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When he rang the doorbell, Betty recognized him at once and invited him in. She was leading the way to the library when another door opened and Vanessa Shaw came out with a young girl.
Rick stopped and stared. Could this slender blond lady be his half sister? “Lindy?”
The girl stared at him. Then, without a word, she crumpled to the floor.
Chapter Two
“What’s wrong with her?” For an instant Rick was frozen in place, then he rushed over to Lindy, about five yards away. Vanessa, he noticed, had reacted immediately and was cradling the girl in a maternal gesture.
“She’s been worried about your return. I didn’t tell her about your earlier visit. She wasn’t ready for it.” She pushed Lindy’s hair out of her face with a caring touch. “What are you doing here again?”
“I needed to talk to you.”
“You’re not going to take her away, are you?” Vanessa demanded sharply.
“No, not now.”
“Then go into the library. I’ll join you when I can.” She called out to Betty, who appeared almost instantly. “Will you help me get her upstairs?”
“A’course,” Betty agreed. “That poor child.”
“I could carry her wherever you’re taking her,” Rick suggested.
Vanessa shook her head. “I’m afraid she’ll wake up and you will frighten her all over again.”
The front door opened then and a middle-aged man stepped inside. “Hi—What’s going on?” he demanded.
Vanessa greeted him with gratitude. “Thanks for coming home now, Will. Could you carry Lindy upstairs?”
“Sure.” He frowned. “Is she sick?”
“No, just a little overwhelmed. Betty, will you come with us? Mr. Austin, you know the way to the library, don’t you? I’ll be down in a minute.”
The trio, with Lindy, disappeared up the stairs.
Rick turned and went into the library. He left the door open so that he could hear Miss Shaw come in.
“Hello?” a sweet voice said.
He turned around to find an attractive woman staring at him. “Uh, hello. I’m waiting to see Miss Shaw.”
“Oh. I’m her mother, Vivian Greenfield.” The petite woman crossed the room to shake his hand. “I don’t believe I’ve met you.”
Feeling like a gauche schoolboy, Rick hurriedly said, “I’m Rick Austin.”
“Oh, are you any kin to Lindy?”
“Yes, ma’am. I’m her half brother.”
“Then I’m glad to meet you. We’ve enjoyed having Lindy stay here.”
“I hope—”
“What are you doing talking to my mother?” Vanessa Shaw demanded, making it sound as if doing so were a heinous crime.
The man who had carried Lindy upstairs entered behind her and patted her on the back. “Easy, Vanessa.”
“Yes, dear, why wouldn’t I talk to one of our guests?” Mrs. Greenfield asked.
“Because, Mom, he’s the one who abandoned Lindy for nine years.”
“I thought my lawyer would take care of everything!” Rick exclaimed. “Now that I’ve found out how careless he was, how much he lied to me, I’ve fired him.”
“Too bad,” Miss Shaw returned with heavy sarcasm.
“Would you stop ripping me up? I explained what happened. I left her with her mother.”
“Yes, because she had so much character!”
The middle-aged woman stepped forward. “Darling, I don’t think you’re giving him a chance.”
“I don’t see why I should!” Vanessa retorted.
Before tempers flared further Will told them all to sit down. Then he introduced himself to Rick. “I’m Will Greenfield, and this is my wife, Vivian, who is Vanessa’s mother. I gather you’re the half brother we’ve been waiting for?”
“Yes. I wasn’t told that Lindy had tried to kill herself. And my lawyer was instructed to visit with Lindy each month when he delivered the check, to be sure she was doing all right. I told him to let me know if there were any problems. Since I never heard from him…” He paused, staring at Vanessa. “I’ll admit I should’ve checked things out, but my stepmother had…had made it impossible for me to visit in her household.”
“She made a pass at him,” Vanessa said calmly.
“How old were you at the time, Rick?” Will asked.
“Twenty-two. My father had just died and I was off balance as it was. My response to her attempt to seduce me—which was more than a pass, Miss Shaw—was to get as far away from her as possible.”
“You should’ve fought for custody of Lindy,” Vanessa interjected.
“I didn’t have a choice about that. My father made me her guardian in the will only if I survived her mother. All I controlled was the money.”
Vanessa pressed on. “Well, you certainly could have used the money as leverage, couldn’t you?”
“Vanessa, that’s not really your business,” her mother said gently.
Rick pressed his lips together. “I deserve her censure, Mrs. Greenfield. But I’m going to try to make things right. Miss Shaw, have you discussed your plan with your parents?”
He hadn’t expected to see such an expression of guilt on the confident young woman’s face.
“Mom, Will, I told him I wanted to keep Lindy here with me. I know I should’ve asked you first but—”
“Of course, dear,” her mother said. “She’s such a little darling. We’ll enjoy having her.”
“Sure,” Will agreed. “Actually, I figured you wouldn’t want to let her go.”
Rick frowned. “What do you mean? Why would you expect Vanessa—I mean Miss Shaw—to want to keep Lindy?”
Will smiled. “It’s family history. Vivian and her first husband adopted Vanessa when she was a baby. After her father died, Vanessa learned from Vivian that she had five siblings in the world. Viv hired me to find them. I fell for her and convinced her to marry me. And we found all five siblings. One died in the war in Iraq. Vivian and Vanessa have tried to have all of them move in with us,” Will added.
“And they didn’t?”
“Several of them did for a short time. But they’re all married now.”
“So why would she want Lindy?”
“Because she needs me,” Vanessa said firmly. “She’s a lovely girl, but she hasn’t been cared for and encouraged—she’s been ignored. I had to go buy her some clothes just to get her home from the hospital.”
“You mean you didn’t pack up any of her clothes?”
“Didn’t you see them in her closet?”
“Well, yes, but I presumed you’d picked out the best and packed them.”
Vanessa shook her head. “No, I bought her a couple of casual outfits to last her until I can take her shopping. And I ordered new uniforms for her school. She’d outgrown what she’d had for the past three years.”
“I’ll reimburse you at once,” he muttered.
“And Betty, our housekeeper,” Vivian began, “is in seventh heaven with a new person to cook for. She feels Lindy hasn’t been properly fed.” She paused. “Do you know if she’s had regular visits to a doctor?”
“No, I don’t.” He held up a hand in Vanessa’s direction. “I know, I know. I should have that information. As soon as I find another attorney willing to take on my personal business, I’ll—”
“Do you have someone in mind?” Vivian asked.
“No. I had no idea that I’d be needing a new one.”
“We can recommend Jeff Jacobs. His office is just a few blocks away,” she replied.
Will added, “Jeff is Vanessa’s brother-in-law. He’s a fine lawyer.”
“I need someone to give Miss Shaw temporary guardianship papers so she can take Lindy to the doctor or the hospital if necessary.”
“Temporary? You’ll leave her with me for at least a year, won’t you?”
“I’ll consider it, if the first few months go well.”
Vivian said, “We have that in place for Danny.”
Rick frowned. “Who is Danny?”
“He’s our almost-three-year-old son. In case there was an emergency and Vanessa was notified before us—though we seldom leave him—she would be able to take Danny to the hospital.”
“Did Jacobs handle that for you?”
“Yes, he did,” Will said, nodding.
“Maybe I’ll talk to him.”
“Why don’t you come to dinner tonight and we’ll invite Rebecca and Jeff, so you can meet him.”
“Mom, I don’t think…” Vanessa began.
As if her negative reaction had pushed him into making a decision, Rick said, “Thank you. I accept.”
“But what if Lindy—?” Vanessa protested.
“Surely as long as she knows I’m not taking her away from you, she can manage to be in the same room with me!” Rick said sharply.
“I think he’s got a point, Vanessa. And I remember you saying she’d have to face her brother sometime.” Will smiled at Vanessa.
“Yes, but I’m not sure she’s ready.”
“You’ll have the afternoon to talk to her, dear,” her mother said. “Betty will be thrilled to organize a dinner. I’m glad you’ve decided to join us, Mr. Austin.”
“Make it Rick, please,” he said.
“Of course, and call me Vivian.”
“I think maybe we’d better all go to first names,” Will added. “Seems we’ll be seeing one another regularly for a while.”
Before he replied, Rick turned to Vanessa. “Are you okay with that, Miss Shaw?”
She narrowed her hazel eyes. “If you insist…Mr. Austin.”
VANESSA CREPT into Lindy’s room, afraid the girl was still asleep. But Lindy was sitting at a window seat with Betty, who had stayed with her following the fainting episode. The housekeeper exited quietly.
When she saw Vanessa, Lindy seemed to shrink back.
“Do I have to go with him?” she asked in a quavery voice.
“No. He’s agreed to let you stay here with me,” Vanessa said with a warm smile.
Lindy bounded up as if Vanessa had pressed a button. “He did?” she asked incredulously. “Really?”
“Really, sweetheart.”
“Oh, Vanessa, I’m so glad! I can’t believe—”
“Wait, there’s a catch. He’s coming to dinner tonight.”
A curtain fell over her smile, and panic rose in her eyes.
“It’ll be okay, honey. He’s not as bad as you said he was.”
