He transferred his weight from one foot to the other and jammed his free hand in his pocket. “I had no idea. We never dated.”

“I know. I also know she wasn’t seeing anyone else that summer. That’s why I always assumed the Jack she’d mentioned was the father. She confirmed that in a letter she left for me, along with the package for you, in care of her attorney. From a legal standpoint, she dotted all the i’s and crossed all the t’s in terms of her wishes for guardianship.”

“Is Hannah with you at the airport?”

“No. My pastor and his wife agreed to let her stay with them last night. I’ve been able to stick close since Natalie died, but I had an overnight business trip to New York I couldn’t cancel. Normally I’d have spent tonight there too, but I didn’t want to impose on my pastor any longer than necessary. I just got back to Chicago.” A sigh came over the line. “My job requires significant travel, and dealing with the logistics has been challenging.”

Another incentive to step up to the plate, beyond the overriding fact that any man who fathered a child owed that child a full-time dad.

Even if he was a late-in-the-game entry.

He picked up the small cardboard container. “The supplier of the kit uses rapid DNA technology. That means results will be available in two to three days. I’ll do the cheek swab and overnight it tomorrow. By midweek we should have confirmation.”

“Then what?”

She was asking what he intended to do if the paternity test came back positive.

He set the box back down, tightened his grip on the cell, and stared out the window. Rain pummeled the earth, and the world was dark and inscrutable beyond the pool of illumination cast by his porch light.

Like his future.

“What’s your relationship with Hannah?” He ought to factor that into his decision.

“Sad to say, we’re practically strangers. I’ve never married, and my job keeps me on the move. I’ve also spent a number of years overseas. Natalie and I rarely saw each other. I’ve been as much a stranger to Hannah as you are until Natalie . . . until these past three weeks.” Her voice caught.

“I’m sorry for your loss.” His expression of sympathy was tardy, but his brain wasn’t firing on all cylinders.

“Thank you. We weren’t that close, thanks to the gap in our ages and the different paths our lives took, but it’s hard to lose your sole family connection. Other than Hannah, of course.”

“How would you feel about me taking her?”

“May I be honest?”

“Please.”