Anything for His Son

Chapter Two

Ethan had taken out terrorists worldwide, maneuvered his way in and out of life-and-death situations that would make some people’s hair curl and had nearly died of gunshot wounds twice.

But Rebecca still had a way of robbing the air from his lungs. Just the sight of her made him feel as if he’d stepped onto a landmine. His heart was racing, his palms were sweaty and the blood rushed to his head.

In spite of the heat and the sleepless night she’d obviously spent, she looked gorgeous today, light and airy in her pale clothing with her sun-kissed skin glowing from the L.A. weather, and her silky hair lifted off her neck. Normally he preferred her hair down, flowing around her shoulders, so the up-do should have put him off. Instead he appreciated the tantalizing view of the sensitive spot behind her ear that he liked to kiss. The spot that drove her wild and turned her into putty in his hands.

His lips puckered at the mere thought, and he almost forgot why they were there and dropped a juicy one on her neck. But the sound of papers crinkling as she spread them on the table jarred him back to reality.

His feet felt like lead weights as he forced himself to cross the room. He had survived countless dangerous missions—he could certainly sign divorce papers. After all, his marriage to Rebecca hadn’t been a real marriage in over two years. He was an adult. Life had to go on.

“You seem in a hurry to get this over with,” he said in a gruff voice.

Her startled gaze swung back to him. “In a hurry? Ethan, I moved to L.A. two years ago.”

He sucked in a sharp breath. “So why today?”

Eyes narrowed, she chewed on her bottom lip and glanced at the window, avoiding eye contact.

His lungs tightened. “You’re involved with someone else?”

Tension rattled between them in the thick air. “Ethan…”

He winced. “So you have met another man?”

She slowly turned back to face him. Her hazel eyes glimmered with emotions. An apology? Regrets? Indecision? “Yes.”

A frown thinned his lips as he reached out and twisted a loose strand of her hair between his fingers. “Who is he, Bec?”

“Ethan, it’s not important—”

“Who is he?” He hadn’t meant to sound so demanding, but his voice came out cold. Harsh.

She closed her eyes for a brief second, then blinked and met his gaze again. This time conviction and determination darkened the hues. “A stockbroker.”

His jaw tightened. “That’s the reason you’re doing this, so you can be free and clear to be with him.”

The silence that stretched between them hammered home his fears.

“I’m sorry, Ethan. But yes. I’m…lonely.” She hesitated. “I’m sure you’ve been with other women.”

She’d be shocked to know that he hadn’t. He hadn’t had the desire. Because no one could ever replace Rebecca.

He couldn’t help himself. He slid his hand up her neck, caught the back of her head with his palm and leaned toward her. Her mouth was only inches away. He desperately wanted to kiss her. Feel her pulse throb beneath his touch. Make her forget wanting any man except him. “You don’t have to be lonely, Bec.”

Her eyes misted. “That’s not fair, Ethan. You know I care about you. I always will. You’re Jesse’s father—”

“Is that all I am to you now?”

She licked her lips, drawing his attention to the curve of her mouth. The one he wanted to taste again.

“No, of course not. We share a past. We…loved each other once.”

Once? The word triggered a spasm of pain in his chest. She didn’t love him anymore….

“But our marriage wasn’t working, Ethan, and you know it.” Her voice grew stronger. “I never meant to hurt you, and I know you didn’t want to hurt me. It… Our lives just got in the way.”

“And your life won’t get in the way with this stockbroker?”

“I don’t know,” she said. “But it’s time to try.”

He heard the honesty in her answer, and a pang of guilt assaulted him. He wanted her to be happy. “I never meant to neglect you,” he said softly.

“I know.” She pressed a hand to his cheek. “But we have to think of Jesse. Closure will be good for all of us.”

His throat thickened. How could a broken family be good for their son?

Despair thickened his throat. He’d vowed to be a better father than his old man, a better husband. But he’d failed at both. “I am thinking of Jesse. He’s my son, Rebecca. He deserves two parents.”

“You’ll always be his father, Ethan. You can see him whenever you want. That isn’t going to change.”

Did she really believe that another man in the picture wouldn’t alter things?

“Let’s face the truth,” she said. “You’re three thousand miles away. Jesse needs a stable male role model.”

He heard her unspoken words. One who was in his life on a daily basis. God, he was being selfish, wasn’t he? “This man…Jesse likes him?”

She nodded. “He seems to care about Jesse, too.”

Her words both soothed him and tore him up inside. Another man was on the verge of replacing him, both in her life and in his son’s, and he couldn’t stop it from happening.

“We can’t rehash the past,” she said in a voice filled with emotions. “I want you to be happy, Ethan. You are who you are. I realized long ago I had no right to change that, and I wouldn’t want to.”

And he had no right to hold her back if this man was what she wanted. Not when he hadn’t changed. He still worked ninety hours a week. Still accepted dangerous Eclipse missions. Still thrived on work.

Hell, he lived for the high and the danger. He didn’t know how to live without it.

Rebecca deserved better.

He dropped his hand, let it rest by his side for a minute, hoping to calm his shaking fingers.

Then he gathered his courage and reached for the pen to sign the papers.

REBECCA HATED SECOND-GUESSING herself. She hated even more the pain in Ethan’s eyes when she’d admitted her interest in another man. Guilt and affection for Ethan warred with the need to end the meeting as quickly as possible.

She shouldn’t feel guilty. How often had she seen Ethan the past two years? Even Jesse had been disappointed time and time again when Ethan had been forced to cancel.

Frank Sullivan was a nice man. A stockbroker who made good money. A man who had expressed interest in Jesse and coached the kid’s baseball team when he had no children of his own. He supported her career and lived close by, so that he could provide more of a stable influence on Jesse. After all, Jesse was growing up. He needed a man in his life. One he could count on.

One who didn’t disappear for weeks at a time, put his life on the line constantly. One who came home at night.

“Bec?”

She spread her hands in her lap. “What is it, Ethan?”

“Can I see Jesse later?”

Her heart twisted, and she clutched Ethan’s hand. “Of course you can. Jesse is your son. He loves you.”

A muscle ticked in his jaw. “I don’t intend to let him forget me.”

“I know that,” Rebecca said softly. “And I would never let that happen, either.” She squeezed his arm. God, this was harder than she’d imagined. “No one can ever replace you in his life, Ethan.” Or in my heart.

But she had to give Frank Sullivan a chance.

“Thank you for saying that.” He rubbed her hand gently. He used to do that, then he’d lift her fingers and kiss them. Then she would melt in his arms.

She couldn’t let it go that far today, or she’d never be able to sign these divorce papers. And even if they did kiss or make love, their lifestyles wouldn’t change.

“It wasn’t all bad, was it?” he asked quietly.

She smiled and shook her head. “No, Ethan. We had some wonderful times, some great memories. But reliving them…it’s just too painful.”

“The last thing I want is to hurt you,” Ethan said quietly.

Her gaze met his. “I know that, Ethan.”

“Right.” He released her hand and scrubbed his through his short military-cut hair. “Well, then, why procrastinate any longer?”

He handed her the pen and gestured for her to go first. Her insides trembled, but she sat down and zeroed in on the lines where they were supposed to sign their names. How ironic, she thought. After so much love and time together, so many memories and promises, all they had to do to dissolve their marriage and erase the past was scribble their signatures on the dotted line.

She inhaled a deep breath, and pressed the tip of the pen down, when the door suddenly burst open.

“Miss Rebecca! Miss Rebecca!” Jesse’s nanny stumbled into the salon, waving her arms, looking harried.

Rebecca frowned. “What is it, DeeDee?”

“Miss Rebecca,” DeeDee sobbed. “Oh, my God, my God, my God. It’s Jesse!”

Rebecca shot to her feet, her heart pounding as she searched behind the woman for her son. “Where is he, DeeDee? What’s happened?”

Ethan lurched toward DeeDee, grabbed her by the arms and shook her gently. “What’s wrong? Is Jesse hurt? Did he have an accident?”

DeeDee’s face crumpled and tears streaked her pale cheeks. “No, he’s…missing,” she sobbed. “I turned my back for just a minute, and he was gone!”

Missing…gone… The room spun.

“Where were you?” Ethan barked.

“At Frog Pond,” DeeDee cried. “Miss Rebecca, she told me to take Jesse wading, and so I did. He was so excited. And there were other kids there, so many. They were laughing and playing chase at the edge of the water and he joined in.” She heaved a breath. “Then suddenly he disappeared. I searched everywhere, I yelled for him, but he was nowhere! Miss Rebecca, I’m so sorry…”

Rebecca swayed and reached for something to hold on to. Jesse was missing. “No…”

Black dots danced before her eyes just before the world went dark. She felt herself spiraling, floating, the shock clawing at her as she collapsed against Ethan.

ETHAN CAUGHT REBECCA, HIS OWN heart pounding with fear. His son, his five-year-old little boy, was missing. Had he wandered through the crowd and gotten lost, or had he been kidnapped?

He helped Rebecca to a sofa and settled her onto the cushions. “Rebecca?”

“Ethan—”

“Hang on, sweetheart. I’m here.”

A gut-wrenching cry rose from deep in her throat. “Jesse?”

“We’ll find him, I promise.” Even as he muttered the assurance, a dozen terrifying scenarios raced through his mind. Jesse being kidnapped by an ax murderer. Or a pedophile. Christ, no, please no…

His knees buckled and he fought for a breath. He couldn’t think like that. He couldn’t let Rebecca jump onto that horrifying, runaway train of thought, either.

Time was of the essence. If Jesse had been abducted, he was getting farther and farther away by the minute. He had to call the police.

He reached for his cell phone, then halted. He’d seen enough cases to know that kidnappers always warned against calling the cops. They usually wanted money.

Money—he had lots of it. That was the reason they’d taken Jesse.

He’d give them whatever they asked for, just as long as they didn’t hurt his son.

He turned to DeeDee, who had slumped into the nearest wingback chair, crying into her hands.

He had to stop thinking like a father and think like a detective. But Jesse was his son. How could he not think like a father? “DeeDee, did you call for help at the pond?”

She nodded. “I told people all around me and they looked, too. Then this lady said she thought she saw Jesse walking away with a man.”

He punched in the number for his Eclipse contact, Dana Whitley, the only civilian who knew about its existence. A secretary for the Pentagon by day, she clandestinely coordinated Eclipse and could accomplish anything.

Ethan explained the situation. “My son has been kidnapped. I need people now to search the area surrounding Frog Pond. This has to be discreet. I don’t want it to look like I’ve called the cops. The kidnapper might be watching.”

Rebecca shuddered next to him, and he hung up and squeezed her hands. “Bec, listen, we have to go back to my place. If a kidnapper took him and wants a ransom, he might call me there.”

“What about the police?”

“Let’s go to my place first. If there’s no call or note, then we’ll phone it in.”

Rebecca latched on to his hand and dragged herself to a sitting position. “But, Ethan, they can search the streets, the highways. Issue an Amber alert—”

Ethan glanced at his phone in a panic and willed the infuriating thing to ring. He wanted that call, dammit. Wanted to know who had his son and why. “Trust me. My team is on it. They’ll cover the streets better than the cops. We have connections, Bec.”

He flipped on the handset and noticed a text message waiting. He’d been so busy last night during the blackout he’d finally shut down his phone and ignored any messages.

He checked it now.

“Are you afraid of the dark?”

His blood ran cold. The cryptic message struck a nerve. It had something to do with Jesse’s kidnapper. He knew it in his gut.

Fear choked him.

If he hadn’t ignored the message last night, maybe he could have prevented his son from being abducted.

FINN SMILED TO HIMSELF AS HE drove the dark sedan into the abandoned warehouse. He would have loved to have been a fly on the wall when Ethan Matalon discovered his precious son was missing. And Rebecca… he would have enjoyed being beside her to offer her comfort. Dry her tears. Whisper reassurances.

Maybe even strip her and soothe her with a night of lovemaking.

His sex swelled, reminding him that he had done without that pleasure for too long. Hell, he’d wanted Rebecca but had forced himself not to push her for fear of raising suspicion. But in the end, maybe he’d screw her anyway.

For now, though, contact with her was too dangerous. Better for her to think he was completely out of the country, off on business.

They would figure out the connection soon enough.

Then Rebecca would blame herself.

As Ethan was no doubt doing, thanks to the text message.

Finn killed the engine, climbed out and shut the warehouse door, then stared at the backseat, where he’d stuffed the boy. The cough syrup in his soda had worked perfectly. The kid was out cold.

But he would wake soon. And like a lot of other children, Jesse Matalon was afraid of the dark.

Ethan had been, too, as a kid. Liam had noted that in his file.

He’d also said that Ethan was smart. He’d know better than to call the cops.

And if he got stupid and called them anyway, then his son’s death would be on his conscience, not Finn’s.

Chapter Three

Shock immobilized Rebecca. This couldn’t be happening. Not to her precious little boy. She’d just seen him an hour ago. He’d been smiling and waving his wand, excited about wading in the pond.

And now some stranger had stolen him.

Who would have done such a thing?

Her mind blurred with the gruesome possibilities. Only monsters preyed on small children. Sick, twisted, perverted creatures who took advantage of their innocence. Ones who tortured and hurt and murdered.

“Stop thinking,” Ethan commanded. He squeezed her arm gently. “Look at me, Rebecca. I know you’re terrified, and you’re imagining the worst, but stop it. We have to pull ourselves together.”

“But, Ethan—” Her voice broke on a sob.

“I know, baby. I know.” He dragged her into his arms and held her, rocking her back and forth. She felt the fine tremors in his big body and knew he was struggling with his own terror.

“I swear, Bec, I’ll get Jesse back. And I’ll kill the monster who kidnapped him.”

She gripped his arms and heaved, suddenly nauseated. “What if it’s too late, Ethan? What if—”

“Shh. Don’t go there. We have to stay positive.” He pressed his finger to her lips, his dark brown eyes glinting with rage and other emotions. Fear. Panic. Determination.

Love for his son.

“I have money,” he said. “Whoever has Jesse will want it. I’ll pay them however much they want. But now we need to go back to my place. They may call there.”

“I don’t understand why Jesse would go with some man,” Rebecca said. “We’ve talked about strangers. He should have yelled for help.”

“I don’t understand, either,” Ethan said. “Maybe he tricked him somehow.”

“What about my hotel?” Rebecca asked. “What if the man who has him calls me? I’m a television personality. Maybe someone wants to hurt me.”

“We’ll look into that angle,” Ethan conceded.

DeeDee cleared her throat and dropped to her knees in front of Rebecca, her eyes red-rimmed and swollen. “I’ll wait in the hotel room for the call. I won’t leave the phone for a second. I swear. I’ll do everything I can to help get Jesse back safely.”

Ethan glanced at Rebecca with questions in his eyes. For a brief second, Rebecca’s chest tightened with another thought. What if DeeDee had something to do with the kidnapping?

She had checked the girl out before she had hired her. She’d had an impeccable reputation, excellent references and had worked as a nanny for two years for another family until they’d moved abroad. Ethan had also used his connections with Eclipse to make certain she was trustworthy. DeeDee was even studying early childhood education and wanted to be a kindergarten teacher.

Still, Rebecca had to ask. She wiped at the tears blurring her eyes. “DeeDee, how do we know that you didn’t have something to do with Jesse’s disappearance? Maybe you need money for school or…or something else.”

DeeDee jerked back as if Rebecca had slapped her. “Miss Rebecca, you can’t think that. I love Jesse.” She hugged her arms around her waist as if to hold herself together. “I would never do anything to hurt or endanger Jesse. I swear. He’s like my own little brother.”

Ethan gave her a concerned look. But they’d be foolish not to question DeeDee. “Rebecca…there was a text message on my phone from last night. I think it may have something to do with the kidnapping.”

“What did it say?”

He showed it to her and she gasped. “My heavens, Ethan. Whoever took him knows that he’s afraid of the dark.”

“And that I was when I was a kid,” Ethan said.

She gripped his hand. Ethan had been trapped in a storm drain when he was four. He had had nightmares for years about the incident.

“We need to hurry. I want to check the house.” He gestured toward DeeDee. “Wait in the hotel room, and let us know if anyone calls.”

She nodded, pushing to her feet. “I promise I’ll do whatever you tell me.”

“You’d better,” Ethan said harshly. “Because if I find out that you conspired in the kidnapping of our son, then I’ll make sure you pay.” His eyes darkened. “And trust me, Miss Archer, you won’t like the punishment.”

ETHAN FORCED HIMSELF INTO combat mode. His military training and work with Eclipse had taught him how to channel emotions, to compartmentalize and focus.

Damn lot of good it was doing him.

He kept seeing his little boy’s innocent, terrified face in his mind, and panic shot through him. What was Jesse thinking? Was he okay? What had the sick person who’d taken him done to him?

Stop it, he ordered himself. He’d told Rebecca they had to think positively, and he had to heed his own advice. If he fell apart, she definitely would.

He had to take charge and get their son back. He couldn’t let anything happen to Jesse.

“Let’s check your room first.” He helped Rebecca to stand, and she seemed to summon her courage and led the way to the stairwell. The three of them climbed the five floors, sweating, the tension thickening as Rebecca removed her key and let them into the plush room. Ethan glanced quickly around but saw nothing amiss. Rebecca had chosen a suite for her and Jesse with an adjoining room for the nanny. She checked the hotel phone for messages and found none.

Of course, the power had been out. He surveyed the room, his heart tugging painfully at the sight of Jesse’s toy cars and the walkie-talkie set he’d given him for his last birthday. He wished Jesse had it with him now.

To cover the bases, he insisted on checking DeeDee’s room. She immediately acceded, and within minutes, he confirmed that the room was clean.

Still, he’d phone his contact at Eclipse and put someone on her. They’d follow her every move, check her phone records, her computer, e-mails, just in case…

“Stay here and don’t leave for any reason,” Ethan told DeeDee. “I’ll send over a bodyguard.”

“A bodyguard?” DeeDee looked even more shaken.

He nodded. It was as much for his peace of mind, to have someone watch her, as it was for her protection, but he didn’t tell her. If the kidnapper had wanted her, he would have forced her to go with him, too.

The minute hand on the wall clock turned. It seemed like hours since DeeDee had made the announcement about Jesse being missing, but in fact, it had only been minutes. Precious minutes, though, that counted.

Ethan raced down the steps, pulling Rebecca along behind him. Outside, he scanned the streets for any signs of his son as they climbed in his car and slowly made their way through the traffic to his brownstone.

Rebecca was pale, her eyes glassy, her body rigid with shock. He pulled into his driveway and parked, took her hand and they jumped out, then hurried up the sidewalk. The sight of a note tucked beneath the brass doorknocker made him halt.

“Ethan?”

He yanked the note free and opened the folded piece of paper. His heart slammed against his ribs as he read the message he’d feared.

I have Jesse. You’ll never see him again if you call the cops.

“OH, NO. ETHAN…” Rebecca had tried to hold on to the hope that Jesse had simply wandered off in the crowd. That a Good Samaritan had found him by now and that they had called the police. Or that Jesse had told them where he was staying and that he was on his way back to the Ritz.

But the note confirmed her worst fears.

Ethan made a low sound of pain and frustration, then curved his arm around her and pulled her up against him. “Bec…”

His strangled voice sent another shiver of terror down her spine.

Then he spun around as if scanning the area to see if the person who’d left the note was nearby. The realization hit Rebecca, too. The kidnapper or a conspirator might be watching to make sure they found the message. To see if they phoned the police.

She blinked back tears and studied the passers-by. Due to the blackout, the streets looked grim. People walked in a hurry, shaken and wary of others. Cars still clogged the street, creating a nightmare for drivers. And two uniformed officers tried to direct the mob and clean up the congestion at the intersections. Another one walked the streets as if to announce his presence in case burglars or vandals decided to take advantage of nonfunctioning security systems in the moneyed Beacon Hill section.

But she saw no one who stuck out as watching them. No one with a scared little boy in tow.

“There’s no ransom,” Ethan mumbled. “I don’t understand why there’s no ransom.”

“There will be,” she said, battling terror at the distress in his voice. “They’re going to call, Ethan. They have to.”

He gave a clipped nod, removed his keys and unlocked the door. They rushed inside, and he hurried to check his machine, then cursed. Of course, the blasted thing wasn’t working because of the blackout.

“Let me check the brownstone. Stay put, Rebecca.”

Shaking, she sank onto the living room couch, and twisted her fingers together while he searched the rooms on all three stories. Last night she’d assured Jesse there were no monsters. But today, in broad daylight, one had stolen him.