“Felicia,” Alex said. “She’s hurting. You’re hurting.”
“I’m done here.” Felicia grabbed her purse off the chair and opened it. “One more thing.” Rifling through her wallet, she took out a folded piece of paper. “Here’s the check your father and ex-wife gave me to leave town. I never cashed it.”
She threw the check into Maxwell’s face. They all watched it float to the floor. “I never cashed it because it represented a time in my life when I was for sale, and I didn’t sell. Instead, I cleaned houses and ironed clothes to make ends meet.” She turned to Maddie. “Besides you, that un-cashed check is the only thing in my life I am proud of.”
Felicia tossed the tissues in the garbage and finger-combed her hair. “Madison, I know for years you thought I was callous regarding your birthday. I tried to make your birthday a celebration, but every year all you ever asked for was a card from your daddy. Did he not remember his little girl’s birthday, you’d ask. It broke my heart so I ignored the day after that.”
“Felicia.” Maxwell turned his pained face to Maddie. “We’ve heard enough.”
“I agree.” Alex pressed his lips against Maddie’s temple. “You okay?”
Maddie nodded. “Yes.” It came out as a whisper. “Let her finish.”
“I was selfish and focused on filling the emptiness left behind by Maxwell with relationships that never worked.” She walked up to Maddie. “How you turned out to be such a confident, strong, exceptional woman with me as a mother is beyond me.” She smoothed Maddie’s bangs. “I know you’re not going to believe this, and I sure as hell don’t blame you if you don’t. But you’re the best thing that’s ever happened in my life.”
Maddie locked gazes with her mother. “For the record. I don’t hate you.”
Felicia closed her eyes with a slight bow of her head. “For the record. I believe you.”
With that, she left.
Maddie woke up and tried to stretch her arms, but remembered her right arm was a no go. She clicked the button that threw the overhead light on, rubbed the sleep from her eyes and glanced at the clock—six o’clock. She’d slept for four hours.
After Felicia left, Maddie had succumbed to a painkiller. Before falling into a dreamless sleep, she told Maxwell that she wanted to know the test results. He hesitated at first, then agreed and called the clinic. He was told they would try their best to contact him tonight or early tomorrow.
Her tummy rumbled. Leaning over for the cookie tin she heard a light tap on the door. “Come in.” She smiled as Maxwell walked in the room. “Hey, there. You’re still here?”
“I’ll get that.” He opened the cookie tin and placed it on her lap. “Are you up for a visit?”
She pointed to the large box on the table. “Anyone who sends a carton of Milk Duds can visit me any time. Too generous and I thank you.” She dived into the cookie tin. “Where’s Alex?”
“He went out for something to eat. I suspect he wanted to give us some time alone.”
He pulled up a chair and Maddie held out the tin offering him a cookie. They spent the next hour talking. Maxwell told her about his first love, Elizabeth, her brother Liam Galvin and his loveless second marriage. Maddie wasn’t sure if he was doing it for her benefit or if he really had loved Felicia at one time. He talked about her with a lot of respect and admiration. He said he realized he should have been more sensitive to Felicia’s disheartened state when they’d met.
“Two people can be perfect for each other,” he said, “but if the timing and circumstances are wrong, then it won’t work.” He sighed. “That’s me and Felicia in a nutshell.”
The timing comment made her wonder about her and Alex. Was it bad timing for them? She had so much baggage now. She was emotionally as well as physically broken and wanted to pull the covers over her head and sleep for a year. She’d fight the distress as she always did. Though this time it seemed more challenging. “Why do you think relationships are so hard?”
He smiled. “Not all, only the important ones. What about you and Donovan? Is the timing for you two good?”
She took a cookie and handed him one. “The DNA test could come back negative, then you’ll have wasted all this fatherly concern.”
He sat back in the chair, crossing his leg over his knee. “Indulge me. I’m old.”
“You may age faster if I am your daughter.” She bit into the cookie. “But once you can get past my smart-assness you should be good to go.”
“Donovan is a lucky man to have the love of an extraordinary woman like you.”
She did not want to have that conversation with Maxwell. “You know that awkward feeling we had this afternoon. It’s back.” She blushed. “Thanks. Now no more compliments. So how about those Rangers? You think they’ll bring the cup home?”
“As much as it pains me to admit this, you’re also lucky. It’s obvious he’s crazy about you. From what I’ve learned and witnessed…he’s a solid man.” He winced after saying that.
She smiled. “And once you get past Alex’s smart-assness, you’ll be a fan too.”
He winced again. “I don’t like his profession. In fact, I don’t like your profession either.” He leaned forward. “I could buy you a publishing house to run. You’ll be safe behind a desk. You won’t have to jump off cliffs or endure ghastly theme parks.”
She let out a giggle. “I jump out of planes, too. Will you buy me a Cessna?”
Shaking his head, he folded his arms. “You are going to send me to an early grave.”
Laughing, she handed him the empty tin. “Whatever that test says, I’m glad you’re one of the possibilities.” She put her hand over her mouth. “That didn’t come out right.”
He leaned forward and took hold of her hand. “I understand what you mean. I do hope you’re my daughter, even if you are a daredevil.” Clearing his throat. “And I do hope you will mend your relationship with your mother.”
“We have this thing we do. We argue, ignore each other for a few weeks, then return to our superficial relationship.” Maddie attempted a tone of casual indifference. “No biggie.”
“But it’s different this time, isn’t it?”
Maddie nodded, looking away. It was too personal and private a thing to talk about with anybody, most of all with Maxwell. “Okay, you’re not a Rangers fan. How about the Yankees?”
Maxwell squeezed her hand in understanding. “You want me to buy you a baseball team?”
Alex entered. “Hey, sleepyhead, you’re up.” He nodded at Maxwell and kissed Maddie.
Maxwell’s cell phone rang. He glanced at the display. “It’s Dr. Noa. Excuse me.” He stood and answered the call. “Dr. Noa, thank you for handling this so quickly.” Maddie couldn’t gauge his expression to figure out what the doctor was saying to him. “In layman’s terms, please?” A long pause. “You’re certain?” An even longer pause. “Yes, we’d both like a copy.”
He hung up, went to hold Maddie’s hand and regarded her a few moments with a warm smile.
No words were needed. His eyes, glistening with unshed sadness, gave Maddie her answer.
“Test results will not take away the fact that I, along with anyone who has been fortunate to know you, think you are an outstanding young woman.” He bent and kissed her forehead. “Thank you for allowing me into your life. You are always welcome in my home.” He looked at Alex. “You both are.”
She gave him a watery smile. “What did I say about no more compliments?”
After a hug and promises of keeping in touch, he bid them both goodbye and left.
Alex sat on the edge of her bed. “You okay?”
Nodding, she bent her head. “Yes.” She looked up at him. “No. No, I’m not.”
He gathered her into his arms.
Burying her face in his chest, she heard his heart thumping as fast as hers. She cried like she�
�d never cried before. She felt like a colander with tears pouring out of her heart and soul. She stayed in his arms until dehydration gave her the motivation to take a deep breath, wipe her eyes and grab a bottle of water. She drank like a woman lost in the dessert.
She hiccupped. “Ow. Even a hiccup hurts.” She finished drinking, her thirst quenched, her self-pity shelved. “Were you able to find out anything from the information I gave Reece?”
“We don’t have to do this now.” He kissed the tip of her nose. “You’ve had a helluva day.”
“I want to.” She slid her eyes to her injured arm. “I’m an invalid, cater to me.”
“That’s never going to work with me.” He chuckled at her pout. “That either.” He pointed at her scowl. “That could work.” Grabbing a bottle of water for himself, he explained, “The doctor who arranged the insemination died ten years ago. I did find out the name of the hospital he worked at before he went into private practice. It’s part of a medical school in Ohio.”
“Medical School?” she asked. “So the PI I hired lied? His report listed fertility clinics.”
“He didn’t lie. Felicia made inquiries and filled out forms at a few clinics, but the actual procedure took place in this hospital. I was told it’s likely her donor was a medical student. His medical history is recorded in your mother’s file. With the exception of the Thalassemia minor gene you inherited, there are no other concerns. His parents were born in Italy, he was born in the USA. That’s the extent of the information available.” He answered her questioning look, smiling. “Reliable source got the information from your mother’s medical file.”
“Guess you can Italianize Maddie after all.” She sighed. “Any way of getting a name?”
He shook his head. “Unlike fertility clinics, this hospital didn’t assign donor numbers.” He paused. “I’m sorry, sweetheart. There’s no way to track his name or any identifying information.”
“What if my relatives are insane?” She gave him a weak smile. “Could account for some of my stunts. Medical student, huh? What if he was the doctor who operated on my arm?”
“Playing the what-if game will make you dizzy.” He tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear. “I wish I could get the answers for you. But nobody can.”
Laying her head back, she remained silent.
After a few minutes, she said, “There’s a man out there who has no clue whether he fathered a boy or girl, or how many children he created. His parents probably don’t know they have a grandchild out here.” She bit her lip. “This sucks.”
“Yes, it does.” He held her face in his hands and his gaze warmed her sadness. “I don’t care how you got here. I’m just happy you were born.” He rubbed noses with hers. “Real happy.”
With careful ease she inhaled a deep breath. “Yeah, me too.”
He kissed her. A long, slow, soulful kiss. The tenderness shot right to her heart, giving it a much needed lift. “Aloha au `ia `oe,” he said against her lips. He returned for a toe curling kiss. “I’ve never said that to another woman.” He smiled. “You figure out what it means yet?”
“I did.” She closed her eyes and snuggled into his shoulder, grinning. “I love you too.”
Chapter Thirty-One
“Not everything that is faced can be changed—but nothing can
be changed until it is faced.”
—Lucille Ball
The next morning, Maddie sat on the edge of a bed in the rehab room, working with Jonathan the physical therapist—aka Jonathan the drill sergeant. “On a scale of one to ten, how’s the pain?” he asked.
She bit down hard on her lower lip and repeated the exercise, extending her arm out as far as possible without screaming in agony. “The same as it was five minutes ago when you last asked.”
“Did you take any pain meds today?”
“No.” She shot him a dirty look. “Those pills make me bitchy.”
“So you’re just cranky now?” He stared at his watch. She tried not to cuss him out. “Straighter. Come on, Cujo, you have two minutes left. Give me a longer extension.”
Squeezing her eyes shut, she tried to straighten her arm more. “I can’t…go…further.”
“Bull. Try harder. Anyone who’s crazy enough to jump a cliff can do better than that.”
“You’re all heart, Sergeant.” She put more force into straightening it. “I mean…all…hard-ass.”
“You want physical therapy or a hug? You going all soft on me?”
“Are you setting yourself…up,—” she breathed in and out, hoping to ease the sharp, penetrating twinge racing from her elbow to her wrist, “—on purpose?”
He rolled his eyes then opened the small fridge and took an ice pack out. “Okay, relax the arm.”
She let out a relieved breath and placed her arm on the pillow next to her. “Sorry, it was the pain talking.”
Shaking his head, he gave her elbow a once over. “Wound is healing nicely.” He wrapped a towel around the ice pack and adjusted it under her elbow. “Nurse should be here soon for your shot—”
“What shot?” Her voice hitched. “No freaking way. Nobody said anything about any—”
“Psych.” He shrugged and set the timer. “Sorry, it’s the hard-ass talking.”
It was her turn to roll her eyes.
He pulled out a sheet from a file folder. “I’m going to show you some exercises for you to do on your own to improve your range of motion.”
For the next ten minutes, he demonstrated the exercises.
“You have to work harder and push through the pain if you want to avoid stiffness and achieve full arm extension.” He wrote something on a sheet. “I hear you’re leaving in a couple of days.”
“Try not to cry for me.”
“I’m all choked up.” He pretended to wipe a tear. “I’ll miss you. You’re the only one around here who gets my charming personality.” He closed the file. “Same time tomorrow.”
She watched him leave, and it was then she noticed Felicia sitting in a chair, reading a magazine on the other side of the rehab room.
Felicia locked gazes with Maddie, got up and walked over. “You’re looking pale.”
Oh brother. “I have my period.”
“From what I heard it sounded like you have the whole sentence.”
“What are you doing here? Two-week rule, remember?”
Felicia pointed to the ice pack. “Are you done with that?”
The timer went off. “I am now.” She stood and put the ice pack and towel in the plastic bin.
“I’m busting you out of this place for the afternoon.” Felicia cupped Maddie’s good elbow. “I bought you a new sundress and sandals. Hope you like what I picked.”
Maddie had no choice but to fall in step next to Felicia, who dragged her along with determined strides toward her room. “You’re out of control.”
“Yeah, yeah.” Felicia swung the door open when they got there. “Okay, let’s get you dressed.”
An hour later, Maddie sat under a patio umbrella at the Pineapple Moon Oceanfront Restaurant with a million-dollar view of Kaanapali Beach. She was decked out in flowered Manolo Blahnik sandals and a violet sundress—crisscrossed in the back with a sweetheart neckline. She had every intention of returning the dress and the Manolos to Felicia later, even though her mother claimed they were a belated birthday gift.
After Felicia had helped Maddie get washed and dressed, she whisked her outside where Alex—the big traitor—waited in a rented car and drove them to the restaurant.
“So, tell me, honey,” Maddie added a heavy dose of sarcasm to the endearment, “in what alternate universe did you two become chummy enough to arrange this?”
“Excuse me,” Felicia said. “I’ll be back in a few minutes.” She headed inside the restaurant.
Alex slid his chair next
to Maddie, wrapped his arm around her bare shoulder and smiled. “Did I mention you’re steaming in that dress?” He pulled her to him and gave her a quick kiss.
“I’m fighting a fierce desire to kick your ass. But I think I’ll wait.”
He chuckled. “I’ll look forward to it.”
“Seriously, what the hell were you thinking?”
The waiter interrupted, placing two frosted glasses of iced tea on the table. He arranged two place settings and two menus. Maddie thanked him and raised her brows at Alex. “Two?”
“I’m not staying.”
“Neither am I.” She coughed. “I’m an invalid.”
“Nice try.” He kissed the tip of her nose. “Told you that won’t work with me.”
“I swear, Donovan, once I’m at one-hundred percent, I’m going to give you one-hundred-and-fifty percent attitude like you’ve never seen before.”
He smiled. “You’re such a flirt.” He took hold of her hand. “After I followed up on the information I got from Reece, I called Felicia and asked if she would authorize the release of the medical information in her file.”
Light-bulb moment. “Felicia was your reliable source?”
He nodded. “She didn’t hesitate. She was willing to do whatever it took for you to get some answers.” He picked up the iced tea and took a sip. “She called me this morning and asked me for a favor.” He handed her the glass. “And here you are.”
She drank some iced tea. “You didn’t have to sell my soul to thank her for the info.”
“Babe.” He nuzzled her neck. “It turns me on when you get all dramatic like this.”
“Smart ass.” She sighed. “You owe me. I think you should write a book about this. You can interview me. I’m sure your new buddy Felicia will give you input—”
“Now who’s being a smart ass?”
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