The Switched Baby Scandal (A Scandals of San Sebastian Novel) (Entangled Bliss) (9 page)

“He abandoned you?”

She slid her finger around the rim of her glass and looked up at him. His eyes were sharp, the muscles along his neck rippling as he clenched and released his jaw. She noticed that he gripped the wineglass too tightly, and was afraid he would snap the slender stem.

“He was an assho—jerk, Taylor.” He reached across the table and grasped her hand, holding it with a gentle firmness that was endearing. “No man with any kind of decency does that to a woman, no matter what the situation.”

A warmth stole over her that had nothing to do with the wine. Reece was a good man all the way through. She could see that in him now. He was the kind of man who would make an incredible father…maybe even an incredible lover.

She bit her lip to clear the thought even as his thumb swirled slow circles on her palm.
Oh, that feels decadent.
She shivered with the aching warmth he aroused that made her want him to touch her in far more intimate ways. But she couldn’t afford to get involved with him. Things were tenuous at best. He might still try to take custody of Emily away from her, and she couldn’t let her guard down.

Taylor slowly pulled her hand away, even though the tingling sensation of his touch remained, then lifted her glass and took a sip of wine. She swirled the ruby liquid in her glass, then set it down. “So tell me how you and Rebecca met.”

Reece leaned back. “She was the first legal secretary I hired at my firm. We worked so much of the time that pretty soon we just ended up spending all our time together.”

“Is that when you fell in love with her?”

“No. That’s when she got pregnant.”

His blunt statement stunned her. Guys were so different. Michael had once said he loved her, and she’d been so sure of it that she had moved in with him. When he’d walked away without any remorse, it had devastated her. They didn’t have to be really in love with you to say it, or to live with you. She couldn’t fathom it. “So you did the right thing, is that it?”

Reece took a drink of wine. “Pretty much. We were good friends, so it was a comfortable partnership but never a love match. But once Alyssa was born it didn’t matter. Alyssa had us both so enthralled that there was a love there that had to do with being a family, rather than just between the two of us.”

“It’s been very hard for you, hasn’t it?”

“Miserable.”

“You miss them, both of them, don’t you?”

“Every time I take a breath.” He gave her a weak smile, but the wet sheen in his eyes was evidence he was stuffing the worst of it down. “Sorry, I don’t mean to get all sentimental on you.”

She reached across the table and took his hand, holding it and giving him a small squeeze. “I don’t mind.”

The young man waiting on them arrived with their dinners. Apparently, Reece’s regular at Bella Nina’s was chicken and spinach alfredo with marinated artichoke hearts. Taylor smiled. There was no doubt he had good taste.

“Is it too late for me to take back what I said earlier about you ordering?”

He grinned. “Not if you enjoy it.”

Oh, she was enjoying it, and the view, too. Reece was either becoming more attractive as she spent time with him or the wine was
very
good. Possibly both. “I adore alfredo.”

“Then we’re in business.”

She pulled the dish toward her. “What are we going to do about Emily?”

Reece picked up his glass. “First we’re going to have to figure out when and where to tell her the truth. I don’t want her finding out from her friends or complete strangers that I’m really her father. That wouldn’t be fair to her, and I don’t want her feelings hurt. Second, we’re going to have to keep a close watch on her, particularly in public places. It’s obvious the media is hungry for whatever they can dig up to keep this thing going, particularly now that it’s tied in with that nurse who might have been trying to abduct the babies.”

Taylor took her time twirling her fork around in the creamy noodles and realized her insides were feeling just as twisted. She wasn’t comfortable yet with the idea of Emily seeing him as her father, but he was right that she should be told by the two of them rather than finding out from someone else. Being the center of media attention wasn’t anything she was used to handling, but she knew Reece was right about the need to protect Emily from whatever they could. She couldn’t be with Emily twenty-four hours a day, nor could she chance her being alone. She looked over at him. “So what’s your solution?”

“We can control when we tell Emily the truth. What we can’t control is when and where the media is going to show up or who else might talk to her before we do. Her privacy and security are at risk with these people around. We’ve got to make sure the reporters don’t get a chance to get close to her. Keeping her out of public places might help.”

Taylor’s fork stopped midway to her mouth. Suddenly all those fears about being on lockdown, unable to go where she wanted or talk to whom she pleased when Michael was in charge, roared back to the surface, agitating her. “Isn’t that excessive?”

Setting his glass down, Reece stared at her intently. “It depends. We don’t know how far the media is willing to go on this. You’ve already seen the piece Channel Six did filming her at Jungle Jane’s. The other television stations are going to want a piece of the story, too, just to keep up. And then there’s the newspaper reporters. What if they go to her preschool next or come up to you and her while you’re in the grocery store? I’d prefer to be overprotective than have her end up in counseling someday telling a shrink how her life was ruined because she was a national story tied to some whacko child abductor’s mistake.”

Taylor cocked her head to the side and really looked at Reece. He had evidently thought this out long and hard to come to these conclusions, which proved he was concerned about Emily’s welfare. He was intelligent, and it showed in the rugged planes of his face and his intent eyes. He was also a private person, and this situation must be grating at him horribly.

She could and would do anything for Emily, and if that meant giving up a little of her own freedom for her daughter, then so be it. “You have a point. Jane told me that there were reporters calling her asking questions about how far our relationship had gone right after our first custody hearing.” She took a bite of the pasta and could taste the slight tang of lemon and basil from the chicken. It should have been delicious, but her stomach was too soured to enjoy it anymore.

“Perhaps you and Emily ought to consider moving into my place for a while.”

She stared at him, hard. Her stomach shrank down to the size of a walnut. “No.”

His gaze broke with hers and she got the distinct impression she’d somehow wounded him.

“Look, it’s just too much too soon. She’s not going to understand why I’m taking her out of her own home, and I don’t want to frighten her with this. If we can find another way for now, that might be better.”

The velvety brown of his gaze connected with hers. “We could try watching over her in shifts or take different days. Just let me know what we need to do and I can rearrange my schedule.”

Taylor set her fork down. He was willing to compromise. Michael, her father, hell, every boyfriend she’d ever had, were not ones to compromise. “You’d do that?”

“We’re talking about Emily. What wouldn’t I do?”

In one swift stroke, Reece bashed all her preconceptions about men as self-centered, take-it-or-leave-it beings. It rattled her, intrigued her, drew her to him. “You’re right. There are no redos in this situation, are there?”

“Afraid not.”

And perhaps that was the very thing that was making this so hard for her to decide. There were no redos. If she messed up and got Reece too involved in their lives, he might try to press for full custody as the biological parent. Then again, he was showing true concern for Emily’s welfare and had proven he was daddy material. Surely he would consider what was best for her in every situation, including leaving Emily under her daily care, wouldn’t he? And if they saw more of him on a regular basis, would that really be so bad, for either her or Emily?

Maybe it was the wine, maybe it was the candlelight, but for a moment, Taylor felt like letting most of her concerns about Reece go. They finished dinner quickly, keeping the subject at bay as if it would break the fragile spell that held them. He walked her out to her car, then stood beside her, waiting until she had unlocked the door. The evening air still held the chill of early spring and the scent of the ocean. It made her shiver.

“Before you go, I have to ask you if we are in this together, Taylor.”

She looked into his eyes, so like Emily’s, for a long time. Could she trust him to take care of her daughter? Yes. Could she trust him to take care not to break her heart? She wasn’t sure. But for now, Emily’s welfare had to take precedence. “Yes. Whatever it takes, we’ll manage.”

“Then shall we consider this a partnership?” he asked, giving her a smile that wasn’t like any of the others she had seen until now. This was subtle, predatory, and sexy as hell. Whatever defenses she was saving melted like butter on a hot grill.

He reached out, gliding a single finger down the edge of her jaw. His touch held the power of an electric charge, sending a shock of heat to the very core of her. Taylor couldn’t speak, couldn’t think when he touched her like this.

“Shall we kiss on it?” The low, husky quality of his voice caused her stomach to backflip and tighten with anticipation.

He wanted to kiss her. Her logical mind rebelled. Feminine desire shut logic in the closet and threw away the key. After all, one little kiss wasn’t going to change the world. Was it?

She leaned forward in response, wrapping her arms around his neck. Reece dipped down to her, his lips a fraction of an inch from hers, teasing and tantalizing her as he nuzzled and brushed his lips against her jaw and cheek, but never touched her mouth. His fingers wove into her hair, caressing the nape of her neck. She was aching to feel his lips, and the ache was spreading along with a heat so foreign to her it could only be termed exotic. Her breasts felt full and heavy, and a steady pulsing increased at the apex of her thighs.

She wanted that kiss—needed it.

Just when she thought she couldn’t stand it any longer, his mouth gently, seductively rubbed against hers. The spark within her roared to a full blaze, intense and consuming in its heat. The kiss deepened, becoming stronger, wetter as she traced the seam of his lips with her tongue.

Reece growled deeply, responding to her. His arms wrapped around her, pulling her up against the hard planes of his body.

Taylor melted from the inside out. It was like kissing the sun. The kiss was not only changing her world, it was rocking the very foundations of heaven.

What am I doing?

She placed her hands between them and pushed back, knowing that they would end up on the hood of her car, or in the backseat, if she didn’t control herself now. She broke the kiss, her breathing heavy, and pressed her palms flat against the firm wall of his chest.

“This can’t happen, Reece, not now, not like this.”

He released her, but the intensity of his eyes shocked her. He reached out and brushed her cheek with infinite tenderness, a move both unexpected and touching. “I know. I’m sorry.”

She gave him a gentle smile. “I’m not. And you shouldn’t be, either.” She held out a trembling hand for a handshake. “Still partners?”

He took her hand gently but firmly, and gave it a shake, but the touch of his skin on hers still caused her body to tighten and pulse with longing. “Partners.”

Taylor turned and opened her car door, then climbed in. “I’ll call you and let you know when your shift to watch Emily will be. I think that the next time we’re together for a family dinner might be the best time to break the news to Emily about your connection to her.”

He leaned against the car door. “Don’t be afraid to rely on me, Taylor. I want what’s best for Emily as much as you do.”

Her heart beat hard. “I know.”

Chapter Nine

The days melted together during the next week, leaving Taylor, Reece, and Emily to fall into a comfortable pattern—with the exception of always looking in their rearview mirrors and outside their windows to see if anyone from the media was lurking about. Taylor took Emily to preschool in the mornings, and Reece picked her up in the afternoons and brought her home by dinner. Only once during the week had Reece needed to confront the media, when a news van was parked outside the locked gates of his home. On Friday night, they shared a meal together in her modest condo.

Taylor was bringing dinner to the table when the cell phone at Reece’s hip rang. He glanced at the caller ID.

“Sorry,” he said, “but no one uses this line unless it’s urgent. We had reporters camped out at the law office today. I’ve got to answer it.”

Taylor dished out the rest of dinner as she waited for him to finish, a little irritated by the interruption. Her father had regularly dashed out of family gatherings at the ring of the phone and she didn’t want that to happen to Emily on a regular basis. Taylor shook her head. She shouldn’t think like that, letting her own issues cloud the relationship she was building with him as a coparent of Emily. Reece had done nothing so far to indicate Emily would be just a distraction from his work—as she’d been to her own father.

“Thanks, Jay. I appreciate the heads-up.” He ended the call, then abruptly left the table.

Taylor followed him, intent on saying something about her concerns before he walked out the door. But instead, he went into the living room, where he turned on the TV and clicked through the channels until he found the one he was looking for.

“What is it, Reece?”

“Shh…”

On the screen Taylor saw a reporter standing in front of Clemens County Hospital. In the next instant they flashed a picture of Alyssa. The sight burned through her, leaving her breathless. Taylor barely caught the droning words of the reporter as an image of Emily playing at preschool covered the screen. She sat there with her little friend Mason, pouring sand into a small red plastic bucket— and wearing the same printed turtleneck shirt as she did now. Taylor felt the blood drain completely from her face, leaving her cold, clammy, and faint.

“Those bastards. This time they went too far. They took this at her school,” Reece growled.

Taylor felt the ground under her feet sway and a trickle of cold sluice down her spine. “How could they? There is no way the school would have let them onto the grounds.”

Reece swiped his finger across his phone and was already calling someone. “They probably took it through the chain-link fence.”

The reporter’s voice echoed in the background. “Recent sources indicate that Sherri Hoyt, the nurse implicated in the switch of the children, was working under an alias and is actually Pamela Terrate, a woman with both a criminal record and a history of abducting children. She’s wanted in four states. Some speculate that her switch of the children was possibly a botched abduction attempt…”

Emily came skipping into the room. “Look, Mommy, it’s my school!” she squealed. “And there’s our house!”

Taylor could only glance at the television for a second, confirming the image of her walking hand in hand with Emily through their condo parking lot before she flicked off the television and grabbed Emily, holding her close and stroking her hair over and over again to reassure herself her child was safe.

“What’s wrong, Mommy?” Emily sounded bewildered.

Taylor felt a stab of guilt as she realized that her reaction was now affecting Emily. She struggled to get a grip, but fear still flowed painful and icy in her veins. If they could get this close to her baby without her knowing, what else could the television crew do? How far would they invade their privacy? More importantly, would it scare Emily?

Reece was talking into the phone, his body taut, as if he were ready to throw a punch. “Hey, it’s me. Tell Bill I want restraining orders by tomorrow for Channel Six and Channel Three for civil harassment. Prep one for Channel Seven and the local papers in case they decide to pull any kind of stunt like this, too. I know that. Pull some strings. Thanks, I owe you one.”

Taylor was shaking. She set Emily down and then kneeled to her level. “Why don’t you go find Eddie and show him a picture book? Mommy and Reece need to talk.” Emily nodded, though her little face was still somber, and went back into the kitchen.

Reece wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close. His chest was solid, warm, and comforting.

Her throat ached with unshed tears and frustration. “Why can’t they leave my baby alone? Hasn’t all of this been hard enough without news crews and cameras stalking her?”

“Hey, it’s going to be all right.”

She looked up into his face. His deep brown eyes were filled with empathy.

“How did you know it was on?”

“I’ve got everyone at the firm on watch duty. Anyone sees anything related to Emily and we’ll know about it in minutes.”

She sighed. “This isn’t going to work, Reece. They’re just going to keep hounding the story until it’s no longer news. That isn’t going to happen until the hospital finally nails down what happened with that nurse and they run out of people to interview.”

“We’re going to take legal action to have them keep their distance. We also need to change the routine for a while.”

“What do you mean?”

“We may have to transfer Emily to a different preschool or take her out altogether for the moment. We need to move you out of this place to somewhere more secure.”

“What? You’re talking about uprooting everything that gives Emily security.”

“Yes and no. She’ll still have you…and me. I think it might be a good idea for you and Emily to move in with me for a while. My place has a security system and the fencing will keep anyone from getting near enough to photograph her. We’ll have a lot less to worry about and we can both be there to watch out for her. I’m just trying to be one step ahead of them.”

“I don’t want to be one step ahead, and I don’t want to leave my home,” she said, her voice frantic. “I want them to leave Emily alone.” Tears welled up hot and painful behind her eyes. She gripped her hands tightly, until they were white.

“This isn’t about what you or I want. It’s about what’s best for Emily.”

A heated rush of anger hit the base of her skull. “Don’t you think I know that?”

“Then move in with me, where I can keep you both safe.”

Safe. It sounded good. But she knew about the cost of safety. Michael had made her move in with him, and it had been the beginning of the downhill slide for her that had taken four years to climb out of.

“I thought you were just trying to placate me earlier by offering up your home, but you’re serious aren’t you?”

“Dead serious.” He nodded. Taylor felt the gentle pressure of this index finger beneath her chin and it tilted her head up. “I’d do anything to take care of you and Emily.”

Sure, he said that, but he didn’t realize how painful and achingly familiar this was for her. If she left her home, she’d be leaving her own space. Her control over her world. She’d be in someone else’s home again. Subject to their rules, their life. Taylor bit her lip.
Reece isn’t Michael. Reece isn’t Michael. Reece isn’t Michael. You can do this for Emily. You have to do this for Emily.

She swallowed the hard lump in her throat and strengthened her resolve. “When should we move in?”

“Tonight. Just take what you need for now and we’ll come get the rest tomorrow.”

“We’ll pack, and I’ll be there shortly.”

“Are you sure you don’t want me to wait?”

Taylor shook her head. She needed some space. “No. I need a few minutes alone with Emily to smooth this out.”

He nodded. “You know her better than I do. If there’s anything you think she’ll need, let me know and I can pick it up on the way home.”

“Thanks, Reece.”

He put his hand on her shoulder. “Don’t try to fix everything at once. Let’s just take this one incident at a time and do what we need to for Emily. Okay?”

Taylor nodded and saw him to the door. The minute it clicked shut, she sagged against it, her body suddenly tired from the emotional toll that the situation was taking on her. With all the upset the news broadcast had caused, they hadn’t told Emily Reece was her father, and now Taylor was resenting it. As she packed their things and prepared to put Emily to bed at Reece’s house, she realized there was never going to be a good time to tell her.

Emily came walking into the bedroom, her arms full of stuffed animals. “I’m going to need these.” She dumped the armload into the suitcase.

Taylor bent down, wrapping her arm around Emily. “Sweetie, we can’t take all of these. How about you take just Eddie and Jessie?”

Emily scrunched up her face. “Why are we going to Reece’s house to sleep?”

Taylor sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. “Because he invited us to.” She knew she was avoiding Emily’s real question, but she couldn’t help it. She wanted to wait just a little longer before she had to explain the complicated situation to her daughter.

“Why did he invite us?”

She knew enough about Emily to recognize the stubborn streak when it started. Her little girl would keep asking questions until she got the answers she was looking for.

“There are strangers who are very curious about our family right now, and Reece thinks that it is better if we stay at his house so they don’t bother us.”

“What do they want to know? I can tell them and then they will leave us alone and we can stay home.”

“It’s not that simple, sweetie.”

Taylor reached across to her nightstand, grabbed her purse, then took out the picture of Alyssa. Emily scrambled onto the bed beside her and leaned in to look at the photo.

“Do you remember us talking about Alyssa?”

“Alyssa was my stepsister.”

“Yes, she was.”

Emily put a hand on her sleeve. “Why?”

“Well, Emy, that is the part that makes everyone so curious about our family. She got to be your sister because she’s my daughter, too. When you were a baby, Reece was your father, but he didn’t get to take you home from the hospital. Instead he took home Alyssa and became her father.”

Emily stared at her with big round eyes. “Alyssa was your baby, too?”

“Yes, she was my other daughter, just like you are Reece’s daughter.”

Her little brow puckered in hurt. “Did you love her more than me?”

Emily’s unexpected question stole her breath away. Taylor expected she would want to know how things had happened. But to doubt her love, that was crushing. “What?”

Emily ducked her head and looked at her shoes. “Did you love her more than me?”

Taylor tipped her daughter’s chin up so that their gazes met. She laid her hand on Emily’s cheek. “I don’t think I could love anyone more than you.” She hugged Emily tight.

Emily gave a resigned sigh. “So Reece is my daddy?”

Ouch.
She was going to have to get used to it, and realize she wasn’t the only parent in Emily’s life anymore. “Yes.”

A slight pink blush tinged Emily’s skin. “Then why did you say he was your friend?”

Taylor inwardly groaned. This is what she’d dreaded. “He is. But he is also your father. I wasn’t sure you would like him and I wanted to make sure he could be a good parent first.”

Emily crossed her arms. “I don’t like that you didn’t tell me. That wasn’t nice.”

She tried to pull her close, but Emily resisted, scooting farther away. Emily had never pushed her away before. It caused a deep ache to settle in her bones.

Emily glared at her. “Do I have another mommy?”

The question sliced her in half like a pair of sharp shears. Part of her wanted to be honest and detached so she could give Emily the answers she needed. The other part howled in frustration that the child she had loved and raised would so willingly search out another.

“You did, but she went to heaven to take care of Alyssa.”

Taylor set the photo of Alyssa down on the bedspread between them. For an instant Emily glanced at it.

“What was my other mommy like?”

Taylor folded her hands, squeezing them together to help retain her composure. “Her name was Rebecca, but I never got to meet her. You might have to ask Reece those questions.”

“If you are my mommy, then why aren’t you married to my daddy, like Mason’s mommy and daddy? I thought you said Mr. Severin helped you make me.”

Ooh. The tough questions just keep coming.
Couldn’t Emily see how this was grinding her emotionally into dust? Taylor picked up Alyssa’s picture and tucked it back into her purse. “Not all mommies are married to daddies. Sometimes it can be hard. Rebecca was married to Reece before she became an angel. And I was wrong about Mr. Severin. He had nothing to do with you.”

When she turned to look at Emily, fat tears started to well up in her little girl’s eyes and trickle over the edges, tumbling down, leaving glistening trails on her daughter’s cheeks.

Any pain she felt was instantly eclipsed by her daughter’s needs. Taylor reached to brush them away. “Baby, what’s wrong? Why are you crying?”

“You aren’t going to die like my other mommy, are you?”

Taylor’s heart broke. There was simply no other way to express it. She pressed her cheek to Emily’s dark head and hugged her close. This time Emily didn’t resist and cuddled into her. “No, Emy. Not for a very long time. I’ll be here until you are an old woman.”

Emily wrapped her little arms around her mother’s waist and squeezed her tight. “That’s good, Mommy. ’Cause I love you.”

Taylor held on to her, savoring the moment and the feeling of Emily tucked against her side. “I love you, too, Emy, and I always will.”

Far too quickly, Emily wiggled up to her knees and picked out all the animals except for Eddie and Jessie. “I think we’re ready to go to Daddy’s house.”

The word “daddy” cut swift and deep like a glass shard. Taylor sucked in a quick breath, shocked at how much it hurt. Now that she had told Emily about Reece’s biological connection to her, she couldn’t take the information back. She would just have to get used to it…and everything that came with it.