After about a half hour, they were having dessert and some of them drank coffee.
Char looked up at Kelly and said, “So, I wanted to ask...did you ever find out about your father?”
“Mom left her journal and that was when I got my answers.I was going to confront my father about what he did to my mom when she was young.I was going to tell him exactly what I thought of him and try to get some kind of justice.But Shay told me to stop.He didn’t want me to go after my father because my grandmother would make my life hell.And he was right.When it came out in court what kind of man he really was she found out about me and did exactly what Shay said she would.She made my life miserable for about three months.That’s when her dirty little secrets came to life and Shay ruined her.I mean he literally obliterated her and she lost everything.Then I found out my grandfather on my mother’s side left me a trust.It wasn’t much, supposedly, my mother had embarrassed them when she came home pregnant after a man raped her, he had beaten her to hell and left her to die.That man was my father.So, it wasn’t a great discovery that was for damn sure.”
“I can understand that.”Char nodded.“You saw what my mother’s family was like.”
“Some of us here were lucky in that and some weren’t,” Drew spoke up.
Char glanced over at him and looked curious.“So you and Shay grew up together?”
Everyone there either chuckled or smiled.
Drew and Shay shook their heads.
Kelly smirked.“They did not but...they were the same person for a long time.”
Char and Rosie looked over at her.
Char drew her brows together and looked confused.“What the heck does that mean?”
“Shay Montross was a legend to most,” Pappy cut in.
“In his own mind, maybe,” Arick quipped as he grinned.Then he looked over at Char.“I’m the third Montross brother.So I would be the best brother.”
Shay chuckled.“That doesn’t explain what happened, Arik.”
“Let me see if I can like...put that whole story into a nutshell,” Pappy said.
“Good luck with that,” Shay scoffed.
“For years, Shay worked for like special ops and in the NSA,” Pappy explained.“He did that after his soldiering and wars in the Middle East.Well, at the same time, Drew had been over there too.Seems the general that was Shay’s commander found Drew and trained him to do what Shay does.Then he had Drew be undercover as Shay.To him it was utilizing a man that was successful all the time and he doubly made sure that Shay could work...well, double.”Pappy snickered at his own joke.
“You see they called him the Everywhere Man,” Arik added.“Because he was everywhere.Only most found out why.He had a twin and they didn’t know about each other basically.”
“Wow,” Char exclaimed as she looked over at Shay.
He gave her a nod.“It was a real shock.”
Kelly shook her head.“The shocker wasn’t that it was when I mistook Drew for Shay.”
Drew gaped at her.“You promised to never tell anyone that story!”
“No, she said that ‘YOU’ couldn’t tell anyone,” Arik reminded him as he snickered, enjoying every bit of this conversation.
Candy, Drew’s wife, who sat next to Drew took his hand in hers and announced, “She had to tell me, baby.Just so we would be clear on it.Like so there wouldn’t be any misunderstandings later on.”
Drew’s mouth popped open.
Candy laughed.“She told me that you were entirely innocent though.”
“Come on, man!”Kelly laughed as she shook her head at Drew.“If I’m not embarrassed...I mean it was a natural mistake.”She looked around to explain to the people who were listening, “When Shay still lived in DC, I went and saw him from time to time.Well, on this particular visit, he was asleep on the couch when I arrived.And the room wasn’t well lit.”
Drew groaned as he covered his face with his hands as she went on to tell them the story.
...Leaning down, Kelly whispered to Drew, “I’ve missed you so much.”Her hands roamed along his chest and went lower as he sucked in a breath.
Then she lowered her lips to his again and kissed him.
