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“You know, we didn’t mention it to you when you were younger, but we found some bodies buried at the farm,” Jake admitted. “One of them was identified as Jay Jackson, a career criminal.”
“That’s probably him. Zane and I had a feeling that we were going to be moved to a different location. What about the kids?” Lex asked gruffly.
“No kids,” Dad replied, standing and squeezing Lex reassuringly on the shoulder. “That’s the first thing I asked myself.”
Lex sighed. “I’m not sure if that’s good or bad, but I’m sure glad that I’m alive.”
Amy squeezed his hand harder.
“Okay, so this bodyguard’s name was Allen Farnsworth. That was the name that was registered at the hotel. We think that Charlie Seff was probably using his bodyguard’s name while operating in the U.S.”
“He was with him every time I was there,” Lex admitted, staring into Jake’s eyes.
Sometimes, he’d participated, but Lex obviously didn’t have to say it out loud.
Jake cleared his throat. “Let me think about how we’re going to handle this, Lex. The charity benefit is Monday, the day before Christmas Eve, and I wanted you to be there, along with the family. That would be the perfect opportunity to set a plan in motion.”
“No matter how you want to handle it, I’m in,” Lex agreed grimly.
Chapter Thirty-Nine
“Let’s get married tomorrow,” Amy said to Lex after Jake had left to return home.
Lex’s jaw dropped open.
“I’m so proud of you,” Amy observed. “It must be exciting to finally have a clue as to who you are.”
And then she stilled.
“What is it?”
Her eyes went wide. “I just remembered something. Before Harry came back to my foster parents’ house to pick me up, Ned the other boy who lived there, told me that he thought I was his real sister. He promised he’d be back someday so we could find out the truth.”
Lex pulled her close. “If? No—whenhe comes back, we’ll do what we need to. I promise I’ll be there to help. Yes, let’s see if we can get married tomorrow. I’ll make some early calls.” He sighed. “It scares me to know that I’m related to this guy by blood, Amy. He’s sick. I wouldn’t be surprised if he did everything he did to me just because he hated the man who might have been my father. I’m not going to go into details, but he almost killed me. More than once, too.”
Tears filled her eyes. “I knew it would bother you. But you also might have had a father and mother who loved you dearly. I can’t help thinking that you wouldn’t have learned to play the piano the way that you do without wanting to learn for someone you cared about deeply, because playing the piano itself isn’t a passion for you. You probably did it to please the person who was teaching you.”
Their lovemaking was slow that night, and Lex held Amy tightly until early morning, when he finally fell asleep beside her.
Chapter Forty
“We need witnesses,” Lex said quietly, once they were finished with breakfast. “We can’t ask Mom or Dad without including the kids.”
“What about Jake and Danielle? Do you think they’d have a few minutes to spare?”
“Maybe,” Lex answered.
“Would we offend Mom and Dad?”
“I don’t think so. Besides, I have an idea about how to please them before my leave is up. Don’t ask me what it is because I’m planning a surprise for you too. But just in case my plans don’t work out, I think it’s better for us to get married.”
She grinned, realizing that Lex was pretty lighthearted this morning.
“But I’m going to go put on something besides jeans. While I’m upstairs, I’ll give Jake a call and see if they can meet us there or not. We might be able to recruit a few old friends otherwise by stopping at the Tap.”
“That’s a great idea,” Amy agreed. “I’m going to go change right now myself. By the time we’re back downstairs, Mom and Dad will both be working at the winery café. They have a ton of reservations, so maybe we can help when we get back.”
Lex grinned. “Okay. Now, scram. I know you’re going to take forever to get ready, so I’ll have more coffee while I wait.”
