Excerpt of Vanessa's Match by Judy Christenberry

Vanessa smiled as her patient, Lindy Austin, played with Vanessa's niece, Jamie. Turning two and sweet as spun sugar, Jamie made Lindy laugh as they played with the plastic dollhouse and the toddler babbled on. Vanessa suspected it had been a while since Lindy had laughed like that.

Ever since she'd received the call that sent her to the hospital in the middle of the night five days ago, Vanessa had taken care of Lindy, and eventually brought her here to her mother's house in the Highland Park section of Dallas, where Vanessa still lived. Lindy had said she couldn't face going back to the condo she'd lived in with her mother.

Only Vanessa had gone to the condo to pack some clothes for Lindy. And she'd been disturbed by what she'd found. Richard Austin, Lindy's half brother, had a lot to answer for. At the time of the accident he'd been in Japan on business and had ordered his attorney to make sure Lindy was taken care of. That had been the extent of Richard's involvement. Because of the Austins'connections to the university Dr. Cavanaugh got involved, but he knew little about Richard Austin.

Vanessa had so many questions about the man. But she couldn't ask Lindy. The teen reacted badly to the mere mention of his name, which made Vanessa even more determined to protect the girl. How, she wasn't sure, but she'd find a way.

"Vanessa?" Betty, the housekeeper, came into the morning room, breaking into her thoughts.

Vanessa looked up quickly. There was a hint of urgency in the housekeeper's voice that alarmed her.

"What is it, Betty?"

"You have a caller. Shall I show him to the library?" Vanessa paused. She started to ask the name of the visitor, but Betty's gaze darted to Lindy and then back to Vanessa. So the caller was about her charge.

"Yes, thank you."

She looked at her sister, Jamie's mom. "I've been expecting this visitor. Rebecca, can you keep an eye on everyone for a few minutes?"

She was glad Rebecca was here. There was a special bond between the sisters, perhaps because Rebecca was the first of her siblings found a couple of years ago. Not a day went by that Vanessa didn't thank her mother, Vivian Greenfield, for telling her that she was adopted and offering to help Vanessa find her siblings. Four out of the five had been located, with the help of Will Greenfield, a private investigator and Vivian's second husband. The last sibling would never be found: Walter Barlow, a soldier, had been killed in Iraq.

For being a devoted mother and for understanding Vanessa's need to find her siblings, she would forever love her mother. Brothers and sisters had enriched her life immeasurably.

Too bad that wasn't the case for young Lindy. Vanessa gave her sister a thankful nod when she agreed. As the mother of two, Rebecca would do anything to protect Lindy, too, Vanessa knew. "I'll hurry back," she said.

Vanessa left the morning room and went to the library. She entered the room quietly, but she didn't catch her visitor by surprise.

He turned and studied her. "Are youVanessa Shaw?"

"Yes, I am." When he said nothing else, she spoke up. "My housekeeper didn't mention your name."

"I'm Richard Austin, here to pick up my sister." Even his voice was cold. Vanessa took a good look at the man she'd been obsessing about since she'd met his sister. He was tall, and dressed impeccably in what looked like a custom-made Italian suit. His dark hair had that just-cut look, and something made her believe it always did. The chill that radiated from his dark eyes came as no surprise to her. The man would never ease Lindy's fears.

Keeping her reaction under wraps, she effected a professional distance, slowly walked over to the fireplace and sat down in one of the wing chairs. "Well, then, Mr. Austin, would you join me, please? I'd like to talk to you about Lindy."

"There's no need. Just bring the girl to me. I'm in a hurry."

Vanessa said nothing, just stared at him. Finally, he moved to the other wing chair. "Make it quick."

Vanessa grew more determined. She couldn't possibly hand Lindy over to this ice man. "What are your plans for Lindy?"

"I'll return her to the condo and find a responsible person to take care of her."

"But you won't concern yourself with her?" Vanessa asked.

"What are you getting at? The girl is a stranger to me."

Without knowing, he was making her case for her. "And whose fault is that? According to Lindy, you're always too busy even to talk to her."

"That's none of your business, Miss Shaw."

"I think it is. I was at the hospital with her when she came to, after attempting to commit suicide. I've taken care of her for the past five days while you were too busy to find out how she was doing."

"What do you mean she tried to commit suicide?" he demanded, frowning deeply.

"No one told you?"

"No!"

"She was alone when she was notified that her mother had been killed. Emotionally distraught, she swallowed her mother's sleeping pills and almost died. Fortunately, your lawyer realized that might be a difficult blow to a fifteen-year-old and came to the apartment to see if she was all right."

"Why didn't he tell me?" Richard demanded, jumping to his feet.

"Perhaps he was afraid of displeasing you." Her father had been an important businessman like the one in front of her, and he'd generated fear among his employees and everyone around him, no doubt like Richard did. Vanessa had learned to overcome that fear and had faced her adoptive father many a time. She would do the same with Richard Austin. She had to, for Lindy's sake.

The man scowled at her. "Never mind. Bring Lindy to me."

"So she can become distraught and try to kill herself again?" She wasn't going to pull her punches.

"I said I'd find someone to take care of her!" he snapped.

"Leave her with me."

She could see that she had caught him by surprise with that request.

"I beg your pardon?"

"Leave your sister here with me. I have room for her and I care about her."

"She has a perfectly good condo to go to!"

"Have you been to the condo?"

He scowled again. "Once, when I bought it for them."

"Well, let me tell you about the place she called home. I went to pack up Lindy's clothes when she came to stay with me. The living room is beautifully decorated, the master bedroom lovely, the dining room elegant." She speared him with a look. "But there's no table in the kitchen, and Lindy slept on a pallet on the floor. Her clothes are few and cheap, but the master bedroom has a closet full of designer clothes and shoes. Whose fault is that?"

He came back to his chair and sank into it. "I left her with her mother, who had legal custody. What else should I have done?"

"Perhaps you could have visited occasionally. It wasn't just you who lost your father. Lindy did, too."

"You don't understand!"

"Then tell me what I don't understand," she said softly.

"The damn woman tried to seduce me two days after we buried my father."

"And you left Lindy with that kind of woman?" she demanded.

"She was her mother!" the man roared.

Vanessa drew a deep breath. "Please control yourself, Mr. Austin."

"I damn well won't if you're going to keep accusing me of doing something wrong!"

"Couldn't you at least have made sure she had the necessities?"

"The money I paid out each month was double what they were entitled to."

"Well, now you can save all that money. Just leave Lindy with me. She needs a lot of love and protection right now for her to recover."

Silence. "You do want her to recover, don't you?"

"Of course I do. But I know nothing about you."

"At least you don't know anything bad about me. You can't say that about the woman you left her with nine years ago."

"Do you have any references?" he demanded, starch in his voice.

"Yes, Dr. Cavanaugh, head of the Psychology Department. He sent me to the hospital. He'll vouch for me."

"Very well. I'll contact him. If I agree to this arrangement, the two of you can move into the condo. I'll make sure it's furnished this time."

"No."

"What do you mean, no?"

"I want Lindy to stay here with me, where she'll feel like she's in a family."

"A big house does not a family make, Miss Shaw."

"My parents, my baby brother, the housekeeper and her husband live here. I also have two brothers and a sister nearby. In fact, my sister is here now with her two-year- old. Lindy is enjoying playing with her."

"That would be an imposition. I'll find someone to take care of her."

"No!" Vanessa exclaimed, jumping to her feet. "I insist that you leave Lindy here. She's not strong enough to be on her own."

He paused, frowning. Then he said, "I suppose I could pay you for her upkeep and your care of her, if I decide it will be the best thing for her."

"If you'll leave her here, I won't charge you anything."

"I insist. I don't believe in owing anyone."

"Whatever — as long as you leave her here."

"All right, I'll let you know my decision after I make some calls. Here's my card. If you need anything for Lindy in the meantime, let me know at once."

"Thank you. Will you inform your lawyer?"

"Of course...after I speak to him about not telling me the truth about Lindy."

With that, he was gone.