by Natalie Ann
Jordyn felt the heat rise up her neck and into her face. As if Alec and Brynn couldn’t have guessed she and Drew spent the night together, he all but confirmed it there. It didn’t help either that Alec was smirking at Drew.
“Alec, this is Jordyn Montgomery. Jordyn, Alec Harper, my brother-in-law. Now give the donuts back, Brynn.”
Jordyn walked forward and shook Alec’s hand. “I’m sorry to bother you so early on a Sunday morning.”
“No worries. I get donuts out of it, so I’m not complaining.”
Drew turned to Brynn. “Do you have coffee made?”
She snorted. “Yes. Jordyn, would you like a cup while I go wait on my husband and brother?”
“No, thank you. I’m not a coffee drinker. We won’t take much of your time.”
“Please, don’t worry about it. Follow me to the kitchen then and we’ll find something for you to drink.”
Jordyn followed Brynn through the house and tried not to feel so out of place. She should have expected they would live in a stunning home. She’d seen the houses they were building in the development and the work they’d done on rehabs, not to mention her own home.
Only she didn’t expect the sheer size and beauty of the home she was in right now. Or the spectacular view of the lake from every angle of the back of the house. “Your house is stunning.”
“Thank you. Alec and I designed and built it together.”
“You built it?”
“Part of it. We were in a hurry, so I didn’t get to do as much as I would have liked, but I put my time in. How about hot chocolate?”
“That’s good,” Jordyn replied. She was surprised Brynn just accepted that she and Drew were stopping over for no reason. “About our visit.”
“Since Drew asked if Alec would be here, why don’t we all go into the family room and talk at once? I’m guessing this might have something to do with him?”
“How do you know?”
“Drew normally is more concerned about coming to see Grace than anyone else. That he asked if Alec was home first gave it away.”
Jordyn patiently waited for the hot chocolate and coffee to be done and helped Brynn bring it into the living room, where she pulled up short to see Drew cradling Grace in his arms.
“Did you wake her up?” Brynn asked narrowing her eyes.
“She heard my voice and started to look for me,” Drew said, looking away and tickling Grace.
“Did she, Alec?” Brynn asked.
Jordyn didn’t miss the look Alec sent to Drew or the return look that silently said, “I brought you donuts.”
Alec cleared his throat. “I wasn’t paying attention really, but I did hear her moving around.”
Brynn snorted, not believing either of them, then turned a friendly look back to her. “What is it that you needed to talk to us about, Jordyn?”
She looked at Drew, unsure how to start. She didn’t have a chance before Drew jumped in and said, “Show Alec the picture.”
It was a good enough start as any, so she pulled her phone out, and brought the picture to Alec.
“Oh hey, look at Ben. Geez, that’s an old picture. I remember when that was taken on Phil’s boat one summer, too. Brynn, look at this,” he said, taking the phone away from Jordyn and showing it to Brynn.
“He’s much bigger now than there,” Brynn said.
“That was the first time he came home on leave. He’d lost a lot of weight when he first went into the Navy, then just packed on the muscle and never stopped.” Alec turned to Jordyn. “How did you get this picture?”
“Do you know who the other guy is?”
“Sure. That’s Trent, Ben’s best friend. He used to visit all the time.”
“What’s Trent’s last name? Do you know?”
“Richardson. Why, do you know him?”
She hadn’t thought it would be that easy. “No.” She looked over at Drew, helpless for the moment and trying to figure out where to go next.
“Jordyn is looking for her father. She’s never met him, and she only found out his name after her mother passed away in the spring. Her only clues are his name, that picture and a postcard of Saratoga.”
Alec looked up from the picture again. “I’m sorry to hear that. Maybe we can help.”
“I was hoping. I didn’t know that was your brother in the picture until Drew saw it and said something.”
“What was your father’s name?”
“Tim Morris.”
Alec shook his head. “It doesn’t ring a bell, but Ben would know more than anyone.”
“I think it has more to do with Trent and not Ben. That’s my guess,” Drew said.
“But why the postcard of Saratoga?” Brynn asked. “That part has to do with Ben.”
“There’s only one way to find out,” Alec said.
Belong
Jordyn couldn’t believe she was at Alec Harper’s parents’ house. She felt out of place in so many ways. Isabel and William Harper had welcomed her like a long-lost friend and that alone felt weird to her.
She’d never been to any big family gathering before so this entire situation was alien to her. Not only were Alec, Brynn and Grace here, but she’d also met Phil’s wife, Sophia, and their son, Ian. Alec had called Ben and was told he was on his way.
“I’m sorry to be intruding on you like this,” Jordyn said to Isabel.
“Think nothing of it, dear. Drew is family, so any friend of his is a friend of ours.”
It was a concept completely foreign to her right now. She had all these questions running through her head about the picture, but she didn’t mention them to Alec. As much as she wanted to, she felt that he wouldn’t have the best answers and she didn’t want to run the risk of getting mixed information. So she bit her tongue and let it all settle in her brain for when she met Ben Harper.
Drew reached over and grabbed her hand. “Relax. You already know more than you did hours ago. It’s a lead. I’m sure Ben will be more helpful to you.”
“I hope so.”
She heard the front door open and then close, giving Jordyn her first warning of Ben. Seeing the picture of him from years ago and knowing they said he was bigger now didn’t prepare her for the man that walked through the door. He was huge, imposing, but smiling at the same time.
“There’s my nephew,” Ben said as his eyes lit up watching Ian crawling on the floor toward him as fast as he could.
Ben bent down, grabbed Ian under the arms and tossed him in the air twice to the sounds of laughter.
“Ben, you’re going to give me a heart attack,” Sophia said.
Laughing, Ben replied, “I’m perfecting my technique for when Chad is born.”
Drew leaned in and whispered to Jordyn, “Ben’s wife, Presley, is pregnant with their son, Chad. She’s due in a few months, too.”
“Here, you take Ian,” Ben said to Brynn. “Hand over Grace.”
“Not if you’re going to toss her in the air like that,” Brynn said, staring him down.
“I’ll wait until she can at least sit up on her own. How’s that?” he asked, smiling, and swapped out the kids. “Gracie bear, are you happy to see your favorite uncle?”
“I don’t think so,” Drew said. “We all know who her favorite uncle is, and his last name isn’t Harper.”
Everyone around the room laughed and it was easy for Jordyn to see how well Drew fit in here, even if the dynamics were something she’d never been exposed to before.
“So what’s going on, Alec?” Ben asked. “Why did you need to see me?”
“He didn’t,” Drew said. “Jordyn did.”
Jordyn sat there quietly while Drew made the introductions and explained their reason for being there.
She handed her phone over to Drew, who passed it to Ben. Then she watched the smile fade from his face, sadness briefly creeping in. She’d thought it was odd they didn’t tell him the reason they wanted to see him. Now she wondered if maybe he wouldn’t have come if he knew.
<
br /> Suddenly the happy carefree man from moments ago was gone and in his place was someone almost withdrawn. Then he turned, a huge grin on his face, but not quite reaching his eyes. “That’s an old picture. How did you get that?”
“It was one of the only clues left for me in a small package from my father. His name was Tim Morris. Does that ring a bell to you? I don’t know what this picture has to do with him.”
“I’m sorry, it doesn’t ring a bell at all.”
“What about with Trent? Is there a way I can talk to him?”
“You didn’t tell her, Alec?” Brynn asked quickly.
“Sorry, I didn’t think to,” Alec said, looking distressed.
“Tell me what?” Jordyn asked, feeling like a brick was going to be dropped on her.
“Trent died a few years ago.”
Another dead end. “How?”
“We were in the Navy together. He died during a mission,” Ben said and Jordyn watched as Isabel came forward and rubbed her hand on Ben’s arm. He turned to his mom. “It’s fine. It’s all good and you know it.” He half laughed. “I remember the day that picture was taken. Trent wanted to send it back to his mom to show her how much fun he was having here. She wasn’t happy he didn’t visit with her for his whole leave and came home with me instead.”
Jordyn noticed that Ben seemed happier at the moment talking about the memory. “Did Trent have any siblings, maybe?”
“No. He was an only child. He never really talked much about his father, only that his father left his mother when Trent was young.”
“So I’m back to square one again, only I know the names of the people in the picture and nothing else,” Jordyn said, dropping her shoulders.
“Can you send me what you’ve got? Any information. I might be able to help,” Ben said.
“How?”
Phil looked over. He hadn’t said much, but just now he said, “Ben was a Navy SEAL and has connections in security matters. If there is something to be found he would be the one.”
“Oh,” Jordyn said at a loss. She didn’t expect he would make that offer.
“Phil’s right. But I thought I would start with Patty.”
“Ben,” Isabel started to say.
He cut her off. “It’s fine, Mom.” Then he turned to Jordyn. “Patty is Trent’s mother. I haven’t talked to her in a few years and I’m not sure how much help she will be, but it’s worth a shot.”
Jordyn got the feeling that no one wanted Ben to call Patty. “Really, I appreciate your help, but please don’t go out of your way. I’ve got some more information and I can do more research and see what I turn up.”
“Let me see what I can find out for you. I can’t make any promises, but if somehow Trent and Tim are related, it’s the least I can do. For Trent.”
***
After dinner, Drew brought Jordyn home and went into her house with her. She’d been quiet most of the time at the Harpers’. It wasn’t her just being shy, he knew that. There was more to it. Whether it was the excitement of finding something out and then the disappointment, he wasn’t sure.
“Are you okay?” he asked when they walked into her living room.
“Yeah. It’s been a long day.”
“True. You’re quieter than normal though.”
“Just a lot of thoughts going through my brain. Nothing more than that.”
“Are you sure?” he asked, sitting next to her on the couch and pulling her to him.
“Yeah.”
But he heard the crack in her voice, tilted his head to look into her eyes, and saw the tears gathering. “I’m sorry, Jordyn. I thought maybe you could get some answers. I hope it didn’t make things worse.”
“No. It didn’t. I don’t know what to think. I don’t know if this is all a sign that I should give up and move on with my life. Maybe there is a reason I’m not supposed to know about my background.”
“I don’t think that’s the case. If you weren’t supposed to know, then why would your mother finally tell you? She could have kept that name to herself and you would have never known. You said her letter was with the package from Tim, right? If your mother didn’t want you to know or find out, she could have gotten rid of that package too without you being the wiser.”
She looked up at him and his heart broke as the tears slipped out of her eyes and rolled down her cheek.
“I didn’t think of it that way. I guess I’m just so confused. Why couldn’t she have told me anything? Why leave it in a note? I used to ask her all the time about my father and her family, but she always said the same thing.”
“What’s that?”
He couldn’t imagine not knowing who his family was, or his parents keeping any of it a secret. Even if there was a reason for it.
“That she got pregnant when she was eighteen, and when she refused to name the father her family disowned her. She said that since neither her family nor my father wanted her, that she wasn’t going to bring them into my life. I don’t even know if that was the truth now, though.”
“I don’t think that was fair of her to make that decision once you were an adult.”
He wished he didn’t say that when he saw her shocked expression. Maybe he should have kept that thought to himself.
“Probably not, but my mother was a stubborn woman. I finally stopped asking. I think I assumed there would be time enough in life to figure it out. I never expected to be in this position. I don’t even know why I want to know so badly.”
“You want a sense of belonging,” he said, running his hand up and down her back.
“You’re probably right. I’ve never felt like I’ve belonged anywhere before. Not when I was a kid and in school, not now in my adult life. I don’t know who I am when I look in the mirror. Or where I should be.”
“Sure you do. You’re Jordyn and you belong right here.” With me.
Past
The following Friday, Jordyn finally decided to give her mind a break. She’d spent the last week looking up any information she could on Trent Richardson and she’d come up empty. Nothing more than his obituary and his mother’s name. No father listed for him.
Ben had told her he was positive Patty and Trent’s father had been married because he remembered Trent’s middle name was Miller and that had been his mother’s maiden name, Jordyn saw on the obituary.
She hadn’t expected Ben to get back to her with anything quickly, and he hadn’t. She thought it was nice though that he’d sent her an email and told her he’d placed a call to Patty, but had yet to hear back from her.
Jordyn passed on the little information she had to Ben and figured he was probably coming up with a dead end too.
With nothing else left to do in that corner, she focused on work. When everything was caught up on that end, she decided it was past time to start painting the rest of her house, especially now with all the walls patched up.
Drew had told her how much paint she’d need for each room, so she’d gone to the hardware store and bought a few cans of primer and enough paint for her living room, dining room, and office.
She wasn’t adventurous enough to paint each room a different color, so she settled on one that would blend right into the hallway too.
With her oldest leggings and T-shirt on, she got to work moving her furniture into the center of the room and covering it, along with the flooring.
The sound of the tape ripping off to secure the paper to her hardwood floors reminded her of the last time she painted.
“This is a lot of work for the two of us, Mom,” she’d said, reaching up on her tiptoes to line blue tape around the window frame. “How come we can’t have someone do this for us?”
Libby looked over at her, smiling bright. “Because, sweetie, you need to learn to do things for yourself.” Her mom walked over and tugged on her pigtails. “Don’t rely on others to help you.”
“Why? Ms. Brookstone said that friends should always help each other. Why can’t you ask some of your frien
ds to help us?”
Her mother chuckled, a not-so-happy sound, more of a sad one. “Because people don’t always help when they say they will. Trust me, Jordyn, life is easier if you learn to do it yourself.”
“But Mr. Wager next door said he would help you whenever you needed a hand. I heard him last week when I was on the swing set. You could ask him,” Jordyn said, trying again.
“No, Jordyn. Mr. Wager is offering to help because he wants something in return. That’s not being a friend. That’s being selfish.”
Jordyn frowned, wrinkling her nose. “What does he want in return?” Mr. Wager was older than her mother, she knew that, but she wasn’t sure how old. Old enough to have a lot of gray hair. He was always nice to her though, and always smiling and saying nice things to her mother. Even telling her mother she looked pretty and asking if she needed help carrying in the groceries.
“You’re too young to understand,” Libby said running her hand over Jordyn’s hair one last time before stepping away. “Trust me. Not everyone has good intentions.”
***
“Jordyn!” Drew shouted.
He’d called her name twice already and not only had she not responded, but she’d never even stopped what she was doing. She was frowning, maybe from concentration. He didn’t know. All he knew was she didn’t look happy and she was almost angrily slapping the tape on around the windows, then yanking it hard with a snap of her wrist.
“What?” she said, spinning around and almost tripping herself in the process, throwing her hand out to brace herself on the wall. “Are you trying to scare me to death?”
“No,” he said, shaking his head and walking forward. “I called your name twice and you didn’t respond. The guys aren’t being that loud, so it’s not like they could have distracted you.”
He’d been thrilled when Brynn told him to spend the day at Jordyn’s working. There wasn’t anything else lined up that he needed to do, so he was free to go where they felt he could be useful.
“Sorry. My mind was wandering. What are you doing here?”