Dangerous Rescue - Linzi Baxter Page 0,9
spend some time digging through her place to see if she could find what her ex thought she was hiding.
When she walked into Angel’s place, her friend was on the couch with two glasses of wine. Siena could hear Mia playing in the spare bedroom.
“How about you tell me what’s going on,” Angel said.
“I’m not even sure where to start.” Siena sat on the sofa and took a sip of wine. “Do I start with my ex or with Mia’s father?”
“Mia’s father? I figured the guy was dead or in jail.”
“Nope.” She sighed. “Hudson and I had a whirlwind romance. I never believed in love at first sight until I met him. Everything was going perfectly until, one day, he stopped calling. He didn’t show up for our dinner reservations. His phone number changed, and he cleared out of his apartment.”
She’d found out he left his apartment when she went there to tell him she was pregnant. Siena had blindly trusted him with her heart and thought he would never leave her. The day before he vanished, they’d talked about the next step in their relationship. He’d even hinted at them moving in together.
“Maybe he was on the run from the law. What did he do for a living?” Angel asked.
“He’s a Navy SEAL…well, he was when we dated. I thought maybe he went on a mission, but why would his place be cleared out?”
It had been a dark time for her. She didn’t have friends to talk to. The women she modeled with were more likely to stab her in the back than talk about personal problems. Siena knew many women would have done anything to take her down back then. She was one of the top models called for covers and the runway. A lot of women wanted her out of the way.
She had nobody to turn to for help or advice. Her parents had died in a plane accident when Siena was eighteen. Her aunt Kathy took her in when she moved to California, but Siena hadn’t wanted want to discuss who the father was with her.
“Did you ever track him down?” Angel inquired angrily. Siena knew the anger wasn’t directed at her but at the man who’d left her.
“I didn’t stop calling the naval base until a lady finally felt sorry for me and said he transferred to another base. She wouldn’t tell me where.”
“If he’s a SEAL, I’m surprised you even got that much information out of them. I learned a long time ago never to date anyone in the military.”
“Why?”
Angel took a big gulp of her wine before setting it on the end table. “It only leads to heartache. My story isn’t something you need to worry about. I’m happy being single. Lost my heart once and never plan to lose it again. Now, tell me how you found Mia’s dad.”
She never talked about the past with Angel, and that was one thing she liked about their friendship. Angel had asked once about the modeling photos she had up in her place, and she just said it was her old job. Her friend had nodded and changed the subject.
“He’s the dad of one of my students,” she grumbled. “Technically, not his dad but his uncle. And it happens to be one of my favorite students.”
Why couldn’t it be one of the kids who doesn’t show up for class or care about their grades? Kaiden helped his classmates who needed tutoring. He was also a star football player. She knew he wanted to stay close to home after he graduated, but the kid was so bright.
“Did he recognize you?” Angel asked.
“Yes, and he wanted to talk about us. I know I’m going to have to tell him about Mia.”
“Or you could just ghost him back.”
“I’m not going to pick up and move. But I’m not sure how I’m going to make it through dinner with him. Are you able to watch Mia this Saturday? If not, I can find a babysitter.”
“I’m already watching her Friday night. Did you forget you have to work the football game?”
Siena had volunteered to help run the fundraiser booth for an hour Friday night. This was the only time she had to work the game, and it happened to be when she felt like her life was falling apart. Guilt flowed through her as she thought about canceling.
Public schools needed fundraising for sports, unlike the last school she’d taught in, where tuition there was more than a hundred grand a