The Doctor's Baby. Cindy Kirk

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