The Heart Surgeon's Secret Son

Hadn’t it been easy for Leona to convince her that she was nothing more than a casual fling to Daniel? That she’d ruin his life if she forced her “brat” on him? If she loved Daniel so much, how could she rob him of his dreams?

Ultimately, she hadn’t been able to tell him so she’d broken up with him over the Christmas holidays with the story that she’d met someone while he’d been away.

And after minimal fuss he’d believed her and flown back to Boston.

She wouldn’t go home until Daniel knew the truth. The truth she’d been too young, scared and insecure to tell him fifteen years ago.

No matter what the consequences, she’d make the right choice this time and let Daniel choose the role he would play in her and Ryan’s lives.

She logged out of her account, glanced at the time on the right of the computer screen and wondered what to do to fill the remainder of her wait.

Maybe she could watch the clip on the CRT again that Gregory had pulled up on Monday.

Or play that game of solitaire.

She clicked on the start icon, which pulled up the menu. Aha. Solitaire. She moved the cursor over the game, but was distracted by a folder labeled “My Photos.”

He probably didn’t even have any photos and it was just something that had come with the computer.

She had no right to pry. None whatsoever.

Yet the cursor slid over to “My Photos.” And clicked, which started

an obviously preprogrammed slide show.

Daniel did have photos. Apparently, he’d recently taken a trip out to the Grand Canyon and had some amazing shots.

Some not so amazing ones of him with a skinny blonde who’d also gone on the trip.

There were a couple of ski trips to Boulder. Group holidays—she recognized several of the doctors Daniel worked with, including Greg.

A different blonde accompanied Daniel on each trip.

Jealousy clenched her heart and she had to remind herself that she had no right to be jealous of anything in Daniel’s past.

Telling herself and convincing herself were two different things.

She moved the mouse, intending to close the file, but when she moved the cursor it closed the slide show and pulled up his photo folders.

One was marked “Home.”

She bit the inside of her lip, feeling criminal for prying through his personal photos, yet her curiosity was too strong not to want to see where Daniel lived.

Only it wasn’t photos of his current home that came up. It was a snapshot of him and his mom standing in front of their Georgia home and one of her sitting on the trunk of his car only weeks before she’d discovered she was pregnant.

Memories flooded her. The hot metal of his car had burned through her thin cotton shorts. There had been a light breeze, which explained why her hair had a bit of a flyaway look. But she looked happier than she recalled ever being.

Her eyes practically glowed with amusement and her mouth turned upward in a half smile, half pout. She recalled that she’d been teasing Daniel to put away the camera and come and kiss her.

He’d done much more than that.

“About finished?” Daniel asked, entering the office with a stack of papers.

Kimberly clicked to close the photos so quickly that Daniel had to see her guilt. But he only dropped the papers onto his desk and grinned.

“You spying for secrets to sell Cardico?”

“No,” she gasped, shocked at his question, but more appalled at herself because she had been spying. For herself rather than for her company.