A Matter of the Heart

She didn’t know who looked more surprised by her apology, Rob or Carmen.

He shook his head. “Don’t give it another thought. Are you sure you’re okay?”

She took a step toward him. “I’m stressed, that’s all. With baby Dempsey’s condition on my mind and then hearing a pharmaceutical company tell me they don’t want to help sick children…I just lost it. You were a handy target. I’m sorry.”

“I can see how you might feel stressed.”

“That’s no excuse for my behavior. I do understand what you are trying to do with your article. If you can raise the awareness of what Children of the Day does, then I’ll try not to hinder you.” She smiled broadly. “You said you had a few more questions. I’ll try to answer them.”

He waved one hand. “It can wait.”

“Are you sure?”

“Absolutely. I’ll get out of your hair and let you get back to work.”

“All right then. Good day.” Nora walked back into her office and sank into her chair. She hoped that Rob had accepted her explanation and would be satisfied with that.

He watched as Nora went back inside her office and wondered why she had undergone such a change of heart. Her explanation was reasonable, but it didn’t feel quite right.

He nodded to Carmen. “I’ll see you the day after tomorrow. I’m going into surgery with the good doctor.”

“You won’t see me. Delia will be back tomorrow.”

“Then I look forward to meeting Delia.”

“I’m not so sure you should look forward to it. Delia is a bit of a dragon. She runs a very tight ship.”

“Then I look forward to taming the dragon.”

Carmen tilted her head to one side. “If anyone can do it, I think you’re the man for the job.”

He touched his brow with one finger and gave Carmen a wink before heading out the door. In the hallway, he glanced at his notes. He had written the words husband, company name and background check.

After pulling his cell phone from his pocket, Rob scrolled through his contacts until he found the one he was looking for. He placed the call, and on the second ring it went to voice mail.

A man’s gravely voice said, “Encore Investigations. Leave a message at the tone.”

“Murray, this is Rob Dale. Call me when you get this. I have a job for you. Dig up anything you can on a charity called Children of the Day in Prairie Springs, Texas.”

Rob paused as he considered his next request. Was he doing the right thing by prying into Nora’s past? If she was no different than any other person he was writing about, why did he feel guilty about doing this?

Maybe it was because he already felt a personal connection to her that he couldn’t quite explain. He needed the information for the piece, but he also wanted to get to know more about Nora for selfish reasons. He’d never met anyone as complex, as driven, and yet with an underlying vulnerability that touched something deep inside him.

If they were simply two people getting to know each other, he wouldn’t invade her privacy this way, but she was part of a story. He’d let his personal feelings get in the way of good reporting only a short time ago and it had cost him. He wouldn’t make the same mistake twice.

Finally, he said, “Murray, I also want you to do a background check for me. Find out what you can about a cardiac surgeon named Dr. Nora Blake, about her deceased husband and about the company he worked for. Something tells me Dr. Blake isn’t exactly what she seems.”

Chapter Four

T he sun was just peeking over the horizon the next morning when Nora pulled into the nearly empty parking lot at the Prairie Springs park. Only a half dozen cars dotted the spaces. Five of them she recognized as other runners who preferred to exercise in the quiet of the early morning hours. The red SUV was one she hadn’t seen here before.

As she opened her car door, the beast tried to get out first, climbing over Nora in his exuberance at the idea of a run in the park. Nora held on to the leash with grim determination as fifty pounds of Airedale terrier hit the end of the nylon strap.

“Conan, stop it. Sit!” Nora commanded, getting out and rubbing the bruise she knew she’d have on her thigh.

The russet brown, curly coated dog with a black saddle marking on his back dropped to his haunches and gave her a wide doggy grin. Once they were on the jogging paths, he would be the perfectly behaved running companion, but sometimes he was too eager to get under way.

“Good dog. Stay until I’ve done my stretches.”

The big terrier lay down to watch her. Officially, he belonged to Pamela, but his preference for Nora began the minute they brought the wiggling puppy home from the breeder.

Getting a puppy had been Nora’s idea, a fact Pamela reminded her stepmother of when Conan destroyed some piece of furniture or dug up the flower beds. The only way to keep his exuberance in check was to see that he got plenty of exercise. Hence, he had become Nora’s running partner.