An Unlikely Father. Cynthia Thomason

the distance. Then he made his way back to the hotel. Even after spending a couple of hours with Helen, he realized he didn’t know a whole lot more about her than he had when he’d walked into Claire’s shop earlier. But his interest in her had grown considerably.

      HELEN DIDN’T STOP shivering until she turned onto Gulfview Road, and she knew her reaction had nothing to do with the temperature. She was still scolding herself when she pulled into the driveway at her cottage. “Watch yourself, Sweeney,” she said. “The idea is to cement a working relationship with this guy, not to fall for him. You’ve got enough problems without letting your imagination run wild over Ethan Anderson. At least with Donny, you thought there was a chance he might stick around. You know this one won’t.”

      She stepped onto the shellrock drive and slammed the truck door. “Sure, he seems like a nice guy,” she said. “But how many times have you fallen for an act like that?” She stomped to the back porch door and yanked it open. Andy peered up at her from the hardwood floor in the kitchen. “Hello, mutt,” she said.

      She knelt down beside him and rubbed the thick fur at his neck. “We Sweeneys are a stupid lot, aren’t we, big guy? I keep butting my head against a wall thinking some guy is going to really care about me and what I want, and, with a half-dozen doggie beds around this place, you keep sleeping on the floor. Gluttons for punishment, that’s what we are. Too stupid to learn and too old to start over.”

      CHAPTER FIVE

      ETHAN KICKED OFF HIS SNEAKERS, sat on the edge of the bed and took his cell phone out of his pocket. He pressed the single number that connected him to his father’s private line in his Manhattan residence.

      Archie Anderson answered on the second ring. “Hey, son, I’m glad you called back. I just got some disturbing news from Jack. He says you’re moving into Dolphin Run on Sunday.”

      Mentally cursing Jack and the pipeline he always kept open to Archie, Ethan managed to answer in a calm voice, “That’s right. I told you earlier when we talked. I’m having the place cleaned tomorrow and checked for structural problems. If everything looks okay, I’m moving in. Taking charge of the renovations is why I’m here, after all, so it only makes sense for me to live there.”

      “Well, sure, but I would have hoped for a little more notice.”

      Ethan shook his head, tamped down an angry reaction. “Why? So you can get a team of security men over there first?”