Temptation - Brenda Jackson [5]
“Yes, and things are working out great so far. Darius is a good man and I really like this town. In fact, I like it more and more each day.” His gaze then shifted to her and her gaze locked with his as it had done that morning.
The clearing of Dr. Phillips’s throat reminded them they weren’t alone.
“So, what brings you to Royal Memorial, Zeke?” Dr. Phillips asked, and it was evident to Sheila that Dr. Phillips had picked up on the man’s interest in her.
“That baby she’s holding. It was left abandoned at the TCC today with a note claiming Brad’s the father. And I intend to prove that he’s not.”
“In that case,” Dr. Phillips said, “I think we need to go into that private examination room over there and check this baby out.”
A short while later Dr. Phillips slid his stethoscope into the pocket of his lab coat as he leaned back against the table. “Well, this young lady is certainly in good health.”
He chuckled and then added, “And she certainly refused to let anyone hold her other than you, Nurse Hopkins. If you hadn’t been present and within her reach, it would have been almost impossible for me to examine her.”
Sheila laughed as she held the baby to her while glancing down at the infant. “She’s beautiful. I can’t imagine anyone wanting to abandon her.”
“Well, it happened,” Zeke said.
A tingling sensation rode up her spine with the comment and she was reminded that Zeke Travers was in the examination room with them. It was as if he refused to let the baby out of his sight.
She turned slightly. “What makes you so sure she’s not Bradford Price’s child, Mr. Travers? I recall running into Mr. Price a time or two and he also has hazel eyes.”
He narrowed his gaze. “So do a million other people in this country, Ms. Hopkins.”
Evidently he didn’t like being questioned about the possibility. So she turned to Dr. Phillips. “Did that social worker who came by while you were examining the baby say what will happen to Sunnie?” she asked.
Dr. Phillips lifted a brow. “Sunnie?”
“Yes,” Sheila said, smiling. “I thought she was a vision of sunshine the moment I looked at her. And since no one knows her name I thought Sunnie would fit. Sounds better than Jane Doe,” she added.
“I agree,” Dr. Phillips said, chuckling. “And the social worker, Ms. Talbert, is as baffled as everyone else, especially since Brad says the baby isn’t his.”
“She’s not his,” Zeke said, inserting himself into the conversation again. “Brad’s been receiving blackmail letters for five months now, threatening to do something like this unless he paid up.”
Zeke rubbed the back of his neck. “I told him to ignore the letters while I looked into it. I honestly didn’t think the person would carry out their threats if Brad didn’t pay up. Evidently, I was wrong.”
And that’s what continued to bother him the most, Zeke thought as he glanced over at the baby. He should have nipped this nasty business in the bud long ago. And what Ms. Hopkins said was true, because he’d noted it himself. The baby had hazel eyes, and not only were they hazel, they were the same shade of hazel as Brad’s.
He’d asked Brad if there was any chance the baby could be his, considering the fact Brad was a known playboy. But after talking to Brad before coming over here, and now that he knew the age of the baby, Zeke was even more convinced Brad wasn’t the father. Warren had confirmed the baby’s age as five months and Brad had stated he hadn’t slept with any woman over the past eighteen months.
“To answer your question, Nurse Hopkins,” Dr. Phillips said, breaking into Zeke’s thoughts, “Ms. Talbert wants to wait to see what the paternity test reveals. I agreed that we can keep the baby here until then.”
“Here?”
“Yes, that would be best until the test results comes back, that is unless Brad has a problem participating in the test,” Dr. Phillips said, glancing over at Zeke.
“Brad knows that it’s for the best, and he will cooperate any way he can,” Zeke acknowledged.
“But it doesn’t seem fair for Sunnie to have to stay here at the hospital. She’s in perfect health,” Sheila implored.