by Leger, Lori
Tiffany nodded, thinking she could understand that. “What happened to her?”
“One morning she didn’t show up. I called, and didn’t get an answer. I waited until late that afternoon, thinking she had a doctor’s appointment or something, and called again. I went over to her place and found her dead on her kitchen floor. She’d had a massive heart attack.”
Tiffany took her father’s hand and gave it a tight squeeze. “I’m sorry, Dad. That must have been horrible for you.”
“Oh, I won’t sugar coat it—it was a bad time for me. All I had to turn to was a shrew of a wife, and a motherin-law who reminded me at every turn how thrilled she was that woman was out of her life for good. That’s what she called her…that woman. Monica never allowed photos of my mother to be displayed in our home, but Melinda and I had always taken plenty of snapshots of her holding you, giving you a bath, washing your hair, with you sitting up for the first time, crawling for the first time, taking your first steps—my mother was in every one of them. We had an entire photo album full of snapshots of her with you. Mom and Melinda are the ones who took you for your studio portraits.”
“Where are they? Are they at mothers put up somewhere?”
“No honey, I’m sorry. After my mom died, Monica found the album and tried to burn it—threw it in the fireplace.”
“Why would she do such a thing?” Tiffany asked, horrified. “All she had to do was put it away and never look at it again.”
“That’s not Monica’s style.”
“Where did these photos come from?” she asked.
“Melinda pulled the album from the fireplace as soon as your mother left the room. She even burned her hand badly. Your mother actually fired her when she found out, but Melin knew what would happen to you if she wasn’t around, so she came to me. I told Monica she couldn’t fire Melin. I also threatened to kick her mother out of the house.”
He shifted uncomfortably in his chair. “I could barely stand to be in the same house with her after that. I guess Monica started getting worried that I’d boot her out, or leave. We had a party one night, some society thing that she was so fond of. Monica cozied up to me all night and made sure my drink was constantly refreshed. As a result, Drake was conceived that night. Once she gave me a son to carry on the family name, she felt like she’d done her duty. We never slept with each other again after that night. Once I met Leah that was it for me.”
Tiffany put her hand on her father’s shoulder. “I’m sorry Dad. I wish I’d known growing up.”
“I wish I’d had enough gumption to tell you, but the whole point of this story is Monica couldn’t stand to treat you like a daughter because every time she looked at you, she saw my mother. She seemed to transfer her hatred for my mother to you. I’m so sorry I didn’t do what I could to get you out of that place, but you did have Melinda. She loved both you and Drake like her own. It’s a real shame she never had any children.”
Tiffany shook her head in confusion. “But Drake and I look so much alike, the same curly hair, brown eyes, the same mouth. Why didn’t she hate him as much as she hated me?”
“My guess is because my mother wasn’t around to fall in love with him like she did you. Monica didn’t resent Drake the way she did you. She was—indifferent to him. She wasn’t capable of showing him any more love than she was you, or me, or anyone else, for that matter. She’s a cold, heartless woman—just like her mother.”
Daniel paused to check out the screen of his ringing cell phone and grinned. He hit the answer button and after a brief conversation with the caller, he disconnected.
His immediate rise from the lounger and big grin had her curious. “Who was that?”
“That is the second half of your Christmas gift. It’s actually the best part of it.” He grabbed her hand and pulled her back into her home. “Hey, Drake!”
Drake looked up from the snack bar, where he was talking to Red and Chad. “Yes Sir?”
“Come here, Son. You have an interest in this, too.” He pulled them both to the front entrance and threw open the door. A woman stepped into the doorway a second before Tiffany’s squeal of excitement ripped the air.
“Melin!” Tiffany threw herself at Melin. “How did you get here? Why didn’t you call and tell us?” She stepped back and stared through tears of joy at the woman who’d raised her and Drake as her own. “I’ve missed you so much!”
“Daniel wouldn’t let me call. He wanted to surprise the two of you.” The pretty, green-eyed woman stroked Tiffany’s soft curls and beamed at her. “I’ve missed you so much. How are you, baby girl?”
“I’m wonderful, especially now that you’re here. How long can you stay?”
“We’re staying for the entire week through next weekend.” Melinda caught Drake’s eye. “Marcus Drake, get over here and give me a hug.”
Drake wrapped her tightly in his arms and spun around with her before planting a big kiss on her cheek. “It’s good to see you, Melin. You’re as beautiful as ever, and you look happy.”
Her husband’s deep voice answered unexpectedly from the doorway. “I’d like to think that’s my doing.”
Drake put Melinda down and reached out to the man. “It’s good to see you, Greg. You must be taking excellent care of her.”
Greg Hart nodded. “We take care of each other, Drake. It’s good to see you both.” He hugged Tiffany as well.
Tiffany placed one hand on her chest. “You can’t know how much it means to me to have you here for both Christmas and our wedding.”
“We never would have been able to make it here on time if it hadn’t been for Daniel,” Melinda admitted. “We were supposed to come in early tomorrow morning. Your father called me two days ago, begging us to come in for Christmas and stay the entire week to be with you for the opening of the club. By then every flight was booked solid, so he arranged for a private plane.”
Daniel stepped forward to greet the couple. “And how was the flight?”
Melinda gave him an appreciative sigh. “Wonderful, but I believe it’s ruined me. I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to fly commercial again after being so pampered on that flight.”
Tiffany pulled Red forward and introduced him to the Harts.
Melinda gave him a hug. “Have we heard some stories about you, Red McAllister.” She pointed a finger at him. “You keep my baby girl happy, you hear? Or you’ll have to deal with me.”
Red hugged his wife and nodded. “I’ll do whatever it takes to make sure she is, Melinda. I promise you.”
Greg cleared his throat. “Good, because this lady will go ballistic if she feels either of her “kids” is being mistreated.
After a bevy of introductions, Tiffany settled her new guests at the table for coffee and conversation. She’d just shown off the photo album Melinda had contributed the photos for when she turned to her. “Okay, Melinda,” Tiffany began, “I know you and Greg were high school sweethearts. I never heard the story of why you broke up in the first place.” She looked at Greg and winked. “What happened? Did you catch him with a cheerleader behind the school bleachers, or something like that?”
Melinda’s gaze clashed with her husband’s. Greg gave his head a slow shake and turned to Tiffany. “It was more serious than that. We had our parents to blame for our separation.”
“And we were too young to stop them,” Melinda added. “In December, of my senior year, I finally got the nerve to tell my mom I thought I was pregnant. She was devastated, and I was terrified. I hadn’t told anyone yet, not even Greg. I didn’t want him to worry until I knew for sure. My mother told me to stay in my room while she spoke to my dad. They never raised their voices, and by the time the two of them came back up to my room, they had everything all planned out. McCray is a very small town, still under 1,500 people, and they didn’t want anyone to know the situation I’d gotten myself into.”
“But, you eventually told Greg, right?”
“Honey, I never got the chance. My parents made o
ne or two phone calls, then came to my room with a large suitcase. My mom threw some of my things inside and within an hour we were in the car. We drove non-stop, except for bathroom breaks and to eat. A day and a half later, we arrived at a home for unwed mothers in Dallas, Texas. And that’s where I stayed until my baby was born. I had no phone privileges—only weekly calls from my parents. No letters in or out, no privacy, and no way to run away. I had it all planned—I was going to grab my baby when it was born and run out of there then call Greg to pick me up.” She gazed at her husband, her eyes sad and tearful. “That’s not what happened.”
Tiffany sniffed and wiped her eyes. “Melinda…I had no idea. All these years I thought you couldn’t have children.”
Melinda swallowed with some effort and looked as if she were lost in the past as a memory took hold of her. “I only got to hold my baby girl once, just long enough to see that she had my nose and her daddy’s chin. I couldn’t see her eyes because they were closed, but I always thought they would be green. For years I looked for little girls with curly hair, green eyes, my nose, and Greg’s chin.”
Tiffany finally found the ability to speak. Even then, it was with a voice thick with tears. “Why didn’t you tell us, Melin?”
“Your grandmother Mary knew, and so did your dad. It was too painful to talk about it. I ended up hemorrhaging. I remember passing out just after that awful nurse ripped my baby from my arms. By the time I woke up, my uterus was removed and my baby was gone.” Greg grasped her hand as she wiped the tears from her eyes.
Drake shook his head. “You went through all of that alone?”
“My parents had planned to drive down a week before my due date to be there with me, but I went into labor two weeks early. They were called early on, but even with fifteen hours of labor, they still didn’t make it in time.” She smiled sadly at her husband. “When I left that place I had no baby, and no hope of ever having another child. All I had was the diploma I’d received while in the home, the name of the orphanage they’d sent my baby to, and the air fare my parents had left for me to fly back to McCray once the doctor released me to fly. The hemorrhage had been so severe he wouldn’t do that for two weeks. When I walked out of there, I went straight to a pay phone. I called Greg’s home and they told me he’d moved on and joined the Marines.”
Tiffany turned on Greg. “You left without trying to find her?”
His mouth tightened in a frown. “I was in college when all of this went down—studying for mid-terms. But, this is where the real deceit from our parents comes in. Hers told me she’d gone to live with a relative in California. They said she didn’t know how to tell me to my face that she didn’t want to see me anymore. I didn’t believe them, of course. I sat back and waited for her to contact me—a phone call, a letter, or something. After six months I accepted it, dropped out of college, quit my part time job, and joined the Marines.”
Melinda placed her hand softly on the side of her husband’s cheek. “Years later, I learned his mother had never told him I’d called or forwarded any of my letters I sent to his house. Of course, the orphanage wouldn’t give me any information without a lawyer. I knew she could have been anywhere, but I felt this need to stay near the home. So I stayed in Texas, and went to work—in cafes, at restaurants, in fast food joints, and as a cashier. I ended up around Houston eventually, and met Ms. Mary, Daniel’s mother. She talked Daniel into hiring me as a live-in babysitter for you, Tiff.”
“Mary spent a lot of time with me at first, to make sure I could handle you. Once Drake came along, I had enough money saved up to start the search for my baby, but when I tried to contact the orphanage again, it had burned down and all the records were destroyed. By then I was so attached to you and Drake that I couldn’t leave you. Mary was already gone, and Daniel, well he was too busy working to watch out for you two. I wasn’t about to leave you kids with your mother and grandmother—ugh, those horrible women!” She shivered visibly, as though repulsed by the thought. She turned back to Tiffany.
“And you’ll remember my mom passed away just after Drake left for college. My dad was sick and needed me to take care of him.”
Tiffany’s mouth opened in shock. “I can’t believe you still kept in touch with your parents after what they did to you and Greg.”
Melinda’s eyes misted over. “Time has a way of lessening the anger and hurt. Good or bad, they were my parents. They made a bad decision, but it didn’t mean they didn’t love me. They both regretted it later.”
Giselle had been leaning against the doorway, mesmerized by the story. Suddenly, she cleared her throat and spoke a single word, sounding hesitant to say anything. “Melinda?”
Melinda turned to face her. “Yes?”
Tiffany frowned, noticing Giselle’s flushed face. “Giselle, are you feeling all right?” She rose from her chair to check her friend’s pulse. “Your heart rate is sky high, are you feeling any pressure?”
Giselle waved off Tiffany’s concern. “Stop being a doctor, Tif. I’m fine.” She turned back to Melinda and Greg. “Did you say the orphanage they’d brought your daughter to was destroyed by fire?”
“Yes, along with all the records and files,” Melinda said. “Why?”
“Was it in June of 1977?”
Melinda nodded. “Y-yes.”
Jackson appeared beside his wife. Giselle clutched at his arm for support. “Was your daughter born in 1975?”
Greg aimed a curious look at his wife, before turning back to Giselle and nodding. “April 24th, 1975.”
Tiffany gasped as her friend’s knees buckled out from under her. Jackson scooped up his wife and sat her on one of the dining room chairs. He looked at Melinda. “That’s her birthday. She’s adopted, and we’ve been trying to find her birth parents, but the orphanage burned down, along with all the records. All we have is her birth certificate.”
Melinda crouched to her knees in front of Giselle and stared into her eyes. “Your eyes—green, but dotted with specks of gold. Like Greg’s,” she said.
Giselle blinked. “Wh-what?”
Tiffany crouched down between Giselle and Melinda, sensing this was something big—wanting to support them both.
Melinda shook her head. “It’s just that the gold specks in your eyes—Greg has those.”
“Their chins are very similar—they’re both cleft,” Vivienne added.
Greg looked back and forth between the two women. “You have the same hair and noses.” Greg kneeled down next to his wife as their gazes locked. “Is it possible?”
With Jackson’s help, Giselle rose slowly from the chair. She took Melinda’s arm and brought her to the mirror in the foyer. They stood there, the two of them, each being supported by their husbands.
“My God,” Melinda breathed, “Can this be possible?”
Jackson pointed out the freckles across Giselle’s nose. “Melinda has the same spattering of freckles.”
“She does have my chin,” Greg said.
“My hair,” Melinda added.
“Our faces are shaped the same,” Giselle sniffed, and rubbed her belly.
“Is everything going well with the pregnancy?” Melinda asked.
Giselle nodded. “Very well.”
Jackson turned to Melinda. “We discovered last month that we’re having twins.”
“Every third generation woman in my family has had twins for the last 75 years.” Melinda’s gaze latched on to Giselle’s in the mirror. “You’d be third generation if you’re my daughter. And those babies will be identical, not fraternal.”
“Excuse me, do you mind?” Vivienne pushed gently through the two men to the women standing in front of the mirror. “I noticed something earlier,” she said, moving next to Giselle.
“What is it, Mrs. Vivi?” Jackson asked.
“Giselle’s ears.” Vivi checked the shape of the cartilage. “Look at that little projection she has on both ears, and the shape of the lobe.” She looked up as Jackson nodded. “Now look at Gr
eg’s ears.” She pointed out the similarity. “Those are both very unique genetic traits. I have eight children and I’ve always been amazed how certain features get passed down from parent to child.” She stood back and crossed her arms while smiling at the two couples. “You’d need to have DNA tests done right away, to confirm it, of course. But I’d bet my last cent, even without it, that Giselle is your daughter.”
Giselle’s hand flew up to her mouth as she began to sob openly.
Drake listened to the exchange, but couldn’t seem to pull his gaze from Annie, who’d become increasingly more emotional as Melin’s story unfolded. She finally broke away from the crowd that had gathered around the two couples and rushed out to the patio. He wasted no time in following her out.
“Are you okay?”
She jumped at the sound of his voice. “Damn it, Drake! Must you follow me wherever I go?”
“Well, you ran out of there like a thoroughbred draggin’ a tail full of barbed wire. I was concerned.”
“You don’t need to be.” She turned her back on him. “Now, go away. You’re annoying me.”
Drake ignored her and walked closer. “That’s some story, isn’t it?” He waited for a response from Annie, who remained silent, a distinct rarity. He crept nearer and realized she was crying quietly. Without saying a word, he wrapped her in his arms, determined to comfort her. Damn, it felt good holding her again. It felt so right, and just for a moment, he thought she’d give in to it—accept that they could be good together. She pulled away from him, suddenly.
“Let go of me, Drake.”
Drake smiled as she turned away, obviously struggling with her emotions. “I only want to help, Annie. I didn’t realize you were so soft-hearted.”
“Well, I am—I get it from my mom, so there.” She sounded as upset with herself as she was with him. “Things like that,” she waved her hand at the house, “it’s sad—what their parents did to them.”