Desperately Seeking Dad (17 page)

“D
a, da, da, da!” Emilie stood in the stroller and banged on the tray.

“All right, Sweetheart.” Anne maneuvered the stroller through the summertime crowds on the sidewalk. “We'll go to the station and see Mitch.”

The baby plopped back into her seat, apparently satisfied. Emilie hadn't mastered the sound of “Mitch” yet, but that didn't matter. After their wedding this fall, he really would be her daddy.

Anne dodged a tourist with a camera and pushed through the station door. Wanda gave her a welcoming smile.

“Chief!” she shouted. “Anne's here.”

Davey dropped the broom he'd been wielding and rushed to Emilie. “Can I take her out of the stroller, please? I want to show Wanda how she can walk.”

“Of course.” Anne smiled. Emilie held her arms out to the person she considered a big brother, and he lifted her carefully from the stroller.

In the months Davey had been living with Mitch, he'd blossomed. That wary, sullen look was completely gone from his eyes. Neither his father nor any other relative had been located, but Davey's permanent placement with Mitch gave him the security he'd never had before. Perhaps, one day, she and Mitch would be able to adopt him legally, but that wouldn't make him any more their son than he already was.

Trust in the Lord with all your heart.
She still had to remind herself of that each day. God would work out what was right for Davey, in His own time.

The office door opened, and Mitch came toward her quickly. “Anne.” Love shone in his eyes as he kissed her. The mask he'd once worn was gone now entirely, and his face no longer hid his emotions. His feelings were written plainly for her to read.

His arm still around her, Mitch reached for Davey and Emilie. The baby toddled toward them, clutching Davey's hand, beaming.

Mitch swept Emilie up in his arms, and Anne put her hand on Davey's shoulder, drawing him close.

Family.
They were a family. She looked up at Mitch, her heart overflowing with love. She hadn't really known the meaning of the word before. Now, each day, she and Mitch discovered how deep, how blessed their love could be.

She'd come to Bedford Creek to find Emilie's father. God had seen to it that she found so much more.

Dear Reader,

What happens when a man is confronted with the claim that he fathered a child, a claim he knows isn't true? Mitch Donovan popped into my mind one day, complete with all the baggage of a difficult family background that had made him determined never to have children of his own. All I knew about the story was that he'd fall in love with a woman who came complete with baby, and that he wouldn't be able to have the love God intended for him until he learned to forgive.

Thank you for reading my book. I hope you enjoyed Mitch and Anne's story, and that you'll look forward to visiting Bedford Creek again.

I love to hear from readers, and I hope you'll write to me c/o Steeple Hill Books, 300 East 42nd Street, New York, NY 10017.

Best wishes,