LITMIR.BIZ

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his parents tried to convince me to have an abortion.” A shudder rippled through her. “His mother even offered me a bribe to leave town and get rid of the baby.”

      Slade studied her for a moment. “Did any of them threaten you?”

      Nina frowned as if thinking back. “Not in so many words, although Mrs. Hood warned me that I’d be sorry if I ruined her son’s life. William’s father had died the year before, and she wanted William to follow in his footsteps and become a lawyer.”

      Slade tamped back his anger. “What did you say to her?”

      “I let them all off the hook,” Nina said calmly. “I told them I didn’t want their money, that I didn’t need or want William and that they could all go to hell.”

      Admiration stirred in Slade’s chest. “Have you heard from him lately?” Slade asked.

      “No. I did hear that he got married to a former girlfriend, a debutante named Mitzi. I’m sure his mother was thrilled.”

      “What about your family?”

      Anguish flickered in her eyes momentarily before she blinked away the emotion. “I lost my mother when I was little. My father was upset with me about the pregnancy. He also tried to convince me to abort the baby, then insisted if I kept her, that I should give her up for adoption.” She uncapped the water bottle and took a long sip, then set it down and looked at him again. “He thought I was too young and irresponsible to raise a child. And when the doctors declared that Peyton died in that hospital fire, he assured me it was for the best.”

      Slade gritted his teeth. Was her father simply protective, or a bastard with an insensitive heart?

      “He didn’t believe that your daughter might still be alive?”

      She made a sound of disgust. “No, he actually seemed relieved. He thought I was crazy and insisted I go into therapy.”

      “Because he loved you,” Slade said.

      Another sound of disgust. “That’s what he said. That I was better off that my little girl died.” She turned an anguished look his way. “How could anybody say that? That it was God’s way of giving me a second chance at a normal life?” Her voice quivered again. “All I wanted was my baby back.”

      “Maybe he was trying to help,” Slade suggested.

      She shook her head. “No, he was embarrassed that I had an illegitimate child, worried about what it would do to his precious reputation.” She looked down at her hands where she’d twined them in her lap. “He didn’t give a damn about Peyton.”

      He let her words sink in. So her father was relieved to have the child out of the way. He already disliked the man. “And you did go to college?”

      She nodded. “Not at first, but eventually I pulled myself together and earned a teaching degree. Now I teach second grade at Sanctuary Elementary.” Her eyes softened again as if being around the children helped alleviate her suffering.

      Slade considered her mental condition and hated the doubts assailing him. Needing to know the truth was one thing. Obsession to the point of stalking, another animal instead. “You stayed in Sanctuary because you thought your daughter might be here, didn’t you?” Slade asked. “You looked for her in every child in school and in town.”

      But she didn’t hide her motives or defend herself. She nodded instead, tears blurring her eyes. “I know that sounds pathetic, but I just felt close to her here.”

      Just as his mother had refused to move from their home after his sister had disappeared. She’d claimed that she had to be at the house in case his sister returned. Eventually, though, her obsession had driven her over the edge….

      “No,” Slade said evenly. “I understand.”

      Her eyes narrowed, and her voice dropped to a whisper. “You do?”

      Unable to resist, he reached out and covered her hands with his own. “My sister disappeared from our house when I was fifteen. For days and months afterward, I looked for her in every teenager I spotted.”

      “You found her?” Nina asked.

      God, he didn’t want to answer that. Didn’t want to shatter any ounce of hope she had. But the truth could be brutal sometimes.

      “Yes,” he finally answered. “But we didn’t have a happy ending, Nina. She was in the morgue.”

      Nina inhaled a sharp breath. “I’m sorry,” she said, then squeezed his fingers. “What happened?”

      Hell, he’d already said too much. And she was looking at him with such compassion that emotions he’d long thought buried pummeled him.

      No. He couldn’t, wouldn’t blurt out the rest.

      “You don’t want to know.” He cleared his throat. “But think long and hard about this, Nina,” he said gruffly. “What will you do if we investigate and find out that your baby did die in that fire? Are you prepared for that reality?”

      * * *

      NINA’S CHEST ACHED from trying to maintain control. Slade’s question threatened to shatter that control.

      Was she prepared? How would she respond if he discovered that Peyton really had died? All these years she’d lived on the belief that her little girl was out there needing and wanting her.

      “How can I not find out the truth?” she finally said. “I need closure, Mr. Blackburn.”

      “Slade,” he said automatically. “And are you sure it’s closure you want? She might be gone forever.”

      Pain rocked through her, but she cloaked herself in the coat of armor she’d donned years ago. She would survive no matter what. “I realize that, but not knowing is no way to live.”

      He studied her with such an intensity that she was tempted to squirm. But she refused to show weakness or he might decide she was the nutcase her father and Dr. Emery thought.

      He gave a brisk nod. “All right. But what if someone did kidnap your baby, and she’s been adopted and is now happy? What will you do then?”

      She had considered that theory, but somehow in her heart she knew that wasn’t the case. “She needs me,” she said simply. “I’m her mother. I feel it.”

      A muscle ticked in his jaw. “You have to consider every scenario, Nina. What if she has loving parents and doesn’t know anything about you? What if she has a family that she loves?”

      “I don’t know,” she said softly, honestly. “I guess I’ll cross that bridge when, or if, we come to it. But I am her mother and I deserve to know where she is.”

      “Fair enough.” Slade nodded, then released her hand.

      Odd how she hadn’t leaned on anyone in years, but for a moment, she’d felt as if she had someone on her side now.

      Someone she trusted. And after her father’s and William’s betrayals, she’d never trust anyone again.

      * * *

      SLADE HAD HIS WORK cut out for him. Even though Nina insisted she could handle the truth, no matter what he discovered, he understood the emotional roller-coaster ride involved in looking for a missing child. The toll it took could be dangerous.

      His mother certainly hadn’t survived the ride.

      And judging from Nina’s fragile looks, she’d been surviving on hope for years. If he stripped that hope, she might crash and burn just as his mother had.

      Then again, beneath that tenderness, she was stubborn. Determined. And he also understood the torture not knowing caused.

      She licked her lips, drawing his attention to her mouth, and a foreign feeling bled through him, one he didn’t want. He itched to draw her tiny hand back into his, kiss it and promise her that he would

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