Bachelor Father. Pamela Bauer
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have to do is ask.”
“There are circumstances that might make it a little awkward,” he said, his eyes still holding hers.
“I often visit the pediatrics unit to read to the patients. This is a hospital, Mr. Novak. I see children with all kinds of illnesses. It won’t be uncomfortable for me. If I can cheer Megan by visiting her, I’d be happy to do so.”
“Her physical condition is not the reason I think it could be awkward for you,” he told her.
“Then what is the reason?”
He took a deep breath, ran a hand over his dark head, then propped a hip on the corner of the desk. “I need to tell you a little about Megan. Maybe you want to sit down.”
She shook her head. “No, I’m fine, thank you.”
He shrugged. “Megan lost her mother last fall. She drowned in a boating accident.”
Faith’s chest tightened. “I’m so sorry. It must have been horrible for both of you.”
“Yes, it was. Losing a parent at such a young age is traumatic. It’s very difficult for a six-year-old to comprehend the concept of death. She had so many questions. I thought I’d answered all of them, but…” He trailed off with a shake of his head.
“I’m sure you did the best you could,” Faith said.
Grimacing, he admitted, “I’m afraid my best wasn’t good enough.”
“Why do you say that?”
“Because no matter how many times I explain that once a person dies and goes to heaven that person cannot come home again, Megan doesn’t believe me.”
“She thinks her mother’s going to come back?” Faith asked in dismay.
“It’s worse. She believes she’s seen her.”
Emotion rose in her throat. “That is very sad.”
“Sad, but true. After surgery when they were moving her from recovery to her room, she saw a woman she believes is her mother.” He looked her straight in the eye and said, “You.”
“Me?” Faith was so startled that she was surprised she could say anything at all.
“Yes, and I can understand her mistake. You do look like Christie.”
Faith gasped. “That’s why you were staring at me? Because I reminded you of your dead wife?” She hated the frantic tone that had come into her voice, but at the moment she was feeling far from calm.
“Yes, you look very much like Megan’s mother,” he said quietly.
“You said she drowned.”
He nodded soberly. “In Lake Superior.” A shadow passed over his face. “That’s what makes this difficult for Megan to understand. They never recovered her mother’s body and for months after her death she believed it was all a mistake.” He continued to talk about the period of adjustment Megan was going through, but Faith had a hard time concentrating on what he was saying. There was only one thought going through her head. They never found her body.
Faith swallowed with difficulty. It couldn’t be. It was too bizarre to even contemplate. She couldn’t be this Christie person whom everyone thought was dead. Lake Superior was over three hours away. What would she have been doing on the side of the road in southern Minnesota if she lived on the North Shore?
“So that’s why I need you to visit Megan,” he said, unaware of the turmoil going on inside her.
With her skin becoming clammy and her heart pounding in her chest she said, “You want me to tell her I’m not her mother?”
“Yes. It’s the only way she’s going to accept that her mother is gone. She won’t listen to me.”
“But you’re her father.” Her legs grew weak beneath her and she reached for the desk to steady herself. “Surely she trusts you to tell her the truth?”
“It’s been a while since I saw her mother.”
She frowned. “But you do remember what she looked like?”
“Yes. She looked very much like you.”
The room began to spin and Adam’s voice grew fainter in her ears.
“That’s why I stared at you the way I did earlier this morning. For a moment, I thought you were Christie. I…”
Faith didn’t hear the rest of what he said because she was falling into darkness.
As she gradually regained consciousness, she heard a man’s voice calling her name. When she opened her eyes, Adam Novak and Mrs. Carmichael were at her side looking very anxious.
“Do you think we should take her to the E.R.?” the older woman asked Adam.
“No, I think she’s coming around,” he answered.
Faith’s first attempt at speaking resulted in silence. She wanted to tell them she was okay, but no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t get the words out.
“I’ll get a glass of water,” Mrs. Carmichael said before disappearing from the room.
As Faith tried to raise herself up, Adam lent her his arm. He felt solid and steady as she used it as a lever.
“Take it slow,” he warned, sliding his other arm around her.
She was tempted to sink back against him. He smelled good—like the forest after a rain—and he was looking at her as if she were a delicate piece of china that might break. A pleasant sensation rippled through her as she caught the look in his eyes.
“I’m okay,” she said, scrambling to her feet and away from his touch.
“You’d better sit for a few minutes,” he said, pushing a chair toward her.
Her legs still wobbly, she did as he suggested. When he hovered over her she said, “You don’t need to worry. I’m not going to do that again.”
“Maybe you should go to the E.R. and have a doctor look at you,” he suggested.
“I live with a doctor. I’ll tell him about it when I get home,” she told him, straightening her smock.
“How are you getting home? I don’t think you should travel alone.”
“I’ll be fine.” She wished he’d quit looking at her with those dark eyes of his.
Mrs. Carmichael returned with a glass of water, which Faith downed in one gulp.
“I don’t think you should go home unescorted.” Mrs. Carmichael echoed what Adam had said. “I’m going to call Dr. Carson to come pick you up.”
Faith didn’t protest, thinking it might be a good idea to talk to the doctor about what she’d just learned. While Mrs. Carmichael was on the phone, she turned to Adam.
“I’m sorry, but I don’t think I should visit Megan just yet,” she told him.
“No, of course not. You need to go home and take care of yourself. I would like to get this all taken care of before much longer, however. We need to put a stop to this fantasy she has that you’re her mother.”
She shook her head. “That might not be possible.”
His eyes narrowed. “Why not?”
Faith took a deep breath and said, “Because there’s a possibility I am her mother.”
ADAM STARED AT FAITH in disbelief. Either she hadn’t heard a word he had said or she truly was ill. He looked at her pale cheeks and her troubled eyes. “I think maybe you should get checked out in the E.R.”
“I told you I’m okay,” she insisted.
“Do you realize what you