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“Holyfield,” I muttered, correcting her.
She pursed her lips at me and continued. “All I’m saying is that the state has a lot of issues regarding the welfare of this child. Frankly, between the parents that bought him in an illegal adoption scheme and the man that rescued him, but is now lying in a hospital bed, I’m not sure either is a great option.”
“I didn’t realize I was in the running,” I snapped. “I don’t suppose anyone wants my opinion on the matter.”
My leg was killing me and everyone making decisions for me wasn’t helping my mood. The idea of taking in a kid right now was just too much, even if I did want to help him. All I could think about was getting some fucking meds.
She turned to me, her eyes pinned to me. “You’re saying that this child means nothing to you.” I didn’t say anything. “You went to great lengths to get him back, despite the fact that your ex-wife lied to you about his paternity. You didn’t have to do that. You could have let the police handle it, but instead, you put yourself in harm’s way for a child that means nothing to you. Is that what you’re telling me?”
I swallowed hard at what she was saying. “I should have looked into it sooner,” I admitted. “The moment I returned home and found her gone, I should have looked for Theo. I thought he was mine all through the pregnancy. It was eating at me all these years, but I did nothing.”
Her face softened at my confession. “And look at all you did the moment you knew he was in danger. That’s why I think you would be a good placement for him.” She sighed and gathered up her things. “If you aren’t interested, please let me know. Until then, I’ll continue going over the case and make my final decision within the next two weeks. I have to discuss this with my supervisor. It’s definitely a unique situation.”
I nodded, but wasn’t sure what more to say.
“Thank you for your time.”
“I’ll walk you out,” the agent said to her, following her out the door. There really wasn’t any reason for him to be here other than to make sure I didn’t say something I wasn’t supposed to. As soon as they left, I hit the button for the nurse repeatedly, though I wasn’t sure it sent a repeated signal to the nurse’s station. Minutes later, the nurse walked in with a cheery expression on her face.
“How are we feeling?”
“Weare feeling like shit,” I bit out.
She stared at me knowingly. “You can get as much attitude as you want with me, Duke. It won’t change how I treat you.”
“Sorry,” I muttered, closing my eyes as I waited for relief.
“It’s okay, sweetie. I know it hurts. There,” she said, rubbing her hand on my shoulder soothingly. “That should make it better. Is there anything else I can get for you?”
“No.”
My eyes flew open and landed on Rae, who was staring at the nurse with a smirk. Damn, this didn’t look good. She was always catching me with women draping themselves on me. The nurse looked down at me and grinned. “I’ll leave you two alone. Let me know if it doesn’t get better.”
She walked out of the room, not at all concerned about the evil eye Rae was throwing her way.
“Down, baby.”
“Seriously, Duke? Is there anyone that doesn’t fall at your feet?”
“Not everyone falls for me,” I grumbled. “In case you forgot, I have an ex-wife.”
“Yes, and she’s your ex because she was convinced she was pregnant with your child. From when you seduced her,” she tacked on.
I shook my head. “I just went to the bar for a good time.”
“And walked out with a woman who wanted you because you’re a sexy mechanic.”
“It’s not because I’m a mechanic,” I snapped.
Her eyes sparkled with humor. “We’ll have to agree to disagree.” She closed the distance between us and sat in the chair beside me. “So, how did it go?”
“Like you’d expect when it comes to the government.” I stared at the ceiling and tried to wrap my brain around what she’d just said to me. “She wants me to consider taking Theo.”
When she didn’t say anything, I turned to her. She wasn’t looking at me, but worse than that was the guilty look on her face.
“You knew.”
“Cash said they were considering you.”
