and brought them back into my life, it would have been Jed, not Kara Malone. But there she is standing next to Maris. And with both of them huddled in the corner of the room near Jed’s ashes, I’m finding it difficult to make my approach to offer my condolences to Jed’s baby sister.
The years have been more than kind to Kara, I can’t help but notice. Despite her obvious grief, she’s more attractive now than when we dated years ago. Her long, light brown hair which used to flap in the windy Alaskan breeze has been cut to a chin-length bob. Instead of making her look older, it highlights her full lips and enormous eyes, which are no longer covered by large frames, begging a man to ferret out their secrets. Shaking my head, I turn my back toward the duo and ask Kody, “Are we being rude?”
“Not going to Maris, you mean?”
“Yeah. It’s just with Kara there, I don’t know; I feel kind of odd.”
He claps me on the shoulder. “Jennings, if you feel that way, then I can go over and…” His sentence trails off. “No.”
Brad and Nick step up next to us. Kody immediately demands, “Brad? Did you have a clue, you asshole?”
“A clue about what?” I ask. I start to turn around to get a bead on what they’re seeing that I can’t.
They all hiss, “Don’t!” simultaneously.
A small part of me wishes I hadn’t. Not then. Not when I was supposed to be grieving Jed.
I must be seeing things because a tall boy steps out of the hallway and moves immediately into the arms of my ex-girlfriend. Kara’s face trembles for an instant before it firms up as her head tips back when she lifts her hand to cup the cheek of the handsome kid. She strokes his cheek and jaw tenderly before pulling him down as she raises up to brush a kiss on his cheek.
Like she did to me a million times.
I can’t make out what they’re saying, but the love that’s there is obvious.
So is the fact that if I were to fly home to Seattle and pull my high school yearbook out of storage, he’d be my damn spitting image.
I feel hot fury and cold rage all at the same time. “How?” is all I manage to get out.
Brad steps in front of me. “I swear to you on my life, on Rainey’s life, I had no clue, Jennings. I don’t know—”
“There’s not a doubt in my mind.” Is that my voice that’s so flat, so lifeless?
“What I was going to say is, I have no idea if Jed knew,” Brad says carefully.
Time freezes much as I imagine my body is. “No,” I immediately deny. “There’s no way he would have known and…” I watch another set of well-wishers approach the two women.
Nick growls, “It’s pretty obvious to me Maris knew.”
“I’ll be back.” Brad leaves us to approach. I turn back to face Nick and Kody, both of whom are pale.
The three of us stand in our small circle. The room is too warm, and my legs are quivering. I’m about to excuse myself when Brad comes back over. The perspiration on his brow needs to be wiped off.
“Well?” Kody demands whispering.
Brad claps me on the shoulder. “Let’s get out of here.”
Nick, ever the smart-ass, fires off, “You mean we’re not going to pay our respects?”
“I think our friend here is going to have plenty to think about by the time we get back to the B&B without you deliberately baiting someone in grief,” Brad says diplomatically.
I hold up a hand. “Just tell me this. Is that boy my son or not?”
Brad solidifies the night as one I know I’ll never forget. “She never confirmed either way. But she admitted he’s her son.”
“What did you find out?” I demand. This time, I turn and look over my shoulder. The young man is devastated. His hand is clamped down on his mother’s shoulder. He has my dark hair, my nose. Hell, from this distance, I can even see he has my jaw.
I’d bet every plane in my fleet he’s mine.
Kody and Nick lean in.
Brad hesitates before admitting, “I found out the reason why Kara’s glued to Maris. She’s not just anyone. She’s Jed’s sister-in-law; his husband, Dean, is Kara’s brother.”
And the overly warm room spins as the implications of all the secrets Jed’s been holding starts to sink in.
And at that moment, Kara’s eyes and mine lock across the room full of