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his lack of enthusiasm, she didn’t show it. “Thanks,” she said, practically bursting with excitement now that the news was out. “Tommy Ray and I weren’t counting on this, but it’ll be okay.” She shook her head, her hand resting protectively on her still-flat stomach. “A baby! Can you imagine?”
    “It’s something, all right.”
    She regarded him more somberly. “It means I’m going to have to quit, though.”
    There it was, the bombshell he’d been waiting for. The pregnancy, with its prospects of morning sickness and time off for shopping and lunchtime showers couldn’t possibly have been enough. Oh, no. Darlene had to go and quit, too. It just about clinched the day’s status as one of the worst in his life.
    “Quit? Why on earth would you want to do that?” he demanded, unable to keep the cranky note from his voice. What had happened to all those women who wanted to have careers and motherhood? Taylor wondered miserably. “When’s the baby due, anyway?”
    “Not for another six months, but Tommy Ray figures I ought to go ahead and quit now so we can work on building a nursery and getting it all fixed up. I won’t leave you in the lurch or anything. I figured you ought to be able to find somebody to replace me in two weeks. I could start looking around for you right away, if you want me to.”
    Taylor didn’t have a lot of hope that two weeks was enough time since it had taken him three months to find Darlene, but he gave her his blessing. If anyone could track down a replacement, it would be Darlene. She had the instincts of a bloodhound. He’d turned her loose a couple of times to track down information that might otherwise have required a private eye. She’d had it so fast, he’d been awed.
    “You find me a couple of good candidates,” he told her, trying to muster a smile. “I’ll do the final interview.”
    “You bet. Just leave it to me. By the way, Caitlin’s school called. The headmistress wants to talk to you.”
    “Did she say what it’s about?” he asked. Given the way the day was going, his seven-year-old had probably burned the place down.
    “Nope. Just that it was important. The number’s right here.” She handed him the message slip on the top of the pile. “Want me to place the call?”
    Taylor shook his head. “I can do it.”
    A few minutes later he had Josephine Lawrence Patterson on the line. Every time he talked to her, he couldn’t help imagining her whacking his knuckles with a ruler.
    “Mr. Matthews, I’m worried about Caitlin,” she announced in that direct fashion he’d always admired until now. Now it set off alarm bells.
    “Is she sick?”
    “Homesick is more like it. Perhaps you could pick her up this weekend for a visit?”
    If there was a hint of censure in Ms. Patterson’s tone, Taylor couldn’t identify it. Still, he was filled with guilt. He’d had to go to Charleston the previous weekend and had canceled Caitlin’s regular visit home. He hadn’t allowed himself to hear any disappointment in her voice. In fact, he’d convinced himself she’d sounded happy about staying with her friends. Apparently, though, his daughter was almost as adept as he was at hiding her real feelings. It wasn’t a trait he was particularly proud about handing down.
    “Please tell her I’ll pick her up on Friday afternoon.”
    “Isn’t that something you should tell her yourself?” she said, and this time the mild rebuke was clear.
    “Of course. I’ll call later today, when classes are out. Thank you, Ms. Patterson. It means a lot to me to know how well you look out for Caitlin.”
    “She’s a lovely child, Mr. Matthews. I wish…well, I wish your circumstances were different.”
    “So do I, Ms. Patterson,” he said. “So do I.”
    For some reason, as he spoke, an image of Zelda immediately came to mind. He did his damnedest to banish it before it could land him in a heap of misery.
    * * *
    Less than a week later, just when Taylor had almost