The Mysterious Stranger (Triple Trouble) (14 page)

He hadn’t even thought to ask if she was married. The manager had said two couples. Did he dare hope? Then he reminded himself it didn’t matter. Better if she was married. She would leave, and his life could return to normal. He didn’t have time for all this foolishness.

But the words that had always worked in the past had somehow lost their magic. Instead of relieved, he felt hollow and defeated. Then he groaned softly. If he felt this way, how was Anna Jane going to deal with the situation?

He walked into the living room. Anna Jane had returned. She took one look at his face and stood. Her small hands clutched at each other. Her face paled and he saw a tremor ripple through her.

“Uncle Jarrett?”

The tone of her voice alerted Ariel…make that Fallon. Their mysterious stranger glanced at him and jumped. “What happened? Did you get bad news?”

“Not at all,” he said, and tried to make his expression pleasant. “Actually, it’s good news.”

He crossed to his niece and touched her on the shoulder. “It’s okay. Everyone is fine.”

The child relaxed visibly. “I got scared.”

“I know. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to frighten you.”

Ariel—he gave himself a mental shake—Fallon stood. “Jarrett? You’re terrifying us. What’s going on?”

“Your family has been found. They arrived on the island a few hours ago and have been looking for you. Apparently you have two sisters who are married. The reservation was for the five of you, which is why we couldn’t find it.”

He watched her closely, waiting to see if she remembered anything. She frowned, then shook her head. “The news isn’t triggering anything. Sisters? Two of them?”

“I spoke to one named Elissa.”

She repeated the name. “Did they say who I was?”

Small hands took hold of his. He moved closer to Anna Jane and squeezed back. Tears filled her dark eyes, but they didn’t fall. He knew they would—tonight—when she was alone.

“You’re Fallon Bedford. A schoolteacher from San Francisco.”

“This is so strange. I can’t even take this in or believe it. I don’t know what to think. Are they coming over, or do you want me to go there?”

“They’re on their way. They should be here any minute.”

Confusion clouded her eyes and twisted her mouth. “Family,” she murmured. “I can’t believe it. I do belong somewhere.” She gave him a tentative smile. “If only I could remember where that was.”

There was a knock at the front door. He took a step toward the foyer. Anna Jane released him and retreated to the safety of the sofa. He knew about her pain. They would have to talk about it later.

He crossed to the door and pulled it open. He wasn’t sure what he’d expected. Maybe someone who looked a little like Fallon. A stranger with a hint of her around eyes or smile. Instead two identical replicas of Fallon stood there. One wore shorts and a T-shirt, the other a long gauzy sundress. But those were the only differences. From the color of their hair, to the worried expressions, to their bodies, they were exactly like her.

The woman in the dress said, “I’m Elissa, Mr. Wilkenson. We spoke a minute ago. Is my sister here?”

“Yes. Please come in.”

He heard footsteps behind him. Fallon approached. When she saw her sisters, she paused. She swayed as if she might lose her balance. Jarrett was at her side in an instant, and he put an arm around her to steady her. Her eyes fluttered closed, then opened. She blinked twice and he knew. In less than a heartbeat her memory had been restored.

Chapter Nine

E
veryone was talking at once. Fallon smiled as her sisters and their husbands explained once again how stunned they’d been when they’d been unable to find her at the resort.

“It was as if you’d disappeared off the face of the planet,” Kayla said.

“In a way, I suppose I had,” Fallon told her, still feeling a little shaky.

Her memory had returned in a flash. For a second the world had gone dark, then suddenly she’d been fine. The sensation was odd. The closest she could come to explaining it was having her ears plug on a flight. There was that feeling of talking through a tunnel and not being able to hear very well. When her eardrums popped, everything was normal again.

That’s how she felt now. Restored. Although it was odd to have herself back and yet remember not remembering.

She glanced around the room and saw Anna Jane sitting alone on the sofa. The girl looked as stunned as she felt. No doubt the sight of “Ariel’s” sisters was a little unnerving for the child.

Fallon crossed to her and took a seat. “How are you doing?” she asked.

Anna Jane shrugged. “Okay. I’m glad you got your memory back and you have a family.”

The words were polite and exactly what she should have said, but Fallon saw the truth in the pain in her eyes. She hugged the child close. “I know this makes things different, but just because I remembered my past doesn’t mean I’ve forgotten about you. You’re still very special to me.”

“Really?” Her lower lip trembled. “I wondered if you would forget.”

“I could never forget you.” She smoothed Anna Jane’s bangs out of her eyes. “Didn’t we just go horseback riding yesterday and order presents for your uncle? I haven’t forgotten anything.”

“Good.” Anna Jane snuggled close. “You’re my best friend.” She giggled. “It’s gonna be weird calling you Fallon.”

“I’ll tell you a little secret.” Fallon leaned close and whispered in her ear. “All my sisters and I hate our names. They’re strange. Kids made fun of us when we were growing up. We always wanted normal, pretty names, like yours.”

“Anna Jane isn’t pretty.”

“You’re right,” Fallon said earnestly. “It’s beautiful.”

Anna Jane flushed with pleasure, then turned to the sisters. “Are you really triplets?”

Elissa heard the question. “We sure are,” she said, oving closer and crouching in front of the child. “Identical from birth. Of course, that’s just on the outside. We’re different on the inside.”

“I’d like to hear about that,” Jarrett said, stepping into the room. He carried a tray with drinks. Behind him, Leona had plates of cookies.

“I helped with some of the cookies,” Anna Jane said.

Elissa sat on the other side of the girl. “Tell me which ones. I want to taste those.”

Cole walked to the sofa and perched on the arm by his wife. Kayla and Patrick settled on the love seat opposite. Jarrett passed out drinks to everyone.

Kayla leaned forward. As usual, she wore her hair in a ponytail. Her face was devoid of makeup, yet she looked radiant.

“How are you feeling?” Fallon asked, remembering that her sister was three months pregnant.

“Fabulous, but I don’t want to talk about that. What happened? How did you lose your memory?”

“I don’t remember,” Fallon teased.

Kayla rolled her eyes. “I see you’re still as difficult as ever.”

“I’m not difficult.”

“You can be,” Elissa said. “But not this time. Tell us what you do remember.”

“I found a note in a bottle,” she said.

“I wrote it.” Anna Jane straightened. Her smile faded. “I didn’t mean for you to get hurt, though.”

“I know, honey. It all worked out.” Fallon squeezed her hand. “The note was from Anna Jane and she was looking for a friend. On the back was a map of the island. I spoke to one of the bartenders and he told me about Jarrett’s house here, but he didn’t know anything about a little girl. He’s the one who told me I could walk on the beach all the way up. It seemed like a good idea at the time.”

Jarrett handed her a glass of soda. “We talked to all the staff. No one said they’d talked to you.”

“I know. Joshua was leaving that afternoon to go home for the holidays. He wasn’t around to be interviewed.”

“I should have thought of that,” Jarrett said as he put the now-empty tray on the table and sat in the wing chair by the tree.

“You’ll know for next time,” she teased.

He raised his eyebrows at her. They shared a quick look that was as much a connection as any conversation or touch. For that split second she knew what he was thinking. The pure moment left her breathless. One question had been answered in spades. Getting her memory back hadn’t changed her feelings about Jarrett at all. She still admired him, liked him and wanted him. The only difference was, now she knew for certain there wasn’t another man in her life.

“Did you fall and hit your head?” Elissa asked.

“No. I fell asleep on a beach in a cove, when I stopped for lunch.” She wrinkled her nose. “Unfortunately it was underwater at high tide. I woke up floating. When I tried to swim around the rocks, I was caught up in the waves and hit my head on the cliffs. That’s the last I remember.”

“I found her,” Anna Jane said, picking up the story. “She was washed up on the beach. Then Uncle Jarrett called the doctor and they brought her inside. She woke up and didn’t remember who she was.”

Neither Kayla nor Elissa looked relieved by the telling of the story. “How badly were you hurt?” Kayla asked, clutching Patrick’s hand.

“Just a few bruises.” Fallon touched her face. “They’re gone now. Except for the memory loss, I was fine in a couple of days. Jarrett was nice enough to let me stay here.”

She glanced at him again. He gave her a quick smile. Instantly her heartbeat increased and she felt her skin get all prickly.

Jarrett picked up the story. “I made inquiries at the hotel, but no one came forward to claim her. When we checked reservations, there weren’t any for a single person.”

He outlined the events of the past week. Fallon noticed he never mentioned his distrust of her, which wasn’t surprising. She wondered what he thought of her now. Obviously she had lost her memory and wasn’t the gold digger he’d feared. Would that change things between them? She decided it wouldn’t. In the past couple of days Jarrett seemed to have made a decision about her. His willingness to talk about his past proved that. Obviously he’d decided to believe her even before he’d found out the truth. The realization made her glow from the inside out.

As Jarrett continued to talk with her sisters and their husbands, Fallon rosé to her feet and crossed to the window. She turned around and studied the room. The homey scene made her feel content. Her sisters were here, and she was with Jarrett and Anna Jane. It was as if she’d finally found a place to belong.

She stifled a smile. Obviously, she was taking too much for granted in the situation. She’d been a houseguest forced on Jarrett. He’d come to accept her, but that didn’t mean he thought of her as special. Except that he’d kissed and held her. Had that meant as much to him as it had to her?

Now, with her memory back, she knew that while men had kissed her in the past, none of them had moved her the same way. She’d never found herself clinging to a man, wanting to touch and be touched.

She brushed her hands over her shorts. At the smooth feel of the fabric, she glanced down. The casual white shorts and cropped peach T-shirt weren’t anything like her normal tailored style. She fingered her loose hair. That was different, too. Yet she still felt comfortable. Had being Ariel changed Fallon? Had losing her memory allowed her to develop a different side of her personality?

“But why did you come here without your sisters?” Anna Jane asked, drawing Fallon back into the conversation.

She shrugged. “Some of it was just circumstances. The school year ended a little early and I thought it would be fun to spend some time in paradise on my own.” She shook her head. “I was wrong. Within twenty-four hours I was tired of my own company. That’s why I was so excited when I found your note in the bottle. It was a mystery and it gave me something to do.”

“What if you hadn’t come early?” Anna Jane asked. “You wouldn’t have found my note and then you wouldn’t be here now.”

Without conscious thought, Fallon glanced at Jarrett. He met her gaze. What if, she thought. What if Anna Jane was right? Then she, Fallon, never would have met the precious child or her tempting uncle. Was that all this was—a quirk of fate?

“Weren’t you terrified?” Elissa asked. “I can’t imagine what it would be like not to remember who I was.”

“The worst was that I thought no one was looking for me,” Fallon told her. “I couldn’t believe I was alone.”

“At least now I know why you never called,” Kayla said. “I kept expecting you to phone with an update on how you liked the resort.” She covered her mouth for a second and grinned. “Not that it isn’t fabulous, Jarrett.”

“Thanks.” He leaned forward in his chair. “Now it’s my turn to ask a few questions, if you don’t mind.”

“Sure,” Elissa and Kayla said together. Fallon didn’t say anything. She wasn’t so sure.

She knew she was right to worry when she saw the twinkle in Jarrett’s dark eyes. “Obviously the three of you are identical triplets, but one of you mentioned being different on the inside.” He glanced between her two sisters before settling on Kayla. “You said Fallon was difficult. How?”

Fallon was impressed that he could already tell the triplets apart. She knew there were enough minor differences that close friends and family knew who was whom, and their different styles of dressing helped. Even so, strangers found the task impossible. She supposed Jarrett would be able to pick her out easily, which left deciding between Kayla and Elissa. Still, he’d done well.

Kayla laughed. “Gee, big sister, should I spill all your secrets?”

“No,” Fallon said. “But you’re not going to listen to me anyway. You never do.”

“True,” Kayla agreed brightly. “Okay, here goes. Fallon is the oldest, Elissa is in the middle, and I’m the youngest. Because she had those first few minutes as an only child, Fallon is the boss of everything. When we were growing up, she used to tell us what to do all the time.”

Fallon leaned against the window frame. “That is so untrue. I tried to be responsible while you were running around like a maniac.”

“Right.” Kayla dismissed her with a wave and turned toward Jarrett. “She’s very conservative and proper. You know, the clichè of a schoolteacher. Fallon always does the right thing. She makes these lists about everything and organizes her life. And she expects the same from the rest of us. This makes her difficult.”