Texas Mum

Jill said as she sat, “I sense that you want to go ahead with this donor registry roundup. I don’t want to pry, but are you afraid Nick’s dad will back out? What is his name? I hate to keep referring to him as that guy.”

Delaney circled the rim of the steaming cup with one forefinger. “His name is Dario. Dario Sanchez. His family and friends call him Dayo. I did, too, during our short summer...affair, I guess you’d call it.” She frowned. “To be honest, Jill, I don’t know if he’ll back out.” She couldn’t hide her anguish from her friend seated across the small table. “Frankly I go back and forth between hoping he comes and that he’ll be a match, to worrying about other ramifications if he does. He was so different from the man I remember. His family, except for his half sister, is rude and controlling. Another big worry that one of Nick’s nurses in Lubbock brought up—what if Dario demands equal custody once he’s satisfied Nick is his son?”

“Is that likely? I mean, you said he’s involved with a family business in Argentina.”

“He is. But ask Mack to verify how charming and persuasive Dario can be. Mack bought a bull from him that summer, too. What nags me is the nurse was once married to a Latino. She said it’s a cultural thing for the men to especially want custody of their boys.”

“Heavens, you don’t need that.” Jill spun her cup a few times before taking another sip. “I never got to know my real father, and I’m a new stepmother myself. I can almost assure you that when Nick is older he’ll want some kind of relationship with his birth father.”