Instant Daddy. Carol Voss
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going on here?” The woman in the graduation audience he’d identified as Mrs. Chandler hustled into the room.
“Nana!” Jake squealed, pointing with delight.
She strode over to the boy, bent and gave him a hug, then turned to Jessie. “Are you all right?”
“Yes,” Jessie answered curtly.
Peter blinked. Jessie wasn’t even fooling him that she was all right. Did she think she could fool her mother?
Apparently not. Like a mother bear protecting her young, Mrs. Chandler focused distrusting blue eyes on Peter. “Why are you here?”
Even with disapproval written on the older woman’s face, there was no question where her daughters had gotten their Nordic beauty. “I’m sorry to upset you, Mrs. Chandler. I came to Noah’s Crossing to honor Clarissa and to express my deep sympathy to you and your family.”
“Thank you.” Mrs. Chandler’s hand fluttered to her throat, but her direct gaze didn’t falter. “Are you his father?”
“Yes, I believe I am.”
Shaking her head as if she had trouble believing him, Mrs. Chandler turned and walked to the stove. She jerked open the oven door and set a big pan on the counter with a thud. “Where were you when Clarissa needed you?”
Might just as well be blunt. “She didn’t tell me she was pregnant.”
“What?” Mrs. Chandler’s head shot up.
“I didn’t know.”
She glared at him as if she could see straight through him. “Dear Father in heaven…” Her lips continuing to move, she bent her head over her work, lifted a huge hunk of meat from the pan to a cutting board, slid a knife from a large holder on the counter and began slicing.
Peter had never seen anybody wield a knife so fast. In light of her obvious distrust, he was relieved she was carving the meat and not him.
The thunk of the knife pausing, Mrs. Chandler nailed him with her gaze. “Why would she not tell you she was pregnant?”
He wouldn’t allow his gaze to shift away. “Well…she knew I’m dedicated to my work.”
Mrs. Chandler heaved a heavy sigh. “Sounds familiar.” Her tone one of resignation, she began slicing meat at the speed of sound again, as if the practical task helped her make sense of things. “You two must have made quite a couple.”
“We weren’t a couple,” he clarified.
Both women’s questioning gazes flew to his face.
“What I mean is…we…were together only once. I…don’t have time for anything but my work.” Face hot, he shut his eyes. And his mouth. There was no way out of the hole he’d dug himself into. He sounded like he’d used and abandoned the daughter and sister these women loved. Only he and Clarissa knew what happened, and no way was he going to try to explain the situation to her mother and sister.
Mrs. Chandler tore a piece of tinfoil off a roll and began wrapping meat in it. “Just what do you want, Dr. Sheridan? What are you doing here?”
“He wants DNA samples from Jake and me,” Jessie explained.
Mrs. Chandler narrowed her eyes. “If you’re so sure you’re his father, why do you need a DNA test? For legal reasons?”
“DNA confirmation will clear up any questions.”
“Don’t let him have samples, Jess. Not without talking to a lawyer first.”
“I won’t. Did you drop Dad off at home?”
“Yes.” Mrs. Chandler exchanged a look with Jessie.
Unfortunately, Peter couldn’t read it.
“I parked the van right out front,” Mrs. Chandler said.
Jessie walked over and lifted Jake out of his play area as if she had a plan. “Let’s take your musical car with us, okay?”
“Yay.” Jake clapped his hands.
“Are you planning to talk to a lawyer?” Peter asked.
“Yes.”
“Great. I’ll follow you. It will save time so I can get on the road sooner.”
“Leave Jake with me.” Mrs. Chandler gave Peter a worried look, clearly wanting to keep him as far away from his son as she could.
“Mom, you and Lisa will have your hands full with the after-graduation crowd. Uncle Harold and Aunt Lou aren’t coming in until later to help with the supper rush.”
The diner sounded like a family affair. Jessie must have a whole army of relatives. After this run-in with her mother, he sure wasn’t eager to meet her extended family.
Jessie strode past Peter. “You can ride with us.”
He’d feel more in control if he drove. “We can take my car.”
“No. Jake’s car seat is in the van,” Jessie said.
Car seat? He’d heard women in the lab discussing which kind was safest. He’d have to do some research before he bought one for his own car. Whoa, aren’t you getting a little ahead of yourself, Sheridan?
Mrs. Chandler handed a small package of foil-wrapped meat to Jessie. “Take this home with you.”
Home? Had Peter missed something? He needed to get things straight. “After we stop at the lawyer’s, you will bring me back to pick up my car before you go home, right?”
“We’re not stopping at the lawyer’s.” She gave him a sober look. “I’m taking you home to meet my dad.”
Was she kidding? Why would he want to meet her dad? “Some other time, maybe. It’s important I get the cheek swabs ASAP and start the drive back. I have work waiting for me at the lab.”
Jessie narrowed her eyes. “While you talk to my dad, I will call my lawyer.”
Peter saw flint in her beautiful, crystal-blue gaze. Clearly, she was giving him an ultimatum with no room for compromise. He reached to massage his stiff neck.
“While you’re home, Jess, put your feet up for a while,” her mother directed.
“I won’t have time, Mother,” Jessie answered tensely. “I’ll be back by five. Please call if you need me before then.” Frowning, she disappeared through the curtain dividing the room from the customer area.
Peter stared after her. Why couldn’t she call her lawyer from the diner? And why did she insist he talk to her father?
“You’d better catch her if you want a chance at that DNA sample, Dr. Sheridan,” her mother prodded.
Jessie climbed into the van out of the rain, started the motor and pulled away from the curb, back stiff, white-knuckle grip on the wheel. The windshield wipers clacking back and forth irritated her frayed nerves. But they didn’t hold a candle to the passenger beside her. At least his subtly spicy aftershave wasn’t as overpowering in the intimate space as the man himself was.
The idea of taking him home for a talk with Dad had come to her straight out of the blue. If anybody could make Dr. Sheridan think twice before he leapt into un-charted waters, Dad could. Hadn’t he saved her from making bad decisions more than once?
She’d much rather let Dr. Sheridan follow her in the nifty little sports car he’d pointed out to Jake when they got in the van. But insisting he ride with them was the only way to find out all she could about him and his support system. Because if she, indeed, did have to find a way to compromise as Will advised, she wanted to know just how much.
Looking every bit as uncomfortable as Jessie felt, Dr. Sheridan shifted to peer at Jake in his car seat in the back.
“Car,”