Barbara Dunlop - His Temptation, Her Secret

“Absolutely.”

“Do you have any questions?”

“I’m sure I will, although not right now. I’m in Boston. But I can come back.”

There was a pause on the line. “If it’s possible, Mr. Bauer, we’d like to do the tests tomorrow. As you can imagine, we have a very anxious mother hoping you’ll turn out to be a close enough match.”

“I’ll be there. And please, call me TJ.”

“Thank you very much, TJ.”

“Of course. I’ll see you tomorrow.” He ended the call.

“Everything okay?” Matt had appeared beside him.

“Fine. Hopefully very fine. I may be a bone marrow match for a nine-year-old boy in Seattle.”

It seemed to take Matt a moment to process the statement.

“I really hate to cut out on you,” TJ said.

“Go!” Matt said, making a shooing motion with his hands. “Go, save a life.”

TJ could feel his adrenaline come up with purpose. His next call was to a jet charter company he’d used in the past.

He didn’t want to fight for a seat on a red-eye when a young boy and his mother were waiting. And he could afford to fly privately. There were moments in life when it came in handy to be a ridiculously wealthy man.

* * *

As she followed the wide corridor at St. Bea’s Hospital, Sage Costas’s heels echoed against the polished linoleum. Her stomach churned as it had for the past nine days while her son, Eli, had undergone a battery of tests and been diagnosed with an aggressive form of leukemia. The closer she came to the family lounge, the harder her heart pounded. She found herself wondering how much stress the human body could endure before it simply shut down.

She’d barely slept all week, hadn’t slept at all last night. She’d forced herself to shower this morning and put on a little makeup. She didn’t know why she thought makeup might help. But she wanted to make a good impression. She was terrified the donor would back out.

She could see him now. Through the lounge windows, she could see a tall, dark-haired, smartly dressed man talking to Dr. Stannis. He had to be the donor.

Her steps slowed, and she swallowed. Then she stopped at the closed door. It was more than she could do to push the handle. She’d prayed desperately for this moment. So much was at stake. She wasn’t sure she could face it if the process fell apart.

She forced herself to open the door and step inside the lounge.

Dr. Stannis immediately spotted her. “Hello, Sage.”

The man turned. His expression was instant bewilderment. “Sage?”

Her world tipped on its axis.

“Is that you?” he asked, stepping forward.

A roar came up in her ears. Her vision switched to black and white, then tunneled down to a pinhole.

“Sage?” Dr. Stannis moved quickly, taking her by the arm.

Sage’s brain pulsed a million miles an hour. The room swayed for a moment, until her vision cleared.

He was still standing there.

“I’m fine,” she managed to say around the lingering noise inside her head.

“Have you met TJ Bauer?” Dr. Stannis asked with obvious curiosity.

“We went to the same high school.” Her voice was little more than a squeak.

How could this be happening?

“It’s your son who’s sick?” TJ’s expression was filled with concern. “I’m so sorry, Sage.”

Then his forehead creased, and she could all but see the calculations going on inside his head.

He turned to the doctor. “You said he was nine?”

“Yes.”

TJ twisted slowly back to Sage, his words carefully enunciated. “And I’m a likely bone marrow match for him?”

Sage tried to swallow again, but her throat had gone paper dry.

TJ’s eyes shifted from blue to gray thunder. “Is he my son?”

The doctor went still. The entire world went still. The ventilation system clicked against the booming silence.

All Sage could manage was a nod.

Dr. Stannis’s grip firmed up on Sage’s arm. “Perhaps we should sit down.”

“I have a son?” TJ asked, his voice hoarse. “You got pregnant?”

Sage tried to speak. She managed to move her lips, but no sounds came out.

TJ wasn’t having the same problem. “And you didn’t tell me?”

Dr. Stannis jumped in. “I think it would be best if we all—”

Bitterness suddenly broke through Sage’s fear. She found her voice, all but shouting. “You didn’t deserve to know.”

“Sage.” Dr. Stannis’s tone was shocked and sharp.

Sage immediately realized her mistake.

They were dependent on TJ. Eli’s life depended on this man’s good graces, this man who had deceived her, lied to her and taken shameless advantage of her teenage naïveté as a prank to amuse his friends.

She hated him. But he was the one person who could save her son’s life.

“I’m sorry,” she said, trying desperately to put some sincerity into her tone.

Judging by his expression, she hadn’t pulled it off.

“Please don’t...” Her stomach cramped up. “Please don’t take it out on Eli.”

He looked completely dumbfounded. Then he swore under his breath. “You actually think I’d harm a little boy...my own son—” He seemed to gather himself. “You think I’d let my anger with you impact my decision to donate? What kind of a man do you think I am?”

She didn’t know what kind of a man he was. She knew what kind of a teenager he’d been back then—unscrupulous and self-centered. She had no reason to assume he’d changed.

“I don’t know.” She forced the words out.

“Well, know,” he said. He looked to Dr. Stannis again. “How soon will we be sure I’m a close enough match?”

“A few days,” she said. “But given the genetic connection, I’m even more optimistic.”

“It’s a stroke of luck,” TJ said flatly.

Sage couldn’t begin to guess at the emotion behind those words.

Dr. Stannis moved to look her directly in the eyes. “Are you sure you’re all right?”

“I’m fine.” For the moment, she was fine.

TJ was going to help them. They’d figure out the rest later. For now, the bone marrow transplant was all that mattered.

The doctor stepped back. “I’ll give the two of you some time to talk.”

With a final assessment of Sage’s expression, she left the lounge.

Sage had no idea what to say next, and the seconds ticked past.

When TJ finally spoke, there was contained fury in his tone. “I’m not going to ask you how you could have done something so horrible.”

“Me?” Sage could barely believe he’d said it. “You were there. You know exactly what happened between us.”

He waved a dismissive hand. “That was a stupid stunt by an ignorant kid. We’ve grown up since then. You’ve known about this for a decade.”

“You were a shallow, self-centered jerk.”

He squared his shoulders and set his square jaw. “I don’t want to fight with you, Sage. This conversation can wait. Right now, I want to meet my son.”

Sage staggered and reached to an armchair for support. “No.”

“What do you mean no? No is no longer an option for you.”

She struggled for the right words. “You can’t tell him, TJ. Not now. Not while he’s so sick.” She stretched her arm expansively toward the door to the rest of the hospital. “There’s no way we can expect him to absorb news like that in the middle of all this.”

TJ seemed to consider her words. His expression lost its hard edge. “I need to meet him, Sage. We don’t have to tell him I’m his father, at least not right away. But I’m going to meet him, and I’m not waiting another minute.”

Sage decided she could live with that. “Okay.”

“His name is Eli?”

“Yes. Eli Thomas Costas.”