He gazed once more at the letter, the little bits of type swimming in his vision. Tension twisted the muscles of his neck and shoulders into knots, and Reece stretched and began to pace the kitchen. If it were true, then whom had Alyssa really belonged to? How could he have not known the difference? The infant he had cuddled and walked the hall ceaseless nights with, whose murmurs of “da-da” when he came home had always made a hard day melt away…who had she been?
Reece took a deep breath, then loosened the tie at his neck and sagged back into the kitchen chair. It occurred to him that he hadn’t told Miss Fairmont he’d be coming alone. It didn’t matter. She’d find out when he got there. He was certain there would be questions. He just wasn’t sure how he’d answer them. And what about the other parents? How on earth was he going to tell them the one thing no parent wanted to hear: that their child was dead?
Instinctively he knew that this wasn’t going to be like anything he’d encountered before, even in all his years in family law, but there was also no way to change the facts. His natural child was alive, and for the moment that was all that mattered.
Deep inside his promise to Becca reverberated in his head and deeper still in his heart.
I’ll take care of our baby. I swear it.
Chapter Two
Reece glanced at his watch. It was twenty to four, and he’d been sitting in the hospital parking lot for half an hour. He stretched his legs as far forward as possible from the front seat of the black Lexus to relieve his cramping muscles, then ran a finger underneath the starched white collar of his shirt, making it easier to swallow against the thickness in his throat. Rain thrummed on the roof, the drops bouncing in random patterns on the hood.
Absentmindedly, he reached behind his seat for the umbrella before he remembered he’d left it in the hall closet. He drew his hand back, knocking over the stack of briefs from the office sitting in the passenger’s seat.
Reece frowned. He should be working. His law firm had continued to function well during his leave of absence while his partners took over his caseload, but he hadn’t really been pulling his weight since his return. It was time to get himself together, even though this latest news had knocked him into a new emotional tailspin in the last twenty-four hours.
Who was he kidding? He was a wreck. He couldn’t eat. He definitely couldn’t sleep, and putting together two coherent thoughts had been next to impossible. By two o’clock Bill had suggested he take the rest of the week off. He collected the papers and folders off the leather seat, restacking them and making a mental promise to work on them later that evening over a frozen dinner and a Coke.
He exhaled slowly, trying to pull the fractured pieces of himself back together. Right now he had something more important to think about than work. He shrugged on his black trench coat and opened the car door. The crisp, wet fragrance of the rain made him grin at melancholy memories as the soft drops streaked his face.
Alyssa had loved the unpredictable spring rains that buffeted the northern California coast. The small town of San Sebastian had been so charming that he and Becca had decided to move away from San Francisco to raise their daughter here. He closed his eyes and let the drops wash over him. He could see his little girl dancing in a wide circle, hands outstretched, laughing as her sodden jumper clung to her skin. “Come on, Daddy!” she had squealed, running up to him and tugging on his belt loop. She pulled him from his vantage point under the eaves of the house to join her and together they had let the mud suck at their shoes and sang “Itsy Bitsy Spider.”
His skin was wet and cold now, but Reece hardly noticed. A familiar, twisting ache in his gut and the emotional numbness that invaded his limbs robbed him of any further pleasure in the downpour. He trudged up to the entrance of the hospital behind a sleek blonde with a bright purple umbrella.
He narrowed his eyes against the rain hitting his face. This meeting was going to be uncomfortable at best and heartbreaking at worst. Just the thought of what he had to reveal made him wish he’d downed a bottle of antacids. The woman slapped her umbrella closed before reaching the doors, giving it a twist to rid it of excess water. Reece hurried his step, reaching for the edge of the door just before it swished closed in his face.
While he waited beside her for a look at the directory, he gave his head a quick shake, letting the rain scatter from his hair.
The woman yelped, then glanced at him over her shoulder. She was gorgeous. Something he hadn’t noticed about a woman in a long, long time.
“I guess I closed my umbrella too soon. I didn’t realize I’d need it indoors, too.” She gave him a brief smile. The soft curve of her full lips made the idea of a kiss leap to mind.
His mouth went dry. For the first time in his life he was unable to whip up a flip reply. Something about her went straight to the center of him like an electric shock.
Her vivid blue eyes were bright. Too bright. He’d seen that look before in female clients who might cry at any moment or were anxious with fear. For an instant he wondered what caused that look in her—and how he could fix it.
He shifted his weight, then glanced at the dark spots scattered across the lapel of her azure-blue silk suit. “Sorry,” he mumbled. Oh, perfect, a top attorney tongue-tied like a teenager. He took a quick, shallow breath and tried again. “I hope it didn’t stain your suit.”
She turned, and he could see now that the drops had splattered across the enticing curves at the front of her suit as well.
A lump lodged in his throat. Pressure built beneath the surface of his skin. He had no business looking at her. And certainly none looking at her there. She followed his gaze and her eyes widened before they narrowed with disapproval. She pulled her open coat closed and hurried off toward the elevator, her blond bob-cut hair brushing lightly against the smooth skin at the base of her neck.
He found himself staring as she stepped into the elevator. The instant she was out of view he silently chastised himself. What the hell is wrong with you, Wallace? You’re here for the most important meeting of your life and you’re staring at a stranger like you’ve never seen a woman before. Focus. Reece forced his gaze back to the rows of white plastic letters in the slanted glass case and quickly located public relations on the fourth floor, then headed for the elevator, too.
The brushed-metallic doors slid open. Reece stepped in and reached for the button to the fourth floor. The doors skidded shut.
His stomach dropped, not from the elevator’s lift alone, but from the sharp pain in his chest that hit him as he caught a whiff of the floral scent Becca had always worn. Roses. Orange blossoms. And just a hint of vanilla. The blonde must have worn it, too. In the close confines of the elevator, the perfume seemed too strong, overpowering him. Reece willed himself to ignore the acute pang of longing it caused. He associated the scent not with just Becca, but Alyssa, too. Her fine baby hair had always smelled of her mother’s perfume because she was almost always in Becca’s arms or his own.
The doors peeled apart and he rushed out, away from the lingering scent that clung to his memories. Glancing at his watch, he decided to wait out the remaining minutes in the hall and pull himself together.
Out of habit, Reece dug his hand into the back pocket of his tailored slacks and lifted out the worn, black leather wallet. The edges were curved with use. He flipped it open, fingers automatically searching for the smooth plastic sleeves that protected his most recent photo of Alyssa and Becca. The ache settled deeper into his bones, and he sagged against the wall for support.
He recalled reading to Becca’s bulging stomach, so the baby could hear. Would the child recognize his voice? Would there be any connection at all? He shook his head and snorted. It was ludicrous to think so.
Raking his fingers through his hair, he tried to reclaim his composure. He’d never get through this if he didn’t just do it. He snapped the wallet closed and shoved it into his back pocket, putting away his emotions as much as possible so he could rely on his professional mann
ers to carry him through the meeting.
Reece pulled open the door of the PR office and entered the small waiting area. The receptionist smiled brightly at him.
“May I help you?”
“Mr. Wallace here to see Miss Fairmont.”
She gestured to a set of plump, aqua-colored chairs that matched the hospital logo on the wall. “She’s expecting you. If you’d like to sit down for a moment, I’ll let her know you’re here.”
Reece removed his damp coat and sank into the chair, leaning forward with his elbows on his knees.
A short woman in a bright yellow suit walked toward him. Her hair was close-cropped, curly, and dark. She extended a hand to him and smiled, her teeth a brilliant white contrast to her mocha skin. “Mr. Wallace? I’m Patricia Fairmont.”
He grasped her hand firmly.
“Was your wife unable to come?”
Reece nodded silently, a tremor of guilt at the omission running under his skin. He moved to speak, uncertain of how to explain the situation, but didn’t get a word out before she continued.
“Of course, she must be with your daughter. Well, I appreciate your effort to be here. If you’d like to follow me…”
Her words were a sucker punch to the gut, completely unexpected and powerful enough to take his breath away. Becca was indeed with Alyssa, and he hated it. Every minute of every day. Reece rose from the chair and walked behind her. As they turned the corner, he could see over the top of Miss Fairmont’s head that they were heading toward a small, brightly lit conference room with a wall of glass facing the hall.
Reece stopped midstep in the long hall causing Miss Fairmont to turn around. “I don’t see the little girl.” He hated that the tone of his voice betrayed his desperation and disappointment.
“We thought it would be best if you and your wife could meet with us first and have an open discussion about the possible options so as not to upset the children.”
“Very thoughtful of you.” He hoped he sounded more convincing to her than he did to himself.
“Thank you. I’m only sorry your wife couldn’t join us.”
Reece’s heart contracted in a painful squeeze. “Me, too. Miss Fairmont, I have something to say—”
She turned, her index finger raised to stop him, and gave him a kind smile. “If you can just hold that thought a moment longer, Mr. Wallace, it will make this process easier.”
He doubted it. Nothing could make this kind of soul-eating anxiety easier.
If Becca had been here, this exchange would have been completely different. She could’ve smoothed things out. She would’ve been able to keep him rational and sane. She’d been so good at that. Instead, he felt as though he were going for the bar exam with no preparation. His palms were sweating and his heart beating too fast. There were too many questions—tough questions that he didn’t know the answers to and didn’t want to think about. Questions about how this could have happened and, more importantly, why it was happening to him. With everything else he had suffered recently, this capped the long list of life-altering events and made him feel like he’d been shoved through a paper shredder.
He followed Miss Fairmont into the conference room and sat down beside the glass-topped conference table. Miss Fairmont spread manila folders out on the table’s shiny surface. “Mr. Wallace, as I briefly mentioned before, we’ve been alerted to a terrible mistake that was made regarding your daughter. It seems that she was switched with another infant during your wife’s stay with us.”
His shoulders and neck stiffened. “May I ask how you came to that conclusion?”
“We’re going to be working through that today. We’ve gone through an exhaustive search of the birth records on the day in question and discovered that you and your wife were involved in this unfortunate situation.”
The tension in his shoulders increased. “Does that mean you’ll need a blood sample from me?”
“Yes, but only as a confirmation, Mr. Wallace.”
Anger shoved him forward in the chair. “How could you let this happen?”
Miss Fairmont took a quick breath and lifted her chin slightly, suddenly on the defensive. “We believe it was a new hire on our nursing staff who was responsible. She is no longer employed here and, in fact, was discharged after only a month. We made an effort to contact her, but we’ve been unable to reach her. We’ve only recently been alerted to the mistake and are trying everything we can to rectify it.”
“And just how do you rectify four years of someone’s life, Miss Fairmont?” He blew out a frustrated breath and shook his head, rubbing his palms down the thighs of his pants. “Sorry. This is just a very big piece of news to digest all at once.”
She folded her hands together, settling them on the clear surface of the conference table. “I understand, Mr. Wallace, but we are all going to do our best to make sure this is as easy as possible on all involved.”
She was just doing her job. Mentally he knew that. But he was shaking with anxiety anyway. There was nothing easy about this. “What about the other parents? Have you been in contact with them already? Who are they, anyway?”
“Yes we have,” she stated smoothly, then gave him a practiced smile. “Actually, Mr. Wallace, I took the liberty of asking the other parent involved if she could be here today as well. If you’d be willing to meet her, then perhaps we could open a discussion regarding what’s to happen next.”
His shoulders tightened. He hadn’t been prepared to meet the other parents, but he did want to see the little girl. His throat too tight to speak, he nodded his approval and sunk back in the chair.
“Excellent. If you’ll excuse me for a moment, I’ll be right back.”
Reece watched through the room’s glass wall as she disappeared down the corridor. The clock slowed, the minutes stretching out an impossibly long time. With each tick, he became edgier. He gripped his hands together, squeezing, then releasing them. What in the hell was he going to tell them? A raw pain ripped at him. He knew how awful losing a child was. How would they react? As much as he wanted his child, he could never destroy someone else’s life the way his had been when he’d lost Alyssa. How on earth was he going to explain Alyssa’s and Becca’s deaths?
Miss Fairmont returned a few minutes later. He stood automatically to shake hands.
“Ms. Taylor Lawrence, may I introduce you to Mr. Reece Wallace.”
It was the blonde.
Chapter Three
Reece awkwardly cleared his throat, embarrassed and unnerved at Ms. Lawrence’s presence. She took his hand quickly, shook it once, then sat on the opposite side of the conference table but refused to make eye contact with him, focusing instead in Ms. Fairmont’s direction. Notes of rose and orange blossoms drifted in her wake. Her skin was tinted with a slight pink, and her arms and legs were tightly crossed, her foot bouncing.
Reece shifted in his seat. She seemed entirely too agitated and apparently directed most of it at him. Hadn’t they both had their children switched? Did she realize that he’d suffered, too? A thick knot of fear lodged in his throat, making swallowing difficult.
Did she already know that Alyssa was dead? He gritted his teeth. Of course she didn’t. Miss Fairmont didn’t even seem to know.
But what if she refused to let him see her little girl once she found out about Alyssa’s death, even though by rights the child was his? He knew that if the positions were reversed he’d never give Alyssa up. She was his life, his soul. And she was gone. He relented, putting himself in the woman’s position and trying to think of what he could say to soften the information he knew he had to share.
She was worried. He saw that now. What kind of a monster did she think he was? He wasn’t going to take her child away from her. He merely wanted to offer the little girl whatever he could as a parent. He wanted to be part of her life, and not just as a name on a piece of paper, but in every way he could as a father.
Miss Fairmont adjusted her position at the head of the long table and square
ly looked at them. “First of all I’d like once again to apologize to the both of you for the difficulties this has caused. Once the DNA tests are completed, we can clear up this misunderstanding and can work to some resolution.”
Before either of them could ask any questions, the phone on a corner table behind Miss Fairmont hummed with a quiet ring.
“I’m sorry. Just one moment,” Miss Fairmont said, reaching for the phone. She listened intently, keeping her voice low. She hung up, the hold light blinking in bright red, and quickly excused herself from the conference room.
The instant Miss Fairmont left the room, Ms. Lawrence slid him an assessing look, her piercing blue eyes set a bit too wide apart.
“So, what does your wife think of this?”
Reece twisted the gold ring on his finger. It suddenly seemed heavy and cold against his skin.
“She passed away recently.”
Startled into momentary silence, she uncrossed her legs and folded her hands in her lap. The coolness in her expression dissolved. “I’m sorry.”
Reece heard a genuineness in her voice, but he ignored the impulse to lean toward her. How could he be attracted to her when he didn’t even know her?
When he didn’t respond, she tried again. “I didn’t mean to be callous, it’s just that Miss Fairmont kept going on about you and your wife, and after the way you looked at me down in the lobby, I just thought…”
“You thought I was a world-class jerk.”
“Maybe for a moment.” She paused, looking away in embarrassment and tucking her long fingers under the edges of her well-shaped legs, where her blue skirt stopped midthigh. She glanced up at him.
“Miss Fairmont doesn’t know, does she?” she asked, her voice much softer than before. He noticed that other things had softened about her as well—the set of her shoulders, the tilt of her head. She was obviously putting on a tough front but was as shaken by this turn of events as he was.
The Switched Baby Scandal (A Scandals of San Sebastian Novel) (Entangled Bliss) Page 2
