The Complete Legacy Series: Books 1 - 6

by Paula Kay

  It’s hard to write this in an e-mail. There’s so much to say. I’ll try my best in the hopes that you’ll agree to talk to me. To let me see you and Jessica. I’m sober now and Harold is no longer in my life. I’ve really changed, Blu, and I’d like a chance to prove that to you.

  I know you might need a little time to think about all this but I’m coming to California, trusting that you’ll find it in your heart to forgive me. For what it’s worth, I want you to know that I don’t hold anything in the past against you. I only want to move forward.

  Can you please give me a chance?

  Linda (your mother)

  Chapter 10

  Finally Blu was alone with Chase. It had been hard to keep her composure in front of the others once she’d read the email from her mother, but Chase had promised her that he’d stay until everyone had gone to bed so that they could talk. Thank God I have him right now. Thank God I have Chase in my life, period. She was still in a blissful state of shock at the way she had opened up to him, but she couldn’t help but think that the timing had been perfect. She needed him now, and she had a feeling that he was going to prove himself worthy of the trust she’d been wrestling with. Tonight she knew that she had to go all in with him. Tell him everything.

  She smiled as he crossed the outside deck to where she was sitting, handing her a glass of wine and seating himself next to her. Her phone sat on the small table in front of them and she eyed it with disdain. She’d already reread the email several times and when Chase asked, she brought it up on her phone for him to look at again too.

  “So first, I have some obvious questions,” Chase said.

  Blu nodded. “Yes, the names.”

  “Right. I take it that your name is not Brenda then?”

  Early on in their relationship, when Chase had asked her about her nickname, she’d told him that her real name was Brenda Foster. It had been so many years ago that Blu had changed her name from Angela White that she didn’t even think about it any more—well, until recently, that is.

  Blu nodded. “Yes, I was born with the name Angela White. And in the email, where she refers to Jessica, she’s talking about Jemma.”

  “Okay.” Chase had a quizzical expression on his face, and Blu knew that he was waiting for more from her.

  She took a deep breath and a big sip of her wine as she turned in her seat to face him. All in.

  After she had finished, she laid her head back against the seat, noticing that her hands were trembling. Chase handed her wine to her and reached to hold her other hand in his. She waited for him to speak, to go over all of the questions that had been answered about that time in her life when Jemma was born. She knew that it had been the one missing piece of the puzzle for him from their conversation the other night, and now he knew everything. She felt the doubt creeping in, almost without being aware of it. Maybe I’ve made a big mistake in telling him. A huge mistake that I can’t take back now. She looked up at him, willing herself to speak.

  “Say something.” She searched his eyes for answers as to what he was thinking.

  Chase set her glass of wine on the table and pulled her close to him, wrapping his arms around her tightly. Finally he spoke.

  “I think you need to talk to Douglas while he’s here.”

  “To get a restraining order?” Blu said.

  “Well, maybe. But you need to tell him everything. You need advice that I can’t give you.”

  Blu tilted her head back to look him in the eyes.

  “But I’m here for you. Of course I am.” He lowered his head to kiss her gently on the lips. “Douglas will know what to do. And you can trust him.”

  Blu nodded because she knew Chase was right. She almost felt a sense of relief already, for letting out what she’d been keeping to herself for all these years.

  She laid her face on his chest again, allowing the few tears that she’d been holding back to fall. She felt his finger gently wiping them away, his other hand rubbing her back.

  “I understand why you did what you did.”

  Blu felt her whole body relax into his, a loud sob of relief escaping her mouth as she clung to him.

  “Everything’s going to be okay,” Chase said.

  And Blu believed him in that moment.

  Blu found herself laughing at all of the commotion going on in her kitchen, content to just sit back and watch from the small table tucked away from the busyness. Lia was showing Chase a new Tuscan recipe that she’d mastered and one that they’d all be trying later for dinner. Gigi and Jemma both looked quite determined to make themselves useful as well.

  It was a normal occurrence for Blu to see Jemma following around after Chase in the kitchen, constantly asking him what she could stir or chop—carefully, and only under Chase’s supervision and with the much less sharp knife that he brought with him just in case the young girl was around to help.

  But to see Gigi in there, so eager and fragile in her attempts, made Blu smile. Clearly she had been making a very good effort to cook more since being married, an effort that Blu was sure Douglas appreciated very much.

  She smiled as she thought about how lucky she was to have Chase, not just because he was an amazing chef—that was a big bonus, seeing how she didn’t really cook any more than Gigi did—but because he was just an amazing guy, period. Watching him joke and laugh now with her friends made her unbelievably happy, and content with her choice to stop pulling away for once in her life. He was a good man and she was lucky to have him. They both were lucky, she thought as she watched him bend down to give Jemma a quick hug of praise for the good work she was doing kneading the dough for the pasta.

  It had been a good day, one that had almost made Blu forget her worries. She’d promised Chase that she would try to set everything aside while they all spent the day together. He’d cleared his schedule to be with them, and they’d had a great time at the beach, building sand castles and swimming in the ocean. Gigi and Lia even let Chase give them their first surfing lesson.

  But Blu knew that it was time to have a conversation with Douglas. She could see him out on the deck reading a book, and with everyone busy in the kitchen, they’d be able to talk uninterrupted. She quietly let herself out of the kitchen.

  “Hi, whatcha reading?”

  Douglas smiled and held his book up so that Blu could read the cover. “Oh, just one of my favorite crime novel authors.”

  “Good book?” Blu asked.

  “It is. Well, it’s keeping my interest anyways.” He winked.

  “I think I heard a rumor about you one time,” Blu teased.

  “Oh, I’m quite sure that there’s been many a rumor spread about me, but what are you referring to?” Douglas teased back.

  “That maybe one day you might want to write a book?” Gigi had mentioned this to her one time when she was talking about plans for their future retirement.

  “Is that so? That wife of mine would love to see me do it, because that would mean that I’d be retired and we’d be lying on a beach somewhere warm.” Douglas laughed, but Blu wondered if there was some friction about that topic between the couple.

  “So, not seeing retirement in your near future then, I take it,” Blu said, hoping that Douglas wouldn’t think that she was prying.

  “Oh, we’ll see. One of us thinks that I work too much.” He winked again.

  “And one of you isn’t quite ready to slow down, I take it?” Blu smiled, enjoying their easy banter.

  “On a serious note, Gigi is the one I’d like to see take a break. She’s forever working. Doing something or another around the house, looking after me.”

  Blu thought that he said the last part as if looking after him was a big chore.

  “But isn’t that what couples do? Look after one another?”

  “A valid point, my dear.” Douglas grinned. “I guess the real issue is that I want to take care of her—”

  “—And she won’t let you,” Blu cut in.

  “Exactly. Gigi doe
s for everyone besides herself. I’d just love for her to take it easy. Heck, we could afford to have someone—a housekeeper, a cook—to keep up the house for us, but she just insists that she wants to do everything herself.”

  “Hmm.” Blu was thoughtful.

  “Hmm, what? Am I wrong?” Douglas said.

  “No, no, you’re not wrong. I was just thinking that I can relate to that. I’m sure Lia can too, actually. I think your problem is just that you are surrounding yourself with very strong, independent women.” They both laughed as Douglas nodded his head in agreement.

  “Yeah, true. And I love my wife just the way she is. I won’t stop working on it, though.”

  “I wouldn’t either if I were you. It sounds like a nice life to me.” Blu laughed and then grew quiet for a few moments, wondering how to broach the subject that was on her mind.

  “Douglas? I wondered if I might talk to you about some legal questions that I have.”

  He studied her face for a moment.

  She wondered if there was some kind of “friend boundary” that she was crossing, but Chase had seemed quite sure that Douglas would help her, so she was just going to go forward with it.

  “Sure. Shall we go for a walk on the beach where we won’t get interrupted by little ears?” Douglas said, pointing towards Jemma, who was right on the other side of the door.

  “Yes, thank you,” Blu said.

  Chapter 11

  Blu tried to calm her nerves as she and Douglas walked along the beach in silence for a few moments. She knew that Chase was right in that she could trust Douglas. That he was the best person to give her advice and help with her situation. She just didn’t know how to tell him everything. It was strange to think that after all these years, she was telling her deepest secrets to not one person, but two in only the space of a few days.

  “So, what’s on your mind?” Douglas broke the silence between them.

  “I—I have this problem. And I think I need some help—some legal help, maybe,” Blu said tentatively. “Can I ask—I don’t know if this is weird—God, it feels weird now.”

  Douglas stopped to face her. “Let me first say that anything you tell me now—assuming we’re talking because you may be hiring me for legal counsel—would be privileged information. And if you end up not hiring me, it still remains confidential—just between us.” He smiled at her and Blu could feel herself relaxing a bit.

  “Thanks, that makes me feel better, actually. Not that I don’t trust you—as a friend, I mean. I just wouldn’t want to put you in a weird situation.”

  “I understand,” Douglas said. “So tell me what’s going on and let’s see if I can help you with something.”

  The two walked along, with Blu filling Douglas in about her past and her current fears about how to handle the situation with her mother contacting her. Douglas listened without interrupting, except to clarify bits of information along the way. When she was finished, she again felt as though her burden was getting just that much lighter. Maybe carrying her secrets around had been much heavier than she’d allowed herself to believe.

  They turned around to begin walking back towards the house, and Douglas led her over to a large piece of driftwood, asking if he could read the email one more time as they sat down. Blu pulled the email up on her phone and waited for him to finish. He sat for a minute looking thoughtful before he spoke.

  “Can I speak to you first as a friend?” he said.

  Blu nodded. “Of course.”

  “You can hire me if that’s your choice and I’m sure that there are some things that I can do to help you, in terms of guarding yourself and your property.”

  “But?”

  “But, when I read this email, I don’t hear a woman who has any major battle to wage with you. From that and everything that you’ve told me, I’m just wondering if you should speak with her first, get a chance to know—”

  “—Douglas, I don’t have any interest in getting to know her,” Blu interrupted.

  “I was going to say, getting to know what her intentions are. Only you can decide if you want to do something about that relationship, and I get where you’re coming from. I’m not suggesting that I don’t. It sounds like you have every reason not to believe her, not to trust her. And if you’re right, we can cross that bridge when you come to it.” He handed her back her phone with the email still pulled up. “As your friend, I’m suggesting that you at least hear what she has to say, maybe see for yourself if you think she’s really changed.”

  Blu felt the sting of trying to hold back sudden tears. The advice was hard to hear. It wasn’t what she wanted. She just wanted to fix the situation and disappear from her mother’s life again. The thought came quickly, even as she looked towards her home in the distance. I could do it again. She wondered if Douglas really could protect her or if she needed to be more concerned about Jemma. God, I can’t lose her.

  She knew she’d do it. Take Jemma and run again, if she had to. She’d leave everything behind. No looking back. Even Chase. Blu wiped the tears away as she felt a new resolve within her, one that she wouldn’t share with Douglas, or anyone.

  “Douglas, she hasn’t changed.” Blu said this without emotion, as if it were a fact that anyone would know. “I really have no interest in talking to her, in playing this game with her. I left for a reason, and when I made that decision I knew that it would be forever.”

  He looked at her with a funny smile.

  “What?” Blu wasn’t holding back her frustration, apparent in her tone.

  “Well, it’s just that for someone who I know personally has witnessed a lot of changes throughout the years, I’m a little surprised to hear you talking about forever.”

  Blu questioned him with her eyes.

  “I mean, you’ve seen yourself the changes that people can go through. Maybe your mom is not so different? Anything is possible, you know.”

  Blu was nodding her head but only to appease him, let him know that she was considering his words even though inside, her only thought was of running.

  “You know what I think?” Douglas said.

  “What’s that?”

  “I think maybe you should talk to Lia while she’s here.”

  “You think I should tell all of this to Lia?” Blu was a bit surprised by the suggestion, not that Lia wasn’t a friend that she could confide in.

  “No, I’m not advising that you should talk to her about everything. You shouldn’t. Not yet. But I think you should talk to her about the possibility of seeing—”

  Blu glared at him, shaking her head. That is not happening. I am not going to see my mother after all these years.

  “Or at least speaking with your mother on the phone,” Douglas continued. “Don’t you think that Lia might have a unique perspective on all of this?”

  “Lia and Ari’s situation was nothing like this.”

  “Hmm.”

  “Hmm what?”

  “Well that’s only true if your mother hasn’t changed.”

  Blu looked at him, sure that her disbelief was written all over her face.

  “Trust me, she’s not changed.”

  “I don’t really get how sure you are about all this, if I’m being honest. People change, Blu. They do.” Douglas looked out towards the ocean, and Blu thought she detected something personal in his simple statement.

  She had no reason not to listen to him, to trust him. She’d already decided that, when she made the decision to trust him with her secrets.

  “You’re right. People do change.” But not my mother.

  They got up to make the walk back towards the house.

  “So you’ll talk to Lia then?

  Blu was lost in her own jumbled thoughts, undecided about how she felt regarding the conversation that she’d had with Douglas.

  “Blu?”

  “Sorry, what was that?” Blu said.

  “You’ll talk to her? To Lia?”

  Blu nodded. “Yeah, I will.” She sighed. She
really just wanted this all to be done very soon. “I’ll see how the rest of the day goes but maybe we can catch a chat in the morning.” She knew that Lia would probably still have a bit of jet lag, so the possibility that she could catch her early over coffee was a good one.

  Douglas stopped just short of the steps leading up to Blu’s house. “To be clear, I will help you. Whatever you decide. I want to be sure that you know that.”

  Blu smiled, putting her hand on his arm. “I do know that, Douglas. And I appreciate you so much. Your advice means everything to me. It does.” She leaned over to give him a quick kiss on the cheek, recognizing that he had become a sort of father figure to her—which was actually very nice, because it had been something completely missing from her life.

  They smiled at one another, content that everything was okay for now, as they made their way up the stairs to the dinner that they could smell on the table.

  Chapter 12

  Blu woke up and stared at the alarm clock with suspicion. What the heck time is it? She’d been tossing and turning all night with way too much on her mind and finally, with no expectation that she’d wake up early after all, must have fallen asleep. But the clock said five fifteen, and she could smell the brewed coffee from downstairs, suspecting it would be Lia up this early as Blu had predicted.

  She pulled the covers tighter, deciding to give herself just five more minutes in bed before facing the reality of her current worries. Her thoughts turned towards last night and how wonderful it felt seeing Jemma laughing and playing with everyone. It was great having all her friends here, and Blu vowed that they’d organize a future meet-up again before the crew dispersed, maybe in Italy. And maybe she’d take Chase. She smiled at the idea, knowing that he’d traveled a bit, but never to Italy, and that it was very high on his list of places he’d like to visit.

  Thinking about last night reminded her again of her talk with Douglas and the promise she’d made to speak with Lia. She sighed, having no idea how it would go or what Lia would think about her mother contacting her. Would she be able to be objective about the whole thing? No use lying in bed wondering about it, Blu thought as she got up to make her move downstairs.