“What? No I don’t.” Simone frowned, turned back into the house and sat at the kitchen table. “And before you ask, there’s nothing going on between me and Mitch. I’m only interacting with him because of Shannon and Julia.”
One corner of Kate’s lips curled. Her lawyer had a major case of denial.
“So,” Simone said, pulling a file from her briefcase on the table, “while they’re all occupied outside, I thought we’d go over a few things.”
“Okay.”
“No one seems to know where your Houston doctor is. The man’s simply vanished into thin air.” She slid a paper across to Kate. “This is his last known address. He put in a request for leave from the hospital and said he was taking a ‘mental health’ vacation. That was three weeks ago. I have a PI trying to track him down, but so far nothing.”
Kate’s brow wrinkled.
“I also can’t find anyone by the name of Walter Alexander who fits the description you gave me,” Simone added. “It’s like he never existed.”
“That’s not right.”
“It’s a common name, but the man you’ve told me about doesn’t live in Houston, never did, for that matter. Did you ever hear Jake refer to him by a different name?”
Kate rubbed her throbbing head. “I don’t know. They didn’t exactly get along. Jake avoided him whenever he could.”
“Did he ever say why?”
“No. His relationship with his father was off limits. We never talked about it.”
“Well, see if anything comes back to you. At this point, I want to find Dr. Reynolds first. His disappearance right now is really fishy.”
No kidding. “What about the nursing home?”
Simone let out a breath. “I do have a connection there. Visiting hours run until eight p.m. How do you feel about a little moonlighting tomorrow night?”
“Just tell me when. I need in there.”
“I didn’t think you’d argue. Monday nights seem to be the slowest. Only two security guards on duty and a nursing shift-change around seven thirty. Janitors come on around six. I think that’s our best bet.”
“Okay. Did you say anything to—?”
They both glanced up when the front door opened. Julia and Ryan walked through the archway and into the kitchen. Kate’s stomach tightened.
Julia scowled when her eyes landed on Kate. “Great,” she muttered under her breath.
Ryan squeezed her shoulder. “Be nice,” he mumbled.
Julia headed out to the backyard, letting the patio door slam behind her. It was all Kate could do not to close her eyes and draw in a calming breath.
“Hi, Simone.” Ryan’s forced smile screamed of frustration. “I didn’t know you’d be here.”
“Mitch invited me. I hope that’s not a problem.”
“No, it’s great to see you.” He glanced out the window. “As long as you don’t mind fireworks.”
Simone smiled. “I have a nine-year-old myself. I know the ropes.”
Ryan glanced over at Kate, raised his brows in acknowledgement of her presence, and moved into the kitchen.
Simone cast a quick glance between Kate and Ryan, obviously sensing the tension. She stood and gathered her papers. “Well. I guess that’s it. We can talk more later.” She headed for the refrigerator. “I told Mitch I’d get him a beer.”
The screen door slapped behind her as she left. In the silence that followed, Ryan popped the top off a beer, leaned back against the counter, and took a long pull from the bottle. “I didn’t mean to run her off.”
Nervous tension ran through Kate. Just being in the same room with him reminded her of the insane emotions she’d felt yesterday when she’d looked into his eyes on that stupid park bench. She really didn’t need to be feeling anything for him, especially not those crazy tugs she couldn’t define or understand. And definitely not that low pulse of arousal she had to tamp down whenever he got close.
“We were basically done. I didn’t know you’d be here today.”
“Mitch asked me to come.”
“I see.” Mitch, the peacemaker.
“I can go if you want me to.”
“You don’t need to go on my account.”
His wary gaze rolled over her. It only unnerved her more. She ran a hand over her hair and straightened her back.
He moved to the refrigerator, took out another beer, popped the top, then walked to the table and handed it to her. She looked up in surprise. As her fingers closed around the cool bottle, he sat in the chair Simone had vacated.
She lifted the beer to her lips, took a sip. The amber liquid tasted like heaven. Silence stretched across the table, only heightening her nerves.