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By Root 699 0

played loose with the rules, but, like you said, so did your father. You can be assured that Mark and his wife, Susan, desperately wanted a baby. And they loved Amelia from the first second they saw her. They devoted themselves to her. Amelia has had a very good life. Mark only became worried because of his wife's death and his injuries. He didn't think any of that would help if your sister came calling. He was afraid that whoever was looking for the child would use the accident to try to overturn the adoption. I didn't think that could happen, but I wasn't sure, and Mark wasn't willing to take the chance."

"So your whole reason for being here was to find out which one of us was Amelia's mother. There was never any story, was there?" Ashley asked.

"No, that was just my way of getting to meet you. All we knew was that one of the McKenna sisters was the mother. We didn't know which one. And frankly, Caroline, this jerk of an attorney that you hired made it absolutely clear that you wanted your baby back. I couldn't just come out and ask which one of you had a baby. I was afraid it would lead you straight to Mark, and I needed to find out who you were and what you wanted before that happened."

"I understand," Caroline said. "I didn't mean to cause such turmoil. I know it's too late for me to be Amelia's mother. I won't try to take her away. I won't even try to see her. I just want to know about her, if that's okay."

Before he could reply, he was interrupted by Kate, who now had a very purposeful look in her eyes. "You lied," Kate said. "Or omitted the truth. Amazing how easy that can be, isn't it, when you're trying to protect someone you love?"

"It's not the same. We're not the same." He got to his feet, feeling suddenly restless and edgy. He'd known it would come back to him and Kate. The race, the baby, all of that had been explained, but not what had happened between them.

"Aren't we?" Kate asked as she stood up to face him. "Wouldn't we both do just about anything for our families?"

"I didn't cover up a murder."

"It wasn't a murder. It was an accident .And you were willing to cover up an illegal adoption."

"It wasn't illegal. It was just not done quite as properly as it should have been done."

"You're making excuses."

"So are you."

"Why did you sleep with me?" she demanded.

"Why did you sleep with me?" he returned.

Their heated exchange sent sparks flying between them. Kate couldn't look away. Tyler couldn't, either.

"I don't think you need us anymore," Caroline said.

Tyler was dimly aware of Ashley and Caroline leaving the room. His entire focus was on Kate.

"Answer the question," he said.

"I asked you first."

He drew in a deep breath. "I made love to you for one reason, Kate, and one reason only. I wanted you more than I've ever wanted a woman in my life. You got under my skin, into my head. I couldn't stop thinking about you. I told myself not to get distracted, but every time I saw you that thought flew right out the window." He paused. One thing he'd learned out there on the water tonight was that he didn't want to die without telling her how he felt about her. "I love you, Kate. I fell in love with you probably the first time I saw you. I didn't know it then. I didn't know it last night, if you want to know the truth. But I knew it today, when I thought the world might end. I finally saw what meant the most to me, and it was you." She blinked rapidly, moisture pooling in her beautiful blue eyes. "Believe me, Kate. Please."

"I want to," she whispered. "But how can I believe anything you say when you've lied to me the whole time you've been here?"

"Not the whole time. Not the times I kissed you, not last night when we made love. That was the real me, Kate."

"But you came here to discredit me. Maybe this is still part of the plan, to make the oldest sister believe you love her so she won't put up a fight."

He shook his head. "No, Kate. The desire to do you wrong left a long time ago. You have to understand