AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Alexis took a deep breath, breaking the silence that had settled between them. “Mom…” she started tentatively. “Did Hope ever give any indication about where she might go? Any friends or boyfriends who might have an idea?”
“Girls, please don’t go digging this up again.” When they both just stared at her in response, Amy sighed heavily, her shoulders drooping as if the weight of those years was pressing down on her. “No, she never gave any indication. She didn’t tell me things. We didn’t have that kind of relationship and she didn’t trust easily. She kept her secrets close. And those people she did associate with... well, they weren’t the sort to help us find her.”
“Do you think she’s still alive out there somewhere?” Ellie asked.
“No.”
The answer was said with such finality that it made Ellie blink with surprise. “Why not?”
“Because I would feel it. A mother knows.” Her face crumpled, and she wrapped her arms around herself as if physically trying to hold her grief inside. “I would know if my baby was still in this world. Hope...” She swallowed hard, choking back a sob. “My Hope is gone. She’s been gone for a long time.”
Alexis reached out and took their mother’s hand, offering a comforting squeeze while Ellie folded her arms over her chest, holding back her own tears. She opened her mouth to tell Alexis and her mother about the girl Cal had found—the teenager who was apparently Hope’s daughter—but Alexis gave a small shake of her head.
“No more,” she mouthed.
She was probably right. She’d tell Alexis soon, but telling Mom that Hope had been alive long enough to birth a child seemed cruel. But if Cal found the girl, it would all come out eventually.
Maybe she should tell him to drop it, stop looking?
She mentally scoffed at the thought. He wouldn’t stop, even if she asked. Giving up wasn’t in his DNA.
An insistent tap came from the door and Shane opened it before they could respond, his sharp gaze scanning the room before settling on Alexis. The man seemingly had a sixth sense when it came to his new wife’s discomfort. “Everything okay?”
“We’re fine,” Alexis assured him with a small, sad smile. “Just digging up old family skeletons.”
His gaze softened. “Hope?”
“Yeah.” Alexis sighed and absently fiddled with the ring he’d given her. “Hope.”
He came into the room fully then, moving to stand behind Alexis and settle his scarred hands on her shoulders. There was so much love in the way he looked at her. He didn’t have to fill the silence with empty words; he simply needed to be there, providing a rock-steady support.
For a moment, Ellie wondered if Cal could provide the same support for her. Cal was so different from Shane—funny where Shane was serious, bright with optimism where Shane was a stark realist, unburdened by trauma while Shane had more baggage than an airplane. Cal was like her puppy—sweet, but chaotic. She’d never be able to rely on him for the kind of sturdy support Shane provided Alexis. It was ridiculous to even compare the two of them.
Amy smiled at him. “I don’t think I ever thanked you, Shane.”
“For what?”
“For saving my daughter. For loving her.”
He shook his head. “I should be thanking you for raising a stubborn, fierce, brilliant woman,” he said with an admiring look at his bride. “Without her, I’d—” His voice caught. “She saved me.”
“We saved each other.” Alexis closed her eyes, leaning back into Shane’s steady presence.
Ellie hated herself for the sudden pang of envy. She had always been the kind of woman who prided herself on her independence. But in that moment, watching the quiet strength of their union, she couldn’t help but wish she had someone in her life to lean on like that.
Cal.
No. Dammit.
Why was she so hung up on Callum Holden anyway?
Okay, she knew the answers to that question. His roguish smile. His light-hearted charm. His sexy arm muscles—she never could resist a guy with nice arms—and oh so squeezable butt. The way he made her feel all jittery inside when he was near like she couldn’t stand still…
But he wasn’t what she wanted in her life.
Right?
Right.
