A number of questions flooded Dex’s mind. He still didn’t understand why Halston Parker had stopped their divorce. He watched the older man try to raise his hand up to him. Dex knew the attempt was draining on him, so he took the frail hand in his.
“Regardless of whether the divorce is valid or not, it was Caitlin’s decision to end our marriage, Mr. Parker, not yours. You didn’t do anything to me personally so there’s no reason for you to ask my forgiveness,” Dex replied harshly.
Halston Parker shook his head weakly. “I made her choose between the two of us, and I never should have done that. I used her one weakness, her love for me, to turn her away from you. Don’t you understand? I pressured her.”
“But the decision was still hers, not yours,” Dex stated sharply. A part of him hardened at the man’s words. What was Caitlin’s father driving at? Why was he attempting to find excuses for the decision his daughter had made? As far as Dex was concerned, there was no acceptable excuse.
Halston Parker removed his hand from Dex’s and offered it to Caitlin. She tenderly took his outstretched hand. She had been standing quietly by Dex’s side as tears streamed down her face. “Will you forgive me for being so selfish and for thinking more of my happiness than of yours, Caitlin?”
Caitlin’s breath caught her in throat, making speech difficult. “Dex’s right, Daddy. It was my decision, so don’t ask either of us to forgive you. I love you very much.”
“And I love you, baby-girl. I don’t want to leave you alone,” he said, his voice taut and thick with emotions and worried concern.
“I won’t be alone, Dad. I have Jordan.”
A lone tear fell from the older man’s eye as he slowly nodded. “You’ve been the joy of my life. Every man should have a daughter such as you to love. No man should be cheated out of that.” He turned his attention back to Dex. “Promise me you’ll take care of Caitlin. Please take care of my baby for me. Promise me.”
Dex had not been prepared for this request and his gaze quickly flew to Caitlin. She refused to meet his eyes, and he couldn’t help but see the way she was clenching her teeth to keep from crying out. Her body began trembling as silent tears continued to stream down her face. This was an enormous ordeal for her. How would she feel if he were to make a promise like that to her father? And who on earth was Jordan? Was he a new man in her life? If so, why was her father asking him to come back into her life when it appeared she was involved with someone else? Was Halston Parker trying to manipulate his daughter’s life even now with one foot in the grave?
Dex gazed down into the older man’s face. Glassy eyes watched him, waiting for his answer. He didn’t have to be a doctor to know the man’s condition was going downhill and fast. He was fighting just to keep his eyes open. The man lay facing imminent death, and more than anything he needed the assurance that his daughter would be taken care of.
Without any further thought, Dex answered. “I promise to take care of Caitlin and to do what I can for her, Mr. Parker.”
Halston Parker released a long, ragged breath, accepting Dex’s promise. He closed his eyes and moments later his breathing became deep and even. Wordlessly, Dex and Caitlin sat in the chairs next to the bed.
Seconds became minutes. Minutes ticked into hours. Before the dawning of a new day, Halston Parker’s breathing stopped.
He was gone.
Chapter 3
T he sun was shining bright in the midmorning sky when Dex and Caitlin walked out of the hospital. It wasn’t even ten o’clock yet, but already the day promised to be miserably hot, which wasn’t unusual for a day in mid-June.
Caitlin squared her shoulders and tried to keep all the grief of losing her father at bay, but found she couldn’t. Swallowing, she blinked back a surge of fresh tears.
“I’m driving you home, Caitlin. Where’re you parked?”
The touch of Dex’s arm around Caitlin’s shoulder penetrated deeply. Sniffing, she angled her head to look up into his eyes. To her surprise, they were filled with compassion, something she hadn’t expected. Feeling a lump form in her throat, she answered in a choked voice. “My car is parked over there.”
When they arrived at her father’s home, Caitlin covered her face with her hands and began crying openly in heart-wrenching, strangled sobs. Dex turned off the car’s ignition, pushed the seat back and gently pulled her into his lap.
“That’s it, get it all out. Everything’s going to be all right, Caitlin. Your father isn’t in any more pain. He’s at peace,” Dex whispered softly, tenderly cradling her in his arms.
When her sobs turned to soft whimpers, she lifted her tear-stained face to his. “Dad didn’t get a chance to see Jordan for the last time,” she said brokenly.
Dex’s hand stopped stroking Caitlin’s hair and back. His eyes darkened. “I gather Jordan means a lot to you.”
Caitlin frowned at his words. She then began wiping her eyes with trembling hands. “Of course. Jordan is my life.”
Dex felt a surge of renewed pain and anger. He had to clamp down on his teeth to keep from lashing out at the thought of her deep feelings for another man. He stared hard at her. “Since he’s your life, why hasn’t he made you his? I would think under the circumstances, he’d be here for you.”
Confusion covered Caitlin’s face. “What are you talking about?”
Dex’s voice was as hard as his eyes and held a steely edge when he continued. “I’m talking about this person named Jordan. Never mind, he’s your problem, not mine. My only concern is the promise I made to your father, and I intend to keep it. I’ll not leave before the services. After that, I have no intention of staying a minute longer. I’ll contact Clayton to fly in as soon as the services for your father are over. If your father’s claim is true, and there’s a possibility that we’re still married, I’ll make sure Clayton does whatever has to be done to legalize our divorce. Then you can continue your life with Jordan.”
Caitlin’s eyes grew wide with startled surprise with Dex’s words. He acted like he didn’t know who Jordan was? But how could he not know? She had written to him so he had to know. But if he really didn’t…
Panic seized Caitlin when she thought of that possibility. She skittered away from Dex and quickly got out of the car.
Dex raised a questioning brow. He watched Caitlin at her front door fumbling nervously with her keys before opening the door and going inside the house.
He tilted his head back against the car seat and closed his eyes, totally bewildered. What in the world was going on? When he’d mentioned the other man, Caitlin had acted as though she was having an anxiety attack. Something wasn’t right, and he intended to find out what was going on.
Dex sighed deeply. He wondered if her actions had anything to do with the letter Dr. Flores had discreetly given to him at the hospital. It was a letter Halston Parker had asked Dr. Flores to give to him. No doubt it was another chunk to add to this bizarre puzzle to which only Caitlin’s father had all the pieces. Instead of reading the letter when Dr. Flores had handed it to him, he had stuffed the envelope in his pocket to read later. He wasn’t ready to read anything Caitlin’s father had written to him. He was still trying to recover from the old man’s claim that he and Caitlin were still legally married.