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Kerry clamped her hand over her mouth in horror. Theo and his brother were plotting to take Hallie’s child away from her.
She started shaking violently, suddenly revisiting all the pain and misery of her own childhood. She felt sick, remembering the heartbreak and despair—the utter wretchedness—of her own true mother, who had been unable to bear having her baby daughter taken from her.
Kerry could not stand by and let that happen to Hallie. She had to try and save her friend the anguish that her mother had suffered. Maybe if her mother had been allowed to keep her baby she would still be alive today.
Suddenly Kerry found herself backing unsteadily away from the study doorway. Her throat was tight, her stomach was knotted painfully and her mind was spinning with horrible memories that made it impossible to think straight. All she knew was that she couldn’t let them take Hallie’s child away from her.
She turned and ran to find her friend. She had to warn her.
She charged into the luxury apartment Hallie shared with Corban, stumbled through the huge open living space to the bedroom and found Hallie sitting in front of the mirror brushing her long brown hair.
‘Kerry!’ Hallie exclaimed, her cheeks flushed and her dark eyes wide with surprise. ‘Is everything all right?’
‘I’m sorry…’ Kerry gasped for breath after her mad dash. ‘It’s Nicco. I heard Corban and Theo talking—they are going to take Nicco away tonight.’
‘Why? What’s wrong? Is he all right?’ Hallie demanded, standing up so quickly that the stool she’d been sitting on crashed over.
‘Yes, he’s fine,’ Kerry said. ‘But listen—you don’t understand. They said you’re not fit to look after him. They’re going to take Nicco away by helicopter without telling you.’
‘No. They can’t do that.’ For a moment Hallie stood glued to the spot, her face blank with shock. Then her expression changed and she lurched into action, snatching her handbag from the dressing table so quickly that she sent a glass of wine flying. ‘They won’t take him. I won’t let them,’ she said, grabbing her car keys from a side table and hurrying unsteadily across the room in high heels. ‘I’ll take him away with me—somewhere they won’t find us.’
‘Wait,’ Kerry said, automatically reaching for a handful of tissues to stem the spread of the red wine across Hallie’s dressing table. ‘I’ll come with…’
Suddenly Kerry hesitated, looking down at the wine-soaked tissues. Hallie had been drinking. Remembering her flushed cheeks, and the way she’d swayed unevenly across the room, she’d obviously had quite a lot—way too much to be driving. But she’d just taken her car keys.
Kerry burst out of the room after her. But it was too late—the nursery door was open and Nicco’s cot was empty. A glance at the lights above the family’s private elevator told her that someone had already reached the underground car park.
Oh, God! What had she done? Hallie was drunk and she was about to drive out into the busy city traffic with her little boy in the car.
Kerry’s heart was in her mouth as she hurtled back to Theo’s study. She careered through the open door, making Theo and Corban look up in surprise.
‘It’s Hallie!’ she cried, struggling to catch her breath to speak.
Theo was beside her in an instant. His strong hands closed reassuringly on her upper arms to keep her steady and his dark brown eyes held her secure in his powerful gaze.
‘Take a deep breath.’ His calm, assured voice cut through the panic that gripped her. ‘That’s it. Now, tell me what has happened.’
Kerry stared up at his handsome face, momentarily torn between the distress she’d felt when she heard him planning to take Nicco away from his mother and the comfort she instinctively felt simply from being close to him, from the feel of his strong hands on her arms.
‘Hallie has taken Nicco in her car,’ she blurted. ‘She’s been drinking.’
Corban cursed in Greek, then ran out the door, shouting urgently to Theo as he left. At the same time Theo spun away from Kerry to pick up the phone. She realised he was calling his security team to give orders that Hallie should not be allowed to leave.
Kerry folded her arms across her chest and hugged herself tightly. What had she done? Theo and Corban had no right to take Nicco away from his mother—but her impulsive reaction had put both mother and child in danger. She should never have acted without thinking things through.
‘I’m going to help my brother,’ Theo said, turning to leave. ‘Hallie was away from the hotel before I warned Security, but Corban is right behind her.’
Kerry bit her quivering lip anxiously and felt her eyes burning with unshed tears. She wished she’d realised sooner that Hallie had been drinking—but it had never occurred to her that her friend would be in that state.
‘It will be all right.’ Suddenly Theo was back by her side, pulling her gently against his strong chest. He lifted his hands and slipped them under her hair, cradling the back of her head tenderly as he tipped her face up to his. ‘You did the right thing—we’ll take care of it now.’
Then, before she could reply, he was gone. But the warm, exotic fragrance of his cologne lingered in the air and the nape of her neck still tingled where his fingertips had brushed.
Theo was everything to her. Since the day she’d met him everything else in her life had faded into insignificance.
When her temporary job in Athens had finished she’d been overwhelmed with joy when he had asked her to stay with him. With his encouragement she had delayed looking for a new position, so that she would be free to travel with him wherever he went. He’d said that he wanted her with him always, so that they would be able to spend time together whenever his demanding schedule allowed.
Kerry closed her eyes, imagining the warm strength of Theo’s arms around her. Being in his arms always felt so right. Just now, even when he was worried about his nephew and his sister-in-law, he had taken a moment to give her comfort and reassurance.
