Natalie's Deception (The Candy Cane Girls Book 5)

by Bonnie Engstrom

  During the last prayer of the day when all the children were holding hands in a circle, little Bryson chimed in. “Jesus, keep Ms. Melanie safe. She such a good teacher.”

  Melanie had to blink back the tears threatening to escape her eyes. Sweet Bryson was a difficult child who disturbed the others at his table by grabbing their crayons and laughing when he did it. He had a personal issue, too. He often wetted his pants not telling the teachers he had to go. Sometimes, when he didn’t like what his mom had packed in his lunchbox, he would toss the offending item to Salina across the table. It was usually a sweet snack, gummy bears or cookies. Salina usually threw it back to him. Then, he pouted. Today, Melanie saw another side of him. All the children were special, but maybe Bryson needed more attention. Tomorrow she would give it to him; but, first she would talk with Dana the director. To find out if there was more she should know about Bryson. Tonight she would try to have a good night sleep. Tomorrow was her first solo jump day.

  ~

  Melanie and Natalie clasped hands. They had gone through so much, so many steps, with different instructors. They had both done the ground course and the tandem jump. They were each ready and prepping for solo jumps. Natalie knew they would be trained and tested in how to drop shoulders to turn and track East and West because the jump run plane would fly North and South. Eventually, they would learn how to add flips by bringing knees to chest to attain stable body position. After ten more jumps the eleventh would be truly solo. They would be on their own.

  ~

  Jump eleven!

  Why did the instructor’s voice sound familiar? Natalie shook her head to clear the cobwebs. She must concentrate on the jump, not on the man in the full face helmet that looked like a ski mask with a helmet perched on top. Most of the instructors wore the face coverings, but she wasn’t sure why. Maybe to protect their skin, or maybe to protect their identity? They all wore helmets, so did she. She patted the top of hers and tried not to think about how much it had cost. Part of the experience, just like the one her mom bought her when she took horseback riding lessons at eight years old. Safety. Although she wondered if it would protect her from a broken neck.

  Nat checked her equipment – the straps and cords and her goggles. And the altimeter on her left wrist. Would she remember to pull it at fifty-five hundred feet?

  She knew the instructor would go ahead of her and be on the ground waiting. Although she couldn’t speak to him, he could voice communicate to her giving her instructions. She planned to follow them to a T.

  She said a prayer and jumped.

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  Melanie sat on the lanai of her little beach house with her coffee and reading her devotions. Saturdays were special. She didn’t need to rush to get dressed for school or church. Usually on Saturdays she would take a run around Newport Bay and search out the duck babies and mothers. But, today she was going to do her first solo jump, floating out into the air below the clouds. She needed a lot of prayer for that. She wasn’t exactly scared, just a little anxious. She suddenly felt the Holy Spirit nudging her to pray for Natalie. It was to be Nat’s first solo jump, too, but she had been doing so well under Billy’s encouragement. What could possibly go wrong now? Why had she been nudged to pray for her friend?

  The phone call came at eight-thirty, just before Melanie was planning to leave to do her first solo jump.

  “Mel, I am in the ER. Can you come, please?”

  ~

  Natalie’s matted brown hair was fanned out on the hospital pillow, and her face was bruised. She had a red blotch on her cheek, a gash on her right elbow and her left hand was wrapped in gauze. The other hand that reached for Melanie shook.

  “What happened?” Melanie was shocked by Nat’s appearance, but she didn’t want to tell her how awful she looked. That would only make her feel more awful. “Are you in a lot of pain?”

  “Some, but the nurse just gave me a pain pill. I’m more in pain of embarrassment,” she said in a trembling voice. “I almost hit a tree, tried to avoid it and landed flat on my kazoo.”

  “But, what about the instructor? Isn’t there supposed to be one on the ground verbally guiding you?” Melanie asked.

  “He was, but what he was telling me to do would have sent me right into the tree. I guess he couldn’t see from his vantage point what I could from mine. Ow!” she exclaimed as Mel squeezed her hand.

  “So sorry. Wasn’t thinking.”

  “’S okay. I landed on my left hand, to brace myself. Auto reaction, I guess. But, the right one is sore a little, too.” Natalie tried to shake her head and winced as her bruised cheek made contact with the pillow. “I still can’t get that instructor’s voice out of my head. Sounded so familiar.”

  “Like anyone we know? Instructors are rotated all the time, so I guess that’s possible.”

  “I don’t know anyone who instructs sky dives,” Nat said. “Do you?”

  “Nope. Could be anyone. I guess you weren’t able to reply to him when he gave instructions since he had the voice thingy.”

  “No. It’s a one-way walkie-talkie – him telling me what to do. He kept telling me to turn east, but that’s where the tree was.”

  “Did he run over to help you when you landed?”

  “I wish. He just left me lying on the ground. I picked myself up and hobbled to the hangar, got in my car and drove right here to the hospital.”

  “The scum!” Melanie’s face twisted in anger. “I think he should be reported.”

  “To whom? He didn’t do anything wrong according to the rules. Just according to morals.”

  ~

  Melanie rubbed her forehead and collapsed on the sofa. She was so frustrated by what happened to Natalie. She had immediately called to cancel her own solo flight explaining her friend got injured in hers and she was visiting her in the hospital. Whoever took the call didn’t display any emotion about Natalie getting hurt. Melanie was super miffed and yelled at him. “Do you realize she almost ran into a tree? Her instructor didn’t even go to see if she was all right.” Silence. Then, “Not part of his job. Sorry.”

  If she had a land line she would have slammed the receiver down hard. Instead, she clutched her cell phone until her fingers turned white. Yes, she was disturbed, but she was a woman of action. How could she find out who the instructor was who ignored Natalie during her aborted jump?

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  Bryce felt horrible. He had let Natalie down and never told her he was a sky dive instructor. Why was he so secretive? Why hadn’t he run over to her lying on the ground? How cowardly. He was ashamed. If only Billy had been there, but he had an important negotiation to make for a car that was valued at almost a million. Natalie had laughed and said she understood when Billy explained to her in front of Bryce and Melanie. Maybe if she chose Billy over him she would be married to a billionaire. Yes, Bryce, was a coward.

  ~

  Billy had concluded the negotiations for the sale and ran to the bank with the cash. He always insisted on cash from buyers if the car price was over five hundred thousand, but he didn’t want to ever leave it in his office safe. Since he had gained a reputation as a broker of high-end, expensive cars he was extra cautious. On his way back from the bank, he finally picked up his messages to learn about Natalie’s accident – from Melanie. Her friend sounded very disturbed and angry at the instructor who had abandoned her. What could he do to help? First thing first – he rushed to Hoag Hospital. She had been released. Even drove her own car home. Now, he felt guilty, so he drove to her condo and banged on the door.

  “Door’s open,” she yelled. But, her voice sounded weak.

  Hesitantly he pushed it and almost tip-toed in. The first thing he noticed was she looked beat up. She was lying on her sofa with a cup her hand. He tripped on the little rug inside the door and flew forward landing on the other end of the couch from her. Why couldn’t he do anything right?

  The doorbell rang again. Billy was still lying sprawled face down on
the sofa trying to extradite himself. His legs were tangled in an afghan and a decorative pillow. When he finally felt steady enough to stand, he was wobbly and toppled back onto the overstuffed cushions. Yikes! He was a surfer, should be able to stand on dry land, especially on a carpet in his girlfriend’s house. But, was she his girlfriend?

  Bryce heard a weakly mumbled “Come in.” He strode toward the sofa where he had shared guacamole with Natalie before and stood frozen at what he saw. What were another man’s legs doing hanging off the sofa? Natalie started to giggle and hiccup. A hand holding a cup went to her mouth, and brown liquid sloshed out onto her tee shirt. Then, he noticed another bandaged hand wrapped in gauze and blue tape.

  Doorbell again! Natalie recalled her grandmother’s old quip about “busier than Grand Central Station.” Why couldn’t she control those hiccups? And, why was Billy still sprawled on the other end of the sofa? She managed to hiccup through another “Door’s open” before wriggling up straight on her end of the couch using her right hand to brace herself. Bryce grabbed the back of Billy’s collar and tugged on it, and started yelling at Billy. Billy finally got one leg bent at the knee and struggled to push himself up. During that effort he used his right hand to push and his left elbow poked Bryce in the chest – hard.

  Another doorbell ring. Natalie warbled “Come in. Door’s open.” She felt like a parrot. Maybe she should make a recording to punch on her cell phone. Or, maybe she should get a real parrot and train it to say “Come in.”

  Emily burst into the room with arms outstretched. Then she stopped. “What is that man doing hanging off your sofa?” she asked in a squeaky voice. “And, Bryce, what are you doing here?”

  The whole room burst into laughter, and Emily’s face turned raspberry red, accentuating the pointy tip of her nose.

  Natalie tried to explain, but Bryce and Billy interrupted her just as Melanie flung the door shut. Suddenly, it was a party. Melanie was the only one left out, but just for a few seconds.

  Practical Melanie went to the kitchen to make a huge pot of coffee. Then, she said, “Wine, anyone?” The others all shook heads, but Natalie nodded.

  CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  Natalie traded her coffee mug in her right hand for the stemmed wine glass. Thank goodness when she had fallen back on the hard ground during her fall she had braced herself with her left hand. Finally, the men had left lightly punching each other in their arms – such a guy thing. She had explained amid hiccups and giggles about her fall, and even why Billy was spread-eagled on the sofa at her feet. Bryce laughed with the rest, but she could tell from the color of his face he was embarrassed. But, she mused, he had said an odd thing.

  “It’s normal to land that way, on your butt and leaning toward the left.” Then his neck and ears turned a slight crimson, and he looked away. There was no time to question what he said because Billy shoved his hand toward Bryce, and Emily started fussing with the sofa pillows commenting on how wrong the colors were. Melanie was back in the kitchen, so she hadn’t heard the comment. The two men left doing the fist bumping on the arms thing.

  “Did you hear what Bryce said, Emily?” Nat asked. Just then Melanie walked out of the kitchen with a tray of chips and cookies and plunked it on the coffee table to Nat’s right.

  “Not really,” Emily answered. “I wasn’t paying much attention to those two louts.”

  “It was odd. Guess it wasn’t that important.” But, she repeated it to Melanie who raised her brows in peaks.

  “Mmm,” was all Melanie said.

  The women chatted and offered to do anything to help Natalie, but she insisted she was fine. “At least I am mobile, just a bit sore. I may take a break from sky diving, maybe a big break.” Melanie looked concerned, but Natalie grinned. “Connie and Jaeda have been pressuring me to visit them in Scottsdale. Southwest flights are reasonable. I just might do it.”

  “What about the gym?” Melanie asked.

  “I will leave Bryce in charge the days he trains there, and I’m sure my new buddy Claire would take over for a few days.

  “You will be there supervising the renovation, Emily, so you can keep an eye on things. Would you like to step in during the weekend, Mel?”

  “Not next weekend. Sorry. It’s the annual fundraiser at the school. I promised to help set up the tables.”

  “Tha’s okay. Maybe Noelle or Kirsten Day could check in. Maybe even Billy.” She laughed and sloshed the small amount of wine in her glass. “It’s mostly opening and locking up – very secure now that Bill Lord had that security system installed.” Her right hand drifted down beside the sofa edge. Melanie grabbed the glass just in time. Natalie blinked. “Guess I am tireder than I thought.” Then she drifted off. Emily pulled the quilt draped over the arm of the sofa onto Nat’s legs and tucked it under her chin.

  ~

  Natalie pulled the gray carry-on case behind her and stood in line. How she wondered could the TSA woman be so bright and cheerful at five a.m.? She was used to getting up early to open the gym by seven, but she had to rise at three-thirty this morning to finish packing and take a shuttle to the airport. Two hours ahead of flight time all the information said. She settled in the area of her flight to Phoenix and pulled out her Kindle. She hadn’t finished reading Butterfly Dreams, got stopped midway during the evening after the Claire crisis at the gym. She had been too tired. Now, she was anxious to read it because she’d learned from the Amazon blurb it was all set in Scottsdale. Maybe it would help orient her and give her some clues about the city and the lifestyle.

  Her flight finally boarded, and she realized she had been sitting in the flight waiting area longer than the actual flight would take. She was grateful to be in the A class for boarding because she had secured her class at the first minute she could last night on the airline website. What a weird system! But, she was glad for it. She lifted her boring gray bag into the overhead compartment and settled into a seat just a few from the front. Maybe she should consider going to Ross or Marshall’s or TJMax and get a bright colored carryon. Something fun, maybe pink. Maybe in Scottsdale. She fastened her seatbelt, laid her head back for the unique vertical takeoff in Orange County for noise abatement, then picked up her Kindle and continued to read.

  ~

  The under two hour flight was over. Natalie was not a fan of flying since all the restrictions had been put in place. But, O.C. to Phoenix was simple and quick. Stuffing her Kindle in her over-sized purse, she texted Connie to let her know she was arriving. The plane pulled up to the gate when Connie replied.

  Waiting here for you. So excited.

  She was hugged by Connie, her Candy Cane sister, and almost crushed by Jaeda. She finally pushed him away. “You are one big man, Jaeda. More strength than you realize.”

  “So sorry, but I am just as excited to see you as Connie is.” She detected a slight blush on his brown face. Were all the men in her life blushers?

  “Oh,” Connie exclaimed looking at Nat’s hand. “You are still bandaged. We should have been more careful.” She looked contrite.

  “It’s okay. Just trying to protect it.”

  They settled in Jaeda’s fancy BMW after putting Natalie’s luggage in the trunk. She admitted to herself she was jealous. Connie married securely, even though she had wrestled with the color situation. Jaeda was now a big wig banker in Arizona, and he and Connie owned Winning Designs in Corona del Mar. Where was Natalie’s dream? What had happened to it?

  ~

  Natalie kicked off the blush pink sheets on the queen bed in the guest room. What was wrong with her? She was here in Scottsdale to be embraced and loved by a Candy Cane sister and her husband. Was Jaeda now called a Candy Cane brother, or husband? Nat chuckled at that thought. Braydon and Rob were now married to Candy Canes. Devin, too. Maybe, she daydreamed, they should start their own group. The Candy Caners! Giggling to herself she snuggled back into the over-stuffed pillows for another few minutes of shuteye.

  Her sleepy mind drifted to the two men curr
ently in her life. If she accepted Billy’s advances and married him, she would be a billionaire. It was no secret he made a ton of money from his car brokerage. Candy, his sister, had told her.

  But, Bryce had suddenly seemed affectionate. Even to the extreme. Still, he was her employee, sort of. But, something about his voice haunted her.

  Realizing what time it was, and that her hosts were probably up and working or exercising, she jumped up and raced almost stumbling to the guest bath to shower. She gripped her back and her body locked. Hanging onto the doorjamb, Nat prayed and breathed and prayed and breathed. What was wrong with her? She worked out daily in her own gym, a definite perk as the owner. But, right now she could hardly move. The pain and tightness finally subsided, but as she climbed into the shower it started to radiate up her back again. Dousing it with the hottest water she could stand from the shower spray helped. But, not for long. She felt like an old woman, but she was only in her twenties.

  ~

  “Morning, Nat. Did you sleep well?” Jaeda’s grin was infectious. She understood why Connie had fallen in love with this man. He plunked a steaming hot coffee in front of her with a Starbucks design on it. When he noticed her looking at the design, he laughed. “Fond memories of where Con and I used to meet.” He slapped his knee and grinned some more. “Gotta keep those memories alive.”

  Why couldn’t she, Natalie, find a man like him? She knew they had had a struggle about the differences in their races, especially with their families. But, all the family members attended the wedding and hugged each other, seemingly genuinely. The two petite mothers, one black, one white, embraced, and the fathers did the dad thing – shaking hands, slapping shoulders and semi-embracing like men did. Jaeda’s dad was big, taller than Connie’s, but neither man seemed disturbed by the difference in height. The two sisters, Jaeda’s and Connie’s, had gone off to chat and pray during the reception and came back holding hands. Natalie remembered it all because she had been an attendant. Fourth time for a Candy Cane sister. Other than Doreen and Melanie, she was the last single Candy Cane.