His Long-Lost Family

by Brenda Harlen

  Kelly dutifully picked up a slice of pizza and took a bite.

  “I brought a few essentials for the morning, too,” Lukas told her. “Bread, milk, eggs, juice, coffee.”

  “Coffee?” She nearly whimpered with gratitude. “Now you’re definitely forgiven.”

  Ava polished off her third slice and wiped her fingers on a paper napkin. “Can I go now?”

  “‘Thanks for dinner, Mom,’” Kelly said, mimicking her daughter’s voice. “‘You’re very welcome, honey.’ ‘May I be excused now?’ ‘Of course.’”

  Lukas lifted his can of soda to hide his smile. Ava, predictably, rolled her eyes, before she dutifully intoned, “Thanks for dinner, Mom. May I be excused now?”

  “Of course,” Kelly said agreeably. “After you put your plate in the dishwasher.”

  Lukas reached for another slice as Ava clomped up the stairs. “So,” he said, when she was out of earshot. “How does it feel to be back?”

  “I’m not sure,” she admitted. “It’s been such a long time. I don’t know if this is the right thing—for Ava or for me.”

  “She’s not happy about the move?”

  “That’s the understatement of the year.”

  He shrugged. “She’s twelve. She’ll get over it.”

  “I hope so.”

  “So—belly button ring?” he prompted.

  She just shook her head. “Can you believe it?”

  “I’m having a little difficulty reconciling my memories of the cute little second-grader who clutched my hand so tightly with the brooding purple-haired preteen-ager who barely looked up from her plate.”

  “The purple streaks aren’t so bad. You should have seen her a few months ago—her hair was Pepto-Bismol pink. Her best friend’s older sister put the color on for her one afternoon when I had to work late.” She sighed. “The first tangible evidence that my formerly docile angel had developed a rebellious streak.”

  Lukas winced sympathetically. “How did you handle that?”

  “I took a deep breath and reminded myself that hair color is easily undone—unlike a piercing or a tattoo. And I knew that it was, at least in part, my fault. I’d been so preoccupied with my job that I didn’t realize how much distance had grown between us,” she admitted.

  “When rumors of cutbacks first started circulating around the lunchroom at work, I crossed my fingers and prayed that I wouldn’t lose my job. And when those cuts were made and I was spared, I was so grateful I didn’t balk at all the extra hours I had to work.

  “And then I realized that I’d given up my life to keep my job. And I’d somehow lost the close connection I used to share with Ava.” Her daughter’s recent willful behavior was proof of that—and reminded Kelly uncomfortably of the impulsiveness that she herself had occasionally exhibited before motherhood had taught her to consider the consequences of her actions.

  “And because I was working so many extra hours,” she continued her explanation, “Ava was hanging around with her friend Rachel—and Regan, Rachel’s sixteen-year-old sister—a lot.”

  “Then I’d guess that you made this move at the right time.”

  “I hope so,” she said again.

  “What aren’t you telling me?”

  Kelly lifted her glass and took another sip of wine as she considered how much she should say.

  “Because I know there’s more to this cross-country move than that,” he prompted when she failed to respond.

  She nodded. “I wanted a career change and a change of scenery for Ava, but I also hoped that coming back to Pinehurst might provide a chance for her to meet her father.”

  His brows rose. “Then he does live in Pinehurst.”

  “He does live in Pinehurst,” she confirmed.

  “Someone I know?” he asked.

  The undercurrents in his tone were exactly why she’d never revealed the identity of her daughter’s father to him. “Doesn’t everyone know almost everyone else in this town?” she countered.

  “Who is it?”

  She touched a hand to his arm. “Please—let me tell him before I tell you.”

  He frowned. “Are you saying that this guy doesn’t know he has a twelve-year-old daughter?”

  “I couldn’t tell him,” she reminded Lukas. “By the time I knew I was pregnant, he was already with someone else.”

  She’d wanted to tell Jackson that she was going to have his baby. Although she’d had no expectations of a future for them together when he’d left Chicago, she’d hoped that the revelation of her pregnancy would make him want to be a father to their child. But as much as she didn’t want to do it alone, she’d had no doubt—even then—that she was going to keep her baby.

  Except that when she’d finally gotten up the nerve to call, he’d told her that he was once again engaged to Sara Ross—the daughter of one of the senior partners at his firm. And while Kelly didn’t believe he would get married solely for the purpose of advancing his career, she didn’t doubt that dumping the boss’s daughter would jeopardize his future at the firm. And nothing had mattered to Jackson as much as his career. So she’d only offered congratulations and ended the call with her heart in pieces and the news of her pregnancy unrevealed.

  “Yeah, you told me what happened,” Lukas admitted now. “But you didn’t tell me who the father was.”

  “No, I didn’t,” she agreed. “And I’m not going to tell you now. Not until I’ve told him.”

  She could tell by the muscle that clenched in his jaw that Lukas wasn’t finished with his interrogation, but she also knew he wouldn’t press for more details. At least not yet.

  * * *

  Jack was distracted, and he’d never been the type to let anything—or anyone—interfere with his concentration, especially when it came to his work. He was a well-respected and generously compensated family law attorney because he was diligent and focused. He paid attention to details and he made every client feel as if his or her case was the only one that mattered.

  And yet, in the middle of a cross-examination during a custody hearing that morning, he’d actually lost his train of thought. Sure, he’d recovered fairly quickly, and it didn’t seem as if anyone else in the courtroom had even noticed that he’d faltered. But he’d noticed. And he knew that it was Kelly Cooper’s fault.

  “Hello, Jackson.”

  He blinked, half-suspecting that her appearance in the open doorway of his office was an illusion, and more than half-hoping that she would disappear again. But when he opened his eyes, she was still there—and looking even hotter than the woman who had starred in his dreams the night before. And the night before that. In fact, every one of the five nights that had passed since she’d come back to Pinehurst.

  She made her way across the carpet, putting one sexy foot in front of the other in the way that women had perfected to make their hips sway and men drool. And as much as he wished it weren’t true, he was very close to drooling.

  Damn, she looked spectacular. In the slim-fitting burgundy skirt, silky white V-neck blouse and peep-toe shoes that added close to three inches to her five-foot-seven-inch frame, she looked professional, confident—and dangerous.

  He frowned at the thought, but he couldn’t deny it was true. For too many years, Kelly Cooper had threatened his peace of mind. It had been easy enough to ignore the girl next door when she was a kid. Then adolescence had turned her bony, sticklike figure into a woman’s body with subtle but undeniable curves. And he’d started to have very inappropriate fantasies about his little brother’s best friend. Thankfully, he’d gone away to school and had managed to put her out of his mind. Mostly.

  “You told me to call you, but you haven’t returned any of my calls. I was beginning to think I would have to schedule an appointment to see you.”

  “I’m not hard to find
, but I am busy,” he said pointedly.

  “I can appreciate that,” she said. “And I promise you, I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t important.”

  “How did you get past my secretary?” Colleen was usually a pit bull when it came to protecting her boss’s time and space.

  Kelly just smiled. “Your secretary was my eleventh-grade lab partner.”

  Having lived in Pinehurst his whole life, he understood that personal connections frequently trumped protocol. “Okay, that answers the how,” he admitted. “But not the why.”

  She settled into one of the client chairs on the other side of his desk, and crossed one long, shapely leg over the other. “I just wanted to talk to you without my daughter or your brother interrupting, so I asked Colleen if she could squeeze me into your appointment schedule.”

  “Now you’ve stirred my curiosity,” he admitted. And certain other areas as well.

  “Your brother was, and still is, my best friend,” she reminded him. “And while you and I were never close friends, we used to be friendly. And then, for one incredible weekend, we were a lot more.”

  Whatever he’d expected when she’d walked through his door, it wasn’t a walk down memory lane. Not that he was unwilling to take the journey, but he knew it was unwise. His past with Kelly was the past—no way would he risk starting anything up again with his brother living in the same town. Luke had always been protective of his friend and if he ever suspected that Jack had been naked with Kelly—well, Jack didn’t even want to think about what he might do. It was smarter, and safer, to keep the past in the past. “Why are you bringing this up now?”

  “Because I’m hoping, now that I’m living in Pinehurst again, that we can get back to being friendly.”

  “Have I been unfriendly?”

  “Not exactly,” she admitted. “You’ve been...distant.”

  “I’ve been busy,” he said again.

  “Your brother and sister-in-law invited Ava and I over for burgers last night and while we were there, one of Georgia’s sons asked Matthew why ‘Uncle Jack’ hasn’t been around to visit in so long. Matt told him you had a big court case coming up, but the way he looked at me before he responded made me think he was making excuses.”

  “He wasn’t.”

  “I don’t want you to feel uncomfortable visiting your brother and his family just because I’m living next door.”

  “I don’t.”

  She shifted forward in her chair, enough so that he could see the slightest hint of cleavage in the V-neck of her blouse. “You’re not worried that the chemistry that exploded between us thirteen years ago might still be simmering?”

  “No,” he lied.

  “Well, that’s good then,” she said, but her easy smile didn’t reach her eyes.

  “Thirteen years is a long time,” he said, in an attempt to convince himself as much as her.

  She nodded. “It always boggled my mind that I could be such good friends with Lukas, that I could snuggle up with him to watch a movie, hold his hand as a gesture of comfort or support, and never feel anything remotely like the zing that I felt whenever I was in the same room with you.”

  “Chemistry is a personal thing,” he noted.

  She tilted her head to look up at him. “Have you ever felt that zing with anyone else?”

  “Too many times to count,” he lied.

  She seemed disappointed—and maybe even a little hurt—by his casual response. But Kelly being Kelly, she didn’t try to deny her feelings or hide behind a flippant response. She was, as always, brutally and painfully honest.

  “I haven’t,” she told him. “From the first time you kissed me, on my sixteenth birthday, I’ve never felt that zing with anyone else.”

  “Not even your husband?” he challenged.

  She shook her head. “No, not with anyone else.”

  Knowing how incredibly passionate she was, he was surprised that she would settle for comfort and companionship. On the other hand, it might explain why her marriage had failed.

  “I think you’re romanticizing the memory,” he told her.

  “Maybe,” she allowed. “But it wasn’t my first kiss. And you weren’t my first lover—but you’re the one I’ve never forgotten.”

  Even if what she was saying was true, he wouldn’t let it matter. Because rekindling a romantic relationship with Kelly wasn’t an option. Getting involved with a woman who was also his brother’s best friend could only lead to a whole lot of grief, not to mention the fact that she had a kid to think about.

  So instead of admitting that he’d never forgotten her either, he only said, “Is there a purpose to this reminiscence?”

  “I wanted you to know that I had some concerns about coming back to Pinehurst now.”

  “Because of what happened between us so many years ago?” he asked skeptically.

  Her smile was sad. “Is that so unbelievable?”

  “Yes,” he said.

  “Did you never think of me after that weekend?”

  “Sure,” he said easily. “But I didn’t think that one weekend changed anything.”

  “It changed everything—at least for me,” she told him. “But when I called, you were already back together with Sara.”

  “It’s not like you called a few days later,” he felt compelled to point out in his own defense. “It was more like a few months.”

  Actually, two months, three weeks and five days, and during that time, not a single day had gone by in which he hadn’t picked up the phone to call her. But he’d never actually dialed her number, because he knew it would be a mistake. Because after only three days with her, he’d known that he could fall fast and hard for Kelly Cooper, and that was a complication neither of them needed at that point in their lives.

  She nodded in acknowledgment. “I know.”

  “And Sara and I had a history together,” he continued. “So when she said she’d made a mistake in ending our engagement, I agreed that we should try to work things out.”

  “Because you loved her,” she said softly. “And I was just the girl who helped you forget—for a few days—that she’d broken your heart.”

  He heard the vulnerability in her tone and he knew that, even after so many years, his reconciliation had hurt her. But the truth was, he’d never thought about Sara—not once—throughout the weekend that he was with Kelly. So instead of nodding and letting her believe it was true, he said, “I wanted you to believe that.”

  She frowned at his admission. “Why?”

  “Because we’d both agreed, at the end of the weekend that we’d spent together, that it couldn’t ever happen again. And then you called, and I could hear in your voice that you’d changed your mind, that you wanted more.” And in that moment, as much as he’d wanted her, he knew there could be no future for them together. Not at that time and definitely not in light of the conversation he’d had with his brother.

  “And you didn’t want more,” she guessed. “Not with me.”

  “What I wanted didn’t matter,” he told her. “You were still in school and barely twenty-one years old.”

  “You’re right—I was twenty-one years old.” She paused to draw in a deep breath before looking up at him. “And I was pregnant.”

  Chapter Three

  Jackson stared at her for a long moment, as if he couldn’t quite comprehend what she was telling him. When he finally spoke, his tone conveyed as much confusion as his words. “You were...pregnant?”

  She nodded.

  He frowned but didn’t say anything else.

  “On the way from the airport, you asked how old Ava was. She turned twelve in February.”

  “Are you saying...?” His question trailed off, as if he couldn’t bear to speak the words out loud and acknowledge the possi
bility.

  But Kelly had been holding on to the secret for too many years and she wasn’t going to hide the truth for even a minute longer. “She’s your daughter.”

  His mouth snapped shut; his face actually paled. But after another pause, which was probably only a few seconds but felt like hours, his gaze narrowed and he shook his head. “Nice try, Kelly.”

  She felt her back go up. “What is it you think I’m trying to do?”

  “Suck me into paying twelve years of child support.”

  “Child support?”

  “I know you came back here to work at Richmond Pharmaceuticals, but losing your job in Seattle must have—”

  “I chose to leave my job in Seattle,” she interjected.

  He shrugged. “Regardless of the reason for your financial difficulties—”

  She couldn’t help but laugh at the absurdity of his allegation. Because the truth was, between the inheritance left to Kelly by her grandmother and the trust set up for Ava by her former step-grandmother, she had no immediate financial issues. “You really think this is about money?”

  “I can’t imagine any other reason that you would concoct such an outrageous story.”

  “Maybe it seems outrageous to you,” she acknowledged. “But it’s not a story—it’s the truth.”

  He snorted derisively. “Are you willing to submit your daughter to DNA testing to prove it?”

  “Absolutely.”

  Her immediate and unequivocal response finally seemed to give him pause.

  “Trust me, Jack, if I got to choose a father for my daughter, I wouldn’t have chosen someone who’s made it more than clear that he doesn’t want to be a father.”

  He considered that for a moment, then asked, “You really do think I’m her father?”

  “You really think I had so many lovers I don’t know who fathered my child?”

  “I wasn’t your first,” he said, in an echo of her own statement.

  “No,” she agreed. She hadn’t been innocent, but she had been inexperienced. “You were my second.”