Verwandte Artikel zu Gone (The Delancey Dynasty, 8, Band 1470)

Gone (The Delancey Dynasty, 8, Band 1470) - Softcover

Buch 9 von 11: The Delancey Dynasty

Kane, Mallory

 
9780373697373: Gone (The Delancey Dynasty, 8, Band 1470)
Softcover
ISBN 10: 0373697376 ISBN 13: 9780373697373
Verlag: Harlequin Intrigue, 2013

Inhaltsangabe

A couple must recover a precious gift stolen from them in Mallory Kane's The Delancey Dynasty miniseries. 

Marcie Powers saw her son everywhere. For two years, no stroller or baby seat passed without his face. She saw him so much, not even her estranged husband, Joseph, believed her. So he wasn't surprised when she claimed to have found their son once again. Yet this time, she wasn't hysterical. There was something…different. And although she couldn't have known it, news of Joe's own secret parentage was about to hit Louisiana headlines—and it would put his son at risk for a big payday. Now Joseph and Marcie will have to trek through the bayou at the whims of a kidnapper to find the son they'd thought lost to them forever—and reclaim the love between them….

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Über die Autorin bzw. den Autor

Mallory Kane has 2  great reasons for loving to write. Her mother, a librarian, taught her to love and respect books. Her father could hold listeners spellbound for hours with his stories. His oral histories are chronicled in numerous places including the Library of Congress Veterans' History Project. He was always her biggest fan. She has published 26 books for Harlequin Intrigue. She lives in Tennessee with her Renaissance husband and two very smart cats.

Auszug. © Genehmigter Nachdruck. Alle Rechte vorbehalten.

There had been a time when just the sight of his wife had Joseph Powers panting with desire. From the blue eyes that sparked fire through his every nerve, to the tips of her pretty pink toes, he'd known, tasted and loved every inch of her. But that was a long time ago, back when they'd been a family, when they'd been happy, when they'd been three. Now, they were just two.

He hadn't seen her in a year, not since the last time she'd called him, crying and begging for his help, promising him that this time, unlike every time before, she was sure.

He'd expected her to call, if not today, then tomorrow. Knowing ahead of time didn't make it easier, though. It made it worse. Tomorrow was a big day for both of them. It was her birthday and the second anniversary of their child's disappearance.

He dreaded opening his front door and seeing her standing there, looking sad and lost. Although, she had sounded different this time. Not quite as desperate. Not quite as beaten down. The tone of her voice had given him a tiny scrap of hope. Maybe she'd finally agreed to take the antidepressants the doctor had prescribed. Maybe she wanted to see him, not to declare that this time she'd really found Joshua, but to let him know that she was doing better.

He laughed, a harsh sound that scratched his throat. Yeah, and pigs can fly.

He paced back and forth, wishing he could wipe away the memory that haunted him. That split second at the outdoor market when he'd reached down to pick up Joshua's baby carrier and encountered empty space. The helplessness, terror and anger of that horrifying instant had never faded. Nor had the guilt. They were as strong and all-consuming as they'd ever been. He'd taken out a lot of that anger on Marcie, just as she'd taken out her own sadness, rage and devastating grief on him.

There were some tragedies that were too awful to share, some burdens that could not be lifted.

The doorbell rang and Joe's heart skipped a beat. He opened the door and there she was, fresh and beautiful, her lovely face shiny and clean of makeup. Her beautiful dark hair was caught up in a ponytail and her wide blue eyes sparkled with unshed tears. No matter what had happened between them, no matter how impossible it was for them to live together with the specter of their missing child between them, he still loved her. He was still in love with her. That had never changed and he knew it never would.

Marcie looked pretty and sad and yet determined as she pushed past him into his apartment. He caught a faint scent of her melon-scented shampoo and his body responded. So much for not desiring her anymore.

"Marcie," he said with resignation, closing the door and turning to meet her gaze.

"Joe," she said as she glanced around his apartment. Her gaze stopped for an instant on the small framed photo on the kitchen counter. Joe's gaze followed hers automatically, although he knew the photo as well as he knew his own face in the mirror. It was a picture he'd taken of her and Joshua in the hospital, when Joshua was about four hours old. She walked over and picked up the frame, brushing her fingers across the glass, a wan smile on her face. "I saw him, Joe," she said without taking her eyes off the image.

"Marcie, don't—" he began as it occurred to him that she wasn't frantically excited, the way she'd been every other time she'd been positive that she'd spotted Joshua.

She touched the image of Joshua's round newborn face one more time, then set the frame down. She straightened, took a deep breath and clasped her shoulder bag more tightly. "I'm not hysterical," she said evenly. "I saw him. It was only a glimpse into the backseat of a car, but I know—" She stopped and pressed her lips together before continuing. "I'm almost positive it was Joshua."

Almostpositive? Joe stared at her, trying to reconcile this new Marcie with the hysterical woman who, within the first six months after Joshua was gone, had been absolutely positive she'd spotted him at least four times. Who'd screamed and thrown things the first time he'd suggested that she go to a grief counselor. He ran a hand across the back of his neck. "Marcie, are you on medication?"

She rolled her eyes toward the ceiling and shook her head. "No," she said on a sigh, meeting his gaze again.

His wife's eyes were damp with tears, but she wasn't the broken and defeated fragile bird he'd watched her become as weeks stretched into months with no word about their missing child.

"You don't believe me," she said.

"About being on medication?"

"About Joshua."

He winced, the way he did whenever he heard his son's name. "We've gone through this so many times before. You can't keep doing this to yourself. You've got to try to get on with your life—"

"Like you did?" she retorted. "Just presto—" she snapped her fingers "—and it's oh, well, Joshua's gone. Guess I'll go help other parents find their lost children."

Six months after Joshua had disappeared, Joe had gone back to work, because he couldn't sit at home all day and watch Marcie turn into a depressed recluse. But his lucrative corporate attorney position had felt like a waste of time. So he'd quit and taken a job with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. The pay was so low it could almost have been considered volunteer work, but at least he felt he was doing something important. The job was both a blessing and a curse. He helped others search for their missing family members while holding out hope that one day, one of these trails would lead to his own son. Then maybe, no matter what the outcome, he and Marcie could finally get closure.

"Marcie, I've told you before, the fact that I went back to work didn't mean—"

"No," Marcie said, waving a hand dismissively. "I'm not letting myself get sucked into that argument. I came here for one reason and one reason only. I saw our son. I copied down the car's license plate and I need your help."

"You got the license plate number?"

"The woman has our child, Joe."

He steeled himself. So she'd written down a license plate this time. So she was calm—almost too calm, he thought—rather than hysterical. That didn't make her any less delusional. "Come on, Marcie. How good a look did you get? Was it a glance into the backseat at a red light? You can't possibly know for sure that a child you saw for a split second in a dark car is Joshua." He felt the empty hole inside him open up and start bleeding. A familiar stinging began behind his eyes. "Do I have to remind you what the police told us? How slim the chances are of finding him as time goes on?"

"I haven't forgotten a single word the police told us," Marcie said stiffly. "I can't be like you, Joe. I can't convince myself that he's dea-dead, so I can pretend I don't hurt anymore. I saw him and this time I have a way to find out who has him and I'm going to do it. If it's not him, then at least I'll know.''''

"What are you planning to do? Not go to the police," Joe said stonily, because he couldn't tell her that he didn't think Joshua was dead. Not all the time. "You burned your bridges there."

He was being unfair, blaming her for crying wolf one too many times. During those first long weeks, his heart had...

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Verlag
Harlequin Intrigue
Erscheinungsdatum
2013
Sprache
Englisch
ISBN 10 
0373697376
ISBN 13 
9780373697373
Einband
Taschenbuch
Anzahl der Seiten
224
Kontakt zum Hersteller
Nicht verfügbar
Verantwortliche Person
Product Safety Manager
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