Authors: Barbara Freethy
"Really strange," Elena agreed. "I can't stop looking at you. I'm sorry if I'm staring."
"I feel the same way. I know you, and yet I don't."
"We were babies the last time we saw each other, three years old. It's no wonder it feels uncomfortable now."
"But it feels good, too," Julia said.
"Yes, it does. I've really missed having family," Elena confessed.
Julia wanted to say the same thing, but in all fairness she couldn't. She'd had a good family to grow up in. And another sister as well. She still didn't know how she would tell Liz about Elena. That wasn't a conversation she was looking forward to.
"Is he your boyfriend?" Elena asked, nodding toward the bedroom.
"What? You mean Alex?"
Elena smiled. "Of course I mean Alex. Who else would I mean?"
"Actually, I was engaged to someone else until a few days ago. My
fiance
didn't want me to search for my real family. It turned out to be the last straw between us, and I'm glad now. I realized he wasn't the one for me."
"Because of Alex?"
"I didn't break up with him because of Alex," Julia prevaricated. "What about you? Any men in your life?"
"Not recently. I was engaged, too, a couple years ago, before my accident. He was a choreographer, a good one. He couldn't bear the thought that I'd never dance for him again. So he left. It hurt, but life goes on. I learned that lesson a long time ago."
Julia scooted forward on the couch, clasping her hands together. "I'm so sorry that your childhood wasn't happy. I wish we could have been together. It isn't fair that I grew up in a loving home and you didn't. I feel so guilty."
"It wasn't your fault. We should have been kept together, not hidden away from the world."
"For our protection, they say," Julia reminded her. Although she wasn't quite sure if that was the true reason or the convenient one. They'd become baggage, children no one wanted to be associated with. That's why they'd stuck Elena in a foster home. Julia was lucky, very lucky. Sarah had wanted her desperately enough to change her entire life and her past just to be able to take care of her. For the first time, she felt a lessening of her anger toward Sarah. At least she had been loved and taken care of. She needed to remember that and be thankful.
Alex returned to the room. "I reached my father. He'll have Brady trace the number. He thinks it's a bank account. He knew your parents made plans before the defection. Your mother had come to the U.S. a number of times with her ballet company. My father believes that she may have stashed away a great deal of money during those visits."
"So the treasure might be cash," Julia said.
"Might be," Alex agreed. "He'll call me back. I told him where we were. He said to stay put. Apparently your parents were planning to live here in DC, because your father was going to work with our intelligence agencies. That's how Elena ended up here. It was the initial drop point."
"You make me sound like a bottle of milk or a newspaper," Elena said with a touch of annoyance.
"Sorry. Those were his words, not mine."
"It would make sense that they'd come here so our father could work with the government," Julia interjected. "Does your dad think the account might be here in the city?"
"That's his guess. Or possibly New York," Alex replied. "Your mother made several trips there as well."
Julia's cell phone began to ring. She slipped it out of her purse and saw Liz's number. "It's my sister," she said, feeling awkward when she said it. "My other sister." She cleared her throat and answered the phone. "Hello."
"Hey, it's Liz. What's going on? I haven't heard from you in a while. Have you found out anything?"
"A couple of things," Julia said. "I don't want to get into it on the phone, though. I promise to tell you everything as soon as I get back."
"Get back? Where exactly are you, Julia?"
She hesitated, then said, "I'm in Washington
"Why? What's there?"
"It's a long story."
"And you don't want to tell me. I get it. I just wanted to let you know that some guy was watching me on the docks this afternoon."
"What did he look like?" Julia asked, her pulse quickening.
"He was big and stocky, and he wore a baseball cap. He left as soon as he realized I'd seen him. Do you think he's the guy who burglarized our apartment?"
"I think he might be. Don't go back to our place, Liz, especially alone."
"I won't. Believe me, I'm not looking for trouble."
"I'll call you when I get home," Julia said. "In the meantime, be careful, Liz. I don't want anything to happen to you."
"I will. Is Alex still with you?"
"Yes."
Liz sighed. "You're crazy, Julia, but I guess everyone deserves to fall for a bad boy once in her life."
Julia wanted to say it wasn't like that, but how could she? She glanced at Alex, who was talking to Elena with a warm, interested look on his face. She wasn't falling in love with him. She was already there. After saying good-bye, she hung up the phone.
"Everything okay?" Alex asked.
"Liz said some guy was watching her. It sounded like the same man who was watching me at the radio station. I feel bad. I'm here. She's there. I don't want her to get hurt."
"Liz is your… sister?" Elena asked, tripping over the word sister.
"Yes. She's younger than me, just twenty-two. I've always taken care of her. She's really angry with me for getting involved in all this."
"Does she know about me?"
"I wanted to make sure I could find you first, so I haven't said anything yet."
Elena nodded, understanding in her eyes. "That will be difficult for you, won't it?"
"Probably."
Elena cleared her throat. "I need to go downstairs and check on Colin. You're welcome to stay here and wait for that call."
"Actually, I was thinking about food," Alex said. "And it will probably be hours before my father calls back."
"I'd love to see more of your shop," Julia put in. She exchanged a look with Alex and knew they were once again on the same page. She needed some time alone with her sister, and he was more than willing to give it to her.
"I'll get some takeout and bring it back," he said. "Any suggestions?"
Elena thought for a moment. "If you're adventurous, there's a great Thai restaurant around the corner."
"Oh, my God. You are my sister, " Julia said with a huge smile. "I love exotic food." Elena grinned back at her. "So do I." For the first time since they'd arrived, Julia felt optimistic and back on balance. "This is going to be good," she said, and she wasn't talking about the food.
It was almost midnight when Julia and Elena finally talked themselves out. While Elena went into the bedroom to undress, Julia helped Alex make up a bed on the couch. "Will you be all right out here?" she asked.
"I'd be better if you were with me." He gave her an intimate smile that reminded her how long it had been since she'd kissed him or touched him. "Come here," he said softly.
She cast a quick look over her shoulder. "Elena might see us."
"One kiss."
"It's never enough," she said with a sigh as she moved into his arms. His hands spanned her waist as he kissed her gently, tenderly, with only a hint of the passion they'd shared the night before. "That was awfully restrained," she complained.
"Believe me, if it wasn't, you'd be on your back right now and we'd give your sister the second shock of her life."
"Promises, promises," she said with a smile. She pressed another kiss on his lips. "Thanks for being so great today."
"I didn't do anything."
"Yes, you did. You supported me, and you didn't try to take over. You did good. I owe you."
"And I will collect," he promised. "I just hope my father calls tomorrow. I'd like to get that number resolved."
"I think he will. He wants to help you."
"To absolve his guilt, maybe. Whatever the reason, I'll take it. The sooner we figure out the ending to this mystery the better."
A twinge of pain ran through her at his words. As soon as the mystery was over, they would be over. To be fair he probably hadn't meant it like that, but it was still true.
"Hey, what's that frown for?" He tipped up her chin with his finger.
"Nothing. I was just thinking about all the secrets, the lies, the constant surprises. I never know what will happen next."
"But that doesn't stop you from fighting on," Alex said, a note of admiration in his voice. "A lot of people would have quit or backed away by now, not wanting to risk losing everything they believed in. You're something else, Julia." He ran his fingers through her hair. "Beautiful, smart, and gutsy. Hell of a combination."
"Are you scared?" she asked, half-teasing, half-serious.
"Terrified," he said lightly. He kissed her again, then released her. "Go to bed, Julia, before I can't let you go."
"I'd stay, but-"
"But you two women need to bond. I get it. And believe me, I've had enough girl talk to last me awhile. I'm going to watch something macho on television and not think about anything else until tomorrow morning."
"Good night." Julia stole one last quick kiss before leaving. When she entered the bedroom, Elena was, wearing a long T-shirt and sitting on the side of her queen-size bed. She was brushing out her hair, and Julia was struck once again by the resemblance between them.
"If you want to sleep with Alex, it's fine with me," Elena said, setting down her brush. She gave Julia a 340 curious look. "I still don't understand exactly what your relationship is."
"I'm not sure, either," Julia admitted. "I'm afraid to analyze it too much, especially in the middle of everything else."
"But you like him."
"Oh, yeah, more than a little. But that seems crazy, too, because a few weeks ago I thought I was in love with someone else."
"What happened to the other guy? I know you said he was upset that you were searching for your family, but was that all of it?"
Julia sat down on the bed. "No. I told you that my mother, Sarah, died six months ago. Well, Michael was so great through her illness. For two years he was supportive, kind, caring, everything a woman could want. After my mom died, he wanted to get married, and we'd been engaged for so long, I knew I had to say yes. I owed him. Deep in my heart, I knew that Michael wasn't the one for me. He was just taking up where my mom left off. Sarah raised me in a controlled little bubble. She protected me and hid me away from the world. I guess she was always looking over her shoulder, afraid she would be found out. Michael wanted a wife who would stay in his world, who wouldn't make waves, wouldn't want to travel or have a big job or do anything different. That's fine for him, but I would have suffocated."
"Alex certainly doesn't seem the type to put you in a bubble," Elena observed.
"I'm not sure he wants to put me anywhere. He's an admitted loner. He likes to travel light, and he told me that he's never met a woman who made him want more than a casual affair."
"I hope he didn't say that after you slept together."
"No, before. I'm a fool, huh?"
Elena smiled. "He's a good-looking man, Julia. He's smart, successful, exciting-the last thing I would call you is a fool. Just don't let him break your heart."
"I'm trying to keep that in mind."
Elena tossed her a T-shirt. "You can sleep in this."
"Thanks."
Julia took off her jeans and top and slipped on the T-shirt. She climbed into the bed next to Elena, feeling both awkward and strangely comfortable. A moment later Elena switched off the light.
"Was it hard losing your boyfriend when you had your accident?" Julia asked.
For a long minute, there was silence; then Elena said, "His leaving didn't hurt as much as the fact that I couldn't dance anymore, but it was very painful. I really loved him. I made a huge mistake. He only wanted the successful dancer who could bring his choreography to life. He didn't really want me, all of me. He was an ass."
"And there hasn't been anyone since?"
"I've been busy. I had to restart my life, get a new career going. Victoria, Mrs. Kay, she helped me get the shop. She actually owns this building, and I pay nominal rent. There's no way I could afford this area if I didn't have connections."
"The shop is great. I'm so impressed by how many beautiful pieces you have."
"I love knowing that each piece in my shop has a history. I don't love it as much as dance, I'll admit, but I like seeing things find their rightful home. Probably something subliminal about that, huh?"
Because they'd never been able to go home. "Probably," Julia agreed.
"Well, good night," Elena said.