The Father of Her Son. Kathleen Pickering

knew why. But he didn’t even want to go there. Not now that his career launched as he had planned. He swallowed the guilt that he may have hurt her. Back then, he didn’t have the time to concentrate on a relationship. Funny how the tables had turned. Now that his career was on solid ground, he was ready to find a wife and begin a family. After all the women he’d dated, his sights continued to zero in on Kelly. No other woman compared. Getting her to date him would help fill the void in his happiness as only a companion could.

      Yes, indeed. He was all for second chances. And for finding answers. He wanted to help Kelly as much as he wanted to date her. Someday, he’d unearth Matt’s father. If the guy had hurt Kelly in any way, he’d make sure the dude got his comeuppance.

      Evan’s notoriety in the news world came from his doggedness with a story. If he got wind of possible news, he sniffed out every corner, every fact, every morsel of research until he put flesh on the skeletons he found.

      The radar he depended on to alert him to something fishy was pinging intensely over Neverland’s cable being out of service. Something didn’t add up. Yesterday when he confided in Kelly that Buzz Campbell was his secret interview, she had been holding her precious Nikon camera. When he said Campbell’s name the delicate instrument slipped from her hands. Evan managed to catch the camera before it hit the floor, but he hadn’t missed the intense shock that had filled those gorgeous green eyes.

      Leaving Neverland now, it hit like a jolt that he actually knew nothing about Kelly other than the usual safe, small talk. Irish born. Parents strict Roman Catholics. Her father owned a limousine service, her mother was a homemaker. Two older brothers, married with kids. A sister and another brother, Michael, the priest. Kelly couldn’t afford to not work. Raising Matt left no time for dating.

      She’d delivered the obvious facts.

      All in a tidy little nutshell.

      Was there more to the sultry redhead than met the eye? Was she a fugitive from Ireland? A runaway from a marriage? Whatever the secret, his gut prodded him to learn more. All avenues pointed to Matt. Kelly was a pro at keeping topics away from her personal life. Like the enchantress she was, she got folks talking about themselves, leaving little room for self-revelation. And when one did ask questions, as Evan always had, she was quick with that sexy little shrug, pensive look or heart-stopping smile and an evasive answer.

      Well, now, Kelly was giving him cause for thought. Her clumsiness after he told her about the senator could very well have been coincidence—slippery fingers, given how quickly she’d been moving around. But something in her face, like mortification or fear, hit the alarm button. His instincts had made him one hell of a good newsman. He’d never ignored them before, and he surely would not now.

      He wanted to understand this woman who fascinated him. Only, what if he found bad news? Like an abandoned husband somewhere or that she was a conspirator in some illegal activity with the IRA. For sure, even his own family had problems with that faction. What if she’d kidnapped Matt and he wasn’t really hers?

      Nah. The kid had her eyes. His gut told him Kelly’s trouble was personal; something that made her cautious. Distant. He didn’t think what she was hiding would be enough to keep him away. If anything, it triggered his protective inclinations. He hadn’t felt like that...ever.

      He’d always assumed he’d eventually settle down. His momma didn’t raise a fool. He’d watched his parents, who still loved each other after thirty years. That’s what Evan wanted in his relationship. Something simple and passionate that could stand the test of time.

      Question was, how would he fit simple and passionate into his high-powered, fast-rising career? The job took up all of his time. An anchor newsman was just that: weighted and staying put. Constant interviews. Meetings. Brainstorming ideas with his staff. He had become the face most New Yorkers wanted to watch every morning at eight. Could he honestly become a family man when he had married his job?

      Perhaps. If his wife was as busy as he. His thoughts drifted back to Kelly, a rare breed that one. He didn’t want to change Kelly one bit. He just wanted to orbit the same world as her and Matt for a while to see if they and he matched.

      Evan craved to know what had happened in Kelly’s life to produce Matt. He had his suspicions. Given her insistence on remaining independent and self-sufficient, he could only assume she’d been bullied, or overcontrolled. He was pretty sure she would not lie, but would she omit information? Yes, she was certainly capable of editing answers with a tongue as smooth as a leprechaun’s. He’d continue to follow his hunches. With time, he’d ferret out the answer.

      He punched the elevator button in the lobby. Enough. Pushing Kelly and Matt from his mind, he started thinking about this next interview. Thoughts about Kelly had to be put on the back burner until Friday. Right. Like that was possible.

      * * *

      IT FELT LIKE a bit of hell not going to Neverland for breakfast for the rest of the week. The nature of his job had him on the set early and tying up loose ends afterward, but he’d always managed to shoot over to Kelly’s for breakfast before tackling the tasks after the show. This time, he dived directly into the after-show work instead of going to Neverland. He didn’t want to give Kelly a chance to back away from Saturday’s plans. He’d gotten this far, and he wasn’t about to blow it.

      His next show featured a man who fought the courts for custody of his son from his estranged wife. According to his guest, after a whirlwind courtship, he’d married a woman with the best of intentions only to discover, after a year of marriage, that she suffered from dissociative identity disorder—or multiple personalities. After consulting with psychologists, he decided to end the marriage only to have his wife announce she was pregnant. The man stayed on for three more years until he realized that, as the child got older, exposure to his mother’s condition would be detrimental for his development—especially since one of the wife’s personalities tended toward violence.

      Evan had learned that in child custody or children’s rights cases, the laws were often too broad to consider more delicate situations. Mothers were widely considered better nurturers for children than the fathers but laws were changing. His interviewee had gained full custody of his son.

      Forward thinking, the man had tailored his burgeoning business to accommodate a day care on site for his son and the children of employees. He hired a staff of two preschool instructors. He paid the insurance and offered child care as an incentive to his employees. Not only was he able to bring his son to work but the working mothers on his payroll did, as well. The man’s bottom line increased because his employees were happy to be at work. Evan had wanted to feature this heroic dad and introduce alternatives for working parents and employers willing to take the initiative.

      What drove Evan’s television interviews off the charts were these kinds of economic and social platforms that raised social consciousness. Talk show hosts talked about his topics for days afterward, many times pulling in the same folks he interviewed to follow up. But it was Evan who managed to find and interview these persons of interest first. Evan’s keen instinct for a good story kept his boss writing those bonus checks at the end of every quarter. He smiled when Steve knocked on his open office door.

      “How about breaking for lunch?”

      Evan checked the time in the corner of his computer monitor. Already past noon. “Where are you going?”

      Steve shrugged. “Neverland? I’m craving one of Jake’s Friday specials.”

      He needed to dodge the diner just one more day. “Hmm. Sounds great, but I’m putting the finishing touches on Monday’s show. I’m not coming in tomorrow.”

      Steve raised an eyebrow. “Now, that’s a first.”

      Evan met his friend’s concerned gaze. Steve came across as wily and distant like a silver fox, but Evan knew better. While Steve was Evan’s boss, the men had built a solid friendship during Evan’s time abroad. Steve had been an anchor at home, helping with story strategies and getting Evan the support he needed from the network while Evan roamed the continent on behalf of NCTV.

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