Thankfully, Danielle had finally opened her eyes to the fact that her boyfriend Steve, whom she had been dating for years, and with whom she had agreed to move in with last year, had no intentions of marrying her. He’d become satisfied having her as a live-in lover, but Danielle wasn’t cut out for that kind of life. Steve must have had the shock of his life when he returned from a gaming convention and discovered she had moved into her own place.
That had prompted a slew of gestures aimed at getting Danielle back. But her daughter wasn’t biting. It was starting to look as if she was ready to move on. And Thea truly hoped she did. Her daughter deserved better. Her other two daughters thought Danielle was deliberately making it hard for Steve to make a comeback, but would eventually soften. However, for some reason, Thea believed it was something else, but wasn’t sure what.
Currently, Danielle was ranch-sitting in Dallas. Libby, Thea’s prissy daughter, had become a rancher’s wife when she married Richard. The two had been trying to have a baby for a couple of years, and when the doctor told them they were trying too hard and suggested they take a trip somewhere, Richard surprised Libby with a three-week river cruise out of Paris to other parts of France, Germany, and Switzerland. Thea hoped they’d come home relaxed…and with luck, pregnant. She loved babies!
Wanting to get her mind off her girls, Thea said, “I’m glad the four of them agreed that they needed to find their brother.”
“Yes, but they’ll have to proceed with caution. Silas Kingston might not have told his son anything about the details of his birth. If he’s less than two years younger than Carrie, he’s probably twenty-seven or twenty-eight years old. Edwina says Kingston was well-off, so it’s likely that he’s taken good care of his son.”
“I think it’s great that Connor volunteered to look into it for them. That’s a good start,” she said.
He nodded. “It will be. Connor is an awesome private investigator, and I feel good that Logan offered to spearhead the search. He has a better way of handling people than Lance or Carrie.”
“What about Lyle?”
“He’s good, too, but at times he’s too sensitive.”
“Like you?”
He lifted a brow. “You think I’m too soft-hearted?”
“No, you’re the right level, and I’m sure Monique thinks the same about Lyle. He holds things in. He doesn’t speak his mind like Lance and Carrie do.”
Jeremiah chuckled. “Nobody speaks their minds like Lance and Carrie. That’s why I think Connor is the best thing that has ever happened to my baby-girl. He’s her sounding board, her protector, and the one who manages to keep her grounded. And he’s not afraid to rein her in when necessary.”
“Like that time when a woman started flirting with him at a restaurant and Carrie was ready to clock her?”
He smiled, remembering. “My daughter can be rather possessive when it comes to the men in her life.”
“And that’s okay,” Thea told him. “You all were there for her, and she wants to be there for you, too.”
“I love this time with you, Thea. When we sit and talk in the wee hours of the night.”
“While it’s storming outside,” she added.
“Anytime. I’m blessed to have you here with me.”
His words made her smile. “I’d say I’m the one who’s blessed.” She leaned over and met his lips. And when he eased out of the recliner with her in his arms, she knew they were about to do something else best enjoyed in the wee hours of the night.
CHAPTER 4
Logan and Claire
“You’re awfully quiet, Logan.”
Logan glanced down at the beautiful woman lying in his arms. His Claire. As far as he was concerned, she had been his since the day he’d first seen her at Lance and Asia’s wedding. She hadn’t a clue, but he’d known then that she would have a permanent place in his life. Only, at that time, she hadn’t been ready. So he’d given her time to reach her career goals before revealing his intentions.
Then the incident happened. A restaurant in Algiers was bombed. Claire was supposed to have been there that night, joining her close friends in a birthday celebration. However, she’d begged off, because she’d had a headache…and in the end, that decision had saved her life. All sixty people inside the restaurant had been killed. Including her friends.
That incident had shaken him to the core—and it had been his wake-up call. Realizing he could have lost Claire had propelled him to step up his plan to capture her heart sooner, rather than later. Now they were happily married and living in Tampa.
She had resigned from the State Department where she had worked for years and taken a job as Vice President ofTampa Bay University. They had thought about buying another home, but their townhouse that overlooked the bay suited them just fine for now.
“I’m just trying to make up for all the noise I made earlier, when we made love,” Logan said.
She chuckled as she cuddled her naked body closer to his. “You did get pretty exuberant a few times, but I figured it was your way of letting off steam.”
He knew what she meant. “Honey, making love to you is always worth hollering about.”
