No, she was far from knowing what happened. How did Johanna Grisham get Vashti’s child to pass off as hers? And what had happened to the Grishams’ baby? “Sawyer is flying in tonight instead of tomorrow,” she said, remembering their last conversation. “He has to be told.”
“And you’re the one who needs to tell him, Vashti. You need to tell him the truth.”
She didn’t know what the truth was. How had his wife been in a position to adopt Vashti’s baby? “Yes, I have to tell him. But how can I do that when I don’t know the full story?” She drew in a deep breath thinking, What a mess. What a big mess.
“Yes, but Sawyer is your future now, Vashti. Even if you don’t know the full story, the two of you can discover it together. The one thing I do know is that he will need your love and support. That is essential when you’re going through difficult times.”
She agreed. “You’re right and I will be there for Sawyer,” she said. Just like he’s been there for me during my difficult times. But the question she was asking herself was how was he going to handle finding out about his wife’s betrayal? How would he handle knowing he was not Jade’s biological father?
“I will tell him when he arrives tonight. But for now, I want to go and meet Kia.”
* * *
A VOICE IN the back of Vashti’s mind was trying to reassure her everything would be alright when she stood beside Reid and knocked on the hospital room door.
“Come in.”
Opening the door she stepped inside. Four people looked over at them, specifically at her. But Vashti’s gaze was on Kia. “Hello,” she said, barely recognizing her own voice.
“Hello. Sorry seeing me made you pass out. I’m glad you’re better,” the teenager said, smiling. She extended her hand. “I’m Kia Harris. Thanks for coming and being tested to see if your kidney will work for me.”
“You’re welcome.” Like Jade, she figured Kia never met a stranger, at least not one she couldn’t charm.
“I think it would be a good idea,” Gloria Harris said, “if we gave Vashti and Kia time alone. Reid, I would love to share memories of our days at Yale over a cup of coffee.”
“And while you two are doing that,” Alma said, “Percelli and I need to make a few calls.” She took hold of her husband’s hand and led him toward the door. In less than two minutes, Vashti found herself alone with Kia.
“Honestly, could they be any more transparent?” Kia laughed.
Vashti smiled. She had to admit the Harrises were not what she expected, considering the circumstances. They weren’t at all threatened by the appearance of Kia’s birth mother and grandfather in their daughter’s life. She wondered how Jade would handle the truth because like her father, she assumed Johanna was her birth mother.
“You have swell folks and a nice grandmother,” Vashti said as she took the chair beside Kia’s hospital bed.
“They are the best, although since becoming a teenager they are getting a lot more protective. But I understand. There are a lot of crazy people out there so I try not to make them worry.”
“That’s mature and thoughtful of you.”
The room got quiet for a minute and Vashti knew Kia had questions for her, so she said, “I want you to ask me anything you want, Kia. Anything at all.”
“Okay. The guy who got you pregnant at sixteen. My biological father. Mr. Lacroix’s son, Julius. Did you love him? I asked Mr. Lacroix if he thought his son loved you and he said yes, that he did, and that he told him he’d loved you before he died.”
Vashti nodded. “Yes, I loved Julius. He was my first boyfriend. My parents didn’t even know he and I were seeing each other.”
“You were sneaking around?” Kia asked.
“Yes.” But not to give her daughter any ideas, she said, “That’s where we made our first mistake. We should have dated out in the open and supervised.”
Kia nodded. “And your parents? Why would they lie to you?”
Evidently Kia’s parents had told her the entire story. “They thought I was too young to be a mother and my child would be better off being adopted.”
Kia nibbled on her bottom lip, something Vashti had seen Jade do a few times as well. “I don’t know what kind of life I would have had with you, Ms. Vashti, but I can’t help but be glad my parents adopted me and that my grandparents were my grandparents. I can’t imagine growing up around anyone else. I hope that doesn’t make you feel sad.”
Vashti shook her head. “No, it doesn’t.” Honestly, in a way it did. She would like to think her daughters would have grown up well-adjusted in Catalina Cove. But then, what kind of life could she have offered them without a college education? She would have had to kiss college goodbye as a single mother. However, there was the option of taking classes at night. That meant being away from her kids during the day while she worked and then at night while she attended school.
There was no doubt in Vashti’s mind that being the only child of two engineers who were in love and respected each other had merits. It was obvious Kia was a well-adjusted child...just like Jade. She hoped the two of them got to meet. It would be essential that they did. There was no guarantee that Vashti or Reid would be a donor match for Kia, which meant Jade would need to be tested. Whether she was or not would be Sawyer’s decision.
“You’re pretty. Do you have a boyfriend?”
Kia’s question pulled Vashti back into reality. “Yes, I’m seeing a guy. He’s the sheriff in Catalina Cove.”
“A sheriff? I bet he gives out plenty of tickets.”
No need to tell her that’s how she and Sawyer had met. “I’m sure he does, to speeders.”
“Mom says you used to be a national baton-twirling champion. Is that true?”
“Yes, but that was years ago when I was about your age.”
“But it’s something you don’t forget, right?”
Vashti grinned. “Right. It’s something you don’t forget, although if you don’t do it often, you’ll get rusty.”
“Do you ever want any more kids? You’re still young.”
Honestly, she hadn’t thought about it. She had when she’d married Scott, but when her marriage began turning sour she was glad she hadn’t brought a child into it. But she was with Sawyer now—did she want his child? Would he want to start over in fatherhood when he had a teenage daughter? “Yes, if I were to marry I would want a child.”
She and Kia talked for a half hour more before everyone returned. Dr. Telfair dropped by to let her and Reid know their tests would be done tomorrow. More than anything Vashti hoped that one of them would be a perfect donor for Kia.
* * *
VASHTI WOKE TO the sound of the hotel room door opening. She glanced at the clock on the nightstand and saw it was three in the morning and knew Sawyer had arrived.
Easing out of bed she didn’t bother putting on a robe when she left the bedroom to enter the sitting area of the suite. After placing his carry-on luggage aside, he opened his arms and she rushed across the room to be engulfed in his warm embrace.
“I know it’s only been a day, but I miss you,” he whispered close to her ear before taking her mouth to devour it.
Vashti needed this kiss. She needed him. And she knew after she told him about Kia and Jade that he would need her. When she had left the hospital she’d known what she had to do. There was a chance he probably wouldn’t believe her at first, but once he saw Kia he would see for himself.
When Sawyer deepened the kiss even more, every thought suddenly fled from Vashti’s mind. A shiver of desire overtook her when the warmth of his body seeped through to hers, and when the hardness of his erection poked at the juncture of her thighs, all she could imagine was being in bed, wrapped in his arms while he made love to her.
He broke the kiss and stared at her moist lips before shifting his gaze to hers. “You’re beautiful,” he br
eathed out and then breathed in deeply, as if inhaling her scent. Since being involved with Sawyer she was used to his extreme arousal state, and his unending stamina. But what she loved and admired about him was that he always made satisfying her his top priority. There was never a time they made love that he hadn’t made her feel like a woman. A woman he fully desired. And she knew he desired her now and she desired him.
“You’re trying to make my head swell?” she asked, smiling up at him.
“I don’t see why not,” he said, as a sexy, self-assured smile touched his lips. “You’ve made a certain part of me swell. Turnabout is fair play.”
And then he swept her off her feet and carried her into the bedroom.
* * *
SAWYER EASED HIS body off Vashti and shifted to hold her in his arms. Their legs were entwined, and her breasts were flattened against his chest while she faced him. Sweat dampened her forehead, and her lips were still moist from his overindulgent kisses.
Over the past few months, he’d told her countless times she was beautiful, and he honestly didn’t think she knew just how beautiful she was. He doubted she realized how her smile alone could make a rush of heat flow through him or how just seeing her could make his heart pound. He also doubted she had a clue just how deeply he’d fallen in love with her. He’d told her that he loved her, but he was certain she hadn’t grasped just how much. At first it had scared the hell out of him that after Johanna he could love any woman to that degree, or that he could constantly analyze the depth of that love. He hadn’t ever done such a thing for Johanna. He’d just accepted over time that he loved her. With Vashti he was convinced he’d begun feeling something for her the minute he’d pulled her over and given her a ticket.
“We need to talk, Sawyer.”
He reached up and caressed the side of her face. “Sorry, baby. I should have asked how things went for you today. I’m sure they could not have been easy. But when I saw you standing there, I wanted you so much.”
“And I should have asked how your flight was. But then I had wanted you to make love to me, too.”
That was one of the things he loved most about her, Sawyer thought. She had no qualms in letting him know she enjoyed their lovemaking as much as he did. She was such a passionate person and he wanted to always be there for her. That’s why he hadn’t hesitated to move his schedule around to take days off to make sure she had someone to lean on. He could not imagine her dealing with any of this alone. Granted Reid had come, but the man had to be encountering his own emotions as well.
“Tell me, baby. Tell me how things went.”
“The doctor doesn’t think I can be a donor for my daughter since she has one of those rare blood types. Luckily, Mr. Lacroix has the same blood type so there’s still a chance he might be.”
Sawyer nodded. He studied her and then as if he could read her mind, he said, “There’s more, isn’t there?”
She nodded. “Yes. And when I tell you, I doubt you will believe me because I’m having a hard time believing it myself. But I know together you and I will get to the bottom of it.”
He lifted a brow as he stared into her eyes. “Get to the bottom of what?”
She nibbled on her bottom lip and Sawyer wondered why she’d suddenly become nervous. “Get to the bottom of what, Vashti?” he asked her again.
She drew in a deep breath and said, “My daughter’s name is Kia,” she said softly, while holding his gaze.
“That’s a pretty name,” he said, knowing a name wouldn’t have her suddenly acting uneasy.
“I think so, too. And what we need to get to the bottom of, Sawyer, is how Kia and Jade are twins.”
CHAPTER FORTY-THREE
VASHTI WATCHED HIS expression and knew Sawyer hadn’t fully comprehended what she’d meant. He proved her right when he said, “What about her reminds you of Jade? Is it the hair, her size, the eyes, the—”
“All of it,” she interrupted him to say.
He nodded. “You know what they say. Everybody’s got a twin somewhere.”
“I mean a real twin, Sawyer.”
Something in the tone of her voice made him lift a brow. “What do you mean a real twin?”
She swallowed, this had to be one of the most difficult things she’d ever had to do. “You know what Jeremy Banks said about my giving birth to twins that were separated at birth.”
“Yes, I heard him, but what does that have to do with Jade?”
Now she could hear signs of irritation in his voice. Detangling their legs, she pulled herself out of his arms to sit up in bed. It was important that he not only heard her but understood what she was telling him. “What I’m trying to tell you, Sawyer, is that Jade is Kia’s twin.”
He looked up at her like she’d lost her ever-loving mind. And from the sympathetic look in his eyes, he actually thought that she had. Reaching out he ran a soothing hand up and down her arm. “I know you’ve had a rough time dealing with everything, baby. It had to have been hard all these years thinking your baby had died and now finding out you gave birth to twins who are alive. That’s enough for any one person to have to deal with. I understand your wanting to find both babies and your eagerness to do so. But, sweetheart, you know as well as I do that there’s no way Jade is anyone’s twin.”
“But she is, Sawyer.”
He frowned and pulled his hand away. “Listen to me, Vashti,” he said in a stern voice. “There is no way she can be. How in the world can you even think such a thing?”
“Because when I walked into Kia’s hospital room, the girl who smiled at me looked identical to Jade.”
“I can believe she resembled Jade.”
“No, she is Jade’s twin.”
He reached out for her again to pull her into his arms. “Let’s get some sleep. You’ll be okay tomorrow. You’re so exhausted that—”
“I’m talking crazy?”
“Yes,” he said, leaning in and brushing his lips across her forehead.
“I’m not crazy, Sawyer.”
“I didn’t say you were crazy. I just think you’re a little confused and it’s understandable.”
She wouldn’t expect him to believe her, at least until he saw Kia for himself. Even now it was still hard to believe, and she had to periodically convince herself this was reality and not an episode of the Twilight Zone. But still...
“None of this is understandable, Sawyer. Can you tell me how you and your wife adopted one of my daughters?”
In the lines of his face, she could see frustration was turning into anger. “There is nothing to tell, Vashti. Jade is my daughter, not yours. She’s my and Johanna’s biological daughter.”
“You’re sure of that?”
His hand reached up and closed around her naked shoulder like he was tempted to shake some sense into her. “Of course, I’m sure of it.”
“Why? Were you with Johanna when Jade was born?”
“You know I wasn’t.” He frowned and pulled his hand off her. “Hey, wait a damn minute,” he said, sitting up in bed as well. “Now, you’ve gone too far. Whether you know it or not, you’re all but accusing my wife of deceiving me. Not only does that not make sense, but it’s something Johanna wouldn’t do.”
He got out of bed and slid into his pants. “I’m trying to be understanding, Vashti, but I refuse to let you accuse Johanna of doing something that’s not only horrendous but outright dishonest. You didn’t know her, but I did.”
“I know what I saw, Sawyer. And it’s more than a coincidence that Jade and Kia not only look alike, but they share the same birthday.”
He put on his shirt. “What you saw is a girl who favors my daughter. As far as them sharing the same birthday, so do a lot of people. For God’s sake, Vashti, even you have to know what you’re claiming is impossible.”
By his words and expression she could tell he was
mentally blocking out what she was saying. He had to believe she wasn’t making this stuff up. He had to know after spending so much time around Jade that she could tell the difference between someone who looked like her and someone who was her identical twin.
“Where are you going?” she asked him as he got dressed.
“I’m leaving.”
“Leaving?”
“Yes, leaving,” he said, glancing around as if to make sure he had everything. “You have no right to slander my wife’s good name for any reason and I won’t allow it. Regardless of what you want to think, she is Jade’s mother and I won’t stay and let you try and convince me otherwise. I’m flying back to Catalina Cove.”
“But wouldn’t it make sense to go to the hospital tomorrow to see Kia for yourself? Then you’d know I’m telling the truth. That I am right.”
He narrowed his gaze at her. “Nothing you’re saying makes sense, Vashti. And I don’t need to go to any hospital because there’s no way you’re right,” he said, heading for the bedroom door. When he reached it, he turned around and stared at her with cold, dark eyes. “Goodbye, Vashti.”
She recalled another time he’d told her goodbye. She didn’t want things to end between them this way. “I thought we would find out the truth together, Sawyer,” she said in a soft voice.
He shook his head. “There’s no truth in your words. I refuse to accept what you’re accusing my wife of doing.” He then turned and walked out of the bedroom.
When she heard the hotel room door close behind him, she buried her face in her pillow and cried.
* * *
THREE HOURS LATER, Sawyer was still at the airport, waiting on standby, trying to get a flight back home. He bit into a strawberry muffin he’d purchased from the snack machine and had to admit it didn’t taste bad, and he wasn’t a big fan of strawberries. But then he hadn’t been crazy about blueberries either until he’d moved to Catalina Cove, the blueberry capital of the world.
He glanced up when he heard a cry of happiness and watched a young woman who looked to be in her late twenties rush into the open arms of a military man. They probably were being reunited after he’d been gone awhile, Sawyer thought. He remembered those times for him and how every time he returned home, Johanna and Jade would be at the airport to welcome him home. Those had been some of the happiest days of his life.
Love in Catalina Cove Page 34