Page 106 of Winter Vows

“She’s still not eating?” Dylan asked.

“Not so you’d notice. And she can’t afford to lose any weight,” Lizzy said.

Dylan thoroughly surveyed Kelsey when he walked into the kitchen and spotted her bent over, scrubbing out the refrigerator. Obviously, she was on another cleaning binge. He found himself agreeing with Lizzy. Even after a few days, her clothes were looser. More important, when she glanced up, her face looked drawn and pale.

Seeing him, though, put bright patches of color on her cheeks, right along with a frown. Dylan badly wanted to kiss her to heighten that color even more, but decided against it. To many fascinated onlookers. Instead, he opted for going on the offensive before she got any brilliant ideas about tossing him right back out the door. He pulled out a chair, then gestured toward it.

“Have a seat,” he suggested.

Kelsey didn’t budge. In fact, her chin lifted a defiant notch. She pinned his brother with a look. “Who is he?”

“This is my brother. Jeb, this is Dr. Kelsey James.”

“I’m sorry about your little boy,” Jeb said.

“Thank you.” Her gaze shifted back to Dylan. “I thought I’d made myself clear last night. I don’t want you on this case.”

“Which is why Jeb is stepping in.”

“He’s a private investigator, too?”

“Part-time,” Jeb said, before Dylan could respond. “I ask the tough questions that Dylan’s too nice to ask.”

She blinked rapidly at that. “Oh?” she said, visibly nervous.

Jeb nodded, his expression still deceptively cheerful. “Such as, what is your ex-husband really after?”

“Excuse me?” Kelsey’s voice faltered. She sank onto the chair Dylan was holding. “I’m not sure I understand.”

“Sure you do,” Jeb corrected. “You’re a smart woman. It’s bound to have occurred to you that your ex-husband hasn’t taken Bobby so he can bond with the boy or go off on some grand adventure.”

“I suppose,” she admitted grudgingly. “Well, then, why has he taken him?”

“Because he’s not a very nice man,” Kelsey snapped.

“I think we can all agree to that,” Dylan said. He rested a hand on Kelsey’s shoulder. The muscles were tight with tension. His touch didn’t seem to be helping. If anything, she stiffened more.

“Does he want money?” Jeb persisted. “After all, you’re a doctor. You’re friends with the most important family in town. He’s got to figure you’d be good for some cash.”

“This isn’t about money,” Kelsey said tersely.

The quick negative responses proved to Dylan that she knew exactly what Pauldidwant.

“But you do have something he wants, don’t you?” Jeb prodded.

His gaze met hers with the kind of direct, penetrating stare that few people could ignore. Kelsey was no exception. Dylan felt her tremble, even though she held her own gaze defiantly steady.

“Don’t mistake me for my brother, Kelsey,” Jeb said, his gaze hardening. “I’m not going to let you off the hook. I’m going to come at this from a hundred different directions, if that’s what it takes to get you to open up. We’ll try the direct approach one more time. What does Paul James want from you in return for giving back your son?”

A tear spilled from Kelsey’s eyes and rolled down her cheek. Lizzy jumped up. “That’s enough,” she said. “Leave her alone. She’s not on trial here. Can’t you see you’re just upsetting her more? Hasn’t she already been through enough?”

Dylan felt some of the tension drain out of Kelsey as she finally shook her head, evidently resigned to the inevitable. She touched a restraining hand to Lizzy’s arm. “It’s okay. I’ll tell him. I should have told someone when this first started.”

Lizzy stared at her. “Are you sure?”

“What difference does it make now?” But instead of looking at Jeb, she eased around in the chair until she could meet Dylan’s gaze. “Paul wants drugs, prescription painkillers,” she blurted in a rush. “He’s addicted to them. He has been for a couple of years now.”

“And that’s why you left him?” Dylan guessed, more relieved than shocked by the admission. Finally, they had something to work with.

---