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He looked surprised by the question. “I—guess I don’t really know that.”

“Did Corrine know about your affair with my mother?” She held his gaze. “Did she know Anna was pregnant?”

He flushed. “Yes, she knew about the affair. I told her about Anna when I broke off our engagement. About ten days later, when Anna wasn’t answering my phone calls, I received the letter. A few weeks later, Corrine told me she was pregnant with our child. We were high school sweethearts. I cared about her, so I agreed to go through with the wedding as planned.”

“How do you know Corrine didn’t write this?” She gestured to the note.

“It’s not her handwriting.” Doug frowned, then added, “But if half of what that Texas Ranger said is true, then I wouldn’t put it past Corrine to have gotten someone else to write it.”

“Oh, it’s all true.” Nina hardened her tone. “But what I don’t understand is why your wife tried to kill me? How did she learn Anna was pregnant?”

“I don’t know.” He rubbed his hands over his face. “I honestly don’t know.”

Nina wondered if Ellen Carter may have said something to Daniel Cartland, who in turn mentioned it to his older brother Robert, Zane’s father. And if so, they’d need to find out why Robert would have mentioned Anna’s pregnancy to Corrine. Unless of course, Corrine was stalking Anna, trying to find out information on the woman who’d captured Douglas’s heart.

She eyed Doug. “It wasn’t just me, my Uncle Mark was killed, too. I guess Corrine may have thought that if I met with Mark I’d discover my true identity, but that still doesn’t explain why she’d go to such lengths to get rid of me.”

Doug hung his head, staring at the letter. Then he sighed again and looked up at her. “Because I created a trust indicating my estate would be passed down to my children, including any that were deemed mine as verified from a DNA match.”

That was the final piece of the puzzle. Or was it? “Are you telling me you have other illegitimate children out there?”

He flushed again. “No. I was true to Corrine throughout our marriage. But if I’m being honest, I had always wondered if part of the reason Anna moved on to another man was because she was pregnant.” Guilt flashed in his eyes. “I should have gone to see her. Should have forced the issue.”

Yeah, he should have. She frowned. Was he telling the truth? She didn’t know. “Isn’t Corrine a hotshot defense attorney? Why does she care if your oil company has to be split between your son and another child?”

“Because she wants it all to go to Colin. And because she doesn’t want anyone to know that I was about to walk away from her twenty-eight years ago.” His cheeks flushed with shame. “And the biggest reason of all was because I had an affair with a teenager. I thought your mother was eighteen. I couldn’t believe it when I learned she was only seventeen. That’s not an excuse. I knew she was young, and innocent. Now that I now Anna was pregnant with you, it all makes a sick kind of sense.”

“If Corrine learned I was your child, I’m surprised she didn’t kill me at the same time she eliminated my mother.” Nina wasn’t sure how she felt about this man who’d fathered her. The letter that was supposedly written by Anna put some things in perspective, but she still felt like Doug had taken the easy way out.

He shook his head. “Corrine isn’t a saint, but I find it hard to believe she would shoot your mother.”

“My mother wasn’t just shot in the abdomen. She was badly beaten, especially around the face.” From what little Nina had heard about the shooting outside the rental property, Corrine likely hadn’t done the dirty work herself. She’d hired it out. Maybe the goal had been to make her mother’s death appear to be an accident. A robbery gone wrong. Which is why her mother’s ID had been taken.

“I swear I didn’t know.” Doug’s gaze beseeched her to believe him. “I would never have hurt Anna. Never!”

“But you did hurt her.” Nina wasn’t ready to let him off the hook. She pulled her mother’s photograph from her pocket and shoved it at him. “This is your fault. You shouldn’t have had an affair. You should have broken off your engagement before you even started seeing Anna. You shouldn’t have turned your back on her, based on a note.”

“You’re right.” Doug’s low admission surprised her. He stroked a fingertip down the photo. “I didn’t hit her or pull the trigger, but my actions or, rather, inactions directly led to your mother’s death. And for that, I’ll never forgive myself.”

She jumped to her feet, suddenly desperate for some distance. Maybe her father wasn’t all bad, but she almost wished she hadn’t gone down this path of searching for the truth. To be fair, they may never know exactly who Corrine had hired to kill her mother. Twenty-eight years was a long time.

Maybe her father would find a way to convince his wife to cooperate with the investigation.

And really, if not for her father’s ill-fated affair, Nina wouldn’t be standing here right now. Maybe God worked in mysterious ways.

Nina walked toward the window overlooking the hospital parking lot. The sun had risen, casting a warm glow over the landscape.

Her father’s love for her mother seemed genuine. Yet it was that same love that had caused so much heartache. Not just lost love, but stolen lives. Especially her mother’s and her Uncle Mark’s.

Which brought her back to her current situation. And to Jackson. Despite her efforts to the contrary, she’d fallen in love with him.

Loving a ranger wasn’t something she’d wanted. She’d thought she’d loved Sean, only to realize he wasn’t committed to their relationship. She should know better than to love Jackson. Yet much like the love that had grown between her biological parents, logic didn’t matter. What should or shouldn’t be didn’t make any difference. She tried to accept the way her father had at least intended to do the right thing. Despite failing miserably.

Yet she could see how it had happened. Her mother’s letter on the heels of learning of Corrine’s pregnancy. She’d wanted her father to fight for her mother. Instead, he’d left her alone.

Alone. The way she felt right now. Nina rested her forehead against the glass window. Even after she walked away from Jackson, he’d always have her heart.

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