Love Lost & Found (Surfside Romance Book 2)

by L. A. Justice

  “Just wait,” he said softly. “Let’s see how it plays out tomorrow. But I’d be lying if I didn’t say I’m worried.”

  She gazed up into his sad deep-set eyes. “Come. Let’s go upstairs.”

  He pulled her close as they walked to the elevator and down the carpeted corridor. They cranked down the AC and stripped quickly as the magnetic pull of sex took over. With heat rising, she wrapped her legs around him and then he was inside her. Afterwards, they lay together grinning, talking softly. With no agenda or schedule to keep, they showered with soapy groping hands and made love again, slowly, with sweet tenderness.

  Sari hoped that Luke Prescott, whom she’d heard so much about from her granddaughter, would catch Alexa when she fell.

  Because in less than twenty-four hours her well-ordered world was going to implode.

  CHAPTER 61

  ALEXA WAS in the kitchen preparing dinner when Sari and Rob arrived. Each held a brown paper shopping bag. Hannah rushed to answer the door, hugging them both as Alexa sent Luke a quick text saying he and Zelda should come over ASAP.

  Sari walked into the kitchen inhaling deeply. “Smells delish, what’s cooking?”

  “Penne pasta with pesto and sausage.”

  She placed a box of Fresh Market chocolate-macadamia nut cookies and a lemon pound cake on the counter. Alexa pointed to a bowl of greens, a bag of carrots, celery stalks, and tomatoes as her phone rang. “Can you can finish making the salad?” She stepped into the living room.

  Teena Riley was on the line, bubbling over with excitement, talking so fast Alexa asked her to slow down. “Rick’s been discharged.”

  “But he was discharged from the hospital weeks ago. What do you mean?”

  “He’s done with physical therapy.”

  “That’s great. I’m so happy for him.”

  “We’re all thrilled. Best of all, there’s no permanent damage from the brain infection.”

  “So he’s able to go back to work?”

  “No,” said Teena wistfully. “He’ll never be a lumberjack again. Actually, he’s talking about going to Florida.”

  The words took Alexa’s breath away. This was not happening. Not now, not with so much on her plate. “Listen, I’m in the middle of dinner. My mom is here.”

  “Sari? I thought she was in Sedona.”

  “She’s visiting. I’ll explain later. Now’s not the best time for a visit.”

  “Who’s coming for a visit?” asked Luke, walking in with bottles of Montoya Cabernet and California Riesling.

  Alexa whispered into the phone, “Gotta go.” She disconnected the call and kissed his cheek, taking the wine from his hands. She introduced Luke and Zelda to Rob, who sat on the couch chatting with Hannah. Then she brought them into the kitchen to meet Sari.

  Rob had swapped his Johnny Cash garb for faded jean shorts and a loose rayon shirt with surf boards; leather sandals exposed feet as pasty white as slugs. Looking like a preppy Ralph Lauren model, Luke wore cargo shorts and a blue work shirt, sleeves rolled up. All four women had on summery floral dresses, as though they’d coordinated the effort, which they hadn’t.

  She noticed Luke trying to catch her eye, probably wanting to ask who’d called, who wanted to visit. He was always on high alert, like a Doberman with twitching ears and nose sniffing out the scent of trouble. She scooted back to the kitchen with a dangerous cocktail of excitement and fear coursing through her blood.

  Rick Harlow here in Florida?

  As they put the finishing touches on the meal, Sari apologized for missing Alexa’s birthday. “I’m not sure why it always slips my mind.” Actually, she did.

  Alexa shrugged. Some people went all out with parties for themselves—celebrities especially—but she flew under the radar on her special day. Rather than celebrating being born, she felt it was a day of introspection, a chance to evaluate her life, assess all the things she had not achieved in the past year—or might have achieved if she’d only worked harder.

  “I just let it slide by,” she said casually. “No big deal.”

  Table talk was light and several times Zelda asked, “What time is it?”

  Each time, Luke checked his watch. “Morning or evening?” she’d ask.

  Finally, he said, “What’s with the questions. Do you have a hot date tonight?”

  They all chuckled as Alexa’s mind spooled back to the hospital. Rick lying swathed in bandages at death’s door. And even further, recalling the moment he swaggered into Mojo Doughnuts, kissed her head, and her heart somersaulted in her chest. He was sinewy and strong, a hand-some cuddly bear, protective of her, and open with his heart. Rick gave his all and asked nothing in return. He said his piece and backed off. She pushed down her guilty desire to see him.

  Glancing at Luke, she saw his wholesome boyish face, now marred by worry lines that creased his brows, most likely caused by Zelda’s constant questions. He looked as though he’d rather be anywhere but here and something cold and undefined pushed against her. A tug-of-war raged inside as she smiled and ticked off the differences between them, half listening as the conversation flowed around her.

  Rick wasn’t impressed by wealth. Luke craved it.

  Rick knew the words I’m sorry. Luke chose not to say them.

  Rick adored her. Luke wanted to be adored.

  Rick lived on the brink, with gusto. Luke lived in the corporate world with agendas.

  Dessert was served. As they finished, Luke stood abruptly. “Time to go.”

  “I’m not tired,” Zelda protested.

  “I think they need some family time,” Luke insisted. “And we need to talk about the things in the bathtub and how they got there.”

  “You should drop it.”

  “Mmmm, I don’t think so.”

  “Then I’m running off with Travis.” She smiled wickedly. “I feel like a feral cat in heat.”

  Luke rolled his eyes as Sari cut a slice of cake and wrapped it in Saran. “Here, take this for later.” She handed it to Zelda. “Nice meeting you.”

  “Ditto. I’ve never met an Amazonian princess before.”

  Rob spoke up. “Why rush? It’s a holiday weekend. Don’t tell me you have to work.”

  “Work is my middle name,” said Luke, forcing a smile.

  “I get that man, just saying. You don’t want to keel over with a heart attack at forty.”

  “I don’t plan to keel over; I plan on making my first million.”

  “A million?” asked Alexa. “That’s news.”

  “I’ll keep chugging along until I have enough.”

  “What’s enough?” asked Sari, standing in the kitchen doorway.

  Luke grinned. “There’s no such thing.” He gently propelled Zelda to the door, giving Alexa a perfunctory kiss on the cheek.

  “Thanks for dinner. I’ll catch up with you later.” His words rang hollow. Would there be a later? What was all that talk about millions and never stopping? She felt not one atom of desire in her body to be with him. He’d been so supercilious at dinner, as though this family gathering was beneath him. And this admission that he was a money junkie was unexpected.

  She closed the door. Time to suck up whatever they’d come here to tell her. There was nothing standing in the way now.

  Sari and Hannah cleaned the table while Alexa loaded the dishwasher. When they were done, they all moved into the living room, electricity crackling as they settled down. Hannah was on the couch with her grandma facing Alexa and Rob, both of them looking uncomfortably stiff in upholstered chairs. The coffee table provided a buffer.

  “I really like Zelda,” said Sari. “She’s like a marshmallow with a drop of arsenic in the middle.” Everyone smiled and shifted in their seats. The heavy duty stuff was coming.

  “She’s been great as a neighbor,” said Alexa. She turned to Hannah. “I think the grownups need to talk.”

  “I’ll bet my computer that whatever you’re going to say affects me so I’m staying put.”

 
Alexa felt a powerful surge of fear, along with the fierce urge to protect her daughter from the emotional tsunami that would soon wash through the room and suck them out to sea. Whatever Sari had to say was such an earth-shattering revelation it couldn’t be delivered via email or with a phone call. It had to be in person.

  “You’re right. It will affect you,” Rob added, his voice a low rumble.

  Sari patted her knee. “I think you can handle it.”

  Nobody spoke for a moment as a hush fell over them. Then Sari leaned forward, elbows on her knees.

  “Okay then, let’s go back to the beginning.”

  CHAPTER 62

  SARI LOCKED eyes with her daughter, words sticking in her throat like a chicken bone. “As you know, you were born in Bellingham. My mother, Deidre, was a midwife who delivered a newborn baby to a sixteen-year-old girl named Victoria Kiehl, K-I-E-H-L.” She inhaled deeply, pushing down her fear and continuing before anybody could interrupt. “Vicky’s father was a reverend in a small, highly religious sect, an offshoot of the Baptist church. He was strict, tyrannical, which is why Vicky probably felt the need to break loose and find a degree of independence. Think Footloose.”

  “What’s that?” asked Hannah.

  Rob shook his head and put a finger to his lips.

  “It was my fault, really, I admit it,” he interjected. “My only reason for living back then was getting laid. Sorry, Hannah, but I’m sure you know about the birds and the bees.”

  Gazing directly at Alexa, she now realized his eyes were the same shade of hazel. She felt the ticking of a time bomb and feared it would detonate, blowing her to smithereens. Feverishly, she looked around but there was no place to run, nowhere to hide. She had to suck it up—whatever IT was.

  “Vicky and I were kindred spirits in a way, both eager to disobey our parents. We never thought about the consequences. For that I apologize —and yet I don’t—because if we hadn’t done what we did, you wouldn’t be here. And I’m glad you are.”

  Sari picked up the narrative. “By now you’ve probably figured out the baby was you, Alexa. Since Deidre couldn’t find a suitable home, I became the surrogate mother. She was ill with an aggressive form of cancer, so I never questioned her decision. It was her dying wish and I granted it. After graduation we moved to Portland. We rented a small two-bedroom apartment. I found a daycare center and went to work, first as a receptionist and then as a legal secretary. My mother died. I met Joe. After we married, we bought the house I just sold.”

  Sari spoke as though nobody else was present. The room was quiet as a tomb.

  “After her funeral, I felt the ground fall away. I tumbled into a chasm so deep I don’t know how I survived. I was nineteen and an orphan with a baby. My father had vanished years before. My mother’s best friend, Maggie Starr, was back in Bellingham. It was just the two of us. You kept me grounded. You became my ballast, my anchor, my reason for living. With you in my arms I was on solid ground. We needed each other. I should have told you all of this years ago, I simply didn’t know how. I thought I’d screw up everything if you knew the truth.”

  She hung her head as the rest tumbled out. “Bottom line, I am not your biological mother and Joe was not your biological dad. It was wrong not to tell you. There’s no excuse. I was a coward on every level.”

  A waterfall rushed through Alexa’s ears. Her face grew hot, her hands ice cold. A cyclone threatened to swallow her whole.

  Rob slowly stood up and strode to the door. He was tall and powerfully built. There was nothing safe about him, even with the tacky shirt. He frightened her. Alexa wished he would walk out and vanish into the night. Instead, he picked up the brown shopping bag he’d dropped when he arrived and set it at her feet. “This is for you.”

  She sat motionless, unable to breathe. This was the mic drop. The moment everything stopped dead.

  Hannah grabbed the handles. “Is it okay if I open it?”

  “Sure, thanks.”

  The rustle of paper and popping of bubble wrap filled the silent room. Hannah extracted a carved wooden statue.

  “That’s your family—our family,” he said, his voice husky with emotion. “I’m sorry I didn’t step up sooner, but until I met Sari I didn’t even know you existed.”

  “It took months to unlock the secrets of the past,” added Sari. “I tracked down the hospital’s birth registrar. Sari Martin, my maiden name, is listed as the birth mother. On the line for the father’s name it had UK, unknown.”

  Rob said to Hannah, “Vicky was a redhead, that’s why you’re a ginger. But your mom has my eyes, don’t you think?”

  Hannah ran her hands through her locks and nodded. Her head swiveled between Alexa and Rob.

  “Wait, hold on a second!” She jumped up, cheeks flushing, pointing her index finger at him. “Are you saying you’re my grandfather—that you’re my mother’s real father and Grandma’s not related to any of us? We have none of her DNA, even though she raised Mom?”

  “You’re quick, honey,” Sari nodded. “That’s right. The whole thing was illegal I guess, but that’s the way Deidre rolled. She went off the grid sometimes.”

  “You weren’t much older than I am now. How did you manage?”

  “Joe Conklin came along. He assumed I was Alexa’s mother and adopted her when she was a toddler. I never told him the truth either. Maybe ignorance is bliss, maybe it’s a curse. But now it’s out in the open. I’ve held this inside me for half a century.”

  Everybody braced for another startling revelation. The AC kicked on. They all jumped. Alexa sat ramrod as the current sucked her into the black hole of an alternate universe. There was no returning intact as the lurid tale continued to unfold.

  “There’s more,” said Rob. “I just learned that Vicky left town after graduating high school. She moved east, to pursue a country music career. She goes by the name Vicki-Lynn Keel, spelled K-E-E-L. She’s a singer in Nashville, in case you ever want to check that out.”

  Hannah held up the statue as Alexa’s face hardened. The foot-high carving had four figures—one male and three females. Hannah ran her fingers over it. “This is smooth as cream. It must have taken you a long time.”

  “A lifetime actually. That’s us. Our family.”

  Alexa shot out of her seat face flushed, fists balled into knots, body tense as a coiled spring. With a frayed edge in her voice, she spat out, “Who do you think you are, coming in here professing to be my father, bringing a stupid statue, as if that makes us some legitimate biological unit? You can’t prove we’re related.”

  She turned her fury on Sari. “You have no right to lay this bizarre story on me. Where do you get the balls to say Joe’s not my dad, you’re not my mom, and this imposter is my real father? What the fuck?”

  “Language,” said Hannah.

  “Screw the language! You’re saying my real mom is a country singing unicorn and my real dad is a woodcarver with pierced ears? I don’t believe any of it.”

  Sari sprang up from the couch, hands on her hips. “Then don’t believe it. Take a DNA test. It will prove everything is true. The truth will set you free.”

  “Free? Get real! And now Hannah’s upset.”

  “I am not. But this explains a lot.”

  Alexa held up her hand. “Okay, let me just say this.”

  Slowly she turned to Rob. “Who the hell do you think you are filling my daughter with ridiculous lies and insinuations? You should leave right now and never come back.”

  In his deep throaty voice, he said quietly, “You can spend your whole life justifying a bad decision, making it your own version of the truth, constructing a lie that you can live with. Eventually you use it to your advantage. I’m totally guilty of doing just that. But it doesn’t alter the facts.”

  Alexa bolted for the door. “You can go straight to hell!’

  Through her fury, she pictured Rick standing outside in his red and black lumberjack shirt, arms wide open and ready to catch her, tell her everything
was okay. But nobody was on the walkway as she ran into Zelda’s and slammed the door behind her.

  CHAPTER 63

  ALEXA HAD been washed into a riptide. Unable to find purchase, she flung herself down on the couch next to her startled neighbor and burst into tears. Zelda patted her head. “Looks like I missed all the fun.”

  “I... I don’t even know where to begin.” Alexa stood up and walked to the kitchen where she ripped off a paper towel and blew her nose. “Do you have anything to drink?”

  “Water, soda, some old coffee from yesterday.”

  “Anything stronger?”

  “There’s a bottle of hooch way back in the fridge. Left over from when I was a hot young thing. Liquor never goes bad.”

  Alexa fished out a bottle of Bombay gin and found a tumbler. She added ice and poured half a glass, taking a long, satisfying sip. It burned like fire on the way down. She grimaced. Returning to the couch with the glass, she took another sip. Zelda said, “It must be bad.”

  Alexa nodded. “Worse than bad. It seems Sari isn’t my real mother.”

  “I’m not surprised.”

  “Well I am. But why would you say that?”

  “You look nothing alike. Didn’t you ever notice that?”

  “I suppose. But it never bothered me.”

  “So who’s your mom? I assume you had one.”

  “She was a teenager named Vicky, some red-headed daughter of a Baptist preacher who didn’t want some squalling brat around. When my grandmother delivered the baby—I mean me—she kept me.”

  “That explains Hannah’s hair and your fair skin.”

  “My grandma moved to Portland with Sari and me to avoid any scandal.”

  “That’s where you went over Christmas. Did you go to learn the truth about your birth?”

  “God no! I had no idea Sari and Joe weren’t my parents. I knew squat until three minutes ago.” She gulped down another mouthful of fire. “I don’t even know what to say.”

  “They played their parts well.”