Midnight Heat

by Cat Johnson

  The differences just proved the nature versus nurture debate. She could grow up with parents who had every aspect of their lives planned, organized, and compartmentalized, but somewhere deep in her DNA she carried the genes that made her the opposite of the couple who had raised her.

  Usually being a fly-by-the-seat-of-her-pants kind of girl worked for her. Not today.

  This was too much to deal with alone. She needed backup.

  Crawling toward her phone, on the floor just past the mess, Phoenix stretched and grabbed the cell before flopping back onto her butt amid the explosion of papers.

  Phoenix dialed the number and waited for Kim to pick up.

  “Hello?”

  Bracing for her friend’s displeasure, Phoenix drew in a breath. “We have a problem.”

  “What kind of a problem?” The wariness was clear in Kim’s tone.

  There was no way around it. She had to ’fess up. “I can’t find my birth certificate.”

  “Um, okay. And that’s a problem because . . . ?”

  “I need it to get a passport so I can go with you to Aruba. That’s why.”

  “You don’t have a passport?” Her friend sounded shocked.

  “No, I don’t have a passport. I’ve barely traveled outside of California, never mind leaving the country to go anywhere I needed a passport.” Phoenix sighed.

  Kim was missing the point. Her lack of a passport wasn’t as big a problem as her current lack of the proper identification she needed to get a passport.

  “Don’t worry about it. You have plenty of time to get a passport. We’re not going away for months.”

  “But I read it can take months to get a passport. And that’s not the problem anyway. Didn’t you hear me? The problem is that to apply for a passport I need my birth certificate, which I can’t find. What do I do about my birth certificate?” Phoenix was ready to scream as her frustration mounted.

  How could Kim, whom Phoenix knew was an intelligent woman, not understand the enormity of the situation?

  “Oh, well, that’s easy. You just have to send away for a duplicate birth certificate.”

  “Wait, I can do that?”

  Her heart leaped. If what Kim said was true, it would solve everything.

  “Yes. Of course you can, silly. Seriously, you think they expect people to be able to hang on to one little piece of paper from birth until death? That’s crazy. Did you think you were the only person in the country ever to lose their birth certificate?”

  “No. I guess not.” That concept made Phoenix feel moderately better about the whole situation. Could it really be that easy? It was hard to believe. “You’re sure I can just get a new one?”

  “Sure. My mother lost my brother’s. When he got old enough to drive and needed it to get his permit, she just had to apply for a duplicate in the county where he was born. It came in the mail like a week or two later.”

  “Wow.” She could do this. Fix her mess without her parents ever knowing. “Wait. I’m not sure what county I was born in. I only know my parents adopted me in Arizona.”

  “Just ask your parents.”

  “I can’t do that.”

  “Why not? Will they care we’re going to Aruba? Aren’t you going to tell them? How are you going to explain your tan?”

  “I’m not trying to hide the trip. I’m trying to hide the fact that I lost my birth certificate. My father thinks I’m scatterbrained as it is, and I doubt my mother has ever lost a thing in her life. I’ll have to try to get out of them where I was born somehow. . . .”

  “Uh, Phoenix?”

  “Yeah?”

  “Think about it.”

  “About what?” She was in no mood for Kim’s guessing games.

  “Your name.”

  Phoenix frowned, not understanding what Kim was hinting at and wishing she’d just come out and say it. “What about my name? A Phoenix is a mythical bird.”

  “And it’s also the largest city in Arizona, the state where you were adopted. And it’s in . . . hang on a second . . . Maricopa County. At least it is according to the search I just did online.”

  “You think that’s where I was born? Phoenix, Arizona?”

  “I think the odds are pretty good. If you really don’t want to ask them, I’d try applying for the duplicate certificate in Maricopa County and see what happens. The worst they can do is say you weren’t born there.”

  “Hmm.” It was definitely something to think about. And if it kept her from having to admit her mistake to her parents, it would be worth the gamble. “You might actually have a good idea.”

  Kim laughed. “Thanks for sounding so surprised by that.”

  “Aw, relax. You know I love you.” In fact, thanks to Kim’s idea, Phoenix was feeling lighter than she had all day. “But I gotta go.”

  “Where?”

  “My parents’ house. I’ll call you later.” Phoenix figured before she went to the trouble of wasting the time applying for the duplicate in possibly the wrong county, it couldn’t hurt to do some recon.

  Casually bringing up the subject of her name and seeing if her mother was just really into mythology, or if Kim was right and she’d been born in Phoenix, could save her weeks of time and needless paperwork.

  Fingers crossed, she staunchly ignored the mess she was abandoning for now and grabbed her car keys.

  Chapter Three

  Phoenix pulled her used but beloved Volkswagen Bug along the curb in front of her parents’ yard.

  She cut the engine and glanced at the house where she’d lived the first twenty-three years of her life. In fact, this had been her home from the day they’d brought her here from Arizona right up until a couple of years ago.

  That’s when, armed with her degree in education and a burning desire to prove she could make it on her own, she’d gotten a teaching job, saved what she needed for her security deposit and first month’s rent, and moved out to her own place.

  Her father’s car wasn’t in the driveway. He’d be back from work shortly, but her mother would be home.

  Breathing in, she prepared for the mission ahead of her.

  It should be easy enough for Phoenix to get her parents to confirm where she’d been born. Once she’d done that, she could request a duplicate birth certificate, get her passport, and no one would be the wiser about the little mishap with the original paperwork.

  If she could get her mother to confirm Kim was right that she’d been born in Maricopa County, that duplicate certificate could be winging its way to her in mere weeks.

  She hated lying to her parents, but this wasn’t exactly lying. It was really more like selectively withholding information. She might have been irresponsible in losing her birth certificate in the first place, but she was handling replacing it, and that proved she was responsible after all.

  Good thing the kids she taught couldn’t see her now. This deception, and her pretty weak justification of it, wouldn’t set a very good example for her students. The impressionable youth she’d been tasked to educate by the State of California would never know she was both disorganized and deceitful.

  With her purse hooked over one shoulder and her guilt resting heavily on both, she let herself into the house.

  Once inside, she called out, “Hey, Mom. I’m here.”

  “I’m in the kitchen, sweetheart.” The response came from the back of the house.

  Phoenix walked in the direction her mother’s voice had come from. She found her standing over the stove in front of a large pot.

  The enticing aroma that filled the room had her mouth watering. “Mmm. That smells good.”

  “Just stuffed peppers. Nothing special.” Her mother waved off the compliment. Wiping her hands on a dish towel, she turned away from the stove to face Phoenix. “I didn’t know you were coming over.”

  “I, uh, didn’t know either. I was out running errands and thought I’d drop by.” Phoenix pushed down the guilt over that little white lie. Though the truth was she hadn’t
known she was coming over until she’d discovered her birth certificate missing. It just happened that her errand was to get information from her parents. “I’m sorry. I should have called you first to let you know.”

  “Don’t be silly. You know you’re always welcome anytime. Do you want to stay for dinner?”

  “That would be great. Thanks.” She’d been so busy tearing her place apart, she hadn’t even thought about food.

  Besides that, there was no way she’d say no to one of her mother’s meals. She realized she hadn’t eaten since an early lunch and her stomach grumbled in protest.

  Phoenix could get by in the kitchen. She could cook well enough that she didn’t have to rely on fast food for sustenance every night, but she wasn’t a chef—or a homemaker—even near the caliber her mother was.

  The kitchen smelled amazing, but she shouldn’t be surprised. It always did about this time in the afternoon.

  Her mother routinely started cooking early in the day. Every meal made in this house by her mother was orchestrated to perfection. Timed so that when her father arrived home after work, the food would be ready and waiting to be served the moment he was ready to eat.

  “Want some tea?” Her mother paused with her hand on the handle of the kettle.

  “Sure. Thanks.” Sitting down over a mug of tea would be the perfect way to casually bring up the subject of her birth. Or at least the topic of her name, which would hopefully lead to more information.

  Her mother filled the kettle with water from the sink and set it atop the gas flame of the burner. “Pick your tea.”

  “Okay.”

  Yes, in this house there was an actual tea box. A glossy cherrywood lidded box that housed a dozen different varieties of tea bags, each in its own little section. It was great. Like a fine restaurant. Plenty of choices to meet the taste of any guest or the mood of any one of the family members.

  So why did it make Phoenix feel so inadequate as she lifted the lid and perused the choices?

  Because her tea—the cheap plain kind that was sold by the hundred—lived in her cabinet inside its original cardboard box. She’d just have to accept she wasn’t her mother and never would be.

  “What can I take out for you, Mom?”

  “Peppermint, I think.”

  Phoenix grabbed a mint tea bag for her mother and a green tea for herself. She moved to the cabinet and took down two mugs while her mother manned the stove, watching the dinner in one pot while waiting for the kettle to boil.

  It seemed like as good a time as any to broach the subject. “So I was researching some things for class. Mythology and stuff.”

  “Oh? That sounds interesting.”

  “It is. The legend of the phoenix came up and I started wondering. Did you name me after the bird or was I, like, born in Phoenix, Arizona, or something?” Her heart sped a little faster from the lie as much as from the anticipation that she might get the information she needed.

  “Actually, yes.” Her mother grabbed the kettle as the steam began to pour from the spout.

  “Yes, what? Which one?” Which suggestion had her mother agreed with? The bird or the city? Phoenix’s heart pounded. She was so close to the information she needed.

  “You were born in Phoenix. Well, at least the adoption agency we worked with was located there, and though it was a closed adoption, they did tell us that you were born at a local hospital. But I always did love the legend of the mythological bird rising from the flames.” Her mother shrugged. “Your name made sense on many levels. Now, convincing your father of that was another matter. He wanted something traditional. But when he saw you, and you were so beautiful, he was a big pile of mush and I got my way.”

  Phoenix’s heart skipped a beat at the answer. She barely heard what her mother was saying after she’d confirmed the adoption agency’s location and that they’d said she’d been born in a local hospital. It wasn’t exactly hard-and-fast confirmation that she had been born in that county, but it was close.

  Close enough for her to apply for the birth certificate. And if the county clerk or whomever she’d have to contact said she hadn’t been born there, then she’d apply to the next closest county until she found where in Arizona she’d been born.

  “Do you want sugar?” Her mother’s question pulled Phoenix out of her thoughts.

  She glanced up and realized her mother had already poured the boiling water into her mug. “Um, yeah. But I’ll get it. You sit down.”

  Though she was dying to get home and right to work on ordering that duplicate, it would have to wait. She’d eat dinner and then make her escape as soon as she could without seeming rude.

  She had to get online and research this birth certificate application business.

  Chapter Four

  Justin ran the back of one hand across his forehead and let out a breath. It was a hot day. Then again, moving hay was a hot, dirty job no matter what time of year it was, but they were finally done with work for the day.

  Tyler had already headed back to the barn. He’d gone to meet the blacksmith they’d called to come to check on the stallion that had a hoof abscess.

  Justin’s boss, Rohn Lerner, was hoping if they pulled the stallion’s shoes and clipped his hooves shorter, the abscess might work its way down. Recovery was much faster and neater if the infection drained from the bottom of the hoof rather than burst through the top by the pastern.

  While Tyler dealt with the lame horse and the blacksmith, Justin and Colton had been left to finish stacking the last of the bales in the hay shed to store them for winter use.

  That was fine with Justin. He knew from experience that the Arabian stallion they’d been training could be temperamental, and he was a kicker. There was a good chance that Tyler had gotten the worst end of this deal.

  “Phew. I’m glad that’s done.”

  Justin glanced up at Colton’s comment. “You ain’t kidding.”

  While wiping his hands on his jeans, Colton wandered closer. “So I’m gonna head home, shower, and then get dressed to go out. It’s two-for-one beer night at the Two-Step. You’re coming, right?”

  “Nah.” Justin shook his head. “Thanks, but I think I’ll pass.”

  Colton drew his brows low. “Not that I’m complaining, but you haven’t wanted to do anything lately.”

  “That sounded like complaining to me. Besides, what do you care?”

  Justin shouldn’t argue with him because Colt was right.

  It had been two weeks since Justin’s near meltdown in the bar, and he wasn’t feeling much better. In fact, he was even more of an antisocial bastard, if that was possible.

  “I care because we’re friends.” Colton frowned.

  “Yeah, right.” Justin screwed up his mouth with doubt. “You care because now that Ty is all bowed up with Janie every night, you got nobody to go out trolling for girls with.”

  Colton wobbled his head from side to side. “Eh. I guess there is that, too.”

  That elicited the first laugh from Justin all day. “At least you’re honest about it.”

  Colton lifted one shoulder. “Anyway, you know where I’ll be if you change your mind. I’ll even pick you up so you don’t have to drive, if you want.”

  “That’s a very generous offer. . . .”

  “But?” Colton prompted Justin to continue when he let the sentence hang.

  “I’ll let you know if I change my mind and decide to go.”

  “A’ight. Good enough. I’m heading out. Maybe I’ll see you later.” It seemed, with that final comment, Colton was going to let the subject drop. Justin couldn’t be more relieved.

  “Maybe,” Justin called after Colton, who’d already turned toward where the trucks were parked.

  Colton didn’t bother turning around as he raised an arm to acknowledge he’d heard.

  Justin reached for the handle of his own vehicle and swung the door open. As he settled in the driver’s seat, he saw dark clouds hanging low on the horizon. There’d be a sto
rm rolling in tonight if he wasn’t mistaken.

  Hopefully, it would just be a little rain. Thunder made his mother nervous. Tornadoes, even more so.

  A bad storm meant she’d sit up all night, not sleeping a wink. She’d be exhausted in the morning. She always seemed worse when she didn’t sleep. He’d noticed that over the past couple of years.

  With the anniversary of his brother’s death coming up next month, it was already like walking on eggshells at home as he tried not to do or say anything that might set off a major bout of depression.

  Meanwhile, he had his own issues to deal with. His mood felt as dark as those clouds in the distance.

  Maybe he should go out with Colton. Get drunk and get laid and knock himself out of this crappy mood. So far, sitting alone and stewing for the past couple of weeks hadn’t helped. His trying to be there to cheer up his mother hadn’t worked to make either of them feel better.

  The wind began to kick up and he heard the sound of distant thunder rumble through the air. He sighed. He needed to get home.

  His mother would need him.

  The only question was, could he hold on long enough to support her while not cracking himself? He’d need to do something to keep sane and soon, before he wasn’t fit to be near anyone, including his mother.

  He fired up the engine and spun the truck toward the road headed for home.

  They didn’t live too far from the ranch, so it didn’t take long for Justin to reach home, or what had become his home again after he’d had to move out of his own place and back in with his mother. That had been shortly after his brother’s death, when he’d realized his mother couldn’t be alone.

  Big fat drops of rain began to strike the glass of his windshield as Justin pulled into the house’s driveway. He realized they’d gotten that hay put up in the shed at Rohn’s place just in time. If they’d left the job until tomorrow, it would have been soaked.

  Justin parked the truck behind his mother’s car in the drive, blocking her in. That was all right. She wouldn’t be going anywhere tonight. She rarely went anywhere during the day. She sure as hell wouldn’t be leaving the house on a stormy night.