Rescued Page 9

  Chapter Ten

  Alex blew an errant strand of hair out of her eyes and wrangled the last of a litter of four puppies into the carrier. The pups yipped and whined, noses pressed against the wire door. “I’m taking you to a better place. Trust me.” Her cell phone rang as she reached her car. She set the carrier inside where the air conditioning was running, then glanced at the screen.

  “Hi, Uncle Jack.”

  “Hey, Alex. Are you busy right now?”

  She glanced into the car at the carrier that rocked as the puppies wriggled inside. “Sort of. What’s up?”

  “I need you to stop by the grill. Can you do that?”

  “You need me to take an early shift?”

  “No. I’d like to talk to you. It’s kind of urgent.”

  Alex frowned. He sounded vague, mysterious. “Is something wrong?”

  “No, not wrong. There’s something we need to discuss.”

  His reply was too quick. Panic caused a flutter in her chest. “Oh, no. Is it Kellie?”

  “It’s not Kellie. Look, just come by as soon as you can, okay?”

  “I’ll be there in ten minutes.” She shoved the phone back into her hip pocket and got into the car.

  When Alex reached the grill, she realized she couldn’t take the carrier of puppies inside the kitchen or restaurant and she couldn’t leave them in the car. She removed the carrier and headed up the steps to Uncle Jack’s upstairs apartment where she deposited the puppies in the bathroom and hastily filled a small bowl of water. “Be good, guys. And stay quiet. I’ll be back soon.”

  She hurried down the steps, through the dining area and into the kitchen. “I have a carrier filled with puppies upstairs in the bathroom. What’s going on?”

  Jack wiped his hands on a dishtowel and pointed toward a bar stool next to the freezer. “You might want to sit down.”

  She edged back, settling unsteadily on the stool. “What’s going on?”

  “There’s someone here to see you. He’s….” Jack nodded toward the dining room. “He’s out there.”

  “Who is he?”

  Jack drew in a deep breath and exhaled heavily. “You need to listen for a minute.” He sat on the stool next to hers. “When your mom left, she didn’t say much about you or Kellie. Your…past.”

  “That’s an understatement. She didn’t even say goodbye. What’s this got to do with my mother?” Her heart began to pound and her palms dampened. She pressed them down onto her knees.

  “Neither your grandfather nor I knew much about your mother’s friends, her relationships. She didn’t talk about the men in her life.”

  Alex tried to read between his words. “So the guy who’s here to see me was involved with my mother?”

  Jack lifted his gaze to meet hers. “Honey, his name is Lex Stanford.” Jack took hold of her hand. “He says he’s your father.”

  Those words were like a bucket of ice water tossed over her. Alex shivered and fought to draw breath. She shook her head. “No, that can’t be.”

  Jack put and arm around her and drew her close. “It could be. I have to tell you, he has the same eyes and chin as you.”

  Alex slid off the stool and paced to the counter, leaning on it for support, fearing her legs would give out. Her father? She strode to the swinging doors, opened one a few inches and peered into the dining room. Her gaze swept across the patrons seated at the bar and a couple she knew at one of the tables, settling on a man seated alone in a booth. He had tawny brown hair flecked with gray. He wore jeans and a white shirt with the sleeves rolled up.

  Lex? Perhaps an abbreviation of Alexander? Had she been named for her father, a man she’d never even met? She backed away from the door and turned toward her uncle. “Did you ask him where he’s been for almost thirty years?” She curled her fingers, digging painfully into her palms. “What? He heard about my inheritance from Amy and came for his share?” The panic morphed into anger.

  Jack walked toward her. “He swears he didn’t even know about you until a few weeks ago.”

  Tears blurred her vision and she angrily swept them away. “So what am I supposed to do now? Walk out there, call him Daddy and curl up in his lap?”

  Jack lifted his hands. “Alex, I know this is a shock. But I think you should at least hear him out. Go and talk with him. I’ll be right here if you need me. He seems like a decent guy.”

  She whirled at her uncle. “Decent? He got my mother pregnant and walked away. That was decent?”

  “He claims she never told him about you. I believe him. Starlet…your mother didn’t exactly think things through. She was like a shooting star most of the time, a brief flash of light, then gone. You might want to talk upstairs.” He moved closer, cautiously resting a hand on her arm. “Honey, if I thought for one minute this guy was here to hurt you, I’d have kicked his ass all the way to Arkansas already. You know that.”

  She nodded. “I know.” She started toward the swinging doors. “I’m not going upstairs with him. I’ll talk to him out there.”

  Jack lifted an eyebrow.

  “No yelling. I promise.” She turned back and wrapped her arms around her uncle, resting her cheek on his chest. “I love you.”

  He kissed the top of her head, holding her tight. “I love you, too, sweetie. You give me one wave, and I’ll be right there to end the conversation.”

  She grinned at him. “Thanks.”

  The man looked up as Alex approached. She stopped, her breath taken away. Did they have the same chin? Eyes? He stood awkwardly. He was tall and lean, looked to be around fifty. His expression was one of uncertainty. “Alexandra?”

  “I’m Alex.”

  “I’m your…. I’m Lex—Alexander Stanford.” He extended his hand.

  Alex stared for a moment and, without taking his hand, slid into the booth and waited.

  Lex sat opposite her, folding his hands together on the table top. “So, I imagine this is quite a shock, huh?”

  “You could say that.”

  He lifted his gaze and studied her face. “You have your mother’s nose and her hair. And you have the Stanford chin.”

  Losing patience and feeling out of control, Alex straightened, her body tense. “What do you want, Mr. Stanford?”

  He drew his head back as if he’d been slapped. “I don’t want anything. I mean, I wanted to see you.”

  “And you have.” She began to stand.

  He reached out, lightly touching her hand. “Please. Just give me a few more minutes.”

  Alex jerked her hand away, but sat down again.

  Lex dragged his fingers through his hair—a habit she had when she was frustrated. “I was a kid when I knew your mother. Studying at Ole Miss. She came down there for a weekend with some of her friends. God, she was beautiful. And what a livewire.”

  “You don’t need to tell me anything about my mother.”

  “I want you to understand. Starlet and I were together for that weekend. I never saw her again. Never knew you existed. If I had….” He paused and swallowed hard. “I’m not the kind of man who walks away from responsibility.”

  “I’m not your responsibility. I never have been.”

  “That wasn’t my choice.” He stared at her, his eyes glistening. “You’re my daughter.”

  The last word seemed to catch in his throat.

  Daughter. The word caught in Alex’s head, too. All those years when she was a kid, wondering why she didn’t have a daddy like the other kids.

  “Starlet called me two weeks ago. Out of the blue. Said she Googled me to track me down. I live in Atlanta.”

  Alex’s head shot up. Her mother was alive?

  “She’s in New Orleans. I went to see her and she told me about you. I promised to find you.”

  “Why? Why now?”

  “Because she’s sick. Alex, she wants to—she needs to see you.”

  “Really? People in hell need ice water. Where was she when I needed a mother, when Kellie needed a mother? Where w
as she?”

  “I can’t answer that and I won’t make excuses for her. Nothing will change the past. I wish I could. I wish I’d seen you grow up.”

  “Yes, well, you didn’t. You can thank Starlet for that.” Alex felt as if the walls were closing in around her and the air was being sucked out of the room. She slid out of the booth and stood. “You’ll have to excuse me. I have work to do.”

  She was aware of Uncle Jack’s eyes on her as she ran from the grill. She took the steps two at a time to the upstairs living quarters, raced to the bathroom, and threw up. When her stomach was empty and she was exhausted, she slumped to the floor. Huge, gulping sobs ripped through her. The puppies whined and yelped in the carrier. Their cries brought her back to reality. She climbed to her feet, rinsed her mouth and splashed water on her face. Then she picked up the carrier and strode down the hall. The door at the end opened as she approached and Evan stepped inside.

  “Hey, what do you have there?”

  She lowered her head and tried to push past him.

  “Alex, wait. Are you okay?”

  “Just dandy. I’m on my way out.”

  She tried again to brush past him, but he caught her free arm. “You’ve been crying.”

  “I’m fine. I have to go.” She wrenched her arm free and slammed out the door.

  Alex set the carrier on the back seat and turned the air conditioning on high. She sat gripping the steering wheel. Her mother, whom she had not seen in twenty-two years, lived five hours away. Hell, Alex had been to New Orleans a few times in the past years, once for a conference and twice for Mardi Gras with Kellie and a few friends. She could have walked right past her mother and not known it.

  The collision of hurt, anger, longing, and resentment sent tremors through her. When she recognized the longing, it only fueled the anger and resentment. She would not allow Starlet to hurt her again. She’d had people in her life, still had people in her life who loved her. She’d done fine without a mother all these years, and she’d be fine without one until the day she died.

  She started the car and sent up a spray of dust and gravel as she pulled from the parking lot. The carrier slid on the back seat and the puppies yelped. “Sorry guys. I’ll slow down. Let’s get you to the shelter for a bath and get the ticks off of you. You’ll feel a lot better soon.”

  But would she?

  She was grateful for once to be short staffed at the shelter. She needed to focus on something and to keep busy. As she bathed each of the pups and examined their bodies, removing ticks, a memory slammed into her consciousness. She was four years old. She had gotten into a fire ant hill while playing and the ants had stung her feet and ankles. After a quick run to the emergency room, her mother settled her in the living room of their small, dingy apartment. The shot she’d been given had helped, but the bites still itched and burned. Her mother took a bag of frozen peas and a bag of lima beans from the fridge, wrapped each in a small towel and placed them over the bites. The relief the cold brought was immediate, but it was the tender touch of her mother’s hands that gave her comfort.

  Alex sighed and placed the newly bathed puppies into a clean kennel. She called Howard to arrange to take them for an examination and shots. They had an adoption event the coming Saturday and needed to find permanent homes for some of these pups.

  Her cell phone rang and she saw Uncle Jack’s name displayed. He was no doubt worried, so she answered.

  “Alex? You okay?”

  “I will be. Is he gone?”

  “Yes. But he left a note with some phone numbers and Starlet’s address.”

  “Throw it away.”

  “Alex….”

  “I’ll be there for my shift at four. We can talk then. Okay?”

  “Okay.”

  She gave the puppies a bowl of food, filled another with water and stepped outside for some fresh air.

  No talking would convince her to call the man who claimed to be her father. And there was no way in hell she was visiting her mother in New Orleans. She wouldn’t go out of her way to visit the woman if she lived around the corner. How she wished Amy was still here. Although a part of her knew Amy would encourage her to hear the man out and to at least give her mother a chance to explain. There was no explanation. Just like there was no good explanation for people who tossed dogs from their cars or abandoned cats in empty houses when they moved away. She supposed she should be grateful her mother had the good sense to at least deliver her and Kellie to their grandfather.

  Alex’s breath caught. Kellie! Lex Stanford had not even mentioned Kellie. Which seemed to confirm their suspicions of each having a different father. How would having Alex’s father turn up announcing their mother wanted to see her, and without mention of Kellie, affect her sister?

  Chapter Eleven

  Alex parked behind the grill and slipped in through the back door. Ludean was unloading a pan of dirty dishes at the sink for rinsing.

  “Hey, Ludean. Where’s Uncle Jack?”

  “Ran upstairs for a minute. He wasn’t sure you was comin’ in tonight, but since you’re here, I’ll be leavin’ in a few. That new kid he hired, Marcus, is s’posed to come in at five to bus tables and take care of the dishes.”

  “Thanks, Ludean.” Alex removed an apron from the wall hook and strapped it on. “Been busy today?”

  “Nah. Been kinda slow lately.”

  “I know.” She looked around the kitchen. “I think Uncle Jack needs to consider an upgrade to attract more patrons.”

  “I hear that new guy is opening a fancy restaurant over next to your animal shelter.”

  “He is.” Alex began to brew iced tea for the dinner crowd. “I don’t think we have to worry, though. Our regular customers are loyal and most folks around here aren’t going to pay the prices he’ll have to charge.”

  “Heard he was hiring.”

  Alex looked up. “Are you thinking of—?”

  Ludean cut her off with a shake of the head. “Not me. I’m too old to take on a new place. Besides, he’s probably going to insist his servers wear uniforms and all that fancy stuff. My niece was goin’ over there today, though.” Ludean gave her a wide, toothy grin. “She can be our spy in the inside if she gets the job.”

  Jack came through the swinging doors and stopped abruptly when he saw Alex. “You’re here.”

  “I’m scheduled to work tonight.” She busied herself adding sweetener to the tea, avoiding his gaze.

  Ludean wiped her hands and removed her apron. “I’m off. See y’all tomorrow.”

  “Goodnight, Ludean,” Jack said. Once the woman was gone, he turned to Alex, “I wasn’t sure you’d come back this evening. You were pretty upset when you left.”

  “We still have a grill to run. And, no, I do not want to talk about Lex Stanford or my mother.” The bell sounded in the dining room, indicating someone had come in. Alex checked the pocket of her apron for her order pad. “I’ll get that.”

  It was fifty-cent wing night at the grill and they were busy, as usual. Alex had been as nervous as a toad crossing the highway and caught herself staring at the door every time someone entered. She half expected Lex to return and finish their conversation. But as far as she was concerned, they were finished.

  Evan came in and took his usual table. Alex drew in a breath and exhaled slowly before approaching. “Evening.” She offered him a menu.

  “Good evening. Isn’t it wing night?”

  She nodded. “It is.”

  “Great. I’ll have an order of hot wings. Do you have Coors light?”

  “We do.” She scribbled his order on the pad. “You want celery and bleu cheese dip with those wings?”

  “Please. Everything okay?”

  “Be right back with your beer.” She was not in the mood to revisit or explain their earlier encounter. She placed his order and delivered the beer—a bottle along with a glass.

  Evan picked up the bottle and took a long draw on it. “Thanks. I’ll probably need another when m
y food comes. And a glass of water, please.”

  “Sure.”

  “It’s kind of quiet in here tonight,” he said.

  “We were busy earlier. You missed it.”

  He stared at her. “Have I done something to offend you?”

  “Not a thing.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “I’m sure. I’ll be back with your order.”

  She was halfway back to his table with his food when the door opened and Lex Stanford walked in. His reappearance so distracted her, she walked into a table, got her foot caught in one of the chairs, and stumbled, sending chicken wings, celery sticks and bleu cheese dressing splattering across the floor.

  Evan saw what was happening and caught her arm in time to keep her from going down. “Easy. You okay?”

  “Thank you. I’m sorry. I’ll have Uncle Jack get another order ready for you.”

  Evan’s gaze traveled from her face to the man standing just inside the door, staring at her. “Is something wrong? Do you know that guy?”

  Alex grabbed a wad of paper napkins from one of the tables and squatted on her haunches to clean up the spilled food. “Nothing’s wrong and, yes, I know who he his.”

  Evan stooped down to help her. “You don’t look happy to see him.”

  “I’m not. And you don’t have to do this. You’re a customer. I can clean up my own messes.” Oh, if only that were true. Technically, Lex wasn’t her mess. He was her mother’s mess, but his intrusion into her life did stir things up. Alex dropped the sopping napkin onto the plate she’d managed to hold onto.

  “You’re shaking,” Evan observed.

  She set the plate on an empty table and wiped her hands on her apron, stealing a glance at Lex who had taken a seat in the same booth he’d occupied earlier. Alex felt lightheaded, as if there wasn’t enough oxygen in the room.