felt a tingling sensation in the pit of her stomach. The last thing she needed was Zeke Travers in her presence too long. “No, I’ll be able to manage things, but I appreciate the offer.”
“No, really, I insist. Why wouldn’t you want me to help? I’ll provide you with two extra hands.”
That wasn’t all he would be providing her with, she thought, looking at him. Besides the drop-dead gorgeous looks, at some point he had taken off his jacket to reveal the width of his shoulders beneath his white dress shirt. She also noticed the way his muscular thighs fit into a pair of dress slacks.
“We could leave your car here. I have a feeling you’ll want to come back and check on the baby later. We can go in my vehicle,” he added before she could respond to what he’d said.
She lifted a brow. “You have a two-seater.”
He chuckled. “Yes, but I also have a truck. And that’s what you’re going to need to haul something as big as a box containing a baby bed. And in order to haul the kid away from here you’re going to need a car seat tomorrow.”
Sheila tilted her head back and drew in a deep breath. Had she bit off more than she could chew? She hadn’t thought of all that. She needed to make a list and not work off the top of her head. And he was right about her needing a truck and wanting to return tonight to check on Sunnie. The sound of her crying had followed Sheila all the way to the elevator. She hated leaving her, but she had to prepare her house for Sunnie’s visit.
“Ms. Hopkins?”
She looked back at Zeke Travers. “Fine, Mr. Travers, I’ll accept your generosity. If you’re sure it’s not going out of your way.”
He smiled. “I’m not going out of my way, I assure you. Like I said, Brad would want what’s best for the baby even if she isn’t his.”
She arched a brow. “You certainly seem so sure of that.”
“I am. Now, it’s going to be my job in addition to making sure the baby is safe and well cared for, to find out who’s trying to nail him with this and to clear his name.”
Zeke paused a moment and stared down at her. “And speaking of names, I suggest you call me Zeke, instead of Mr. Travers.”
She smiled. “Why, is Mr. Travers what they call your father?”
“I wouldn’t know.”
Sheila’s heart skipped a beat when she realized what he’d said and what he’d meant by saying it. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean anything. The last guy who told me not to call him by his last name said the reason was that’s what people called his daddy.”
“No harm done, and I hope you don’t mind if I call you Sheila.”
“No, I don’t mind.”
“Good. Come on, Sheila, my car is parked over here,” he said.
Sheila felt her stomach twist in all kinds of knots when she heard her name flow from his lips. And as she walked beside Zeke across the parking lot, a number of misgivings flooded her mind. For one thing, she wasn’t sure what role he intended to play with her becoming Sunnie’s foster parent. She understood Bradford Price was his client and he intended to clear the man’s name. But she had to think beyond that. If Bradford wasn’t Sunnie’s father then who was? Where was the mother and why had the baby been abandoned with a note claiming Bradford was the father when he said he wasn’t?
There were a lot of questions and she had a feeling the man walking beside her intended to have answers for all of them soon enough. She also had a feeling he was the sort of person who got things accomplished when he set his mind to it. And she could tell he intended to investigate this case to the fullest.
His main concern might be on his friend, but hers was on Sunnie. What would happen to her if it was proven Bradford wasn’t the child’s father? Would the man cease caring about Sunnie’s welfare? Would it matter to him that she would then become just a statistic in the system?
He might not care, but she would, and at that moment she vowed to protect Sunnie any way she could.
Three
While they were on their way to the store to pick up items for the baby, Sheila clicked off the phone and sighed deeply as she glanced over at Zeke. “I just talked to one of the nurses in Pediatrics. Sunnie cried herself to sleep,” she said.
There was no need telling him that she knew just how that felt. She was reminded of how many nights as a child she had lain in bed and cried herself to sleep because her mother was too busy trying to catch the next rich husband to spend any time with her. And her father, once he’d discovered what a gold digger Cassie Hopkins was, he hadn’t wasted time moving out and taking Lois with him and leaving her behind.
“That’s good to hear, Sheila,” Zeke responded.
There was another tingling sensation in the pit of her stomach. She couldn’t help it. It did something to her each and every time he pronounced her name. He said it with a deep Texas drawl that could send shivers all through her.
“So how long have you been living in Royal?” he asked.
She glanced over at him. “A year.” She knew from his conversation with Dr. Phillips that he had moved to town six months ago, so there was no need to ask him that. She also knew he’d come from Austin because he wanted to try living in a small city.
“You like it here?”
She nodded. “So far. The people are nice, but I spend a lot of my time at the hospital, so I still haven’t met all my neighbors, only those next door.”
She switched her gaze off him to look out the window at the homes and stores they passed. What she decided not to add was that other than working, and occasional trips to the market, she rarely left home. The people at the hospital had become her family Now that she’d agreed to a fourteen-day leave of absence, she would have her hands full caring for Sunnie, and a part of her actually looked forward to that.
“You’re smiling.”
She glanced back at him. Did the man notice every single thing? “Is it a crime?”
He chuckled. “No.”
The deep, husky rumble of his chuckle sent shivers sweeping through her again. And because she couldn’t help herself, when the car came to a stop at the traffic light she glanced back over at him and then wished she hadn’t done so. The slow smile that suddenly curved his lips warmed her all over.
“Now you’re the one smiling,” she pointed out.
“And is that a crime?”
Grinning, she shook her head. He’d made her see just how ridiculous her response to him had been. “No, it’s not.”
“Good. Because if I get arrested, Sheila, so do you. And it would be my request that we get put in the same jail cell.”
She told herself not to overreact to what he’d said. Of course he would try to flirt with her. He was a man. She’d gotten hit on by a number of doctors at the hospital as well as several police officers around town. Eventually, they found out what Zeke would soon discover. It was a waste of their time. She had written men off. When it came to the opposite sex, she preferred her space. The only reason she was with him now was because of Sunnie. She considered Zeke Travers as a means to an end.
When he exited off the expressway and moments later turned into a nice gated community, she was in awe of the large and spacious ranch-style homes that sat on at least thirty acres of land. She had heard about the Cascades, the section of Royal where the wealthy lived. He evidently was doing well in the P.I. business. “You live in this community?” she asked.
“Yes. I came from Austin on an apartment-hunting trip and ended up purchasing a house instead. I always wanted a lot of land and to own horses and figured buying in