Next Door Secrets (Secrets Series Book 2) (8 page)

She curled her
legs up under her in what looked like some kind of yoga maneuver. “I don’t know
what to say. I was just like any other typical girl. I took ballet and piano
lessons. I can’t even remember a time when I didn’t know how to swim.”

Good. A normal,
middle-class upbringing was exactly what she’d wanted for her. “When did you
start racing?”

“I have blue
ribbons from when I was seven years old.”

“And when did you
start taking pictures?” She frequently checked Hannah’s website to see her
latest photography. Thank God for the
internet
, which
made her feel more connected to the baby she’d given away.

“My dad was an
amateur photographer, so he’d take me on walks in the park and I’d always beg
him to let me use his camera. He had a pretty expensive one, so he finally
broke down and bought me one of my own.” She grinned at the memory.

“Were you closer
to your dad or your mom?”

“My dad
definitely. He was always pushing me to stretch my limits. Mom was always the
one holding me back.” She sighed. “I guess they balanced each other out, but
now that Dad died, it seems like Mom’s holding me tighter and tighter. It’s
like she doesn’t want me to grow up.”

Beth could kind of
understand. Part of her regretted that Hannah was nearly an adult. “She loves
you and she’s going to miss you, that’s all.”

“But she’s driving
me nuts. She won’t even let me go to the post-prom party that everybody in the
entire school is going to.”

“Are you going to
prom with Ryan?” Excitement zipped through her at the thought of Hannah wearing
a formal gown and hanging with the popular crowd. Those were experiences Beth
had missed out on.

Turning toward
her, Hannah grew more animated. “If Mom doesn’t keep me locked in the basement.
I’ve picked out this black dress. I usually hate dresses, but Ryan said this
one makes me look sexy.” Her cheeks brightened with a glow. “
Wanna
see a picture?”

“Of course.”

Hannah pulled her
cell phone out and showed her a screen shot of her in a strapless, form-fitting
black dress with a white bow at the waist. “Isn’t it gorgeous?”

Beth nodded. “Tell
me more about Ryan. Does he treat you right?” Her mother bear tendencies came
out of nowhere.

“He doesn’t open
doors and stuff like Parker does, but that’s so old-fashioned, nobody does that
kind of stuff anymore.”

Those gentlemanly
traits were just one of her favorite things about Parker, but she kept her
mouth shut. “Why doesn’t your mom want you to go to the party?”

“Because she knows
what everyone does on prom night.”

The hairs stood up
on the back of Beth’s neck. What did she mean? Drink? Have sex? She took a
breath and waited for Hannah to share.

“You know. Lose
their virginity, assuming they haven’t already. I’m sure you did it at your
prom. It’s the perfect night to do it.”

At this topic,
Beth could feel her face warming. “Actually I didn’t have sex on prom night. I
waited until college and I wish I would’ve waited until I was even older.”

“Because you got
pregnant with me.”

“Right.”

“But I’ll be
smarter than you were. I’ll use protection.”

Beth cringed at
the insult. “You’re right. I wasn’t smart enough to assert myself. Don’t ever
sleep with a guy just because you want him to like you.”

“I already know
Ryan likes me. We love each other. I’m the only one of my girlfriends who hasn’t
already done it and I’m starting to feel like a freak.”

Fidgeting, Beth
took a slow breath and tried to choose her words carefully. “I know how it
feels to be the last one to have sex. It’s like everyone knows this secret
except you. Once I joined the club, though, I soon regretted it.”

“Don’t even tell
me I should wait until I’m married. My mom already gave me that line. Give me a
break. Nobody waits until their wedding night anymore.”

“I’m not saying
that. Just don’t sleep with someone—even someone you think you
love—because everyone else is doing it.”

“I don’t
think
I’m in love. I
am
in love.” Hannah’s eyebrows pulled
downward and Beth could see she’d said the wrong thing.

“Of course you
are. I didn’t mean to discount how you feel. But even if you use protection,
nothing’s one hundred percent. I’d hate to see you derail your college and
career plans with an unexpected pregnancy.”

“Like you did.”

Beth didn’t know
what to say. “I don’t regret that I had you. I think you’re amazing, but I hate
that I wasn’t mature enough to raise you myself.”

“Really?”

“Really. I’d do anything
to go back and keep you. Giving you to the Taylors was the hardest thing I’ve
ever done. I knew they’d take good care of you, but it still tore me apart.
Just remember that having sex isn’t like it is in the movies. You hardly ever
hear them stop to discuss birth control or STDs or what they’d do with an
unplanned pregnancy. People just fall into bed without thinking of the
consequences and Hollywood makes it look like fun.”

Hannah chewed on
her lower lip. “I think I’m old enough. I appreciate where you’re coming from
and all, but I want to sleep with Ryan.”

“Maybe you should
talk to your mom about going on the Pill.”

Another
eye roll.
“I can’t talk to her. She still treats me like I’m six instead
of sixteen.”

Warning bells
blared inside Beth’s head. She wasn’t sure how to walk this tightrope between
her child and her adoptive mother. The last thing she wanted was to alienate
either of them. But she couldn’t stand the thought of Hannah making the same
mistakes she had.

Hannah pulled one
knee up to her chest. “Would you take me to get a prescription?”

“I don’t know that
it’s my place.”

“Never mind. I’ll
just tell Ryan he has to wear a condom even though he said he hates them.”

Something inside
of Beth cried out
No!
She didn’t want
her daughter’s future to depend on some teenaged boy she’d never met. Would
Ryan “forget” the condom or convince her he didn’t need to put it on? “You
really should talk to Connie.”

“Even if I did,
there’s no way she’d take me to get birth control. And in Texas, I can’t get it
myself until I’m eighteen.”

She was only
sixteen, one of the youngest in her class. In a few months, Hannah would turn
seventeen.
Too young to do such an adult thing, with such
severe consequences.
“Hannah you’ll be going to college soon and who
knows if you and Ryan will even be in the same state? Why don’t you wait until
either you can convince your mom or until you’re old enough to get the Pill
yourself?”

Hannah sighed.
“You could take me to the doctor.”

There was nothing
Beth wanted more than to protect Hannah from the pain she’d suffered. “I
shouldn’t. Your
mother.
. . .”

“That’s just it.
Don’t try to act like my mother because I already have one. I need you to be
different. I need you to be my friend.”

CHAPTER
NINE

A hysterical
scream from Hannah’s bedroom jolted Beth awake the next morning. Her eyes wide,
Beth sprang from Parker’s bed and ran into the guest room.

Still in the
Olympic T-shirt and sweatpants that she’d slept in, Hannah sat on her bed
clinging to her cellphone. Her fingers moved like mad, sending a text.

“Are you OK?” Beth
asked. Wrapped in a white terry cloth robe, Parker hovered behind her.

Without even
looking up, Hannah shook her head. A moment later, she finished typing and
allowed her thumbs to rest. “I can’t believe it. Ryan cheated on me last night.
He’s in Florida for spring break and he sent me a photo of him kissing some
girl.”

Beth looked at
Parker and whispered that she’d handle things. As he left, she sat on the edge
of the bed. “Why would he do that?”

“His friend used
his phone to send the picture.” Hannah pulled up the photo. It showed two
people French kissing at a party. Their eyes looked droopy as if they were
drunk. “When I called Ryan, he wouldn’t answer his phone, so I texted him. He
confessed and said that he wants to see other people.”

Shaking her head,
Beth felt her hackles rise. “In a text? What a jerk.” Immediately she worried
that Hannah might defend her boyfriend.

“Asshole is more
like it.” Hannah scowled at her phone as if waiting for Ryan to respond, but he
didn’t. She shot off another quickly typed message to him. No response. She
dialed, but he didn’t answer. “I was going to give myself to him. Why couldn’t
he wait?” Her shoulders began to shake as tears formed in her eyes.

Beth scooted
closer and put her arm around Hannah’s shoulders. “Guys can be so cruel.” Part
of her felt relieved, though, that she didn’t need to worry about Hannah
getting pregnant on prom night. “Better to find out now than later.”

Hannah shook her
head. “Maybe he wouldn’t have slept with her if I hadn’t been holding out on
him.”

“You don’t know
that. Some people cheat. That’s what they do.” She rubbed Hannah’s back,
reminding herself that
she didn’t need another mother
,
she needed a friend
. How exactly could Beth do that?

“I should’ve gone
to Florida instead of coming here.”

That stabbed Beth
right through the heart.

Obviously hoping
for a response from Ryan, Hannah kept staring at her phone. She wiped away a
tear with her fingertips. “I wanted to go to Florida, but Mom wouldn’t let me.
Finally, I convinced her to let me visit you guys, only because I reminded her
that Parker isn’t going to be around forever.”

Beth took a deep
breath. “Well, I’m glad you visited and I know it means the world to Parker,
too. There will be other guys. Trust me. Every guy that ever broke my heart
actually did me a favor. I just didn’t realize it at the time. But now I’m with
someone who treats me good and I had to go through all of those bad
relationships to get here.”

Hannah pulled
away. “No, Ryan was special. We were
gonna
get married after we graduated from college. He was The One.”

More deep
breaths
. Beth laced her fingers together and tried to find
the right words. She picked at her cuticles. “What matters is you didn’t lose
your virginity to the wrong guy.”

“You’re not
listening. Ryan was the right guy! He just couldn’t wait any longer. I’ll never
make that mistake again.”

“Don’t let Ryan
push you into doing something you’ll regret.”

She shrugged. “No
one will want to go out with me if I’m the Virgin Mary.”

“That’s not true.
If a guy really cares about you, he’ll respect your decision.”

“Don’t preach to
me when you just slept with Parker last night.”

Beth chewed on her
thumbnail. She probably shouldn’t have climbed into his bed while Hannah was
visiting, but she couldn’t resist. “I’m a lot older than you.”

“But you’re not
married.”

“That’s true.
Things with Parker and I are complicated. If he wasn’t
sick.
. . .”

Hannah squeezed
her eyes tight. “I know. I’m glad I’m here, but I really wish I could’ve gone
to Florida with Ryan, too.”

Beth appreciated
Connie’s overprotectiveness. Otherwise, Hannah probably would’ve gone to
Florida and slept with Ryan.

They sat in silence
for a while. Hannah glanced at her phone again. “I can’t believe he won’t even
respond to my texts now. Do you think he’s still with her?”

Shrugging, Beth
looked at her wrist, but realized she hadn’t put her watch on yet. “It’s hard
to say.”

“I guess I’m not
going to prom.” Hannah’s voice sounded defeated. “And I already bought my
dress. All of my friends are going.” She dropped her chin. “I hate him!”

Beth wanted Hannah
to hate him. She did, too. But she worried the way Hannah kept checking her
phone that she’d forgive him if he showed a little remorse. “I’m so sorry.”
That was the only thing she could think to say without sticking her foot in her
mouth. Since Hannah continued to glare at the photo of Ryan on her phone, Beth
decided to leave her alone. “What would you like for breakfast? I’ll make
anything—waffles, eggs, pancakes.”

“I’m not hungry.”

Of
course.
Beth slipped out the door and closed it behind her. She walked
back to Parker’s room to find him already dressed.

“How is she?” he
asked.

“Crushed. Her
boyfriend cheated on her and she has the photo to prove it.”

He crossed his
arms over his broad chest. “Technology sure has changed dating, hasn’t it?”

“And not for the
better.”

CHAPTER
TEN

Parker was glad
that Beth’s boss had let her take a few days off at the last minute to spend
with Hannah. Especially since it was his fault she hadn’t given prior notice. Unfortunately,
Hannah moped around his place and refused to go anywhere with them. On Thursday
Beth had to go to her office for an important meeting.

After she kissed
him good-bye, he felt
ill-equipped
to deal with a
miserable teenaged girl on his own. He knocked on the guest bedroom door. When
Hannah didn't answer, he pushed the door open and saw that she was awake,
staring at the ceiling.

“Want to see Amish
country?” he asked. “People ride around in horse-drawn buggies and there’s a
wonderful restaurant called Das
Essenhaus
where we
could have lunch.”
 

She shrugged.

That was the
extent of Hannah’s enthusiasm. She hadn’t smiled or laughed since Saturday and
it weighed him down. “Want to go to the Y and swim?”

"I just want
to stay here," she said.

He shook his head,
closed the door and went to work on his laptop.

An hour later, she
finally crawled out of bed and drank some orange juice. "I'm bored."

He perked up.
"What do you want to do? We can do anything you want." Except
skydive. Hopefully she wasn’t still holding that against him.

"I’d like to
see where you work."

“Really?” It would
be
his own
Take Your Daughters to Work Day. “Great.
I’ll go change. There are fresh towels in the bathroom if you’d like to take a
shower.”

It took her thirty
minutes to pull herself together.

Dressed in his
usual slacks, Brooks Brothers shirt and tie, he drove them to the office. As
they walked down the hall of Mall
Land
corporate
headquarters, he led her into each executive’s office. “This is Hannah, she’s
here observing today.” He stopped himself from introducing her as his daughter.
No one needed to know the complicated history about how he had a teenaged
daughter he’d never once mentioned. They all shook Hannah’s hand and smiled.
After all, no one questioned the man who was responsible for
their
large paychecks.

At the end of the
hall they made their way into his office. Large windows formed one corner,
offering a view of busy streets below. In the center stood his mahogany desk
and off in the other corner was a seating area. He gestured for Hannah to make
herself comfortable. “Would you like some coffee or tea?”

“Water would be good.”
She sat on the small couch and glanced at the Business Weekly magazines fanned
out on the coffee table.

Parker pushed a
button on his desk phone. “Tina, could you bring two waters, please?” A minute
later, his petite secretary with a girl-next-door demeanor brought them Evian.
“Tina, this is Hannah. She’s going to be spending the day with us.”

Smiling, Tina
nodded and waited for more instructions. “Nice to meet you.”

Hannah unscrewed
the lid. “You, too.”

Ignoring his
water, Parker sat down at his desk and opened up his e-mail. “Oh, I have a
million messages here.” He looked up at
Hannah,
worried she’d get bored. “Would you like to read the Wall Street Journal?”

She shrugged.

No, that wouldn’t
appeal to a teenager on Spring Break. “Would you like to meet our interns?”

Again, she
shrugged. Her brown eyes looked glazed.

“Tina, would you
track down the interns and ask them to come in here?” He felt bad for handing
Hannah off, but he couldn’t ignore his work. He had something to prove.

“Sure, Mr.
DuBois
.”

Parker smiled.
“Tina, how many times have I told you to call me Parker?”

Flustered, Tina
headed for the exit, but then stopped and pointed at Parker. “Ron Stevens sent
over an estimate for the lawn maintenance. He said to check your e-mail.”

As usual, he
scanned his inbox and when he didn’t see Ron
Stevens’s
bid, he checked his spam folder. That’s when something unusual caught his
attention. The subject line was “Peace Corps interview.” He clicked it open and
read.

Dear Parker
DuBois
:

We received your
application for the Peace Corps and are ready for the next step in the process.
I will be in the area on Thursday at 10 a.m. and would like to interview you
face-to-face. Please call 202-555-3099 to confirm.

Peace,

Caleb
McDaniels

His pulse
accelerated. He checked the time. 9:29. “I can’t believe this.”

“What?” Hannah
asked.

“I got an e-mail
from the Peace Corps. They want to interview me this morning.”

She put down her
water. “You should go!” This was the most enthusiasm Hannah had shown in days.

“It’s in half an
hour. I’m not sure I can even make it. Besides, it’s a crazy idea.”

“You said it’s
your dream.”

He rapped his
fingertips across his desk. Was it possible?

Hannah sat on the
edge of her seat, watching him. “Don’t think. Just go. What can it hurt?”

His fingers kept
thrumming while he considered it. Grabbing his phone, he dialed. His heart pounded
when a male voice answered. “Caleb
McDaniels
? This is
Parker
DuBois
. I just received your e-mail.” Why
hadn’t he checked his spam folder sooner?

“I’m glad to hear
from you. Can you meet me at the Java Lounge in half an hour?”

“Sure. Should I
bring anything?”

“I already have
all of your paperwork.”

If traffic were
light, he might make it across town in time. He made eye contact with Hannah
who mouthed, “Go.” “I’m on my way.” He hung up the phone. “I’m meeting him at a
coffee shop. Want to come along?”

Just then the
three interns walked in. Parker introduced them to Hannah and Larry offered her
a treat from the Dunkin’ Donuts box in his hand.

Hannah pushed her
long, brown hair behind her ear and almost smiled. “Sure.” Rising, she selected
a chocolate glazed. “Where do you go to school?” She took a small bite.

“Michael and I are
roommates at Notre Dame,” Larry said.

Hannah swallowed
her food. “I’m thinking of going there, too.”

Larry raised his
eyebrows. “It’s the best. Like the Ivy League of the Midwest.”

After waiting a
beat, Elaine stepped forward. “And I go to I.U.”

Parker started
jingling the keys in his pocket. “Hannah, I’ve got to go. Are you ready?”

She looked at the
donut in her hand as if she didn’t know what to do with it. “
Um.
. . . I could stay here, if you want.”

Elaine cleared her
throat. “She could help us with our project.” She faced Hannah. “We’re
brainstorming ways to make Mall Land appeal to young adults without children.”

Parker checked
Hannah’s reaction; she nodded,
then
took another bite.
“If you’re OK, I need to go.” The interns always seemed to be sharing inside
jokes and laughing about their weekend activities, so hopefully Hannah would
find them more interesting than sitting in on his interview.
 
“Have fun.” As soon as the words left
his lips, he felt stupid.

He addressed
Larry, Michael and Elaine. “Try to get some work done, you guys.”

Balancing the box
in one hand, Larry took a powdered donut and nodded. He still had white crumbs
in his moustache from the last one he ate. Except for Elaine, Parker wasn’t too
impressed with the interns’ work ethics this semester. They seemed to need
constant direction and praise for the smallest of accomplishments. Plus they
ate a lot of donuts.

Remembering he had
more pressing matters to worry about, he headed for his SUV.

He zoomed through
the first few intersections, but once he was on Grape Road, traffic stopped.
The light in the distance turned green, yet the cars in front of him remained
still. Craning his head, he saw that there’d been an accident in the other
lane. The light eventually turned yellow then red, all without him moving an inch.
He hit the steering wheel in frustration.

A check of his
watch revealed that he had eight minutes left. Again the light went from green
to yellow to red but nothing else changed. He shook his head and looked around
him at the other drivers, some of
whom
appeared to be
yelling and others busy talking on their cell phones. People in the left lane
were merging into his in order to get around the accident. On his right was a
poor guy trying to exit a gas station. He didn’t have a chance.

After the light turned
green again, the car in front of Parker moved a few feet. Parker looked over to
the gas station where there were now two cars lined up trying to exit. His good
nature battled with his personal agenda. Keeping his foot on his brake, he
waved for one of the drivers to merge in front of him. The guy waved back and
smiled. Then the stoplight turned red and Parker felt mixed emotions.

Once again he was
late. Although
this time
it wasn’t his fault, at
least. Over the last few weeks, he’d noticed he would forget important meetings
or conference calls until Tina would remind him and he’d arrive late. He’d
noticed the looks people exchanged across the table, but no one had dared say
anything to his face because he was the founder of Mall Land. Perhaps he needed
to step aside and let healthier executives lead the company now. And going to
Africa to help small business owners set up shop was the perfect excuse to walk
away. He’d be happy, the company would thrive and no one would need to know
about his terminal disease. No one would need to feel sorry for him.

He checked his
watch as he dashed inside the coffee shop. Looking around the occupied tables,
he wondered how he would know Caleb
McDaniels
.
 
He inhaled the floral-enzymatic aroma of
Ethiopian coffee as he heard the grinder whirring. Then he saw a man wearing an
unusual round cap in yellow, green and red. That had to be him. The man smiled
and Parker walked over to shake his hand. “I’m Parker and you must be Caleb. Nice
hat.”

“It’s an African
kufi
hat. I got it on my first assignment for the Corps.”
He reached for his coffee cup. “You want anything?”

Parker shook his
head and was about to take a seat at the small, round table when a man in an
army uniform passed by. Parker had lost a high school buddy overseas and he had
a tradition of honoring him. “I’ll be right back.” He stepped up to the counter
with the soldier and handed the cashier a twenty. “I’d like to treat him.” He
faced the clean-cut man without a wrinkle in sight and said, “Thank you for
your service.”

The young solider
gave a quick nod. “Thank you, sir.”

“It’s the least I
can do.” He made eye contact with the teenaged barista. “Keep the change.” Then
he made his way back to the Peace Corps recruiter and took a seat.

“You forgot to get
yourself some coffee.”

“I’m fine.” Although
Parker had once been a coffee connoisseur, he didn’t like how caffeine added to
his already jittery hands. At that thought, he placed his hands beneath the
table so they’d be out of sight. “I’m sorry I’m late.”

“No problem.
Americans are so hung up on time, rushing everywhere. Once you’ve been to a
third world country, you appreciate a slower pace of life.”

After the stress
of running an ever-expanding company, Parker liked the idea of decelerating.
“I’m so glad you contacted me. I filled out that application so long ago, I
thought maybe you’d lost it.”

“Our processing
takes a while. Anyway, this is the last interview before you get your
invitation. Shall we get started?” He opened up a file folder with Parker’s
name on it.

“I’m ready.”
Except he felt a little warm.
He decided to slip off his
coat and hang it over the back of the chair.

Clicking his pen,
Caleb looked at his notes before making eye contact. “I see that you’re in your
mid-thirties. What makes you want to join the Peace Corps now?”

“Well, I’m at a
cross-roads, I guess. I’m getting a divorce and my business is doing well. It
seems like the perfect time. I had an uncle in the Peace Corps and part of me
always wanted to follow in his footsteps.”

“I see.” His expression
remained neutral. “Is there any chance for reconciliation with your wife?”

“Absolutely not.”

“Being away from
friends and family is probably the hardest part of this job. If you’re already
losing your partner, are you sure you won’t need the support of loved ones to
help get you through this tough time?”

He swallowed.
“Even though I was married for sixteen years, the divorce was a long-time
coming. I’m not upset about it. I wanted it.”

“Are you
romantically involved with anyone else at this point?”

Parker’s leg
bounced nervously. He didn’t want to say the wrong thing and blow his chances.
“I’m seeing someone, but it isn’t serious.” Guilt sliced his heart. How could
he say that about Bethany? She was the best thing to ever happen to him, but
the timing was
all wrong
.

“How does she feel
about your leaving the country for the next two years?”

“I haven’t told
her. She probably won’t be thrilled, but I want this more than anything.” He
would miss her, but he squelched those feelings. Figuring he only had a few
more good years left, he’d never intended for them to grow so close. Within a
decade he expected to be dead and he didn’t want her to be around for that.

“No one can visit
you except during your vacation time and you don’t get any of that for at least
six months.”

“I understand.” He
wondered if Beth and Hannah would be able to visit. Maybe he could talk Connie
into it by emphasizing that it would be an educational experience for Hannah.