The woman caught up with the little girl and pulled her to a halt, using an arm around her shoulders to keep her close. She then turned and looked at Kaleb. Maybe looked wasn’t the right word. Glared was more like it. “And who are you?”
She was worried. Not angry. And Kaleb could certainly understand why after what had happened. “I work here. I’m Kaleb McBride.”
She looked closer. “You’re the man who helped Maddy, during...” She glanced down at her charge and then took two steps forward until she and Chloe were directly in front of him. “She told me what you did. I owe you. Big-time. It’s like you were meant to be there.”
“Well, I don’t know about that.”
“Oh. I do.” She looked at him with new eyes. “Would you mind taking me to Maddy’s office? This hospital is so huge, I always end up getting lost, and we’re supposed to have lunch together.” She gave him a meaningful look. “She’s been worried. Ever since. And she feels guilty, even though she tries to hide it.”
Kaleb didn’t like the idea of Maddy living in fear and guilt. But he knew from experience that trauma could last long after the event was over. Maybe she should talk to the counselor the hospital had hired.
“I’ll be happy to.”
The little girl, who’d been silent up to this point, evidently decided he wasn’t a threat. “Hi. I’m Chloe.” She held up a naked doll that was half her size. “And this is Patsy.”
Roxy rolled her eyes. “I tried to talk her into putting clothes on her, but—”
“Mommy has to choose her lunch outfit.”
The woman lifted a large shopping bag emblazoned with the name of a doll company and gave an amused smile. “Yes, and we have Patsy’s entire wardrobe with us, right down to six pairs of shoes. And a cat costume.”
Kaleb smiled. “Maddy told me you were a costume designer.”
“She did, did she?” Roxy glanced at him again, brows up.
“I saw her at the convention.”
Those arched brows went even higher. “You were at the masquerade party?”
“Not exactly.” Evidently Maddy hadn’t told her sister what had happened with the costume. “I was there for the hospital fund-raiser on the fifteenth floor.”
“So how did you see her at the convention? She wasn’t out of costume, was she? That’s a big no-no.”
“We...left together.”
There. That was the best he could do without spilling the beans.
“Oooooh!” Roxy expanded that single syllable until he thought she was going to pass out from lack of oxygen.
Chloe tipped her doll, cradling it in her arms like a baby. “I can’t wait to see Mommy. Is her office far?”
Kaleb’s attention came back to the little girl with a bump as he tried not to think about how much he missed these kinds of conversations, back when life was normal and good. He’d better just take the pair to Maddy’s office, so he could be on his way. “No, not too far. If you’ll follow me, I’ll show you where she is.”
The whole way up the elevator, Chloe kept up a running commentary on what she wanted to have for lunch. Probably three or four years old, with huge shining eyes and a quick smile, she was certainly a charmer. And a talker. His own Grace had been quiet and reserved. But she’d been the love of his life.
He clenched his jaw and tried not to do what he did every day. Attempt to draw up the memory of his daughter’s face only to have his brain glitch and fumble the pieces until they were impossible to fit together. Which was probably why he should have a few snapshots on his mantel at home. But it just hurt too much to see her healthy and alive, when at the end she’d been so very ill.
It was also hard to listen to another little girl having the conversations that Grace should have been able to have. If she’d lived past the age of two.
They arrived on Maddy’s floor, and he started down the hallway, only to feel a small hand grab his. The tension in his body ramped up to an all-time high. He glanced over at Maddy’s sister to find Roxy fixing him with a speculative gleam that was even more pointed. And ridiculous. He and Maddy were not hooking up.
Although he had to admit the thought had crossed his mind more than once the first time he’d seen her emerge from the head of that costume. But she’d just lived through a horrifying experience. The last thing she wanted or needed was a superficial one-night stand.
And she had a young daughter. Another big strike against the idea. Not just because it wasn’t easy to find alone time with a child in tow, but because Kaleb’s insides were twisted in knots from just this short encounter with Chloe.
If he were smart, he would just point the pair in the direction of Maddy’s office and send them on their way, but that would mean he would have to shake off the little girl’s grip, and he didn’t want to do that. But once she let go of him to hug her mother, he could simply withdraw and leave them to it.
Before he could knock on the door, though, it opened, and a woman stepped into the hallway, followed by Maddy. She stopped whatever she’d been saying midsentence to look at him.
“Hi, Mommy!”
Chloe’s excited greeting caused her glance to slide down Kaleb’s arm until it collided with her daughter. Then her eyes jumped back to his before returning to her patient. Confusion changed to a darker emotion.
She placed a protective hand on the little girl’s head, her voice calm and collected as she finished giving her instructions to the woman, but there’d been a moment of horror in her gaze when she’d realized he was holding Chloe’s hand. Because of what had happened with Matthew almost a week ago?
Kaleb opened his hand to try to release the girl’s, but the little girl’s fingers stubbornly squeezed tighter. Roxy was practically crowing with delight on the other side of him, despite her sister’s obvious discomfort. He ignored her.
After walking a few more steps with her patient, Maddy reminded the woman to call if she had any questions or concerns. And then all her attention swiveled back to them. She squatted on her haunches and held out her arms. Right on cue, Chloe thrust the still-naked doll into Kaleb’s hands and leaped into her mother’s embrace. “You have to help me dress Patsy. I couldn’t find anything for her to wear.”
His lips curved despite himself.
“Really?” Maddy murmured, her expression clearing. “What about that shopping trip you and Aunt Roxy went on? Surely you found something for her.”
“Yes. But I want her to be pretty when I fly my kite.”
“Kite?”
Roxy shifted. “I may have mentioned the kite festival the hospital puts on every year. Surely you heard about it.”
“Yes, but after what happened I didn’t expect to...”
Maddy’s sister frowned. “Of course we’re going. All of us. It’s a family event. And God knows you need something to take your mind off things. I go every year, and since you live here now—and since you work at the hospital that hosts it—we have to take part in it. It’ll be great.”
“Who did you go with before?”
“That’s something I’d rather not talk about.” Roxy set the bag of doll clothes on the ground, then bent down and scooped Chloe up with a comical roar, sending the girl into hysterical giggles.
Kaleb wanted to hand over the doll and get the hell out of there before things got deeper than they already were. But it looked as if there was no escape. Especially when Maddy stood up, putting her directly in front of him. She didn’t quite