ran or how many battles were won, I couldn’t completely escape it.
But for Lotus, because of Lotus, I could overcome that anger and focus on this sweet victory. It was a huge one, the first of many for my mother, my brothers, and me.
I hope.
Lotus
I SAW THAT I had a voice mail from Journey. Just that, seeing his name on the display, made my heart flutter.
“Lotus!” Mr. Macari barked, and I nearly jumped out of my flip-flops. “Put your phone away. You know the rules. No cell phones out while working.”
“Yes, sir. Sorry.”
I tucked my phone back into my bag under the counter, washed my hands in the sink, and resumed filling my current order. There hadn’t been many tonight since the bar was half full. The wind was up and the surf was rough, the dark sky full of clouds. Earlier, there hadn’t been a visible sunset to celebrate.
“Order up for table twelve,” I said, making eye contact with the new waitress.
“Thanks.” She wiped her hands on her apron and took the tray.
“Hey, you.” Tess appeared, taking the place the new girl had vacated. “How’s it going?”
“Going fine.” I gave her a nod. I liked Tess. I was glad to know Journey hadn’t hooked up with her.
Her brow creased. “I heard Mr. Macari lay into you.”
“Again.” I bobbed my head. “I don’t seem to be on his good side lately.”
“Does he have a good side?” She made a face as she typed her order into the point-of-sale computer.
“Not much of one.” I picked up a bar towel and mopped up the minuscule spill I’d made filling the previous order. “I saw your photo at Journey’s apartment. I didn’t know photography was a hobby of yours.”
“It was.” Finished inputting her order, she refocused on me.
“You’re really good at it,” I said. “Don’t give it up.”
“I can’t afford expensive hobbies, being on my own with a ton of bills from my divorce.”
“Oh, I’m sorry. I didn’t know your divorce had officially gone through. Are you okay? How’s Margaret handling it?”
“With wisdom beyond her age.” Tess’s green eyes flickered with shadows as she thought of her daughter. “She’s my light in all of this. But I have to think long term for her with my finances. So, after I complete the custom photo for Journey, I have to sell my cameras. They won’t get much, but every little bit counts.”
“What custom photo?”
“The one he wants me to take at the house here in OB where he grew up,” she said. “He told me there’s an alcove under some palms by his pool that was a special place for him and his best friend.”
I swayed, feeling as if the floor had suddenly shifted beneath me.
“Hey, are you okay?” Tess touched my arm, her eyes warm with concern. “You don’t look so good all of a sudden.”
All my conversations with Journey ran quickly through in my mind.
His face was so different, his eyes now flecked with green, and his voice was deeper. But his speech patterns, the inflections of his words sometimes, his mannerisms . . . Looking for the similarities, I found them.
But that was a coincidence, wasn’t it? Journey couldn’t be Storm.
“Journey mentioned being in Ocean Beach before, but I didn’t know he grew up here,” I said carefully to Tess. “Did he give you an address for the house?”
“Yes, he did, in case I wanted to peek in the gate to check the lighting situation, but we haven’t made formal arrangements to set up a photo shoot yet.” Tess took her phone from her apron pocket, swiped her fingers across the screen, and read Storm’s address to me.
My vision tunneled, and my knees trembled. I grabbed the edge of the bar and gripped it tightly.
“Lotus!” Mr. Macari shouted. “My office! Now!”
Tess’s eyes went wide. “Oh no.”
The room spinning, I stared at my boss’s retreating back, unable to move. Though my vision blurred, everything else suddenly became crystal clear.
The way Journey played the guitar. How he’d known where to find me at the cliffs when he first arrived in OB. His anger about Saber the first night we were together.
Saber wasn’t just a boyfriend—he was an ex-boyfriend who was Journey’s brother. No, not Journey.
Journey is Storm.
My mind racing, I latched onto a clue I’d missed, only to go to another, and then another.
But why? Why keep it a secret from me? He was my best friend. Why hadn’t he told me who he was right at the beginning? Or at least when