Receptionist Under Cover

by C. J. Carmichael

  He glanced helplessly at Nadine, hoping she would help untangle his words for him.

  She gave him a sympathetic look. “As soon as your father knew about you, he tried to find you. Unfortunately it wasn’t easy. He ended up hiring our firm and we were able to trace you, through your aunt Diane, to Calgary. From there it’s been a guessing game as we’ve traveled from one ski resort to another.”

  “It seemed we were always one step behind you,” Patrick added. With hindsight, he could see the humor in the situation, though at the time the tension had almost killed him.

  Stephen asked a few more questions. Was he married? Did he have other kids?

  Patrick answered the boy honestly, but when he tried to ask questions in return, Stephen was evasive—especially when they had to do with his mother.

  “I can’t talk about her yet.”

  Patrick understood. He remembered the pain of losing his own mother. The first six months were the worst. After that, a sense of emptiness had stayed with him for a long time.

  Nadine cleared her throat. “I think I’ll check out the gift shop. Stephen, it was very nice to meet you. Take your time here,” she added to Patrick, before she left.

  Patrick was quiet for a moment. He couldn’t believe the boy sitting across from him was really his son. He realized he’d expected to feel some sort of immediate connection with the boy. But he didn’t.

  Maybe it would come in time. If Stephen was willing to let him be part of his life.

  “I know this is weird,” he said. “But I’d like the chance to get to know you. If you ever want to come back to New York, I’ll buy you a plane ticket. I’ve got tons of air miles.”

  “What do you do?” Stephen asked. “I mean, for a living? Are you some kind of businessman?”

  “Actually I’m a travel writer. When I get home, I’ll mail you some of my books.” He waited for some sign that Stephen was impressed, or at least interested, but the boy remained stoic.

  Patrick swallowed. The emotion of this meeting was getting to him, and his voice was growing hoarse. “Another thing. If you decide you want to go on to college next fall, I’d be glad to help you out.”

  Diane had told Nadine that Stephen was registered at a college near Boston. He waited for Stephen to mention it, but he didn’t.

  All he did was sigh. “Look. You’ve given me a lot to process. I need time to think.”

  “Of course.” Patrick handed him a business card. “You can phone or e-mail anytime.”

  Stephen nodded, then stood. He grabbed his helmet and shifted awkwardly. “So. I guess I’ll be seeing you.”

  Patrick nodded. Then he noticed the letter from June, still encased in the plastic bag. “Hang on. You almost forgot this.”

  He passed Stephen the letter and watched as he stuffed it into his jacket pocket.

  He couldn’t help feeling disappointed. He’d hoped Stephen would read the letter in front of him and tell him what June had written. More than anything, he longed for a fuller explanation of why June had kept this secret for so long.

  But he couldn’t blame Stephen for wanting to read the letter in private. After all, to him, Patrick was just a stranger.

  CHAPTER TEN

  NADINE’S ADRENALINE WAS STILL surging fifteen minutes after she’d left Patrick alone with his son. Too restless to sit, she prowled through the gift shop, finally purchasing bottled Canadian maple syrup and a sweatshirt for Martha. Her parents had no interest in touristy gifts, but their housekeeper would appreciate the thought and Nadine knew she’d make excellent use of the syrup.

  Since Patrick still hadn’t appeared, she ordered a hot chocolate then stood by the entrance to wait for him.

  She was hugely relieved that she had pulled it off. She’d found Stephen and Patrick was finally getting to talk to his son. Their first meeting was going okay—not fabulous, but not terrible, either. Stephen seemed more confused than angry.

  Though maybe anger would come later.

  It was hard to imagine what it must be like for him. To have gone through his life thinking his father was dead. And then to have him show up out of the blue.

  In some ways it would seem like a dream come true, she supposed. But he must also feel cheated, for all the years he’d lost.

  She finished her drink and had just tossed the cup in the trash when Patrick’s son came racing down the stairs.

  She called out his name, but Stephen didn’t even seem to notice her. He was pulling out his cell phone as he ran out the door—probably calling Zach to let him know how the meeting had gone.

  A few minutes later, Patrick came down the stairs, moving a lot more slowly than Stephen had, his face showing signs of the emotional toll the meeting had taken. She waited until he was near then asked, “You okay?”

  If she wasn’t self-conscious after their night together, she would have given him a hug. As it was, she just touched his arm in a supportive gesture.

  He reacted with a weak, brief smile. “I think so.”

  He was clearly overwhelmed. “We’d better get a room in Lake Louise for the night,” she said. At some point they’d need to book flights home. But right now Patrick had enough on his mind.

  They made their way outside. Nadine took a long look at the mountain panorama, and a deep breath of the clear air. It seemed unbelievable that tomorrow at this time she’d be back in the heart of New York City. Some day, she promised herself, she would come back here for a real ski holiday.

  Then she climbed into the driver side of the Subaru. She didn’t even ask if Patrick wanted to drive—he was clearly exhausted.

  She stopped at a hotel close to the highway that looked reasonably comfortable, and Patrick went through the process of booking them two rooms again.

  Nadine was tired by now, too, but there was something she needed to talk to Patrick about before they left this place.

  “Want to grab something for dinner?” she asked.

  “I’m not hungry, but you must be starved. We didn’t have lunch, did we?”

  She was hungry, but right now that wasn’t topping her list of priorities. She just wanted a few quiet moments alone with Patrick.

  They were seated in a dining room that obviously catered to families. A mother and a father and their three little boys were noisily and happily enjoying their meal at the table closest to them. An elderly couple, with windblown faces and dressed in ski gear, sat at the next table over, smiling indulgently at the family.

  Friendly people, Nadine thought, though for what she planned to say, a little more privacy would have been nice. She slid her hands over the polyester tablecloth, then glanced at the laminated menu.

  “It’s not the Emerald Lake Lodge, is it?” Patrick asked.

  “No, but it will do.” There would never be another night like the one they’d spent at that remote mountain paradise. Nadine thought it was probably best that this place was turning out to be so different.

  They both ordered steak and salad and a glass of red wine. With the ordering out of the way, Patrick seemed to lose the last of his energy. He sagged into his chair and sighed.

  “How are you feeling?”

  “I don’t know. Tired, mostly.” His eyes lit up a bit as he looked at her. “Thank you. I haven’t said it yet, but I mean it with all my heart. Thank you for finding him for me. And thank you for being there when I met him.”

  “Y-you’re welcome.” She should tell him the truth now, Nadine thought. She should tell him she was just a receptionist who had decided she was ready for more responsibility. She’d proved that she was capable, right? After all, she’d found his son. How upset could he be that she hadn’t been honest with him from the start?

  But deep inside, she knew that he would be upset.

  And how much truth should she tell him? Should she also mention that her last name was Waverly and that her family owned the hotel chain of the same name and, yes, she was related to the blonde actress/model/attention-seeker, Liz Waverly, who was always o
n the cover of one entertainment magazine or another.

  She could just imagine how Patrick would react to all that.

  Maybe she owed him the truth. Her conscience was nagging her to come clean. But not today. Not after all he’d been through.

  “I just thought of something. Now that you’ve found Stephen, I’m not your client anymore,” he said.

  “Until we’re back in the city, yes, you are,” she insisted.

  “Pity. Does that mean you’re not up for a game of pool? They have a table in the games room, I’m told.”

  “That’s big talk from someone who can hardly keep his eyes open.”

  He laughed. “Yeah. I guess an early night would be a good idea. You know, it’s the damnedest thing. I was so worked up about meeting Stephen, and now that it’s happened—well, I feel kind of letdown. Deep inside I was hoping there would be more of a connection between us. But he just seemed like another kid to me. Isn’t that terrible?”

  Nadine was enough of a romantic to agree. But she wasn’t about to tell him so. She wanted him to feel better, not worse. “It’s going to take time for both of you to adjust.”

  “I suppose…”

  “But that does bring me to a very important subject. Patrick, I think you and Stephen should have your DNA tested.”

  Immediately he stiffened. “We already talked about this. You know how I feel.”

  “It’s a very simple test. I’ve brought a kit with me. We just need a sample of your saliva and his. The results will be back in a few days and the lab we use guarantees almost one hundred percent accuracy.”

  “I appreciate the advice, but if June says he’s my kid, then he’s my kid. Today was awkward enough as it was. I’m not going to ask Stephen for a sample of his DNA.”

  THE NEXT DAY, PATRICK DROVE the Subaru back to the Calgary airport. When he’d booked the flight the night before, there had been only two economy seats available for the Calgary-Toronto leg of the trip. Nadine insisted he take the spot by the window so he could work on his book, leaving her wedged between him and a businessman from Los Angeles.

  Patrick wrote furiously for most of the flight. Finding Stephen had taken an enormous load off his conscience and now his pressing book deadline was at the top of his priority list.

  That didn’t stop him from being very aware of the woman by his side. Her perfume, the way she tucked her hair behind her ears when she read, her addiction to lip gloss, which she put on every hour or so—these small things were constantly drawing his gaze to her.

  Patrick had spent a lot of time traveling and he’d learned that you could tell a great deal about a person from the way they treated flight attendants, taxi drivers, the stranger sitting next to them on the plane.

  Nadine was unfailingly polite. More than that, she was kind, and her sweetness, in turn, seemed to bring out the best in the people she met.

  With Nadine, problems were smoothed over, uncomfortable situations drew a laugh and complaining was never an option.

  He admired her style.

  Every now and then he thought of Stephen. He wondered if June’s son would take up his offer and fly to New York for a visit. He hoped that Stephen would. He knew during their two hours together, they’d barely scratched the surface of what they had to learn about each other.

  An idea for a father-son skiing trip began to take shape in his mind…then he realized they were hardly at that stage, yet. Maybe they never would be. Wearily, he turned his attention back to his writing.

  They landed in New York before midnight on Tuesday. As Patrick hauled their suitcases into the back of a taxi, he reflected that so much had happened, he felt like a different man than the one who had packed this suitcase four short days ago.

  On the drive to Manhattan, Nadine was quiet. He wondered if she was glad that their time together was ending.

  Or did she, like him, hope that their time together was actually beginning?

  He touched her shoulder. She’d been looking out her window for so long, he was beginning to think she was avoiding him. “Will you have dinner with me on Saturday night?”

  She shifted uneasily. “Won’t you be busy with your writing?”

  “I allow myself breaks for meals.”

  She sighed. “I still don’t think it’s a good idea.”

  “If you’re worried about my deadline—”

  “No. Patrick, a lot has happened on this trip.”

  Wasn’t that the truth.

  “You need some time to let it all sink in. And I need some time to process, too.”

  “But I thought, once I wasn’t your client—”

  “The dust hasn’t fully settled on that, either. Let me write my final report and send you an invoice.”

  “And then…?”

  “We’ll see.”

  There was much she wasn’t saying. He had no idea what was troubling her, or how to get her to open up to him again, the way she had that night at the Emerald Lake Lodge.

  Maybe she was just tired. He hoped that was it.

  As they drove over the bridge into Manhattan, the driver asked, “Where to now?”

  Nadine gave him Patrick’s address.

  He frowned. “I’d rather you were dropped off first.”

  “Your place is closer,” she countered.

  He couldn’t argue with that because he had no idea where she lived.

  He was suddenly struck by how much she knew about him, and how little he knew about her. Was that because she was naturally a better listener than a talker?

  Or had she purposefully guarded her privacy? Maybe he’d mistaken her natural warmth and kindness for something more.

  Maybe he wasn’t even the first client she’d spent the night with.

  No. He couldn’t believe that she hadn’t shared at least some of his feelings. She hadn’t just been passionate and giving with her lovemaking, but also warm and affectionate in the hours after.

  With her in his arms, he’d known he was holding something rare and precious. Now, as she sat quietly beside him, so close, but in reality very far away, he could feel what they’d had—what he’d thought they had—slipping through his fingers.

  NORMALLY NADINE HAD NO TROUBLE falling asleep but that night she got a taste of what life was like for chronic insomniacs like Lindsay. She longed for the respite of sleep, but her mind kept flashing back to special moments she’d spent with Patrick. The way he’d laughed, both impressed and disbelieving, when she’d beat him at pool. His amazing grace and speed on the ski hill. His habit of smiling at her during odd moments when she was doing something utterly routine, like reapplying her lip gloss.

  Then there were the memories of making love, and these were the most distracting of all. She’d never had a man kiss her or touch her quite the way that Patrick had. He’d made her feel utterly desirable and precious.

  Nadine tossed restlessly in bed. She’d wanted to say yes when he’d asked her out to dinner. But she couldn’t accept another date with him until he knew the whole truth about her. She was paying the price for her deception now. If she had been honest from the beginning, Patrick would probably be in bed with her tonight. Now—he might never be again.

  When the light of dawn finally inched through the slats of her blinds, she would have been grateful except for one thing. She had to go to work. And going to work meant telling the others what she had done.

  In her daydreams this was supposed to be her moment of triumph. She’d solved her first case. Lindsay, Nathan and Kate, awed at her skill and resourcefulness, immediately invited her to be a partner. She was given her own office, and new business cards that read Nadine Kimble, Private Investigator.

  But now—one and a half hours later—as she unlocked the door to the office, she felt only shame and remorse.

  There was only so often you could fib, bend the truth and lie by omission before you started to feel your integrity being stripped away. Proving she could handle the job had not been worth the price she’d paid.
/>   Nadine started a fresh pot of coffee, anxious for someone to show up so she could make her confession and get it over with. But when Lindsay and Nathan finally arrived, at ten minutes to nine, they clearly had their minds on other matters.

  “Thank God, you’re back.” Lindsay handed Nathan her coat, then brushed her windswept hair off her face. “This place has been crazy without you. I have a new client coming in ten minutes, and after that I have appointments outside the office for the rest of the day.”

  “Did you have a good holiday?” Nathan asked, hanging his and Lindsay’s coats in the closet.

  Before Nadine could answer, he added, “If you’re not too busy, I could use some help with background checks. I’ve got a batch that’s due at the end of the week and I’m running late because I’ve been handling Kate’s work, too.”

  “Why have you—”

  “That’s the other thing,” Lindsay said. “Kate’s OB has put her on bed rest. Can you believe it?”

  “Is she okay? And the baby?”

  “Physically they’re both fine, but mentally…well you can imagine how much Kate loves bed rest.”

  “Poor Jay.”

  “Yes, exactly.” At the sound of approaching footsteps from the hall, Lindsay groaned. “Just my luck. My client must be early. Nadine, can you bring us coffee in the boardroom?” She paused long enough to kiss Nathan, then disappeared into her office.

  As a worried-looking, middle-aged woman stepped into reception, Nadine resigned herself to the fact that her confession was going to have to wait awhile.

  IT WASN’T UNTIL AFTER TEN that the office finally grew quiet enough for Nadine to start on the paperwork for Patrick’s case. Lindsay and Nathan were gone for the day and the phone had stopped ringing. Nadine started with the billing, calculating her hours and applying the total against the advance Patrick had given her.

  It turned out that he owed her several hundred dollars, but as he had picked up all the travel expenses of their trip, she decided not to bill him. She printed a copy of the invoice, attached Patrick’s check to it, then left it in Nathan’s in-tray to be included in his next batch of deposits.