that means so much to me,” she said, meaning every word as she glanced up at Dane. Whether he was a match or not, or had just come to the hospital to boost his image, he was here, and it could mean the difference between life and death for her son.
“What else can I do to help Jayden?” Dane glanced down at her son with genuine concern. “I feel like getting tested seems so small in the grand scheme of things.”
“It isn’t. I wish more people like you would register. I think there’s a stigma attached to bone marrow donations because people have seen it on TV and heard it can be painful. But they’ve made advances and there’s more than one way to donate now.”
“I’ll certainly make sure to talk about registering when I make the rounds on the morning and late night shows.”
Iris’s eyes grew large. “You would do that?” She gulped a large amount of coffee in an effort to steady herself and not think about why Dane Stewart would help her, a nobody.
“Of course. Anything to help this little guy.” He glanced down at Jayden. “He should have his whole life ahead of him and if there’s anything I can do to prolong it, I will. Matter of fact…” He reached inside his leather jacket and produced a business card, handing it to Iris.
Her eyes filled with tears and instinctively she reached for Dane’s hand on the table to squeeze it. “Thank you.”
This time he didn’t pull away. Instead, he let her hold his hand a moment longer than was necessary. Iris’s heart bounced like a ball in her chest as she relived the excitement from his touch earlier. Her tummy fluttered and she could feel her breasts becoming taut as awareness flooded her entire being. She bit down on her lip, but when she glanced up at Dane, raw primal lust was etched across his face.
Dane took in the glorious brown eyes staring back at him. Sensation galloped in his chest from the shocking contact and enveloped him like wildfire. He’d felt it earlier too and it made him want to touch her shiny dark brown hair. Their gazes clashed and mingled and something unspoken fizzled in the air between them. Something Dane couldn’t define. Was it lust?
He was taken by surprise because there was an answering hunger in her quiet gaze. Dane reminded himself he was repairing his public image, and to even consider messing around with Iris at a time like this would be low. Yet he couldn’t stop himself feeling this pull toward her and the boy. He wanted to be there for her, comfort her, protect her.
With his self-discipline vanishing, Dane abruptly rose to his feet. “I have to go.”
Iris did the same, and he noticed how she nearly matched him in height. “Of—of course. I’m sorry to have kept you.” She blushed alluringly as if she shouldn’t have been caught looking at him.
“You didn’t, but I have an early morning tomorrow.”
“Thank you again for registering.”
Dane crouched down to say goodbye to Jayden, who’d already finished his cocoa. “I hope you get better, Jayden. I’m rooting for you.”
Jayden glanced up. “Thanks, Mr. Stewart.”
The young boy’s smile in spite of all he’d been through broke Dane’s heart, and he quickly made for the exit without looking back at Iris. He couldn’t. Instead, he pulled out his cell phone, made a call and snapped out instructions.
The bodyguards followed him to the lobby and out through the main entrance, where his car had magically appeared, along with Whitney, who was now by his side barely keeping pace with him.
“What was that about?” she asked.
“What?” Dane was disconcerted. He was still thinking about the beautiful woman he’d left upstairs whom he’d given his private number to. It was something he never did, but Dane felt like he could trust her.
“Iris Turner. You asked her to coffee.”
Startled, Dane glared at her. “I’m not sure what you’re implying, Whitney. I was merely being nice. I would think you’d appreciate the positive press instead of twenty-questioning me.” He didn’t wait for a response as he hopped in his sports car.
Adrenaline, sleek and sure, pounded through him as he revved the engine. Had the truth been written on his face? Could Whitney sense his interest in Iris? Her hand was so delicate, yet strong. He could still feel her touch as if she’d branded him, which was ridiculous. She was going through a lot and for some reason Dane wanted to help her. And if it was in his power to assist, he would.
There was nothing more to it than that.
One week later
“You’re a match,” Dr. Lee said.
It was early on a Monday morning, and she and Dane were seated in the conference room at Cedars-Sinai. Dane had flown in last night from New York after the premiere of his latest film. It was a departure from his usual body of work and would finally elevate him from heartthrob to serious actor. Early reviews were positive and Dane had left on cloud nine.
He hadn’t expected this news.
“Really?” Dane asked, stunned. He’d registered and done the test when he’d been trying to repair his bad boy image. It had worked. The press began to focus on Jayden’s illness and the media lost interest in his supposed affair with Lia. He’d been so busy doing damage control, he hadn’t contacted Iris. It was just as well because he couldn’t act on his attraction to the single mother.
This was an unexpected wrinkle in his plans. “How is that possible? I thought chances were rare I would be a match.” He stared in disbelief.
“It’s difficult to match the needed tissue type between donors and patients, so this is quite a surprise. Seventy percent of all bone marrow donations do come from people unrelated to the recipient, so only 30 percent come from matches with family members able to donate. And when I compared your genetic markers to Jayden’s, there was no doubt—you’re related.”
Dane sat back in his chair. “Pardon me?”
“If I was a betting man…” Dr. Lee began, then paused for several beats. “I would say that you’re Jayden’s father.”
“No,” Dane shook his head and jumped to his feet. “That can’t be. I never met Iris before last month. You’ve got this all wrong, Dr. Lee. There’s no way Jayden could be my kid. You need to run your tests again.” His mind raced to recall a moment he could have met Iris. A drunken encounter he could have forgotten maybe? But no—that wasn’t possible.
Dr. Lee sighed. “Well, that’s why I wanted to bring you in. Quietly, of course.” He looked out the glass partition at Dane’s two bodyguards waiting outside. “I wanted your permission to run a DNA paternity test.”
Dane stopped pacing. “A DNA test?”
“Yes, it will give us irrefutable evidence and set the record straight.”
“That depends. Do I have your word you’ll treat this with absolute discretion? I can’t have this leaking to the press.”
“Understood. And you absolutely have my word I’ll keep this confidential. But in the meantime, I need to know if you’re willing to donate your bone marrow to Jayden. Whether you’re his father or not, you’re a match. I’d like to take a sample of your blood and confirm the human leukocyte antigen match. Once I confirm, you’d meet with a counselor to talk about the procedures, benefits and risks of the donation process. And then you can decide whether you’re comfortable with donating.”
Dane wiped his hands across his face. This was surreal, but he was sure of one thing. “Of course I’ll help. That