Against the Law Read Free Page B

instant, he imagined those long legs wrapped around his waist, imagined cupping that amazing ass in his hands as he drove into her.
    He shook his head, forced his imagination back behindthe zipper of his jeans and reminded himself to concentrate on business.
    â€œYou brought the adoption information?” he asked, spotting the manila folder she carried beneath her arm.
    â€œI brought what I had. I’m afraid there isn’t that much.”
    He opened the file, began to thumb through the pages. She was right, there wasn’t much. The name of the agency, Loving Home Adoption, the name of the people who ran it, Evan and Martha Olcott and an address off the 101 on Shea Avenue. A copy of the baby’s birth certificate was attached. It listed Heather Delaney as the mother, Baby Delaney as the child’s name. No father’s name. Nothing that looked the least bit useful.
    â€œAs I said, the agency is no longer at the address listed on the papers.” Lark walked over and poured herself a cup of coffee from the pot on the wet bar. “Want a refill?”
    â€œI’ll get it.”
    As he walked toward the counter, she carried her mug over to the round teakwood table and sat down in one of the chairs. “I drove down there last week. There was a for-lease sign in the window. I talked to people in the office next door, but they didn’t know anything. No one had a forwarding address for the agency and nobody knew where the Olcotts went after the office closed down.”
    Dev poured some of the fresh brew into his cup, carried it over and sat down across from her. “According to these papers, it was a closed adoption.” Dev skimmed thepages. “The name of the couple who adopted the baby was kept secret at their request.”
    â€œHeather was only sixteen. I remember Gran saying the couple didn’t want any problems when Heather got older.”
    â€œNo father’s name is listed on the birth certificate.”
    â€œHeather refused to tell my grandparents who he was.”
    â€œShe was trying to protect him?”
    â€œI think she was ashamed she had ever had anything to do with him.”
    He studied the papers. “How much did your grandparents know about the people who wanted to adopt? What made them decide these people would make good parents?”
    She took a sip of her coffee. “My grandmother trusted Martha Olcott. Mrs. Olcott said the couple was young and had plenty of money and they wanted a baby very badly. She said they would provide a loving home and my grandmother was satisfied with that. I think she just wanted the problem to go away.”
    â€œDid your sister ever meet the perspective parents?”
    â€œNo, but Martha Olcott was very persuasive. She gave Heather her word the couple would take good care of her baby. Heather finally agreed.”
    Dev got up from the table and carried his coffee cup over to the computer on his desk. He sat down and clicked his mouse. When Google popped up, he typed in Loving Home Adoptions and was surprised at how little came up.
    â€œI don’t see anything in general about the agency, nowebsite, no contact information, nothing but a couple of minor mentions in other agency articles.”
    â€œThey were very discreet. That was one of the things my grandmother liked. At the time, I was busy in Los Angeles and I didn’t get involved much in the process. I trusted Grandma’s judgment. I never met Mrs. Olcott or her husband, but Grandma said they seemed extremely knowledgeable.”
    â€œAnd trustworthy?” he asked as she walked up beside him.
    â€œShe thought so, yes.” She leaned over his shoulder to study the monitor. “You don’t…you don’t think something might be wrong with the adoption?”
    He tried to ignore the fact she was standing so close, ignore the energy that seemed to vibrate from every curve in her body. He tried to ignore the scent of her perfume but