Secrets and Solace

by Jana Richards

  “We’ll need to look for a sofa bed with sleek arms that don’t take up too much space,” Harper said.

  “For sure. Did you add the lamps to the list of stuff we need to get?”

  “I did.” Harper sighed. “I hope we don’t forget anything important.”

  “We won’t. And if we do, we’ll wing it.”

  They’d all been working feverishly for the last two weeks. The new guest wing of the lodge was nearing completion and if all the furniture, appliances and fixtures they’d ordered arrived in time, they’d be ready. The cottages were taking a little longer because there was so much more to do. Cameron had hired extra tradespeople to handle some of the tiling, painting and finishing carpentry. The trades were practically tripping over each other, but somehow it was working.

  As long as they didn’t have any major setbacks, they might pull this off.

  Ethan and Cameron walked into the cottage. Ethan gave Harper a kiss. Cameron’s eyes met hers. It was a sweet kind of torture being so close to him every day and yet so far.

  Ethan put his arm around Harper’s shoulders. “What are you guys doing here? I thought you were going to Minneapolis with Maggie today.”

  “We are, but we just found out from our supplier that their sofa beds are out of stock, and they can’t guarantee when they’re getting their next shipment. We’re going to shop for them while we’re in the city. Guess we’ll have to buy retail.”

  Scarlet added, “We’re meeting our bride Meredith tonight at the condo. She’s going to go over her food choices with Maggie, and we’ll nail down a few details, like the flowers. We should be back by about noon tomorrow.”

  Ethan hugged Harper to his side and kissed her once more. “I’ll miss you.”

  Harper kissed him back. “I’ll miss you too.”

  Scarlet looked away, pretending to check her clipboard. She loved her sister, and Ethan was like a brother to her, but it was hard to witness their love for each other and not feel hollow inside.

  Her phone beeped with an incoming text. Scarlet pulled it from her pocket, glad for the distraction. “It’s from Meredith.”

  She silently read the text. “Uh-oh.”

  “What’s wrong?”

  “She’s asking if we can accommodate more overnight guests. Apparently, her mother-in-law has invited two more families, eight people in total.”

  “There’s no way we can finish another two cottages at this late date,” Cameron said.

  “Even if you could, I don’t know if our supplier could furnish it in time,” Harper said. “What about the other two cottages, the ones we’re staying in?”

  “That’s a great idea, except where are we going to live?” Ethan asked.

  “You can stay with me for a few nights,” Cameron said. “You two can sleep in my bed, and I’ll stay in Tessa’s old room.”

  Harper shook her head. “No, Cam. You can’t.”

  “It’s time I cleaned it out anyway. I’ll box up her toys and send them to her.”

  Scarlet looked at her clipboard once more, the lump in her throat making it hard to swallow. Boxing up Tessa’s things made her absence feel so final. She really was never coming home.

  The thought made her so sad she wanted to weep. But she held it together for Cameron’s sake. The last thing he needed was her tears.

  “What about Maggie and Scarlet? Where are they going to stay?” Harper asked.

  “We could rent a room at a hotel in the area,” Scarlet offered.

  “That’s a possibility, but I have another idea,” Ethan said. “What if we rented a motorhome?”

  “Can you look into that while we’re in the city?” Harper asked. “Then we can give Meredith some news when we see her tonight.”

  “I’m on it. I’ll call you as soon as I find out something.”

  Harper reached for Ethan’s hand. “Come on, you can walk me back to our cottage so I can pick up my overnight bag.”

  Scarlet watched them leave hand in hand. If only she and Cameron could have that…

  Stop it! She had to halt that line of thinking or she’d go crazy.

  “I should go, too. Maggie will be waiting for me.”

  “Have a safe trip, Scarlet,” Cameron said.

  “Thank you.”

  When she looked into his eyes, his loneliness reached into her heart and squeezed.

  “I can help you clear out Tessa’s room. You shouldn’t have to do it alone.” The words came out of her mouth before she had a chance to think over the wisdom of her offer.

  If his face had been expressionless before, it was stony now. “I appreciate the offer. But this is something I need to do myself.”

  She nodded and did her best to smile, even though her heart had been smashed against a wall. She’d offered to help out of friendship and even that had been rejected.

  “I’d better get going.” Clutching her clipboard against her chest, she turned to leave.

  Before she could make her escape, he touched her arm. “Scarlet, wait.” Cameron let his hand drop to his side, his voice no more than a whisper. “It’s better for me to pack up Tessa’s things by myself because I don’t think I can do it without crying. I’m not comfortable letting anyone see me that way.”

  White hot anger bubbled to the surface. “Don’t forget who you’re talking to, Cameron. I have seen you that way, and you’ve seen me. Maybe we both need a good cry and a chance to mourn. But you’re too damn stubborn to even grieve, or let me grieve. You’ve got your emotions so tightly packed inside that one day they’re going to explode. And this time, I won’t be there to pick up the pieces.”

  Without another word, she ran to the door.

  Cam tightened the last screw on the front porch light of one of the new cottages, the final touch before guests arrived. He and his crew had put in many long hours in the past four weeks, and he was proud of what they’d been able to accomplish.

  If he was completely honest with himself, he was grateful for the work that filled his days and left him too tired to do anything but fall into an exhausted sleep every night. At least he didn’t have time to dwell on everything he’d lost.

  The craving for a drink still haunted him, but he was coping. Being busy and focused helped. But he worried about the future and the long, cold Minnesota nights to come.

  He pushed the worries from his mind. One day at a time.

  The wedding they’d been madly preparing for was today. It was a bright, crisp fall morning, and the leaves of the poplars and birch were putting on a show of their finest colors. Cam stood on the front porch and gazed over the sea of yellow and red and orange to the sapphire blue of the lake below. Guests were scheduled to arrive soon, and he was sure they’d enjoy this view.

  Cam sighed. When the wedding was over, the guests would leave and so would Scarlet. Maybe he’d see her again, catch an occasional glimpse when she came to visit her family. But her life was far away from Solace Lake. Away from him.

  He’d never felt more alone.

  Cam shook off the melancholy and straightened his spine. He had work to do. He’d promised Maggie he’d be her sous-chef and assist her with the preparation of the food.

  He drove his truck down to the lodge and parked around the side of the building. The landscaping wasn’t complete, but it had been cleaned up enough to look tidy. In the spring, bushes and flowers would be planted and the parking lot paved. He’d been skeptical about the lodge’s future at the start, but now he was feeling optimistic that Ethan and Harper would make a success of the place.

  Entering the front doors, he was greeted by a display of chrysanthemums in a myriad of fall colors. But the star of the show was the view of the lake visible from the front entry. With some engineering magic, Reese had taken out a wall to make that happen. The result was spectacular.

  To the left of the front door, a reception area had been set up. Eventually there would be a proper desk and office, but for now a tablecloth covered a plastic folding table. Harper was behi
nd the table organizing the keys to the rooms. A key card system would be installed over the winter, but for now they’d go old school.

  “How’s it going?” he asked her.

  “Okay, I think. I keep worrying that I’m forgetting something.”

  “You’re going to be fine.”

  Harper’s smile held a touch of sadness. He knew she didn’t want Scarlet to leave any more than he did. “So are you, Cam.”

  “Yeah.” He swallowed around the sudden lump in his throat. “I’d better go see what Maggie needs me to do.”

  “Have a great day.”

  “Thanks.”

  Maggie’s kitchen was a celebration of efficiency and stainless steel. The gleaming work surfaces and appliances were the centerpieces, but the kitchen also had a couple of homey touches, like Maggie’s grandmother’s apron that she’d framed and hung on one wall, a touching reminder that this kitchen and the lodge belonged to a family.

  “Hey, Maggie. What do you need me to do?”

  Maggie smiled at him in relief. “It’s not glamorous, but I really need you to peel potatoes. Meredith wants a homestyle meal, so we’re having roast chicken and mashed potatoes, all sourced locally.”

  “I can handle that. Point me in the direction of the spuds.”

  She pointed to one of the sinks. “Over there. The potatoes are next to the fridge. Have I told you how grateful I am for your help?”

  “Stop. I’m glad to be of some use, even though this wedding stuff is out of my wheelhouse.”

  “I have a feeling we’re going to get real experienced at putting on weddings.”

  He was a quarter way through a twenty-pound bag of potatoes when he heard his cell phone ring. He let it go to voice mail.

  “Aren’t you going to get that?” Maggie asked.

  “I’m a little tied up right now,” he said, indicating his wet hands. “If it’s important, they’ll call back.”

  A few minutes later, a ping indicated he’d received a text message. Maggie looked up from the chicken she was basting. “Sounds like someone really wants to talk to you.”

  Cam put down his paring knife and dried his hands on a towel. “Maybe Ethan needs something.”

  He pulled his phone from his back pocket and read the message: Urgent. Call Erin Cochrane immediately.

  “That’s odd. Erin Cochrane has an urgent message for me.” Cam dialed the number given.

  Maggie set her baster on the counter. “Your lawyer?”

  “Yeah.” His heart raced. He hadn’t heard from Erin in weeks.

  Erin picked up on the first ring and spoke before he had a chance to say hello. “Cam! I’ve got some amazing news. The DNA tests were wrong.”

  Cam’s hand shook so hard he nearly dropped the phone. “What? How can they be wrong?”

  “I’ve had a private investigator follow Laura for the past few weeks, to make sure everything was on the up and up with her. He snapped some pictures of her and Tessa and another little girl about the same age as Tessa. This child has long brown hair and is about the same height and weight and age as Tessa.”

  “Okay.” He gripped the countertop, no clue as to where she was going with this.

  “When the investigator showed the pictures to the people at the DNA lab, the technician swore the other child was the one she obtained the DNA sample from.”

  Cam’s heart threatened to beat its way out of his chest. “Is she sure? I mean, how do we know for sure it wasn’t Tessa?”

  Maggie stopped working to stare at him. Erin continued, her voice excited. “The technician signed an affidavit, swearing to it. What color are Tessa’s eyes?”

  “Dark brown.”

  “This kid’s eyes were blue, according to the technician. Cam, this is enough for the court to order retesting. I’ve applied to family court and the judge agrees. The court takes a dim view of someone deliberately trying to deceive it.”

  His head was spinning. “When will she be retested? How soon can we find out the truth?”

  “That’s the really good news.” He could hear the excitement in her voice. “I’ve applied to the court to have the testing done in Minneapolis, since Laura can’t be relied on to be truthful. The judge agrees. Tessa will be home tomorrow. You’ve been given temporary custody pending the results of the DNA testing.”

  Cam couldn’t stand up. He dropped to his knees on the kitchen floor.

  Maggie was at his side in a moment, her face full of worry. “What’s wrong? What happened?”

  “She’s coming home, Maggie,” he said through his tears. “Tessa’s coming home.”

  Maggie slid to the floor beside him, her hand over her mouth and her eyes wide. “Oh, my God!”

  “Cam! Are you still there?” Erin said through the phone.

  “Yes, yes, I’m still here.”

  “Apparently, the child Laura tried to pass off as Tessa is the daughter of a friend of the boyfriend’s. On the pretext of taking the two girls on an outing, Laura brought the other little girl for the swab test at the lab. She was trying to convince the boyfriend that Tessa is his. They were in a relationship in Minneapolis when he lived here, shortly before she met you.”

  “Where was Tessa while Laura was in the lab with this other child?” He put his arm around Maggie as she cried.

  “Outside, in the car, crouched on the floor of the back seat. Tessa told our investigator that Laura had ordered her to stay put and not tell anyone what happened or she’d be punished.”

  Rage poured through Cam at the thought of his little girl alone and afraid, bullied and threatened by her mother, the one person who should have been protecting her. He wished he could wrap Tessa in his arms right now and let her know everything was going to be all right.

  “Why was Laura so bent on passing Tessa off as this other guy’s child?”

  Erin sighed, the sound of it exhibiting her disgust. “She said he was the love of her life. He wanted children and she wanted to present Tessa to him on a silver platter.”

  His thoughts flew to Scarlet as they so often did. She would never pull a stunt like this. She’d made mistakes in her past, but she would never knowingly hurt or deceive anyone. She was the most honorable woman he knew. “Laura has no idea what love means.”

  “I have to agree with that observation,” Erin said dryly. “I’ll text you the details of Tessa’s flight right away. She’s been removed from Laura’s custody by the Department of Children and Family Services and will be flying unaccompanied tomorrow. Can you meet her at the airport?”

  “Are you kidding? Of course I can!” The earth would have to open up and swallow him whole before he wouldn’t make it to the airport tomorrow. He sobered a minute. This had to be confusing for Tessa. “How’s Tessa doing? Where is she? Is she scared?”

  “I spoke this morning with the foster mother she’s been temporarily placed with, and yes, she’s confused about everything that’s happened. But when she was told she was coming home to you, she seemed relieved. I’ll text you the foster mother’s phone number so you can call Tessa yourself.”

  “Thank you, Erin. Thank you for everything. I can’t believe…” Emotions threatened to overwhelm him. He couldn’t go on.

  “I’ll let you go for now, Cam. I’ll be in touch soon about all the formal legal stuff. Congratulations.”

  “Thank you. And please thank the private investigator for me.”

  “I will. Goodbye.”

  Cam hung up the phone and turned to Maggie. “Tessa’s coming home tomorrow.”

  She threw her arms around his neck in a giant bear hug. “Yes!”

  Harper ran into the kitchen. “What’s going on? I heard a lot of yelling. Why are you on the floor? Are you hurt?”

  “Tessa’s coming home,” Maggie cried.

  Harper’s face went blank. “What? How?”

  Cam relayed everything Erin had told him. “I can’t believe she’s coming home.”

  “Oh! Oh! I have to tell Ethan! And Scarlet!”

&
nbsp; Harper raced from the kitchen, and he and Maggie laughed when they heard her excitedly calling Ethan’s name. Cam pulled himself to his feet and dragged Maggie with him.

  Maggie grasped his hand. “This is a miracle. I’m so happy for you and Tessa.”

  “It’s not over yet. She has to be retested. We could still find out I didn’t father her.”

  “I have a good feeling. Laura wouldn’t have gone to such lengths if she didn’t believe Tessa was yours.”

  A moment later, Ethan and Harper ran into the kitchen, followed closely by Scarlet. His gaze connected with hers immediately and in it he read her surprise and joy. He wanted to pull her into his arms and hold her, to tell her he was sorry for the way he’d treated her.

  To tell her he’d needed her all along.

  Fear stopped him cold. For the last couple of weeks, he’d played her words over and over in his head. This time, I won’t be there to pick up the pieces.

  She was done with him.

  “Is it true?” she asked breathlessly.

  “Yes, it’s true. Tessa is coming home tomorrow.”

  Ethan embraced him in a tight hug. Cam hugged him back, all the while watching Scarlet’s face. Though she smiled and laughed, tears streamed down her cheeks. He remembered what she’d said about not allowing her to grieve. Had she grieved for his little girl, too? Had he underestimated her feelings for Tessa? For him?

  Despite his joy, his heart ached. Whatever her feelings had been, he’d thrown them away. It was too late to get them back.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

  After staying late at the lodge the night of the wedding to make sure no one needed anything from the front desk, Scarlet arrived back at work by seven the next morning. Once she’d learned that Tessa was coming home, the rest of the day had gone by in a blur. Aside from a couple of minor hiccups, Meredith and Mike’s wedding went off without a hitch. The ceremony was intimate and beautiful, the couple obviously very much in love. Scarlet had to hold herself together when Mike promised to always love Meredith, to trust her, and always be her friend.

  What she wouldn’t give to have Cameron say those words to her.