Free Dangerous Legacy by Valerie Hansen Page B

hands on her hips. “Why in the world would I do that?”
    Instead of answering in so many words, Flint turned to glance at his son and heard Mark whispering to the injured dog. Suddenly Maggie understood. He actually believed she’d abuse one of God’s creatures in order to preserve her secret. How dare he?
    The realization stunned her. “How can you think so little of me? I thought I knew you, Flint.”
    “Me? I trusted you, Maggie.” He lowered his voice and turned his head to keep what followed more private. “I loved you once. There was a time when I’d have decked the first person who’d suggested you weren’t perfect.”
    “You sure had a funny way of showing it.”
    “Meaning?”
    She heard an approaching vehicle and started across the room to answer the door. “I stayed right here in Serenity, waiting and hoping,” she shot back at him. “You knew exactly where to find me.”
    “You’d turned me down flat,” Flint replied. “How was I supposed to know you were in trouble?”
    “It wasn’t trouble,” Maggie said, pausing to smile fondly at her little boy. “It was a blessing in disguise. I didn’t realize that for a few months, but eventually it became very, very clear.”
    The knock was brisk and brief. Maggie opened the door with a smile and stood back. “Thanks for coming, Greg.” She gestured. “Wolfie’s over there with Mark.”
    The vet stopped midstride. “And who else?”
    “I’d get up and shake your hand,” Flint said, “but I’m a little busy here.”
    Maggie sensed an increase in tension that practically rattled the remaining windows. Greg and Flint were both scowling and facing each other like two rutting bucks. In Flint’s case that was probably due to his outdated impression of the veterinarian’s stature. Both men had filled out and matured. They were about the same build and while wearing padded jackets seemed equal in strength, although she would have given an edge to Flint in a fight.
    “That’s Warden Crawford,” Maggie said. “Flint, this is Greg. You remember Miss Inez’s grandson.”
    The vet nodded at Flint. “I’d heard you were back in the area.”
    When Maggie noted Greg’s attention flitting between Mark and the warden, she was afraid one of them would say something to make things worse—if that was possible.
    “Flint located Wolfie for us and brought him home,” she interjected. “I hope he’s not badly hurt.”
    That lessened the pressure somewhat, particularly when Greg crossed the room, knelt next to the resting dog and began to examine him while Flint eased away.
    If the living room had been the size of a football stadium, it would still have felt too small to accommodate the four of them, Maggie realized. The only one who seemed oblivious of the crackling anxiety in the atmosphere was little Mark. All he cared about was seeing that his pet was well cared for.
    And all I care about is Mark, Maggie kept insisting. Who was she trying to convince? Herself? Well, she was failing. She cared about her son, yes, but seeing his father’s pain and watching him struggle to maintain self-control in the midst of this situation had hit her with a tsunami of emotion, which was now ebbing and flowing like a real tidal wave.
    Worst of all, Maggie recalled, Flint had insinuated she might be in cahoots with somebody who wanted to hurt him. She would never even consider causing him purposeful harm because... Because she still loved him.

EIGHT
    B y the time Flint reached his parked truck, he was at the end of his emotional rope and barely hanging on. It was too much to deal with all at once. Lost years. Lost opportunities. What was he going to do? What could he do?
    “Take one day at a time,” he told himself. “So far, this one has been plenty.” The irony of that thought stuck with him long enough to warrant a disgusted chuckle. Myriad questions were whirling through his mind so rapidly that none made much sense.
    He didn’t have to take a DNA test