Temptation

He wondered if anyone ever told her she could be a very delicious double for actress Sanaa Lathan. The woman before him was just a tad shorter than the actress, but in his book she was just as curvy. And she was a nurse. Hell, she could take his temperature any time and any place. He could even suggest she take it now, because there was no doubt in his mind looking at her was making it rise.

“May I help you?”

He blinked and swallowed deeply. “Yes, that baby you’re holding …”

She narrowed her eyes and clutched the baby closer to her breast in a protective stance. “Yes, what about her?”

“I want to find out everything there is about her,” he said.

She lifted an arched brow. “And you are …?”

He gave what he hoped was a charming smile. “Zeke Travers, private investigator.”

Sheila opened her mouth to speak, when a deep, male voice intruded behind her. “Zeke Travers! Son of a gun! With Brad Price as quarterback, you as split end and Chris Richards as wide receiver, that was UT’s best football season. I recall them winning a national championship title that year. Those other teams didn’t stand a chance with you three. Someone mentioned you had moved to Royal.”

She then watched as Dr. Warren Phillips gave the man a huge bear hug. Evidently they knew each other, and as she listened further, she was finding out quite a lot about the handsome stranger.

“Yes, I moved to town six months ago,” Zeke was saying. “Austin was getting too big for me. I’ve decided to try small-town life for a while. Brad convinced me Royal was the place,” he said, grinning. “And I was able to convince Darius Franklin he needed a partner.”

“So you joined forces with Darius over at Global Securities?”

“Yes, and things are working out great so far. Darius is a good man and I really like this town. In fact, I like it more and more each day.” His gaze then shifted to her and her gaze locked with his as it had done that morning.

The clearing of Dr. Phillips’s throat reminded them they weren’t alone.

“So, what brings you to Royal Memorial, Zeke?” Dr. Phillips asked, and it was evident to Sheila that Dr. Phillips had picked up on the man’s interest in her.

“That baby she’s holding. It was left abandoned at the TCC today with a note claiming Brad’s the father. And I intend to prove that he’s not.”

“In that case,” Dr. Phillips said, “I think we need to go into that private examination room over there and check this baby out.”

A short while later Dr. Phillips slid his stethoscope into the pocket of his lab coat as he leaned back against the table. “Well, this young lady is certainly in good health.”

He chuckled and then added, “And she certainly refused to let anyone hold her other than you, Nurse Hopkins. If you hadn’t been present and within her reach, it would have been almost impossible for me to examine her.”

Sheila laughed as she held the baby to her while glancing down at the infant. “She’s beautiful. I can’t imagine anyone wanting to abandon her.”

“Well, it happened,” Zeke said.

A tingling sensation rode up her spine with the comment and she was reminded that Zeke Travers was in the examination room with them. It was as if he refused to let the baby out of his sight.

She turned slightly. “What makes you so sure she’s not Bradford Price’s child, Mr. Travers? I recall running into Mr. Price a time or two and he also has hazel eyes.”

He narrowed his gaze. “So do a million other people in this country, Ms. Hopkins.”

Evidently he didn’t like being questioned about the possibility. So she turned to Dr. Phillips. “Did that social worker who came by while you were examining the baby say what will happen to Sunnie?” she asked.

Dr. Phillips lifted a brow. “Sunnie?”

“Yes,” Sheila said, smiling. “I thought she was a vision of sunshine the moment I looked at her. And since no one knows her name I thought Sunnie would fit. Sounds better than Jane Doe,” she added.

“I agree,” Dr. Phillips said, chuckling. “And the social worker, Ms. Talbert, is as baffled as everyone else, especially since Brad says the baby isn’t his.”

“She’s not his,” Zeke said, inserting himself into the conversation again. “Brad’s been receiving blackmail letters for five months now, threatening to do something like this unless he paid up.”

Zeke rubbed the back of his neck. “I told him to ignore the letters while I looked into it. I honestly didn’t think the person would carry out their threats if Brad didn’t pay up. Evidently, I was wrong.”

And that’s what continued to bother him the most, Zeke thought as he glanced over at the baby. He should have nipped this nasty business in the bud long ago. And what Ms. Hopkins said was true, because he’d noted it himself. The baby had hazel eyes, and not only were they hazel, they were the same shade of hazel as Brad’s.

He’d asked Brad if there was any chance the baby could be his, considering the fact Brad was a known playboy. But after talking to Brad before coming over here, and now that he knew the age of the baby, Zeke was even more convinced Brad wasn’t the father. Warren had confirmed the baby’s age as five months and Brad had stated he hadn’t slept with any woman over the past eighteen months.

“To answer your question, Nurse Hopkins,” Dr. Phillips said, breaking into Zeke’s thoughts, “Ms. Talbert wants to wait to see what the paternity test reveals. I agreed that we can keep the baby here until then.”

“Here?”

“Yes, that would be best until the test results comes back, that is unless Brad has a problem participating in the test,” Dr. Phillips said, glancing over at Zeke.

“Brad knows that it’s for the best, and he will cooperate any way he can,” Zeke acknowledged.

“But it doesn’t seem fair for Sunnie to have to stay here at the hospital. She’s in perfect health,” Sheila implored. “Ms. Talbert has indicated the test results might take two weeks to come back.”

She then glared over at Zeke. “Whether the baby is officially his or not, I would think your client would want the best for Sunnie until her parentage is proven or disproven.”

Zeke crossed his arms over his chest. “So what do you suggest, Ms. Hopkins? I agree staying here isn’t ideal for the baby, but the only other option is for her to get turned over to Social Services. If that happens she’ll go into foster care and will get lost in the system when it’s proven my client is not her father.”

Sheila nibbled on her bottom lip, not having a response to give him. She glanced down at the baby she held in her arms. For whatever reason, Sunnie’s mother hadn’t wanted her and it didn’t seem fair for her to suffer because of it. She knew how it felt not to be wanted.

“I might have an idea that might work, Nurse Hopkins, granted you agree to go along with it,” Dr. Phillips said. “And I’ll have to get Ms. Talbert to agree to it, as well.”

“Yes?” she said, wondering what his idea was.

“A few years ago the wife of one of my colleagues, Dr. Webb, was hit with a similar incident when someone left a baby on her doorstep before they were married. Because Winona grew up in foster care herself, she hadn’t wanted the baby to end up the same way. To make a long story short, Winona and Dr. Webb ended up marrying and keeping the baby to make sure it didn’t get lost in the system.”

Sheila nodded. “So what are you suggesting?”

Dr. Phillips smiled. “That you become Sunnie’s emergency foster parent until everything is resolved. I believe I’ll be able to convince Ms. Talbert to go along with it, and given the fact the Prices are huge benefactors to this hospital, as well as to a number of other nonprofit organizations, I think it would be in everyone’s best interest that the baby’s welfare remain a top priority.”

Sheila looked shocked. “Me? A foster parent! I wouldn’t know what to do with a baby.”

“You couldn’t convince me of that, Ms. Hopkins. The baby won’t let anyone else touch her and you seem to be a natural with her,” Zeke said, seeing the merits of what Dr. Phillips proposed. “Besides, you’re a nurse, someone who is used to taking care of people.”

Although Brad swore the baby wasn’t his, he would still be concerned with the baby’s health and safety until everything was resolved. And what Zeke just said was true. He thought the woman was a natural with the baby, and the baby had gotten totally attached to her. He had a feeling Ms. Hopkins was already sort of attached to the baby, as well.

“And if you’re concerned as to how you’d be able to handle both your job and the baby, I propose that the hospital agrees to give you a leave of absence during the time that the child is in your care. My client will be more than happy to replace your salary,” Zeke said.

“I think that would be an excellent idea,” Warren said. “One I think I could push past the chief of staff. The main thing everyone should be concerned about is Sunnie’s well-being.”

Sheila couldn’t help agreeing. But her? A foster parent? “How long do you think I’ll have to take care of her?” she asked, looking down at Sunnie, who was still smiling up at her.