The Best of Fools (Jane Austen Book 2) (11 page)

Inspired doesn't do it justice.

I was ready to take on the world—of design, I mean.

New York was fun, but Boston was gorgeous. Oh, man. I fell in love as soon as we hit the little town streets. Donovan liked it better than NYC, but I think the rain played a part in his decision.

We enjoyed a nice morning walk, then made our way to the address we found for my ... mother. I wasn't even sure if it was her, but it was one of two people with her name and age range (thank you scary Internet) and the other was in California. So naturally we went with the easiest option first.

"Your mom just sent me a text," Donovan said.

"Oops." I pulled my phone out of my bag. "Forgot to reply to her last night."

"Does she know you came here?"

"They know about it, but they don't know we're here now. I didn't want them thinking about it. I'll tell them when I get back."

"Should I text her?"

"Nah, I'm doing it right now."

Donovan stopped as I finished up my text and I didn't realize it, so I kept walking. He whistled and I turned.

"What are you doing?" I yelled.

He pointed. "This is the address."

I swallowed and took a step. Or at least I thought I did. But I hadn't moved. He walked toward me and touched my wrists, just barely, with his fingers.

I nodded. "Is this weird? Maybe I shouldn't...."

"You'll always think about it if you don't. Just like Alistair." He tried to wink and failed, and tried again with a more exaggerated failed attempt.

I laughed. "I can't believe you don't know how to wink."

He put his arm around me like an older brother would and it immediately took me back to the time I busted my knee in first grade. Donovan ran over to me in the playground, scooped me up, and carried me in to the nurse. The kid was in first grade and not much taller than me. He struggled up the steps, but bit his lip and endured. When we reached the top he tripped and skinned my knee even more. I didn't tell him that though. How could I? He sprained his ankle when we fell and never said a word. But I knew.

He held my hand the rest of the way to the nurse, trying to hide his limp. After school that day he told me he would marry me and give me bandaids forever, if I wanted.

He always scared me when he talked like that. Maybe he considered that one of the times I rejected him.

He held my hand again. This time walking me up the steps to my real mother's front door. We knocked and no one answered. So Donovan opened the mail box.

"What are you doing?" I whispered, checking around for curious eyeballs.

"Seeing if her name is on the mail."

"Stop." I shoved the letters back in. "That's illegal, isn't it?"

"Not hurting anyone. I saw it. Wasn't her name. Some guy."

"Boyfriend?"

"Maybe."

I knocked again, less nervous now that I figured no one was home. Or we had the wrong house altogether.

But the handle jiggled, then turned.

I held my stomach to suppress that feeling again. The worms.

My mouth dried up as the door opened in slow motion. Donovan held my hand. I just kinda stood there.

A man stuck his head out, looked around us, then opened the door a little more. "Can I help you?"

"I'm here to see Julia. Does she live here?"

The man looked around us again and shook his head. The door started to close, but Donovan put his foot out to stop it.

"Do you know her? Or where she might live?" I asked.

"Why?" He hid most of himself behind the door. "Who's asking?"

I shrugged and looked myself up and down. "Me?"

"She don't live here no more." I noticed bruises on his arms. "California last I heard."

Donovan and I looked at each other. The guy finally closed the door on us. We stayed there. Looking at each other. Processing. Wondering.

"California?" I finally said.

"Let's do it," he said.

I smiled. "That's a huge trip."

"And you're gonna say yes."

"You know me."

"Let's enjoy Boston one more night and find a plane ticket tomorrow."

"Want to drive?"

"Don't wanna waste more money than we need to, but that would be a lot of fun."

"Come on. Let's drive."

"Let's get off this guy's steps first and figure it out later."

Plane it was. Mainly because Donovan couldn't get off work anymore than three more days. We'd fly out and back and he could keep his job.

He went to the bathroom while I pulled out my iPad in the airport and looked up her address. A wee tad freaky that you can find out so much about a person online. It showed everything from her shopping preferences to criminal records and phone numbers.

Donovan sat beside me and crunched on a granola bar.

"Hey." I pointed to the screen. "I found all this information on her. Paid for this report thingy and I have an email address." He handed me his half-eaten granola bar. "Should I just email?"

"Up to you."

"I know. But what do you think?"

"Depends how you want your first meeting to go."

"I could try emailing and we can still go out there. See if she responds first."

"Go for it."

I pulled out my Bluetooth keyboard and typed, "Hello." Then I stared at that intimating cursor as it blinked and blinked and blinked. Donovan meandered off again in search of more food and somehow I ended up looking at Alistair again.

It was nice to see his face. A picture to go with the fading memory. I could almost picture his smile as he asked to kiss me. What an odd day.

"Jane is in love," Donovan teased as he handed me a water bottle and a slice of pizza. "If there's anyone you should email, it's lover boy."

"Stop calling him lover boy." I closed the iPad and smelled the pizza. "Mmm..."

"Why don't you just email him?"

"Can you imagine me dating someone? Like for real dating?" I took another bite of pizza and laughed as the cheese attached to my chin.

Donovan picked it up and pulled it toward his mouth.

"Ew!" I pulled it back and put it on my plate. "Gross!"

"Remember when I used to eat the gum you chewed? I think it was seventh grade."

"I remember." I wiped my face. "Sick."

He finished his second slice of pizza before I finished my first. When I finally took the last bite he threw our plates away and we made our way to the gates. They were now calling letters and numbers.

Donovan leaned into my shoulder. "️Email him."

I leaned back into his shoulder. "I can't."

"You can." They called us and we walked forward, handed them our tickets, and headed down the terminal. "Do you want to?"

I shrugged.

"You pretend like you don't want a relationship, but I know you do."

"No." I tapped the side of the terminal three times before getting into the plane. Weird habit for good luck. Probably didn't do a thing, but I hated flying. Being superstitious was worth it in this case.

"Yes," he said. "I know you better than you know yourself."

"Apparently not." We shoved our bags above our heads and sat down. He took the window seat, knowing I didn't want anything to do with it. "I really don't. I'm not opposed to it, but at the same time I'm not ready for it."

"Will you ever be ready?"

"I think so." I set my iPad on my lap and looked at him. "Come on. I'm only eighteen! I have plenty of time."

He tapped on the window. "Unless you die on this plane as we're flying over Chicago."

"Thanks."

"Plummeting thousands of feet as the oxygen mask flings toward your face. No escape. Only the end. Waiting."

"Thanks for the mental image I've been trying to avoid for the last hour."

He folded his hands over his lap, leaned back, and closed his eyes. "That's what I'm here for, sweetheart."

We landed in LA. Thank the stars above. If they can be thanked, of course. I don't need to tell you that the first thing Donovan insisted we do was immediately find food. Good food. Not airport food.

We picked up our rental car after navigating the airport and my phone beeped. I ignored it, but it kept beeping and buzzing in my bag.

"You should check that," he said as we drove off to find food.

I pulled the phone out. A bunch of calls from Eddie.

"It's Eddie," I said. "He called. A lot."

"Must be important. Eddie only texts. I didn't even know his phone worked like a normal phone."

I called back. "Hey," I said. "Everything okay?"

"No." I could barely hear him. "Mahidinahizpitooh."

"What? You're mumbling, Ed. I can't hear you."

"Oh, sorry." Finally could hear him. "Had my finger over the thing."

"Is something wrong?"

"Where are you?"

"I'm out with Donovan."

"No one could get in touch with you. Dad's in the hospital."

"For what?"

"We aren't sure yet." Something jumbled and then he spoke clear again, "Are you coming?"

"Eddie, what happened?"

Donovan was already heading back to the airport. Guess he noticed the tone of my voice.

"I don't know. Dad's acting weird. They're doing tests now. Mom is freeeeeaking out. You need to get here now."

"I'll get there as soon as I can. Might be a while. We kinda took a vacation."

"Yeah, well while you're out there looking for a mother who left you your real mother needs you."

"Hark! He speaks!"

"Hanging up now."

"Sorry. I'll be there when I can."

I hung up and looked at Donovan. "Leave it to Eddie to spend most of his life mute and then slam you with random bursts of intensity."

"What happened?"

"Dad. They don't know. Mom's having a nervous breakdown and Eddie is reprimanding me for looking for this mom while my real mom is in need of someone."

"Not like you could've known."

"Yeah. I don't think he likes that I'm looking into this. He doesn't express himself, so who knows, but I just feel like everyone thinks I'm betraying them."

"You're not."

I nodded. "Hope Dad's okay."

Donovan squeezed my hand and held it until he parked.

I was thankful for that hand.

By the time we got on a plane and back to Philly it had been twenty-two hours since Eddie first called. That's a lot of time when you're dad is in the hospital for something unknown. It's also a lot of time when you have too much to think about. Like family, love, friends, mothers, roommates. Too much.

Donovan took me to the hospital and given his place in our family, he came inside with me too.

I inhaled as we walked in. Donovan gave me a weird look.

"What?" I sniffed again. "I love the smell of hospitals."

"Yeah." He smirked. "You and one percent of the population."

"It's clean and plasticy. Like Office Max without the paper smell."

"Mmmhmm."

We found our way to Dad's ICU room and Mom hugged both of us as soon as she saw us. Her tears totally covered my shoulder, but I didn't mind. She was always the strong one unless something happened to Dad. Can't tell you how many times I heard her half-jokingly but mostly seriously say to him, "Don't die. Don't ever die."