July straightened her shoulders and took a few deep breaths of crisp mountain air.

The tightness gripping her chest slowly eased.

“I know you said you wanted to be alone, but I was worried.”

Her heart fluttered and she turned. David stood silhouetted in the overhead light. His shoulders were broad and there was a strength to his face that said this was a man who could handle whatever life threw at him.

A man whom a woman—and a child—could count on.

Dear Reader,

The Doctor’s Baby is special to me because this story shares some components of the first book I wrote as an adult. I called that book Somebody’s Baby, and the rejection I received from Mills & Boon® Cherish™ was my very first rejection on the road to publication. It was a nice rejection, as rejections go. They encouraged me to start the book when the heroine is in labor and then resend it to them. At the time I was already working on another book, so I never did resend it.

That was over ten years ago. But I still liked components of the plot. Last year I reworked the story line, and this time it sold. Want to know what the two books have in common?

Baby is in the title. The couples initially meet in Chicago. The hero is a physician. The pregnancy is unplanned. The baby is a boy. That’s about it.

Still, in some small way I feel that first book has been given a second chance at life.

I enjoyed writing The Doctor’s Baby, and I hope you enjoy reading it.

Warmest regards,

Cindy Kirk

About the Author

CINDY KIRK has loved to read for as long as she can remember. In first grade she received an award for reading one hundred books. Growing up, summers were her favorite time of year. Nothing beat going to the library, then coming home and curling up in front of the window air conditioner with a good book. Often the novels she read would spur ideas, and she’d make up her own story (always with a happy ending). When she’d go to bed at night, instead of counting sheep, she’d make up more stories in her head. Since selling her first story to Mills & Boon in 1999, Cindy has been forced to juggle her love of reading with her passion for creating stories of her own … but she doesn’t mind. Writing for Mills & Boon® Cherish™ is a dream come true. She only hopes you have as much fun reading her books as she has writing them!

Cindy invites you to visit her website at www.cindykirk.com.

The Doctor’s Baby

Cindy Kirk

www.millsandboon.co.uk

To my wonderful co-workers: Sue McHargue,

Pam Black, Vickie Richter, Janae Svagera and Jackie

Couron. I’m still working because of you.

You’re the best!

Chapter One

Giving birth in an emergency room wasn’t on July Greer’s agenda. Neither was having her one and only one-night stand be the doctor striding through the door.

Though a mask covered his mouth and nose, she’d have recognized those electric-blue eyes anywhere. For a second the pain and pressure gripping her body paled in comparison to her shock.

You’re not supposed to be in Wyoming.

The accusation never made it to her lips. Instead she cried out as another viselike pain gripped her belly.

“I’m Dr. Wahl.” Without casting a glance her way, he rushed past her to take a seat at the other end of the exam table. He dropped out of sight for a moment then pushed the sterile drape down.

“The nurse is right. We don’t have time to get you to the delivery room.” The tense set to his jaw and the concern in his eyes did nothing to ease her anxiety. Thankfully, if he recognized her it didn’t show. “How far along are you?”

July prided herself on her even temperament, but the pain had taken over her body again and now her temper flared. She’d given that information at the admissions desk and to at least two E.R. nurses. Couldn’t one person have written it down?

“Thirty-six weeks.” Her irritable tone morphed into a pant even as she fought to not bear down. The urge became overwhelming though the nurse standing beside her chanted in her ear that she must.not.push.

July vowed to stay strong, to pant like a dog for as long as it took to protect her baby. If only there was some guarantee her efforts would be enough. She wasn’t due for another month. According to all the books, a baby did a lot of growing those last few weeks.

“He’ll be okay, won’t he?” July asked when she could breathe normally again.

David, er, Dr. Wahl, must have heard the fear in her voice because he lifted his head. “If your dates are accurate, lung maturity shouldn’t be a problem.”

“Is that a yes?” July snapped as another sharp pain ripped through her body.

“The baby is crowning. Take a couple breaths, then hold and push,” he instructed.

Though it seemed like an eternity, minutes later her son made his appearance, wailing loudly and weighing in at a respectable five pounds two ounces.

The baby was carefully inspected before Rachel Milligan, the nurse who’d been at her side, brought him close. A check of fingers, toes and body parts confirmed that while he might be small, her son was indeed perfect.

The breath July had been holding came out in a whoosh. All the sacrifices she’d made these past eight months had been worth it. Gazing into his unfocused eyes, she vowed that no matter how rough life got, she’d always be there for him.

She was only beginning to get acquainted with her new son when an RN July hadn’t seen before swept into the room. With competent hands, the nurse took him from her arms and whisked him off in an isolette. July’s heart twisted as the baby disappeared from sight.

“You did fantastic.” Rachel squeezed her shoulder. “Don’t worry about your little boy. We’ll take good care of him.”

Her little boy. The tidal wave of emotion continued to build. “I’m going to call him Adam.”

July was sentimental when it came to names. Unlike her own, which was simply the month she was born, she wanted her son’s name to mean something more.

“I like Adam.” Rachel rolled the name around on her tongue. “Is it a family name?”

July nodded. Adam “A.J.” Soto was like a brother to her. Had been ever since they’d done the foster home circuit together. For as long as she could remember A.J. had been her confidante, her sounding board and, most of all, a good friend.

“He certainly is a handsome boy with all that dark hair,” Rachel said.

Lots of dark hair had been what July had noticed first about her baby. While she loved her own reddish-colored hair, she was glad Adam’s hair was more like his dad’s.

“Does he look like his father?”

“He does,” July said without thinking. She wasn’t sure what David was “finishing up” down there but she felt him pause. Though she couldn’t see his hair under the blue cap, she vividly remembered running her fingers through the dark wavy strands that long ago night.

The words had barely left her lips when he stood. With one gesture he brushed off the cap, lowered the mask and fixed his gaze on her. For the first time since he’d entered the room, he focused, really focused on her. Though it was barely noon, lines of fatigue edged his eyes. Yet a curious glitter shone in the blue depths.

A sense of danger snaked its way up her spine and she started to shake. If David discovered Adam was his son …

For a second the room spun but July refused to give in to the fear.

You’ve gotten yourself out of worse.

The realization steadied her. She took a deep breath and forced the fear from her mind. One step at a time. That’s how she’d managed to get through life so far and it was how she’d get through this unexpected calamity. First, she needed to stay calm and not overreact. David had no reason to think their one night together had resulted in a pregnancy. That’s how she intended to keep it.

“Everything looks good.” His gaze never left hers. “The baby was small so despite the precipitous delivery, you didn’t tear at all.”

Perhaps she should have been embarrassed by the comment, but David was a doctor. And there wasn’t anything of hers he hadn’t seen or touched. At the moment she felt nothing but gratitude. “Thank you for everything.”

He stared for a long moment then inclined his head in a slight nod. “They’ll be taking you to a room soon.”

The professional tone was reassuring. But then his eyes softened and July knew she was in trouble. “When my shift is over, I’ll stop by and see how you’re doing.”

A knot formed in the pit of July’s stomach. He remembered her. And by the look in his eyes, he’d done the math.

Fear wrapped icy fingers around her neck. A.J. was always telling her she was too cynical, a glass-half-empty kind of person. July preferred to think of herself as a realist. Her childhood had taught her many valuable lessons … including that men couldn’t be trusted. And her encounter last summer with the smooth-talking married doctor had only reinforced that belief. That’s why David would never know this child was his.

A baby might not have been in her plans. She might not have instantly embraced the idea of motherhood. But now that he was here, she loved her son with her whole heart. Sharing him with a man who had no scruples simply wasn’t an option.

David leaned back against the gray metal locker in the Jackson Hole Memorial Hospital’s physician lounge. All afternoon he’d stitched lacerations, stabilized broken bones and told himself that the baby boy he’d delivered at 11:28 a.m. this morning couldn’t be his son. After all, when he and July had spent the night in that hotel room in Chicago, he’d made sure they used protection—each and every time.

However as a physician, he knew condoms weren’t one hundred percent effective. Mistakes happened. The instant the thought crossed his mind, he rejected it. That baby boy—any baby for that matter—was a miracle, not a mistake. And if the child was his, he’d take responsibility.

“Why so serious? Bad day?”

“Not at all.” David turned and smiled at the lanky physician with the mop of sandy-colored hair. Dr. Travis Fisher had been a good friend since high-school days. He’d been the best man at David’s wedding and a pallbearer at his wife’s funeral two years ago.

If there was anyone he could talk to about this awkward situation, it would be Travis. But David had never said anything about his one-night stand with July and he didn’t have time to explain it all now.

“I was just thinking that Mary Karen will have my hide if I miss one minute of Logan’s birthday party,” David added.

David’s sister had been blessed with three little hellions, er, sons. She was a great mom, but the boys were a handful and in definite need of a male influence. Unfortunately, Mary Karen’s ex-husband wasn’t around. He’d left Jackson last year and was now in Boston enjoying the single life he’d missed so much. David tried to fill in, attempted to spend as much time with the boys as possible, but what the three pre-schooers really needed was a dad.

Unfortunately David didn’t see that happening, at least not anytime soon. When Mary Karen wasn’t caring for the boys or working PRN at the hospital, any free time was devoted to cleaning and cooking. Neither of which were particular strengths of hers.

“What’s on the menu tonight?” Travis lifted a brow. “Tofu?”

David laughed. His friend was obviously thinking of the time in high school when Mary Karen had made dinner for them. “Thank God, no. Logan is on a spaghetti kick, so that’s what we’re having.”

“It’d be hard to ruin that.” Travis pointed a finger at David. “But if anyone could, my money’d be on your sister.”

The fondness in his tone didn’t surprise David. Mary Karen and Trav were old friends. They’d even dated for a short time back in high school.

“Why don’t you join us?” David urged. “I’m sure she’d love to see you.”

“I appreciate the offer, but duty calls.” Travis gestured with one hand toward the door. “They’re prepping a C-section for me now and I have another on her way in.”

“Looks like it’s going to be a busy day in the nursery,” David murmured, remembering how empty the beds had been over the weekend.

“Speaking of deliveries …” A speculative gleam filled Travis’s hazel eyes. “I heard about your unexpected one this morning.”

Travis was an OB and one of the best in town. It figured he’d heard about the delivery.

“Baby couldn’t wait for you to show up.” David kept his tone offhand. “The boy sure had a good set of lungs on him. Cute little fella.”

“The mother’s pretty easy on the eyes, too.” Travis wiggled his brows. “And according to her admission form, she’s single. I stopped and saw her before I came down here. You don’t see eyes that shade of green all that often.”

“I didn’t notice her eyes,” David said pointedly. “I didn’t have time because I was too busy doing your work.”

“Ouch.” Travis brought a hand to his chest and stumbled back against the locker in a melodramatic gesture. “Felt that one.”

David just chuckled.

But when Travis straightened, his gaze grew sharp and assessing. “A man would have to be blind not to notice those eyes.”

An intern who’d been helping out in the emergency room earlier exited the lavatory and cast a curious glance their way.

“She had good prenatal care.” Travis acknowledged the other doctor with a nod while effortlessly changing the direction of the conversation.

“I’m sure the Sun Times has good insurance,” David responded then cursed himself when Travis paused, head cocked.

“She told me she’s a freelance photographer.” Travis spoke slowly and David could almost see the mental wheels spinning. “She didn’t say anything about working for a newspaper.”

“I must have misunderstood.” David grabbed his jacket. “Gotta go. I want to check on her and the baby before I head over to Mary Karen’s house.”

“No need,” Travis said. “I already looked in on her. And John Watson is following the baby.”

“It’s not a bother.” David kept his tone casual. “I don’t get to deliver many babies. I want to make sure everything is okay.”

Travis arched a brow. “Sure that’s all it is?”

The guy was like a dog with a bone. David exhaled harshly and raked a hand through his hair. Maybe he should just tell Travis the whole story. But before he could yield to the impulse, the alarm on his watch buzzed. No time for confessions today. He slammed his locker shut and strode to the door. “I really have to go.”

“What am I going to tell the nurses?” Travis hurried to catch up. “You didn’t give me squat.”

“What are you talking about?” David didn’t break stride.

“I’m not naming names, but the day shift told me you couldn’t keep your eyes off the new mommy. They got the impression you knew her and asked me to get the inside scoop.”

David skidded to a stop on the shiny linoleum, keeping a firm grip on his temper. Hospital gossip drove him crazy but he’d long ago learned the best way to handle it. “Tell them the new mommy and I have been having a torrid affair and I’m madly in love with her. Oh, and you can tell them that the baby is mine, too.”

As he’d expected, Travis chuckled. “I’ll let ‘em know it’s a false alarm.” He clapped David on the back. “Enjoy the party and give that pretty sister of yours a kiss for me.”

“If you want to kiss her,” David shot back, “you’re going to have to do that yourself.”

But as David left the lounge, he found his mind not on his sister or his nephew’s party. It was on the woman upstairs in room 202. And on the baby in the nursery. The boy with the dark wavy hair … just like his own.

Chapter Two

In an attempt to avoid elevator small talk, David took the stairs to the second floor. Once he reached the nurses’ station, he chatted with the staff while flipping through July’s thin chart. There wasn’t much information. She’d listed her marital status as single, her job as a freelance photographer and her address as Chicago, Illinois. There was no next of kin listed so if she was involved with someone, the relationship couldn’t be that significant.

He wondered what had happened to her job at the Sun Times and what had brought her to Jackson. While this was a beautiful part of the country and he’d always been proud to call it home, it wasn’t a “passing through” kind of place.

Well, he’d find out soon enough. David squared his shoulders and with clipboard in hand, turned and headed down the hall with purposeful strides. Only when he reached her room did he hesitate. Travis was following her now so there was really no reason for him to be here. Except he’d delivered her baby and they were old friends … of sorts.

Feeling as awkward as a fifteen-year-old, David rapped lightly on the partially closed door then pushed it open.

July sat in the bed with a tray of food before her, dressed in a simple hospital gown. She wasn’t show-stopping pretty, not like Celeste, but there was something compelling about her. Though she couldn’t be more than five foot three, with her big green eyes, shoulder-length auburn hair and a creamy complexion, she’d stand out in any crowd.

If she was surprised to see him, it didn’t show. She placed the dish of orange gelatin on the tray and stared at the red stitching on his lab coat. “I thought your name was spelled W-A-L-L.”

Relief washed over him. She remembered his name … even if she was off on the spelling. In the delivery room he hadn’t been sure she’d recognized him. And he hadn’t known how to ask.

“Because it’s pronounced the same, lots of people get the spelling wrong.” He ambled to the bed, hoping the tension that held him in a stranglehold didn’t show. “What’s this I hear? The nurses tell me you haven’t even been here twenty-four hours and you’re already asking when you can leave.”

“My insurance policy has a high deductible.” She lifted her chin. “I’m a cost-conscious consumer.”

David rocked back on his heels and cursed his insensitivity. The comment had been meant to tease, to break the ice, not make her feel bad. “If you need financial assistance, we have a wonderful social service department. I can have someone stop—”

“You misunderstand,” she interrupted. “I have savings. I just want to keep as much of it as possible.”

“Of course. Excellent. Well, if you change your mind, let me know.” David found himself stumbling over the words. Normally he could talk to anyone about anything. But here he stood, tongue-tied and awkward. Feeling this unsure didn’t make any sense. Neither did her coolness. After all, they’d parted on good terms.

“Barring anything unforeseen, you should be able to go home tomorrow,” he said finally when the silence grew intolerable. “One of our home health nurses will check on you twenty-four hours after you leave the hospital. It’s an extra service we offer.”

July’s emerald eyes took on a distant look. “I’ll need to buy a car seat and then come back for Adam—”

“When you leave here you need to take it easy,” he said in a firm voice, as if she were one of his patients. “The baby will be staying with us for a while longer so there’s no rush on the car seat.”

“The nurses told me he was doing fine.” Fear skittered across her face and her eyes filled with tears. “Has something happened to him?”

“He’s a little jaundiced. Not unexpected in a preemie,” David said in what he hoped was a reassuring tone. Though he didn’t have a lot to do with obstetrics, the hormone surge experienced after delivery was well-documented. He should have chosen his words more carefully.

“When my water broke, I knew it was too early.” Her voice cracked and she collapsed back against the pillows, looking much younger than her twenty-six years. “I couldn’t stop it. Everything went so fast …”

“There wasn’t anything you could have done differently.” He resisted the urge to pat her on the shoulder. “Your body was ready to deliver when you walked through the door.”

“I don’t know how that happened,” July continued, almost to herself. “The doctor swore I’d go late.”

“What was your due date?” David asked in as casual a tone as he could muster.

“April 15.”

The tension that had been gripping his shoulders slid to his chest. He’d been calculating dates in his mind from the moment he’d recognized her name on the medical record and had seen her swollen belly. If she was due the middle of April she’d had to have gotten pregnant around the time they’d been together in Chicago. Though he thought he was doing a good job at keeping his emotions from his face, he knew he’d failed when her gaze narrowed.

“Don’t worry.” She waved a hand. “He’s not your baby.”

“How can you be sure he’s not mine?” The second the question shot from his lips David wondered if he’d lost his mind. She’d just handed him a free pass and he was arguing? But a man didn’t walk away from his responsibilities. “The dates match.”

“We used a condom,” she reminded him. “Every time.”

“Are you telling me you had unprotected sex with someone else around that time?”

“Look.” She shoved the tray table out of the way and leaned forward. “The Sir Galahad act is unnecessary. Adam is not your son.”

She sounded sincere. What she said made sense. But he remembered that night as if it were yesterday. There had been nothing practiced in her responses, which told him she hadn’t been with a man in a while. Yet now she expected him to believe she’d spent the night with him then promptly went out and had sex with another guy? It was possible, but something in his gut told him she was lying.

He didn’t like doubting her. She’d impressed him from the onset as being one of those people who told it as she saw it. He’d liked that about her.

David opened his mouth to ask one of half a dozen questions poised on the tip of his tongue, but shut it without speaking. The set of her jaw told him he wasn’t going to get anything more from her. At least not by going the direct route.

He rocked back on his heels. “Are you really going to call him Adam?”

“What’s wrong with it?”

David hid a smile at the challenge in her tone. Feisty. That was another of the qualities that had drawn him to her in that hotel bar. “When I was a boy our next door neighbors had two bulldogs. One named Adam. The other, Eve.”

“Well, I have a good friend named Adam and he’s definitely not a dog.”

A good friend? By the caring in her tone … definitely. But more? David fought an unexpected surge of jealousy, before remembering she hadn’t even given this guy’s name as an emergency contact. “How’d you meet? Neighbors?”

July lifted a shoulder in an unconcerned shrug. “Foster care.”

Just when he thought he was beginning to get a handle on her, she’d surprised him again. Without waiting for an invitation, David dropped to sit on the edge of her bed. “You never told me you grew up in foster care.”

“If you remember, once we got to your room we didn’t do much talking.”

David thought back. She was right. Once that hotel door had clicked shut and they’d hit the bed there hadn’t been much conversation. Lots of moaning but not much intelligible communication. But had she forgotten how they’d sat in the hotel bar for hours doing nothing but talking?

“We discussed all sorts of things before that,” David insisted. “Triathlon training. Best Indie Horror movies. Food favorites.”

“We talked about our likes and dislikes,” July reminded him. “But we shared very little about our personal lives.”

He paused for a moment and realized she was right. She hadn’t mentioned anything about her childhood. And he hadn’t mentioned he’d had a wife who’d died. “Foster care couldn’t have been easy.”

An unreadable look filled her eyes. “What doesn’t kill us makes us stronger.”

Those horrible days after the car accident flashed before him. Though David didn’t feel stronger, at least he no longer dwelled on something that couldn’t be changed. “I’m surprised you weren’t adopted.”

Instead of a quick comeback, she paused, her green eyes dark. “It was … complicated.”

“Tell me,” he urged when she didn’t continue.

She shook her head. When the bulldog set to her jaw returned he knew she’d shared all she was going to on the matter.

“How did you end up here anyway?” Her gaze narrowed. “When we met, you were supposedly living in Minneapolis and planning to move to Chicago.”

“No supposedly about it. I was working at Hennepin but had accepted the position at Rush when you and I talked.” David shifted his gaze out the window and let it linger on the snowy mountain peaks in the distance.

He’d felt so lost after Celeste’s death. So alone. Unable to shake the sadness, he’d moved to the Twin Cities, hoping a change of scene would help. It hadn’t. He’d been planning another move, this time to Chicago, the night he’d met July.

“What happened?” she asked.

“I had lunch with an old friend the day after we … were together. We’d known each other a long time. He knew my—” David paused “—situation. After talking to him I realized that being in Jackson—with my family—was where I belonged.”

“Please, don’t let me keep you from your family,” she said, her green eyes as cool as her tone.

“I still have a few minutes.” David needed to get to his nephew’s party but just like the last time they were together, he found himself reluctant to leave her. “How did your friend Adam respond when you called and gave him the good news?”

“I haven’t been able to reach him,” she said in a matter-of-fact tone.

The announcement over the PA system advised visitors it was time to leave. David glanced at the clock on the wall. Ten minutes to get to his sister’s house. Ten minutes or he was in the doghouse for life. He rose to his feet. “I’d better go.”

She didn’t say another word, merely gave him a polite smile, the kind you’d give a casual acquaintance you didn’t plan to see again.

“I’ll check on you tomorrow,” he promised even as he edged closer to the door, still reluctant to leave. “See how you’re feeling, make sure you’re up to going home.”

“There’s no need—”

The door swung open and an older staff nurse, who’d worked for the hospital since David had been a baby, stepped into the room, a blue-wrapped bundle in her arms. “Mrs. Greer, you have a visitor.”

David saw July flinch at the “Mrs.” but she didn’t correct the woman. Instead her green eyes widened and her gaze remained riveted on the baby.

The gray-haired nurse stopped when she saw David. “Dr. Wahl. I didn’t mean to interrupt. I didn’t realize you were still here.”

“It’s fine. I was on my way out.” David knew his sister and family were waiting. Knew his nephews would refuse to start the party until he got there. Even so, he took an extra second to linger and admire the baby that very easily could be his.

“Thanks for coming tonight.” Mary Karen Vaughn stood beside David on the porch of the large two-story white clapboard she shared with her three sons, their maternal grandmother, Fern, and supersized cockapoo, Henry. “Logan was so excited to see you.”

“Three little boys throwing cake at each other.” David winked. “Wouldn’t have missed it for the world.”

Actually, this evening the terrible trio had been fairly well-behaved. And the war-whoop the twins and Logan had let loose when he’d walked through the door had warmed his heart. Of course, with his parents on a European cruise, his only competition was Granny Fern. And while the boys loved their great-grandmother, they’d stuck tight to his side all evening.

After the spaghetti had been eaten and the two candles blown out on the cake, Granny had gone to her room for some well-needed “shut-eye.” Last week she’d tripped over the dog and cracked a rib.

Though Granny loved helping with the boys and watching them while Mary Karen worked an occasional shift at the hospital, David worried about her. The older woman needed more rest than she was able to get in this busy household. That was one of the reasons he’d stayed and helped Mary Karen get the boys bathed and in bed. But that wasn’t the only reason. Keeping busy kept thoughts of July at bay.

“You’re so good with the boys.” Mary Karen turned to the rail and stared out into the darkness. Far off in the distance, a coyote wailed. She pulled her coat tight around her. “You and Celeste should have had children.”

Celeste had liked Mary Karen as much as she’d liked anyone in Jackson, but David knew his sister had hoped more closeness would come when they had children in common.

David wasn’t sure it would have made a difference. Celeste had been so different from his down-to-earth sister. Different than most of the women in Jackson. He smiled. His wife had been a hothouse rose in a field of wildflowers.

It wasn’t an exaggeration to say Celeste had been the most beautiful woman in Jackson. Men would stop on the street and stare when she walked by. She’d been a city girl to the core, a woman who’d loved shopping, travel and him. When they’d left California and moved to Jackson, she’d kept her job as a marketing rep for a company based in Los Angeles. He’d worried about her being on the road so much, but accepted the fact that she loved her job too much to quit.

Then two years ago, on her way to the airport for a business trip, her sports car had been broadsided by a drunk driver. She’d been killed instantly. When he’d heard the news, a part of him had died with her.

At the time Mary Karen had just delivered Logan. Connor and Caleb, the twins, had just turned two. While his sister’s household had always been chaotic, to add to her stress, her husband of three years had started making noises that he’d rather be single.

“I wish we’d had a baby, too,” David murmured into the quiet stillness. “But we wanted to wait for just the right moment. We thought we had all the time in the world.”

The darkness surrounding them made it easier to speak of the past.

“I think we’ve both learned there are no guarantees. Life can be going along just fine then poof … everything changes.” The pain in her voice made David long to slam a fist into his ex-brother-in-law’s face.

“You’re right.” David reached down absently and scratched the head of Henry, the large cockapoo standing beside him.

“But change isn’t always bad,” Mary Karen said, her optimistic nature shining above the gloom. “Sometimes it can be good. Unexpected doesn’t always mean unwanted.”

David thought of the woman in the maternity wing and the baby boy who slumbered in the nursery. His baby? Or the child of another man?

He hadn’t planned on being a father, but if that child was his, he wouldn’t walk away. Because like his sister had said … just because something was unexpected, didn’t mean it was unwanted.

Chapter Three

July pulled on her maternity jeans and slipped a dark green cotton shirt over her head. Although she’d gained only twenty pounds with this pregnancy—and had lost a good chunk of it yesterday—she wasn’t quite ready for skinny jeans and a fitted sweater. Thankfully most of the simple styles she’d purchased while pregnant didn’t have a “maternity” look.

But dealing with clothes was the least of her concerns. Where to go once she and Adam returned to Chicago, now that had her worried. Before she’d started on her four-national-parks-in-four-months photo shoot, her home had been the basement of a friend from her newspaper days. A woman who’d made it clear she could live there only until the baby arrived. Apparently the husband had a strong aversion to crying infants.

A.J. had told her she could room with him once his roommate moved out May 1. That date would have been perfect if the baby had come late as the doctor predicted.

When a door slams shut it means God is pointing to an open door farther on down.

The verse had been on a needlepoint pillow at the home where she’d stayed when her mom had been in rehab for the third time. The mother in that family had been a needlepoint fanatic who never met a saying she didn’t want to stitch.

July took a deep breath and let it out slowly. Everything would work out. She’d made good money photographing wildlife in some of the most beautiful national parks in the United States. Yellowstone had been the final one on the list and she’d finished shooting less than forty-eight hours earlier.

Nylah, the woman who was her liaison with Outdoor Life magazine, had gushed over the images.

A sense of satisfaction rose inside July. When she’d lost her job at the newspaper due to cutbacks, she’d been devastated. But it had turned out to be an unexpected blessing.

Photographing nature had always been her passion. Whether it was a single flower growing out of a crack in the concrete or an imposing Bighorn on a rocky ledge, she was happiest outdoors with a camera in her hand.

The tension in her shoulders had begun to ease when the cell phone in her pocket buzzed. July pulled it out and glanced at the readout. Nylah. Her heart picked up speed. Hopefully the woman was calling to tell her the magazine had approved the Yellowstone shots.

Moving slowly to the door, July closed it all the way before hitting the talk button. “Hello, Nylah.”

“Ohmygod, I can’t believe it’s finally you. I was starting to think you’d been abducted by aliens.” The words ran together, tumbling out one after the other. “I’ve been calling the motel since last night. When I finally reached the guy at the front desk, I panicked when he told me he hadn’t seen you since yesterday morning. He told me to call your cell, but it kept going straight to voice mail.”

“I forgot to charge it.” A sick feeling rolled around in the pit of July’s stomach. While Nylah had loved the photos, July knew final approval would come from someone at Outdoor Life magazine. “Is this about the photos? Is something wrong? If they want me to reshoot—”

“No, this isn’t about them. The photos were marvelous. Love them. Love them. Love them.” Nylah paused. “Now that I think about it, the reason I’m calling does involve the pictures, but only in the very best of ways.”

Now thoroughly confused, July took a seat on the edge of the bed. “So Outdoor Life approved the Yellowstone photos?”

“Yes, yes, but that’s not why we need to talk. Are you ready?”

July rolled her eyes and reclined against the pillow, the phone resting against her ear. “Ready.”

“Were you aware that I had brought in several other photographers to Yellowstone to take pictures of the Bighorns?”

“No.” July’s fingers tightened around the phone. The elderly guide had said something about bringing other “shutter-bugs” to several of the sites where she’d gone. At the time she’d assumed he was talking about tourists, not other photographers.

“It was a competition of sorts.” Nylah’s voice rose. “You won.”

July loosened her death grip on the phone. “I did?”

“Absolutely. A well-known writer recently contacted me. He has a contract to do a series of books on wildlife in America. After checking out the Bighorn shots from everyone, he selected you to take the photos from this part of the country. If he likes what he sees even half as much as the Bighorn sheep, he may ask for more,” Nylah said. “He’s willing to pay—”

The amount Nylah mentioned made July gasp. As the woman continued to talk, July realized this meant she’d have to remain in Jackson for at least another month. While that probably wasn’t the wisest thing to do—with David and his family living here—the money was too good to turn down.

“Can you start today?” Nylah asked.

“Uh, today’s not good.” July had heard stories of women who had babies in the field and continued to work. Call her a wimp but she needed some time to recharge before tackling mountain trails. “How about next week?”

That would give her time to bring the baby home and get settled. And Dr. Fisher had said she could resume light activity in a week.

“That will be okay, I suppose.” Nylah didn’t sound exactly thrilled about the delay but then with her, everything was business. “Is it the pregnancy? I know you’re due soon—”

“I had the baby yesterday.” Though she tried to be matter-of-fact, July heard the lilt in her voice. That wasn’t surprising considering that every time she thought about her beautiful son she couldn’t help but smile.

“Wonderful news,” Nylah said. “I was concerned this whole giving-birth thing might interfere but it sounds like you’ve got it under control.”

“Thank you,” July said before she realized Nylah hadn’t congratulated her, not really.

“Knowing what a resourceful young woman you are, I’m sure you have child care all arranged,” Nylah said.

“Child care?” July said in a voice that seemed to come from far away.

“Surely you didn’t plan on taking the baby with you.”

“Um. No. Of course not,” July murmured even as her mind raced. Until this moment she hadn’t even considered that she’d have to find someone to care for her tiny baby. Still, if she wanted a roof over her head and food to eat, she had to keep working.

“Good.” Though Nylah had projected complete confidence up to this point, July heard the relief in her voice. “And congrats again. I don’t need to tell you this is a great coup. The other photographers had more impressive portfolios, but the photos you took were clearly the best.”

“Ms. Greer. Is this a bad time?”

July glanced at the dark-haired young woman standing in the doorway with a hospital name tag. Her stylish linen dress in pale yellow was the perfect foil for her dark hair. Not only did she have beautiful features but her makeup had obviously been applied with a deft touch, making her amber eyes look large and luminous.

“Nylah, I need to run. Call you later.” July clicked off the phone and placed it on the tray table.

“You didn’t need to do that,” the woman demurred. “I could have come back.”

“That’s okay.” July slid the phone into her pocket. “We were through talking anyway.”

“I’m Lexi Brennan.” The woman crossed the room and held out her hand. “I’m a social worker at Jackson Hole Memorial and part of our discharge planning team.”

July forced a smile. While this woman seemed nice, social workers had been the enemy during most of her childhood. They lived their life by the book, forced to follow guidelines even when those regulations meant returning a little girl over and over again to an addict mother.

Lexi gestured with one hand to the chair by the bed. “Mind if I sit for a moment?”

“Please, do.” July swung her legs over the side of the bed, her curiosity aroused. Was the woman here because of the hospital bill or concern over Adam’s well-being?

Stop, July told herself. You are a decent, law-abiding citizen. There is no reason to worry. Still, fear bubbled up inside her. “What is it you want?”

The thought burst from her lips. The tone was impertinent, bordering on rude. July wasn’t sure who was more surprised, the social worker or herself.

July froze. Her heart slammed against her ribs. She opened her mouth but shut it without speaking.

To her surprise, Lexi chuckled. “I like someone who gets right to the heart of the matter.”

The social worker’s graciousness made July feel even worse.

“I stopped to see if you needed any help with your post-hospital plans.” Lexi glanced down at the chart in her hand. “I noticed you listed your home address as Chicago. Will you be returning there once your baby is discharged?”

Before July could answer, a loud buzzing sounded from the pager clipped to the waistband of Lexi’s skirt. The social worker dropped her gaze to the readout then her brows furrowed. “I apologize. The family of a patient in our ICU has arrived. I really need to speak with them. Would it be okay if I came back in say … a half hour?”

July wished she could tell her she didn’t need to bother returning, that she had it all under control. But that would be a lie. She needed to find a place to live and someone to watch Adam. The social worker appeared to be her best resource.

“Will that work for you?” Lexi asked again, glancing toward the door.

“Absolutely.” July injected some enthusiasm into her voice. Lexi had been so gracious. She deserved the same consideration in return. “Dr. Fisher still needs to stop by before I can be released. The nurses don’t expect him for another hour or so.”

“Thanks for being so understanding.” Lexi had almost reached the door by the time she finished speaking. “I’ll be back as soon as possible.”

After the social worker left, July snagged her purse from the bedside stand. She’d showered this morning but hadn’t done much else. Lexi was so pretty, so put together that July couldn’t help but feel dowdy beside her.

Pulling a tube of mascara from her bag, July added some length to her lashes then shifted her attention to her mouth. With a quick flick she dipped her finger into a pot of gloss and pressed some color to her lips. Once that was applied to her satisfaction, she found a tiny tube of travel gel and took a couple minutes to tame a few wayward stands of hair. She smiled at herself in the compact. Much, much better.

“Looking good.” A deep voice filled with pure masculine appreciation sounded from the doorway.

July groaned. She’d hoped to be gone before David’s shift ended. No such luck. She snapped the compact closed, dropped it into her bag and shifted to face him. “I thought you’d be working.”

Or home with your wife. Bitterness rose inside her at his duplicity. What made her the angriest was that she’d asked about his marital status shortly after he’d began flirting with her in the hotel bar. Only after she found out she was pregnant with his baby and tried to track him down did she discover that he’d lied. According to a former colleague, the handsome young doctor who’d swept her off her feet wasn’t single. Apparently Dr. David Wahl had a “gorgeous” wife at home.

“I don’t go in today until three.” He pulled the door closed. Instead of a white jacket he wore khakis and a royal blue polo that made his eyes look bluer than the sky outside her window. “I came to see if you’d like to have lunch with me in the hospital cafeteria. The food is edible and it’ll give us a chance to catch up.”

Catch up? What was there to catch up on? Unless he meant to confess he had a wife he’d forgotten to mention, which she highly doubted. “With that ringing endorsement, it’d be hard to say no.”

“You’ll join me?”

His delighted smile was almost her undoing. The same electricity that had been there eight months ago sizzled in the room. But this time she ignored it. She didn’t want anything to do with a cheater.

“I’m being dismissed.” She glanced at her watch. “Once Dr. Fisher stops by, I’ll be on my way.”

“What about your boyfriend, er, I mean your friend?” he asked, his gaze watchful. “Did you ever reach him?”

“I did. He’d been out celebrating. He landed a role in a Broadway touring company.” July kept her tone even. “He’d just gotten off the phone with his agent finalizing the details when we connected.”

“Was he excited about the baby?”

“Very excited.” July forced some enthusiasm into her voice. A.J. had actually been more jazzed about his new role than her new son. But that was understandable. The theater was his life now. And he’d been around too many kids growing up to be excited about one more, even if that one was hers.

“When is he coming?”

“He’s not.” July brushed a piece of lint from her jeans. “The tour starts in two weeks. A.J. was a lastminute replacement, so he’s got lots of catching up to do.”

July understood how important this was to him, truly she did. This was his big break. Still she couldn’t help but wish he’d been a little more excited for her.

The look on David’s face said he didn’t understand, either. But instead of consoling her, it made July wish she’d kept her mouth shut or made something up. The less David knew about her personal life, the better.

“How long will you be staying in Jackson?” David asked in a tone so casual it sent red flags popping up.

“I’m not sure,” she hedged.

July couldn’t figure out why he kept coming around. If she were him, she’d be keeping her distance. This wasn’t a big impersonal town like Chicago. Jackson was small and everyone knew people in small towns loved to gossip. If David wasn’t careful, someone was going to mention his intense interest in her and her baby to his wife.

“Before Adam leaves the hospital, I’d like to have a test done on him. But I need your permission.”

July pulled her brows together. “If you’re talking about the testing for PKU and the others they recommend for newborns, the nurse already spoke to me and I had no problem with them.”

“I’m not talking about those tests.”

“What then?”

“A paternity test.” His blue eyes locked on hers. “I need to know if Adam is mine.”

Chapter Four

When July was five her mother had shoved her against a wall so hard it pushed all the air from her lungs. She remembered that horrible, scary feeling. She felt the same way now.

But July was no stranger to having her life take an ugly turn. She forced herself to breathe normally. “I already told you he isn’t yours. Most men would be jumping for joy at that news.”

“I’m not most men.” His gaze never left her face. “If Adam is my son, I want to be a part of his life. I want him to know me. I want to be his dad.”

The sincerity in his tone touched the part of July’s heart that had once yearned for a father’s love. The part that had hoped her dad—whoever he was—would one day show up and rescue her from the misery that was her childhood.

But they weren’t talking about her. They were talking about Adam. And she wasn’t her mother. Her child would always have her love and support.

“July.” David’s voice, soft but insistent, broke through her reverie. “Will you consent to the test?”

She curbed her irritation at his persistence. Obviously he hadn’t thought this through. “First I’d like to ask you a question.”

“Sure.” He dropped into the chair next to the bed. “Ask me anything.”

“Why are you determined to go ahead with this? I’ve already told you—assured you—that Adam isn’t your son.” July kept her tone even, though she was shaking clear down to her bare toes. “If it’s done—for really no good reason—your wife will likely find out. Is that what you really want?”

She’d simply presented facts in a calm manner. Still, she waited for the explosion. Growing up, she’d learned what can happen when you questioned someone’s decision. But this time, all she got was a puzzled look.

“What are you talking about? I’m not married.”

July let out the breath she’d been holding. Oh, he was good. If she didn’t know the truth, she’d find his protest completely believable. While he may have fooled her once, it wasn’t going to happen again.

“There’s no need to continue with the game.” Again, July kept her anger at being deceived under tight wraps and spoke in a matter-of-fact tone. “Remember the doctor who stopped by the table the night we first met? The one my reporter friend knew?”

David’s gaze turned thoughtful. He nodded. “Kevin Countryman.”

“That’s the one. Well, my friend ran into him a couple months later.” When July discovered she was pregnant, she’d called hospitals in Minneapolis and in Chicago looking for Dr. David Wall. Of course, because of spelling his name wrong, she’d never found him. Then she’d remembered Dr. Countryman. She’d asked her friend to contact him in the hopes he’d know where to find David.

“And—” David prompted.

“During the course of their conversation he mentioned you were married.” July had been overwhelmed with a deep sense of betrayal. That same day she’d abandoned her search.

“Wait a minute. You’ve got it all wr—”

“He said your wife was gorgeous, like a model. He told my friend he’d been surprised to see you flirting with … me.” The words had been a knife to her heart. Saying them brought the pain flooding back. Okay, so maybe she wasn’t America’s Next Top Model, but she’d been told many, many times that she was “cute” and had beautiful eyes.

“July. Listen to me.”

“All I’m asking is that you think of your wife’s feelings.” She maintained an even tone. Goodness knows, she’d had a lifetime of practice. “I want you to realize that if news of the DNA test gets out, she will be hurt by the scandal. And all for nothing because Adam is not your son.”

Some of the light in his eyes dimmed at her words. It was almost as if he wanted Adam to be his. Which was insane. What married man would welcome a baby from a one-night stand?

“We need to clear one thing up right now,” David said in a firm voice. “I. Am. Not. Married.”

When she opened her mouth to protest, he held up a hand.

“Please let me finish. I was married but my wife died the year before you and I met.” His gaze met hers. “I’d never have slept with you if I’d been married. For Celeste and me, those marriage vows were sacred.”

July’s head spun like an out-of-control Tilt-A-Whirl while her mind wrapped itself around the words. Everything from David’s posture to his facial expression to his intonation said he was telling the truth. But yet she had a reliable third party with no stakes in the matter who said differently. “Dr. Countryman knew you,” she finally managed to sputter. “How could he not have known your wife had died?”

“I knew Kevin back in residency.” David’s eyes never left hers. “It’s been a long time since I’ve spoken to him. Celeste must have been still alive the last time we talked.”

“I don’t know. That seems—”

“You still don’t believe me.” David rose and paced the room, frustration written all over his face. “Ask anyone. Ask Lexi or Dr. Fisher. They’ll confirm that what I’ve told you is true.”

A cold chill stole over July. Relief that she hadn’t slept with a married man was miniscule compared to the stark realization that the tables had turned. She was now the one who needed to apologize. She’d told David to his face that Adam wasn’t his son. Not just once. Many times.

Tell him you’re sorry. Tell him you made a mistake. He’ll understand. You thought he was married.

July opened her mouth but the words wouldn’t come. Her heart pounded hard and fast in her head, making it impossible for her to think, much less form a coherent sentence.

“July.” David’s voice, soft but insistent, broke through the maelstrom in her head. “Will you consent to the test?”

She tried to speak but settled for a jerky nod.

“The test is easy.” Though his tone was professional, she could hear the undercurrent of excitement and relief in his voice. “A simple buccal swab. One to Adam’s cheek, one to yours.”

“Mine?” Her voice broke on the word.

“It’s recommended,” he said quickly. “But if you don’t want—”

“No problem.” July took a glass of water from the tray table and chugged it past her dry throat. “Just give me a call when—”

“We can do it now.” He pulled two vials from his pocket along with an official-looking paper. “But first I need your signature.”

The room closed around her neck like a noose. She took the paper from his hand and sweat trickled down her back. “Once we do this, how long before you get the results?”

“Three to five days.”

The noose tightened.

July pretended to study the consent form but the words blurred. After a moment, she folded the paper in half and dropped it into her purse.

“What are you doing?” Confusion blanketed his face. “You said you’d do it.”

Though her heart now beat like a trapped butterfly in her chest, she somehow managed a nonchalant air. “I’m sure you understand wanting to read a legal document. I’ll be in Jackson Hole for at least another month. We’ll definitely do the test before I leave.”

“Why wait so long?” His brows pulled together. “It doesn’t take a month to read the authorization.”

“Because I know what the answer will be, and I’m in no hurry.” Because I need to tell you the truth before you get the results.

“But you’ll have it done before you leave.”

“Absolutely.” July wished she could bring herself to tell him the test wasn’t needed. After all, he was the only one she’d been with in over three years. But every time she tried to bring the words forth, tentacles of fear slipped around her, squeezing out the air.

She would tell David. In her own time. In her own way. But it had to be soon. Before the DNA test. Before he became even more suspicious. Before he found out the truth on his own….

David left July’s room, feeling more unsettled than when he’d walked through the door. Last night, while tossing and turning in bed, he’d considered his options. He could take July at her word that Adam wasn’t his son. But if she was lying, once she left Jackson Hole she’d be taking his flesh-and-blood out of his life forever. Or he could be proactive and find out for sure if that baby in the nursery was his.

He’d told himself her response to his request for a DNA test would reveal the truth. If she refused, it’d confirm his suspicions that she was lying. But she hadn’t refused. At least not directly.

“Can I help you, doctor?”

David looked into the eyes of Rachel Milligan, the emergency room nurse who’d been at July’s side during the delivery. He glanced around the nursery. “What are you doing here? This isn’t the E.R.”

“Very perceptive.” Rachel smiled. “It was slow downstairs so they sent me up here to help out.”

He didn’t know Rachel all that well—she’d only started in the E.R. several months ago—but like everyone in Jackson Hole, he knew of the tragedy that had rocked her world a couple of years earlier. Since she never mentioned the murder of her husband and death of her baby, he hadn’t felt comfortable bringing up the subject.

“What brings you to the nursery?”

David glanced around. He hadn’t consciously planned to make a detour to this part of the hospital but now that he was here he might as well assuage his curiosity. “I stopped by to check on the Greer baby.”

“Of course.” Rachel smiled and he suddenly realized with her honey-blond hair and big blue eyes she was quite pretty. But it didn’t matter. There was no sizzle. Not like there was with July….

While she was retrieving the baby, David scrubbed his hands and put on a gown, wondering why he insisted on tormenting himself. For all he knew this little boy was someone else’s son.

“Here he is.”

David held out his arms and Rachel placed the baby in them. Wrapped securely in a blue blanket and wearing a cap of the same color, the infant didn’t cry, just stared at him with serious eyes.

The rush of emotion took David by surprise as did the powerful connection he felt to this tiny baby. He tightened his arms protectively around the child he’d brought into the world barely twenty-four hours earlier. “He’s so light.”

“He’s small,” Rachel agreed, “but doing really well. Once we get his bilirubin down a bit more, he’ll be able to go home.”

Dave gazed at the tiny face, searching for a family resemblance. Other than the dark hair—now covered—the baby could belong to anyone.

“I only wish the Simpson baby was doing as well.” Although they were alone in this part of the nursery, Rachel spoke in a low tone. “It looks like she’ll have to go home with the feeding tube. Kayla started crying this morning when the doctor told her.”

David had grown up with Kayla Simpson and her husband. This long-awaited pregnancy had been trouble-free, but their little girl had been born with several congenital anomalies. “Has Lexi been up to talk with them?”

Since joining the hospital staff five years ago, the social worker had proven to be a valuable member of the hospital team.

“She’ll be here once she’s done in the ICU.” A look of sadness swept across the RN’s face. “She’s talking to the Evans family about organ donation.”

The six months David had spent at Hennepin in Minneapolis had made him appreciate just how different it was to practice emergency medicine at a large trauma center versus a community hospital like this one. Here, other than tourists, most of the people he treated were ones he knew. Tim Evans, a gregarious high school baseball coach, belonged to his church. The guy had taken a turn too fast on his cycle and had cracked his un-helmeted head on the concrete.

“A life ends.” David dropped his gaze to the baby and stroked the soft cheek with his finger. “Another begins.”

When he looked up and saw the pain in Rachel’s eyes he realized the simple observation had opened an old wound. But before he could say another word, Rachel’s expression cleared and she lifted a hand in greeting. “Here’s Lexi now.”

David shifted his gaze to the social worker. Her smile never wavered, but her eyes filled with curiosity at the sight of the blue bundle in his arms.

Resisting the urge to shove the baby back into Rachel’s care, he met the social worker’s smile with one of his own. “Rachel mentioned the Simpson baby is going home with a feeding tube,” he said in lieu of a greeting. “Sounds like Kayla is taking the news hard.”

“This has been such a shock for both of them,” Lexi said. “But Kayla is a strong woman. She and John will weather this crisis. I’ll make sure they have the support they need.”

David nodded then casually handed the baby back to Rachel. “I have to get going.”

Lexi took a step forward and peered at the baby. “Who’s this little guy?”

“This is Adam Greer,” Rachel explained. “Our emergency room baby.”

“I thought Dr. Watson was following him.”

“He is,” David said, trying not to get defensive. After all, it was a logical assumption. “I don’t get a chance to deliver many babies, so this one is sort of special.”

Lexi lifted a brow. “How’s he doing?”

“Jaundiced, but he should be able to be released in a day or so,” David said.

“I wonder where he’ll go home to,” Rachel mused.

“What do you mean?” Lexi asked.

David’s ears pricked up.

“His mother had been living in the motel across the street from the Community Playhouse before she delivered,” Rachel said. “Hardly a suitable environment for a baby.”

“I agree with you,” Lexi said. “I’ll add post-discharge housing to my discussion list. After I finish here, I’m headed to her room.”

Chapter Five

July stared at the birth certificate application the nurse had left for her to fill out. Apparently she had to complete and turn it in before she was dismissed.

The section asking for her information had been easy. The field for the baby’s name was completed without hesitation. She’d had almost five months—since she’d first learned she was carrying a boy—to decide on his name. But it was the section asking for the father’s information that had stopped her cold.

How could she put David’s name on the application before she’d told him Adam was his son? Still, she couldn’t bring herself to write the word that had been on her own birth certificate.

She’d found hers the summer she’d turned thirteen, stuffed inside a drawer. Though her mother had always maintained her father could have been any one of a number of men, July had thought she was exaggerating. But when she’d seen “unknown” on that birth certificate, her dreams of a father one day appearing on a white horse to rescue her had disappeared like a puff of smoke.

July took a deep breath then let it out slowly. She picked up the pen, still unsure. Unlike her mother, there was no doubt in July’s mind about Adam’s father. But what if David got hold of the certificate? Or some staff member noticed his name on the application and mentioned it to him?

The form was still incomplete when the door creaked open and the social worker stuck her face in the room. “Can I come in?”

“Certainly,” July said.

“I’m sorry about the delay.” The brunette’s heels clacked loudly on the shiny linoleum as she hurried across the room. “I didn’t think I’d be so long.”

“No worries.” July dropped the pen, thankful for the diversion. “I’m still waiting for Dr. Fisher to stop by and release me.”

“What are you working on?” Lexi asked.

“The birth certificate application,” July said, trying not to sigh.

Lexi’s gaze dropped to the form, taking in the part still not completed. “It can be hard to decide what to put there. At least it was for me.”

“You have a child?”

“Addie is seven.” Lexi’s perfectly painted lips curved up in a slight smile. “It might sound corny, but she’s the light of my life.”

It didn’t sound at all corny. Though her son was only a day old, July understood. She returned Lexi’s smile.

“Does her father live in Jackson?” From a previous comment July knew the social worker wasn’t married, but that didn’t mean the guy wasn’t in her life.

“Drew lives in Columbus, Ohio,” Lexi said matter-of-factly. “He’s not involved at all.”

“Is his name on her birth certificate?” The minute the question left her lips, July wanted to call it back. Though the social worker had been forthcoming about her personal life, the question was way too personal.

“It is.” Lexi took a seat in the chair by the bed with a gracefulness July envied. “I considered leaving it off. After all, once he found out I was pregnant he didn’t want anything to do with me.”

“Yet you put his name on her birth certificate.”

“Drew is her father and him being a jerk doesn’t change that.” Lexi spoke matter-of-factly, without a hint of emotion on her face. “Putting ‘unknown’ would have been a lie. And I didn’t want Addie’s life to start off with a lie.”

July leaned back against the pillow and considered the words. She’d never thought of it that way. But that’s what she’d be doing if she left David’s name off the birth certificate.

“One of my concerns is that Adam’s dad is from Jackson,” July found herself admitting. “I don’t want anyone knowing that he’s my baby’s father.”

Lexi’s expression turned serious. “I can assure you that the hospital places a high emphasis on maintaining confidentiality. This application will immediately go into an envelope and be mailed.”

Yeah, but who puts it in the envelope?

Lexi must have sensed July still wasn’t convinced because she leaned forward and placed a hand on her arm. “If you like I can take care of it myself. No one else will see it.”

July cocked her head. “How about you? Will you look?”

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