Daniel's Desire Read Online Free PDF Page B

at what cost?”
    “It must be nice to be so perfect that you can pass judgment on other people’s mistakes,” Daniel retorted.
    Patrick gave him a hard look. “While we’re on the subject of mistakes, are you ever going to give Molly the apology she deserves?”
    The sudden shift caught Daniel off guard. He knew Patrick was protective of Molly, but he hadn’t expected his brother to call him on what had happened four years ago, not at this late date. “I tried. She doesn’t want to hear it,” Daniel said. “Besides, what good are words?”
    “Not much,” Patrick agreed. “But she deserves them anyway. She doesn’t deserve you coming in here and hassling her over some runaway. There’s too much history between the two of you. Next time, send someone else.”
    “There is no one else. It’s my job. I’m trying to make sure the girl is safe and gets back to her parents. The fact that Molly has chosen to get herself involved is an unfortunate coincidence.”
    “Maybe the girl’s parents are no better than ours,” Patrick countered. “Have you considered for one second that she might be better off here with Molly?”
    Daniel sighed heavily. “That’s not my decision to make, not without all the facts. And if we’re just going to go round and round in circles, I might as well get out of here. I’m probably wasting my breath, but I’ll ask anyway. Let me know if you see this Kendra Morrow, okay? Try to persuade Molly to get her to talk to me. And warn me if you hear that our brothers are planning to show up on Mom and Pop’s doorstep. I’m not sure Dad’s heart could take it. Do they know he’s had bypass surgery since they were here?”
    “I told them,” Patrick said tightly. “I doubt they’re going to come to the front door and shout, ‘Surprise!’ Not that I’d blame them if they did. Turnabout’s fair play and all that. It couldn’t be any more of a shock than what Mom and Pop did to them, letting them come home from school to find an empty apartment.”
    Daniel winced at the reminder. He didn’t like surprises any more than he thought his father’s health could tolerate them. “Give me a number. Let me contact them. When they’re ready, I’ll set up a meeting. That way you won’t have to be caught in the middle.”
    Patrick scowled at the suggestion. “I’d say this is their call…and mine, for that matter, Daniel. After all these years and everything that happened, I’d say they have the right to set the time and place. You don’t get to control it, the way you like to control everything else in your life.”
    Patrick set down his half-filled mug of beer, stood up, then leaned down to look Daniel directly in the eye. “While you’re at it, leave Molly alone. She’s a good woman and you’ve hurt her enough. If it were up to me, you’d pay through the nose for what you did to her, but she’s more generous than I am.”
    “If I’d known about the miscarriage, I would have been there that night,” Daniel said, knowing that even that wouldn’t have been enough. “You didn’t call me.”
    “Because you didn’t exactly step up to the plate when she told you she was pregnant,” Patrick reminded him, his accusatory gaze unrelenting. “You were the one responsible for putting her in the hospital in the first place. She didn’t want you there. And she doesn’t want you barging in here now. She sure as hell doesn’t deserve to have you harassing her with your suspicions. Either come back with a genuine apology for what you did back then and today, or stay the hell away from her.”
    “I can’t do that, not while she’s hiding Kendra Morrow,” Daniel replied. “I’m sorry, but I can’t.”
    “That’s right—the rules,” Patrick said, his eyes filled with scorn. “If it’s written down in black and white, you know what you have to do. When it comes to anything else—our folks, Molly, a baby—you don’t have a clue.”
    As Patrick left, Daniel stared after