But she was thinking about him. His kiss. His kid.
And still had no information.
I don’t even want kids,she repeated to herself. Her childhood wasn’t the best, despite her mother’s gargantuan efforts to give her a stable home. Her mother tried pouring enough love into Kady for both parents. But a shadowy corner in Kat’s heart couldn’t be touched by her mother.
It was reserved for her father.
And Kady needed to know, more than this job, whether or not the man who abandoned her had a soul and loved her at all. It was a crazy obsession of Kady’s that she really should seek therapy for, but Kady didn’t have the time to fit that into her schedule. It was just a question; no need to spend months or years in therapy over it. Did he love her at all?
And what was his excuse for never acknowledging her?
And that’s why I don’t want to have kids.They could really get messed up by the decisions of their parents. Kady didn’t want to take that chance. To risk influencing an innocent kid beyond repair.
You’re not beyond repair. You’re fine. You just want a question answered.
She already guessed that acknowledging her would ruin his relationship with his other daughters and his wife. But had he suffered in silence over not raising his other daughter? Not seeing her?
Her mother had said the man was wholly selfish. He’d wanted nothing to do with Kady after numerous attempts by her to find him. If only text messaging and Facebook had been commonplace back when Kady was a child. With no easy way to find the man, Kady’s mother had given up.
Not me. I’m too close.
“Can this information about Wes be exploited at all?”
“No,” Kady said firmly. “Him having a child has nothing to do with Drew Callaghan or campaign fund fraud.”
Yates leaned back in his chair and interlaced his fingers, his expression thoughtful. “I’m not so sure. They could be in it together, remember? If he has a kid, he might need the money. Does the child attend private school? How many kids does he have? Maybe he’s hard up for money.”
“Sir, I don’t know the answers to those questions.”And I’m not going to find out.
He looked pointedly at her. “Well, I want you to answer them.”
“I’m having dinner with the Callaghans on tomorrow.”
Yates sat up straighter. “What? Kady, why didn’t you lead with that?”
“My bad. Look, Wes isn’t all that important now that I’m in. Agreed?”
“If you’re truly in.”
“Drew Callaghan invited mepersonally. Said I should meet his wife since I’m working for her. Everyone at the bakery is close. It’ll be easier to get the information if I work Katrina than Wes.” And I’d sleep at night too.
Yates rubbed at his mustache. “You might have a point.”
“I’m backing off of Wes.”
“Hold on. Nothing and no one is off the table.”
Kady groaned. “Sir—”
“You like this guy, don’t you?” He leaned over his desk, his gaze unrelenting. “That’s why you’re having trouble with this.”
“He’s got a kid, sir!”
“You didn’t know that before! You’ve been weird about him since day one. Has something happened between the two of you?”
Nothing except a kiss.It was hardly a marriage proposal. A kiss meant nothing these days. “No, sir,” she said softly.
“Eh, I don’t believe you. But keep your secrets. As long as you’re getting results. And dinner with the Callaghans is impressive.” He relaxed back, a grin on his face. “Have you worked out the game plan?”
