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“Okay,” Caleb said with a nod. “Bring her back here then.”
Addie smiled, then left the room. A few minutes later she returned with her friend. She was tall with shoulder-length auburn hair and tawny colored skin. Slight freckles dotted her cheeks and nose. Caleb had spotted her earlier talking with Addie. Her face didn’t ring a bell at all.
Addie made the introductions. “This is Chandra Robbins. We were at college together. Chandra, this is Caleb Donahue. We’re working together here at the Blue Bayou.”
Chandra smiled at him. She had a kind face. Her skin was flawless.
“I think we’ve met before,” Chandra said, grinning at him.
He shook his head. “I’m sorry, Chandra. I’m drawing a blank. Where do you think our paths crossed?”
“Back in Tampa.” She spoke in a soft voice.
His heart began to pound. The sound was deafening and it thrummed in his ears. He shook his head. Tampa. Tampa. Images flashed before him. His palms began to moisten. He felt sick to his stomach.
“Caleb. Are you all right?” Addie asked. She gently squeezed his arm.
He swiped his hand across his forehead. Moisture had gathered there. What was going on with him? He’d never had a panic attack, but it felt like he was having one.
“I-I don’t remember being in Tampa.” He forced out the words. “Not ever.”
“You don’t?” Chandra frowned. She darted a glance in Addie’s direction. “I don’t want to cause you any distress, Caleb. I should go.”
“No!” he said, reaching for her arm to stop her from leaving. “Tell me about Tampa.”
She looked over at Addie again as if seeking reassurance.
“Tell him what you know,” Addie said in a gentle voice.
Caleb waved her toward the seating area. He pulled out a chair for her. Chandra sat down and crossed her hands in front of her on the table. Addie quickly sat down next to her. As Caleb sat down he couldn’t rid himself of the feeling that life as he knew it was about to change forever. A funny feeling had settled over him.
Chandra looked at him with sad eyes. “I grew up in Tampa. My mother used to babysit you.”
Caleb ran a hand over his face. “I-I was adopted when I was pretty young. There’s not a lot I remember about my life before I went to live with my adoptive family.”
Tampa. Tampa. The more it rolled around his brain, the more it sounded right. How could he have forgotten that detail? Why had he blocked it all out?
“I-I think Tampa sounds familiar. Your mother? What did I call her?”
“Mrs. Robbins I think. Sometimes you called her Gigi.”
Caleb’s hands began to sweat. He felt nauseous. An image flashed before his eyes. A brown-skinned smiling woman with rounded cheeks. Mrs. Robbins!
“Caleb!” Addie said his name in a sharp tone. “You don’t look so good.”
He placed his head in his hands and rocked back slightly. After a few minutes he raised his head up. Both Addie and Chandra were gazing at him with concern radiating from their eyes.
“I remember her,” he said, his voice filled with wonder. “I can’t believe it. It’s as if I’ve been blocking it out this whole time.”
Addie jumped up from her seat and came over to stand beside him. He felt her steadying presence as she gently patted him on the back. “Take it easy. I’m worried about you.”
He looked up at her. Addie’s beautiful face was creased with worry. “I’m okay, Addie. It’s just a little overwhelming to have it all wash over me like this.” He let out a harsh-sounding chuckle. He looked over at Chandra. “I remember you. We used to play hide and seek. You had a serious thing for Red Vines licorice.”
Chandra’s eyes widened. A grin broke out over her face. “You’re right, Caleb. We did. And to this day I love red licorice.”
He shook his head. “I don’t understand though. Why did I stuff that memory down?” he asked, his voice sounding raspy to his own ears. He felt a little bit lost at the moment. Why had his past always been so shrouded with mystery? Even his adoptive parents hadn’t been able to tell him very much about his life before being adopted. He knew his biological mother had given him up and that he’d suffered burns in an apartment fire. Sometimes a face flashed before his eyes of a beautiful woman with long, dark hair, almond-shaped eyes and mahogany-colored skin. Whenever her face appeared to him, Caleb squeezed his eyes tightly and forced himself not to remember. It hurt him too much to dredge up those memories.
“Probably because they’re painful,” Addie suggested, mirroring his own thoughts.
