happened since then.
“Everybody happy?” Stryker asked from the doorway.
“Looks that way.” Jonathan stepped out into the hall to join the detective. “She’s awake, which Dr. Howell said was the next step in her recovery. He’ll check on her tonight. She might be released in the morning.”
“Then we’re down to the final details,” Stryker told him. “You’ll be hearing from protective services this evening. They’ll want to get things going as quickly as possible.”
Jonathan stared at the man. “What are you talking about?”
“The baby.”
Jonathan heard the word, but it didn’t make any sense. “What baby?”
“David and Lisa’s son. Your nephew.”
Stryker kept talking but Jonathan wasn’t listening. A baby? He vaguely remembered David talking about Lisa being pregnant. He’d received a notification of the birth, along with a letter requesting a gift, but nothing else. He and David didn’t spend much time together so he’d never actually seen his nephew.
“He’s been in a temporary foster home for the last couple of days,” the detective was saying, “but you’re welcome to take custody anytime you’d like. As far as we can tell, you’re his only living relative.”
“There has to be someone else,” Jonathan said forcefully. “I don’t know anything about babies.”
“Then you’d better learn, Jonathan, because you’re his new legal guardian.”
Chapter 4
“They’re very beautiful,” Betsy said as she fussed over the huge bouquet that had been delivered to her daughter’s room late that afternoon.
Cynthia leaned back in her hospital bed and gazed at the exotic flowers. “I agree.” She grinned. “I don’t even know what half of them are. I recognize starburst lilies and the roses, but what are those little waxy things? And all that purple puffy stuff?”
Betsy smiled at her. “Purple puffy stuff? Is that the official Latin name?”
“I guess it is for us.”
Her mother moved to the side of her bed and patted her hand. “You seemed to have made an impression on Jonathan Steele.”
“You think?” Cynthia asked, not meeting Betsy’s gaze.
Thirty-six hours of unconsciousness had left her brain a little foggy. Certain events leading up to her passing out after drinking the poison weren’t as clear as they could be. She remembered going to the ball and then meeting and dancing with Jonathan. She definitely remembered their kiss…perhaps in more detail than she should. But she didn’t recall much more than stomach cramps, then waking up to find her entire family
“He stayed here the whole time you were unconscious,” Betsy told her. She sighed and touched her daughter’s cheek. “For a while they weren’t sure you were going to make it and I didn’t see how I could survive that. I was closer to falling apart than I would like to admit and your Mr. Steele was very supportive.”
Cynthia felt a flare of heat on her cheeks. “He’s not
“Then why the flowers?”
Cynthia returned her gaze to the beautiful display. “I guess he’s just a nice man.”
Her mother took her hand in hers and squeezed it slightly. “I’d have to agree with you on that.”
Jenny, Brad and Brett returned from their trip to the hospital cafeteria for dessert. The boys gave their mother an elaborate description of the piece of pie they’d each had. Jenny was quieter, hanging back until Cynthia patted the edge of her mattress and urged her to sit down.
“I’m fine,” she said quietly when the thirteen-year-old settled gingerly next to her. “I know it was scary, especially when no one knew what was wrong, but I’m okay now.”
Big blue eyes stared at her face. Jenny flashed a quick smile, showing a mouthful of braces. “I know you’re better, but for a while it was awful.” She glanced at their mother. “If Mr. Steele hadn’t been here, I think Mom would have lost it. But he stuck around and made sure we all ate and stuff.” Jenny flicked her long blond hair behind her shoulders.
Despite the age difference, she and Jenny were close. Cynthia had missed her terribly the year she’d been working in Chicago. Since Frank’s death three years ago, Cynthia had been living in Grand Springs, giving her and Jenny a chance to renew their special relationship.
“I’ll be home in the morning,” she reminded her sister. “Life will be back to normal and you won’t have an excuse to miss school.”
“I’m glad you mentioned that,” Betsy said as she ruffled Brett’s short blond hair. “Visiting hours are about over and we need to get going. These three need a good night’s sleep so they can be alert for classes tomorrow.”
“Ah, Mom,” Brad said. He puffed out his lower lip in an effort to show his mother how much the news distressed him, but she wasn’t the least bit impressed.
“No ‘ah Mom’s’ from you, young man.” But her warm hug belied the stern tone of her voice. Both freckle-faced boys clung to her for a brief embrace before turning to their oldest sister.
“See you tomorrow, Cyn,” Brad said. Brett leaned down and hugged her.
She squeezed the twin boys, then gave them each a smile. “I’ll be home by the time you get back from school. Everything is going to be fine. You’ll see.”
It took a couple of minutes for the Morgan family to finish their goodbyes, but just before the end of visiting hours, Cynthia finally found herself alone. She sank back against her pillow and sighed with contentment. Despite the potential tragedy of what had happened to her, everything had turned out well. She was nearly recovered from the poison and Dr. Howell had assured her there would be no long-term effects. Her body felt a little achy and her stomach would take a few days to settle down, but they were minor complaints.
As she pulled the sheet and blanket up to her chin, Cynthia turned her attention to the extravagant display of flowers by the window. They had arrived that afternoon with a handwritten note from Jonathan Steele. He’d ducked out that morning, shortly after she’d regained consciousness. Now, after everyone was gone, she was willing to admit that she’d been hoping he might stop by and see her before she left in the morning. But that wasn’t likely. Jonathan had a very busy life. They were practically strangers. He’d already been so kind to her family.
But all those reasons weren’t enough to ease her faint sense of disappointment. She’d wanted to see him again. Mostly because she knew she would never have another chance. They’d lived their entire lives in the same town and had never run into each other before. That wasn’t about to change.
“Oh well,” she said softly and closed her eyes. “Obviously I should have left my shoe at the ball or something.”
She waited for sleep to claim her. She’d nearly drifted off when she heard her door open quietly, followed by the sound of footsteps on the linoleum.
She opened her eyes and blinked at her visitor. Jonathan Steele-tall, darkly handsome and carrying a large stuffed bear-stood at the foot of her bed.
“I couldn’t tell if you were really asleep or just pretending,” he teased, then glanced over his shoulder toward the door. “I’m here after hours over the protest of your nurse. She made me promise to stay no more than ten minutes. If I violate that, she’s threatening bodily harm. Have you seen her? I
