"Vicki's under your skin." Alice's voice had a tsk sound in it. "She's not evil. She is not her father."
"And you're marrying one of the heirs to the house."
"John likes the word family. Peter, Vicki's brother, has taken the throne. You might like John or even Peter now."
With a roll of his eyes, memories he'd long ago buried rushed back. "Peter was a rebel without a cause. He always got whatever he wanted and never had to do one ounce of hard work in class."
"His father told him at age ten that he'd be thrown out of the family if he didn't earn a million dollars on the stock market by his next birthday." Alice sighed. "Our parents were nothing like that. Vicki disappeared. Give her a second chance."
All clues on why he should never get involved with self-absorbed socialites. "Victoria Morgan was always the princess. And I called her that to her face. She came home weeks ago, but I'd bet five dollars she never mentioned our baby to you."
"You were off with the Marines." Alice added, "Vicki helped me with John, and she's a sweetheart, Colt. She's the maid of honor at my wedding."
"Figures." Colt held his phone firmly and said, "Victoria always told you exactly what to do."
"Stop, Colt."
He laughed, but the bitterness in his throat scratched a bit. "Rich, spoiled brats, and Vicki proved it the day she tossed her child away because motherhood interfered with college parties."
Alice said, "Colt, you're repeating yourself because you're stuck. It's possible you were both victims in this."
"That shouldn't matter. Clara is all that matters."
"She should know her mom."
"Clara deserves parents who will raise her, and take care of her, like I've done since the day she was born." His shoulders dropped. Yelling at his sister wouldn't solve anything. "It's my job to protect my baby."
"You're doing a great job."
His muscles tensed despite the compliment. "Clara is all that matters."
His sister released a loud sigh then told him, "And you've always done right by her."
He rubbed his temples and closed his eyes while he told her the truth: "Alice, I never wanted to see her again."
"Not everything is black and white. This isn't war. You're all my family now, through Clara, through me."
His sister had a point. Fighting Vicki meant he'd need a battle plan to protect Clara. The Morgans were like gods, and they always got what they wanted. Alice must have guessed she'd scored a point with him, because she ran the next few sentences together in one breath. "Call me in the morning. I'm going to talk you into talking with her. Tonight, I listened to Vicki, and I believe her. The villain was her father. He signed both your names on those adoption papers."
He sucked in his breath. Vicki had to be involved in this too. She had been in the hospital and given birth. He shook his head. "It took me over a year to prove my name had been forged."
"I remember you talking to our dad, and bits and pieces of those whispered conversations make sense now. You all hushed up when I walked into the room." She added fast, "And if yours was a fake, hers could have been too."
"I knew you'd defend your friend. It's why I never wanted to talk about Victoria with you." He rolled his eyes. "Vicki's a good liar."
"Stop."
Colt held his breath and waited for the rest. Alice, like everyone else in his family, never took no for an answer.
She continued, "Please, you're angry right now. Tonight, just think about this."
She hadn't yelled. He told his sister, "Good night."
"Night." It sounded like she had more to say, but held it back.
Colt sipped his beer and hung up. The story was full of holes, and he'd prove it. Silence greeted his ears, yet he had too much energy coursing through him right now.
Heat flushed his body, and he stared at his phone. Belle's number was in his favorites. Perhaps he needed to have an adult conversation. He scrolled to his fiancée's number, but didn't hit the button to call her. Belle Jordan deserved his full attention, and he shouldn't stir up his anger. Belle never pushed him off a ledge. He clicked on her name to stare at her picture. Belle was probably busy. She was always on the go.
He scrolled through all his contacts. His neck heated. Belle had always respected his parental rights to call all the shots with Clara. The dark-haired woman he'd agreed to marry always agreed with him. He should call her. His mother's number passed through his scrolling. His parents had a big part in raising Clara whenever he couldn't, but they might be sleeping.
Without a thought either way, he scrolled down to Victoria Morgan's name. He kept all his contacts still, and her old number was there. Had Vicki changed her number? This one was from college. Their daughter was about to start first grade now. He rubbed the back of his neck and stared at her number. Without thinking, he hit "call" and the phone rang.
He assumed he'd talk to a stranger, but she answered two rings later, "Hello?"
One more reason he'd not trust her. If he had her number still, then she shouldn't have the high pitch of shock in her voice. One phone call would have changed his life. He hadn't changed his number. "Vicki. Had you lost my number?"
With a heavy sigh that sounded sad, she answered, "Colt. No, I knew it was you."
Then she could have called him years ago. "Why didn't you call?"
"I didn't know you'd answer."
He stood up and threw his beer bottle in the trash, then cracked his knuckles. "What did you plan to accomplish with that stunt you pulled today?"
"I'm sorry. Colt, I had no idea she was alive. My father--"
"Don't…" The sweat on his forehead grew, and he picked up another beer bottle, not that liquor helped. "Save the sob story for someone else. Clara's not a ball to win in a game. She's my baby girl, and I won't let anyone hurt her."
"Please, Colt." Her voice shook. "She's my baby too."
His nose was itchy. "You gave up all rights to her. I have the paperwork."
"That's not what happened." Vicki's voice had a singsong edge to it that burned his ears. "You left home and slept with Belle the first week of basic training."
"That's nonsense, and not an excuse for what happened."
"I couldn't live under my father's house, but if I knew you had Clara, I'd have come straight to you."
She could have come to him with or without their baby. He bit his lower lip, and the fury in his blood grew. "You abandoned her. I kept our daughter."
She took a deep breath, but then her voice had a melancholy sound to it. "You were once sweet and understanding, Colt. I was lied to. I never had a father like you. Mine demanded I do what he say."
Colt lost some of his steam. "I remember your old man."
Vicki repeated facts he remembered: "He held a shotgun to your head that summer he found out about us in Paris. You'd ruin his plans for me, and he said that before I even knew I was pregnant."
"He had seen us naked at the lake." Colt crossed his arms. "I'd shoot any boy that came near Clara."
"It's not the same thing. My father sought to control."
His collar grew tight. "You could have called me. If you were in trouble, I could have kept you safe too."
"You're talking about my father and my family. He was all I had, all I knew." Vicki sobbed for a second then composed herself. "I don't want to fight with you. I'm happy my baby had you to keep her safe."
His entire body tensed. "Don't call her that. Clara is nothing but gum under your shoe until the second a new idea pops into your head."
"No." She almost broke into sobs. He rubbed his neck again to find some relief, but her voice haunted him. "I've not lived a day in six years, one months, two weeks, one day, and twenty-two hours. That was when the doctors told me she died."
Her numbers added up, and he hated hurting anyone. He dared not believe her, but his gut told him to. He shook his head, but her shaky numbers chipped away at him. With his lips sealed, he tapped his tongue to his cheek, and depended on his logic. Fina
lly he opened his mouth and said, "Where were you?"
"It doesn't matter." She was right. Not that he said that. He stayed silent.
She sniffled. "I should have told you. I should have called. Dad talked me into being quiet while he stole my life. You know as well as I do that my father could pay anyone to get them to say what he wanted."
A memory flashed in his mind of her father. He had snidely told Vicki, "The Collins are too boring for the likes of you. Daughters end up married to men like their dad, and your crush on middle-class values will end." His nostrils flared again.
"And you would do anything to please that man who stole more money than most countries' entire GDP," he said.
"I should have trusted you, not him." Her pleading voice hit more buttons in him, and he defused. "What daughter doesn't want her father's love? I didn't know he'd go this far. He ruined my life."
Not one word came out of his mouth. He couldn't close his jaw, but then he gazed down the hall toward his daughter's bedroom. "It's not about you. It's about Clara."
He hadn't known what else to say. He went to the fridge and found the bottle opener for a second beer. The day his mother handed him his daughter changed him. One day after he came out of boot camp, he was a full-time father. Colt had still hoped against reason that Vicki would come back soon. He had wanted an explanation, but the years had been silent.
In sobs, she begged him, "Colt, are you still on the phone?"
"Yeah." He sipped his second beer. He shouldn't believe her. He glanced at the wall to his engagement picture. Belle wasn't weak, and didn't need him. Belle's blue eyes could turn a man cold, and she'd never cry, not like Vicki. Vicki's baby-blue eyes and blonde hair still had left the impression of soft and innocent. He let out an audible sigh. "Look. Let's meet tomorrow. I'll get a sitter. Meet you for coffee at that shop we all went to after high school."
"Thank you. See you at eight a.m. I'll bring proof he lied."
"Give me time to get the babysitter. Eleven is better." Excitement wasn't what he wanted from her. But if he believed her, then he'd be a jerk to stand in the way.
"Okay. Colt, I'm sure you are a great dad."
Tonight he slept on it. "I don't want to get your hopes up, Vicki, but this conversation shouldn't be over the phone."
Her pitch grew higher, and so did his heart when she answered, "I can't wait for tomorrow. Colt. Thank you."
He pictured her jumping up and down on the other end. The image of her bright smile of pearly white teeth caused a small smile on his face. Clara had the same innocence as her mother. He sipped his bottle and told her, "Stop. Good night."
"Night."
He clicked end on his phone, but he couldn't hold still either. Victoria had haunted his dreams for years, and he had always wondered what happened. Belle's picture grabbed his attention. He shouldn't respond to his curiosity about Vicki anymore. She was his past, and he was engaged. Even if he believed her, nothing changed in his life.
Belle. His fiancée should matter. They were getting married in a few weeks, at her insistence. With Vicki, he'd work out time for her to be with their daughter, if she agreed to share. He'd not let anyone hurt Clara.
What would Belle say about Vicki? Her voice raced through his head as she answered, "Don't believe liars, Colt." He swallowed and then scrolled through his phone. For a second he stared at her picture again. He knew what she'd say, and he'd hang up more confused. His heart fluttered as he remembered Vicki's wide eyes at his sister's house today. His cheeks grew warmer and he told himself marriage required trust. He swallowed, and then dialed.
In less than a ring, Belle answered, "Colt, honey, I'm so glad you called. I need you here in DC."
He closed his eyes and inhaled. "I told you I'm staying in Florida to raise my daughter. I'm not a lobbyist."
"You're too important to go home and disappear, Colt. We need you here. We have important work…"
He could imagine how she sipped her latte with extra foam as she prepared for another debate on gun control. The never-ending debate wasn't what he wanted to spend days on. "This is my home."
"You are more than a boring farm."
It sounded like she was clomping somewhere in heels. "It's near Miami. Life is never boring here."
She sighed. "Honey, I need you. Senator Thrax won't talk to a woman."
Politics could wait. He shook his head. "I need to talk to you about Clara."
"Is your daughter okay?" At least she stopped her clip-clopping on the other end.
He huffed out, "She's fine."
The ching of a register rang through the phone. A moment later, she sipped what was probably her sixth latte of the day. He took another sip of his beer and waited. Finally, she told him, "Good. There are some great private schools here."
He crossed his arms. "Stop. It's not going to happen. I have to tell you something."
"What? Colt, don't leave me in suspense. Just spit it out."
Belle was silent, and he closed his eyes. "I saw her mother today."
No background noise greeted his ear. He placed his beer on the table and opened his eyes. Slowly, she answered him. "Clara has a mother? I thought she was a motherless child."
He picked his beer back up and sipped. "She has her grandma in that role. You know that."
A sound of a car door slammed behind her. "Oh, so you spent the day with your mother. I must have misheard."
Belle must be busy. She'd taken the high-paying job to lobby for the gun manufacturers for military weapons, despite his intention to retire back to his ranch and never fight in another war. He'd told her his plans. She'd proposed to him, and somehow he had accepted. Now he had made a promise to her, and hadn't changed his mind on the ranch. He sipped his beer again, then told her, "No. You didn't misunderstand me. Clara's birth mother walked into my sister's place unannounced."
"What? Colt, are you saying this to get me to fly down to Nowheresville faster?"
"No." He clutched his phone. "Homestead is my home, and soon to be yours too. In war, I went to bed every night and dreamed about this place."
"Colt, we're not children. Washington."
He almost finished his beer now. This conversation wasn't what he needed. "Stop. It's not good for Clara."
"Having a daughter didn't stop you from service. You trusted your parents."
"They aren't here now."
"You're making this difficult, honey."
Belle made time for senators, guns, and war. Clara deserved sweetness. "You'll see the place next week, as we planned. I should go."
"I'm not happy," she said. "You should be here."
He closed his eyes and pictured the wide openness of the range. He'd be on his horse and everything else would right itself. He'd lost his fighting edge long ago. "Good night, Belle. I'll see you next week."
She sighed and whispered, "Colt, I'll be there as soon as I can. I miss you."
Soon he'd marry Belle. He'd keep his promise, and with time she'd like it here. Belle would eventually ease into the place, then she'd quit her busy job. His family owned at least a quarter of all Florida farmland of orange groves. Soon enough the running of the agricultural corporation would fall on his shoulders, and he'd not deal with the military. The Collins organic empire would continue to prosper, and Clara would never suffer. "I miss you too, honey. Night."
As he turned off his phone and set it to charge, Vicki's easy smile haunted him.
He headed to bed. All the women in his life confused him, and Belle had somehow joined the number. He yawned and collapsed on his bed. Tomorrow, after a good night's sleep, he hoped he'd have a sense of clarity. Today's visit to his sister had changed everything, and Vicki might be permanent in his life. He had no idea of his next move.
The moment he closed his eyes, he remembered Vicki's sweet smile at him that day in the coffee shop as they discussed football, or how her rosy smell had mixed into the essence of her taste. She had been the captain of the cheerleaders, and watched every g
ame with such intensity.
The past should stay in his memory. He had his daughter.
He'd fallen instantly for his baby girl, but the mother had always been a mystery. What if she had been lied to? Did he dare believe her tale, or did that make him a sucker?
Chapter 3
With the moon still in the morning sky and the humidity not quite pressing so heavily right now, Vicki clutched her car steering wheel. Eleven o'clock was so far away. Her heart raced.
If she barged down Colt's door and yelled and demanded, she wouldn't help her cause. Today she had to be a lady. Her mind whirled with possibilities, but she dare not act. He'd set the time for eleven to meet, and she respected that. He'd raised their daughter, and she'd not fight him, if she could avoid it. Colt could be reasonable. She'd not see their daughter today, but one-on-one conversation with Colt was a good start.
Her fingers curled so tight that her hands were white. Her whirlwind of thoughts wasn't helping.
She started her car and eased in her seat to drive. Vicki fought her heart, which begged to beat on his door, but she forced herself to turn toward work. Work would be good right now, and she had to prove to herself she was fine. She'd go to the bridal boutique she'd opened, despite how her skin jumped. Weddings were like music, and people's happiness buoyed her own spirits. She'd rearrange the store in the early morning hours. She'd always had a good eye. Then she'd let Josie earn her pay as the manager.
Eleven o'clock would be here soon enough. Vicki sighed to relax and drove down the familiar street.
She'd be reasonable if he would. But no one would keep her from her daughter. She'd take Colt down if she had to. She stared at a stop sign and jerked her car to a stop. She shouldn't have almost missed that.
Wait. It wasn't a good idea to be so defensive. She rolled her shoulders and parked the car in her usual spot. No one was here. She clutched her bag and went inside. Without a thought, she walked inside and picked up a few dresses to move back to the shelf.
Once the storm of crazy thoughts in her head passed, she blinked. Her heart still raced, but she worked hard to bring order into her new business. She had to prove to Peter that her dreams of a store weren't a passing phase in her life. Her brother's name alone spurred her into action, and once she was done with straightening out yesterday's leftover dresses and placing them onto the shelves, she stared at the clock. The time was almost here.
[House of Morgan 01.0 - 03.0] Boxed Set Page 22