her he wasn’t looking was easier than the truth.

  “Well,” she began. “We all have our jobs to do.” She paused for a moment and sighed. “Mine is my daughter. Halie’s all that matters. Her room is coming up on the right—302.”

  He nodded and kept moving toward the room in question. Once they made it there, he helped her inside. Halie was tiny lying on that bed. She didn’t resemble that vivacious little girl he’d always been familiar with. A tear fell down Paige’s face, but she wiped it away. Halie turned toward them and her whole face lit up with a smile. “Mama,” she shouted. “You came. The nurse said you were hurt pretty bad and couldn’t make it.”

  “I’m here, baby,” she said. “Don’t you worry about me. Nothing or no one would keep me away from you for long.”

  “I’m hurt too,” Halie said and pointed to her leg. “I have to wear that thing. They said my bone is broke.”

  Paige let go of Dane’s arm and walked over to Halie’s bed. She brushed a lock of her dark hair behind Halie’s ear. “Maybe we can have people sign it.”

  “Like I’m a movie star?” Halie’s grin widened even farther. “That’s awesome.” She glanced past Paige at Dane. “Will you sign first, Detective Hunter?”

  Reese came in at that moment to check on Halie. She paused in the doorway and glanced between Dane and Paige. Great. When she left the room, he’d follow behind her and have a few words with the good doctor.

  “I thought you left,” she said as she met Dane’s gaze. “What are you doing here?”

  “That’s a conversation we can have later.” He gestured toward Halie. “Do you have something I can sign her cast with?”

  She pulled out a marker from her pocket and handed it to him. He scribbled his name on Halie’s cast and drew a smiley face next to it, then he handed it back to Reese. The little girl’s eyes were droopy as she fought sleep. She turned to Reese and asked, “Can you sign too, Dr. Jackson?”

  “Of course,” Reese said and signed it. Then she focused her attention on Halie. “How are you feeling today?”

  “I want to go home.”

  “I’m sorry; you can’t yet. But hopefully soon. Why don’t you close your eyes and rest? I can tell you want to.”

  “No.” Halie pushed out her bottom lip into a fine pout. “I don’t want to.”

  “Darling,” Paige coaxed her. “Do as the nice doctor says. The more sleep you get, the faster you’ll heal, and then maybe we both can go home.”

  The whole exchange amused him. Dane had always wanted kids and would have loved to have a daughter like Halie. She was precocious and downright adorable. Whoever her father was had missed out on having her in his life. Maybe Halie was better off not having him in her life. Especially if he was anything like Dane’s father...

  Halie closed her eyes and her little snores echoed through the room. Reese smiled softly and then turned to Paige. “I’m glad you’re here. I’d like to discuss Halie’s test results with you.”

  Paige nodded. “Is she all right? No one has told me anything other than they were running tests. Was she hurt more in the car accident than I thought?” She brushed her hand through her hair. “God, I wish didn’t need to leave the house that day.”

  Reese was quiet for several moments. She glanced down at the file in her hand and then back at Paige. “This is hard for me to say.”

  “Oh, God,” Paige cried out. “It’s bad, isn’t it?”

  “Her bruising, along with the lumps on her stomach, underarm, and neck, were what made me order the tests. It pains me to tell you this, but I’m afraid Halie has acute lymphocytic leukemia,” Reese explained. “It’s the most common form of cancer in children.”

  Tears streamed down Paige’s face. Dane frowned and glanced to Reese then back to Paige. His heart ached for his
friend and her daughter. Paige wavered on her feet and almost fell. Dane caught her and wrapped his arms around her. He wished that Reese had better news, hell he would give anything to turn the clock back and redo the past several days. Paige pulled back away from Dane and wiped her eyes with her hands. Then she looked at Reese and asked, “What are her options?”

  “Paige, you can...” Dane started to say.

  “No,” Paige interrupted him. “I need to plan, and I can’t do that without more information.”

  “The good news is this was caught early enough that she should be all right with some chemotherapy.” Reese’s voice remained even, and she didn’t show an ounce of emotion. “At some point, she might need a bone marrow transplant. I’ve made an appointment with Dr. Zachary Foster to look over her case. He’s one of the best oncologists in the country.”

  Paige swayed and tumbled backward losing consciousness at the information she’d begged for. Dane caught her before she hit the ground. “Where can I put her?”

  Reese pointed to a reclining chair. She lifted the handle so the foot rest extended. “Set her here for now. I’ll have someone take her back to her room.”

  With those words, she exited the room and didn’t look back. Who was Reese really, and why had she gone cold? Dane grabbed a blanket out of the closet and covered Paige. She’d want to be close to her daughter. He could come back later to check on them, but he had something more important to do. Reese would talk to him, and she would explain why she was being a spectacular bitch. This wasn’t the woman he’d grown to love. There had to be a reason for what she was doing, and he would get to the bottom of it. Maybe she was punishing herself, or perhaps she had changed. He didn’t want to believe the latter though...

  CHAPTER NINE