Cam stood dumbfounded as his girlfriend was enveloped in another man’s arms.
Roxie was just as confounded. She stared at Lexie, trying to understand what was happening. Level-headed, careful Lexie had run right to the scary dude.
The man sucked in air so loudly, Roxie worried he was having a heart attack. She actually made a move towards the phone behind the bar when he lifted his head and looked right at her.
“You’re mine,” he said, his strong voice wavering. Keeping Lexie close, he held out his other arm. His voice gained strength. “You’re all mine.”
Maxie’s chair rasped against the floor as she slowly stood. “Dad?”
Dad?
The word was like a dead weight in Roxie’s head. It just fell and sat there.
The handsome, hard man didn’t look so scary when he looked at Roux. “Go get your mother and brother out of the car. Get them in here. Now!”
“Daddy,” Maxie said in a small voice. Tears welled in her eyes as she timidly rounded the table. She took a few steps in the man’s direction. When he held out his hand to her, she let out a shuddering breath and walked into his arms. She tucked her face into his neck as he held her in one arm and Lexie in the other.
“Roxie?” the man called. His eyes were soft now, not scary at all. “Come here, baby.”
Roxie shuddered. She wanted to move, but she couldn’t. What the fuck? None of this made sense. She felt like she’d jumped into the middle of a silent movie. She couldn’t make heads or tails of anything.
“Rox, are you okay?” Billy gave her a shake and bent his head close. “Are you in there?”
She was not in shock. She was just… confused. She knew what everybody thought. She wasn’t stupid. She was tracking the course of the dialogue, but she’d been disappointed too many times before.
She was not going to be disappointed again. She’d been down that road too many times, only to have her hopes dashed.
Still, her gaze locked on Roux as he hurried to the bar door. Skeeter held it open for him, and he disappeared out into the night. Her fingernails bit into her palms as she waited… and waited. Just when she was about to run after him, she saw movement.
Skeeter grinned, and Roxie caught Billy’s hand.
A kid walked in, another Roux look-alike, only even younger. Maybe high school age. Roxie shook her head. He definitely shouldn’t be here. This was no Chuck E. Cheese’s. She was about to throw the lot of them out when she heard the murmur of a feminine voice.
“Roux, I don’t understand. What’s going on? Why did we drive all the way here to this place?”
Roux came in the door, and Roxie laser-focused on the woman who was walking behind him. A breathtakingly beautiful woman with long dark hair.
Roxie just knew she’d smell like lavender.
“Mom,” she breathed.
The chains of paralysis popped open, and she was suddenly moving. A chair got in her way, and it banged against the floor as she pushed it aside. “Mom!”
The woman snapped to attention. She spun away from Roux, her gaze searching. When it landed on Roxie, her mouth dropped open in surprise. The pretty woman stepped forward, a cry wrenching from her lips. She reached out a hand, but then her eyes glazed over.
And she dropped in a dead faint.
The teenager had fast reflexes. He caught his mother before she hit the floor, but he staggered a bit under her leaden weight. “Help.”
Zac moved in fast.
“No!” Roxie gasped. Her heels smacked against the floor at a gunfire pace as she covered the last few feet that separated them.
“Alexis!” the man said sharply.
Roxie got there first. Zac and the kid had guided the woman down to a comfortable spot on the floor. Roxie’s hand trembled as she pushed the stranger’s hair out of her face. It was dark and wavy, so soft. She tucked the strand behind the pretty woman’s ear. Her skin was warm, and she was breathing, panting lightly.
Roxie leaned closer and the familiar scent of lavender wafted over her.
“Alexis.” The tough guy moved like lightning to his wife’s side. Dropping down onto his haunches, he reached out to test her pulse.
Roxie looked at him, wide-eyed. Her heart was beating in her ears. She recognized the curve of his cheekbones now. Her breath caught at the auburn highlights in his hair. She’d seen both traits in her sisters.
“Dad?” she whispered.
His gaze flashed up to hers and, for a moment, the concern on his face was replaced by happiness. Warmth spread through Roxie’s chest when he reached out and stroked a finger down her cheek. “There you are, Rocket.”
Her breath caught in her lungs and stuck there like a fist.
“A chair,” Lexie ordered, her voice still shaking. Not waiting for anyone else or trusting anyone else, she pulled a chair away from the table they’d all abandoned. “Put her here. Make her comfortable.”
Maxie stood staring in disbelief. “She faints like I do.”
Zac pulled his girlfriend close and kissed the top of her head.
Billy moved to the bar. When he came to the table, he had a glass of water and a wet rag. Roxie quickly swiped up the cold compress. At some point, she’d taken her mother’s limp hand. She wasn’t about to let it go. She followed along as the man—her dad—settled her mom into the chair.
Roxie shook her head. The concept just wouldn’t sink in. Was this really happening?
She wasn’t going to miss out on a moment of the dream if it wasn’t. She knelt by the chair as close as she could get. She smoothed the cold rag over the woman’s forehead and then the back of her neck. She looked so young. So delicate.
“Alexis. Come on, babe. You don’t want to miss this.”
“Here.” Maxie spread her jacket over the unconscious woman. “Keep her warm.”
“Alexis,” the man kept repeating. Bending his head close, he pressed his mouth to her ear. “Wake up.”
That, finally, got through. The woman’s eyes fluttered. Her eyelids opened, but drooped, only to lift again. When she finally snapped to, there was confusion on her face. Her gaze tracked over the lights, the jukebox, and the bar. Her brow furrowed when she didn’t recognize any of it.
“Allie.”
She followed the voice, and her shoulders relaxed when she saw her husband. “Dex?”
His hard face was gentle as he looked down at her. He kissed the small hand he held so tightly. “It’s all right. You fainted.”
“Oh, damn,” she murmured, making Roxie smile.
She tried to sit up. She pushed back her hair and looked at her hand strangely when she found dampness. That same wet cloth was making a puddle on the floor and wetting Roxie’s knee, but she didn’t care. She didn’t even notice.
“I had the most vivid dream,” Alexis murmured. She licked her lips, but her gaze was sad when she looked at her husband. “I saw Roxie. She was grown up and so pretty.”
“It wasn’t a dream, sweetheart,” Dex said gruffly.
The laxness went out of the woman’s body. Her hands clamped down on the arms of the chair and her feet hit the floor. Feet that were clad in the most awesome pair of brown boots.
She shook her head slowly. “Don’t,” she warned.
“I’m not.” Dex let out a shuddering breath as he leaned his forehead against hers. “Roux found our babies. Allie, our girls are here.”
Chapter Fifteen
Roxie’s heart panged when her mother let out a heart-stricken sound. Alexis pushed herself up in the chair and looked frantically around the room. Roxie squeezed her hand and felt it deep down inside when her gaze connected with her mom’s for the first time in over twenty-five years.
The fear on Alexis’ face turned to caution and wonder, yet the hand that squeezed back was fierce. Roxie suddenly found it difficult to breathe. Those were the eyes in her dreams, the gentle dark eyes filled with so much love. When she finally managed to inhale, the scent of lavender filled her lungs.
Rox
ie’s head spun, and her stomach clenched as if she’d been punched. She was afraid to believe. It was too much.
She couldn’t take this.
Yet when the beautiful woman cupped her cheek, she couldn’t move. They sat in stillness, inches apart, as they both evaluated each other.
“Roxie?” Alexis whispered.
Roxie broke. Tears fell from her eyes, and she lurched forward to press her face into the woman’s soft hair. “Mom!”
“Oh, my God,” Alexis said, clutching tight. “Oh, my God!”
Roxie held on for all she was worth. She’d begun to think it was all a dream—the pictures she saw in her head, the ones she was afraid were fading.
“Oh, baby,” her mom murmured softly. “I’ve missed you so much.”
Roxie squeezed her eyes tight, and she held and held and held.
“Mom?” said someone timidly behind her.
Roxie felt a kiss against her temple. “I need to see your sisters. I have to know it’s true.”
Her sisters. She had to share. It wasn’t something that Roxie was accustomed to, but she could get used to it. Her vision was watery as she pulled back. She watched as her mother searched for a brief second and then pure joy came over her face.
“Lexie! Maxie!”
The weakness that had come over Alexis vaporized and she came out of her chair as if propelled. Roxie let go of her hand, albeit unwillingly, to watch the reunion.
Her chest was aching so much, it felt like it must have a gaping hole. But no, that was wrong. It was just the opposite. The gaping hole that had been in her chest her entire life felt overfilled. Overflowing.
She jumped when a strong, warm hand clamped firmly over the nape of her neck. “You always were a momma’s girl, but I want my turn, too.”
The words were gruff and the pull was inexorable as Roxie stood and turned into her father’s arms. He held her tight against his hard form. He felt big and powerful and protective. She soaked up the sensation and inhaled deeply. A bit of sadness hit her when she didn’t remember his scent. He smelled clean and tangy.
With her cheek still pressed against his chest, she looked up at him. He had a five o’clock shadow. In wonder, she reached up to stroke it. His eyes were wet as he looked down at her, this big, tough, scary man who held her like she was fine china.
Her brow furrowed. How could she have forgotten him? He was so handsome, so commanding… and so young.
Too young. This was a man in his prime. She saw no gray hairs, and there was definitely no paunch. The only wrinkles she saw were creases around his eyes… eyes that were watching her as astutely as she was watching him.
This guy was in his forties. He might be old enough to be Roux’s father, but hers?
“Are you really my dad?”
“Yeah.” He let out a shuddering breath and ruffled her hair. “I’d recognize you anywhere, Rocket.”
Roxie straightened, a hint of a memory lingering on the edges of old thoughts.
Before it could fully form, she saw someone out of the corner of her eye and she snagged him. “Get over here, Kanga.”
“Kanga?” Dex repeated.
Roux came over, his head dipped. He wasn’t looking at either of them, but she could see his eyes were damp. He rubbed them with the back of his hand. “It’s not R-o-o.”
“Kanga,” their dad repeated, catching on. He let out a laugh that quickly turned deep and buoyant.
Heads turned in their direction, and the mood in the bar turned from angst-ridden to joyous. One little sound. One opening of emotion that wasn’t hurt, scared, or deprived sent the place into cheers.
Roxie fisted her hand in Roux’s T-shirt and tugged him into the hug. “Why didn’t you tell me?” she demanded.
“I wasn’t sure. It was just a hunch. I saw the billboard a few weeks ago when I started classes. You look so much like Mom.”
“You’ve been here practically every night since that news story. Couldn’t you have given me a hint?”
“I tried to get answers out of you, but nothing added up.” Roux looked at his father apologetically. “I couldn’t get everyone’s hopes up.”
His voice turned garbled. “It would have killed Mom if it wasn’t true.”
They all glanced over her way. Maxie was taking her turn reuniting with her mother as Zac looked on. Roxie was surprised at how similar they looked. When they hugged, it was hard to tell them apart. Their mother looked like their older sister. She was sleek and trim, and her clothes were trendy.
“Well, it would have helped if I’d known you spelled your name with an ‘x’,” Roxie complained. Impulsively, she gave her brother a big kiss on the cheek. “Mwaaah.”
She had a brother.
She was so happy, she could barely stand it. When she saw a lone figure hovering nearby, she grabbed him, too. Make that brothers with an “s.”
“Mwaaah.” She plastered kisses all over what had to be her youngest sibling’s face. He squirmed and turned red. Finally, Roxie pulled back. “What’s your name, handsome?”
He stuffed his hands in his pockets. “Maddox.”
He was young, but out of them all, he’d be the biggest heartbreaker. Roxie knew that in a flash. He looked like the high school quarterback and the shy loner all wrapped up in one. She never expected she’d have to use her pepper spray against teenage girls, but no bubble-headed tramp was going to get her claws into this one. “Hi, Maddox with an ‘x’. I’m your big sister, Roxie.”
He finally grinned. “I’ve heard stories about you.”
Her breath caught. “Really?”
The kid looked over at the other two women who looked so much like her. “I’ve heard stories about all of you.”
Roxie didn’t know why that surprised her, but it did. She hadn’t known they existed—any of them—but someone remembered her as a little girl. A time she couldn’t remember herself. “Maxie. Lexie. We have brothers!”
Her sisters hurried over, smiling and crying. Lexie took a turn hugging Roux, and Maxie caught Maddox’s hand. Roxie pulled away to let them have their turn.
Leaning her head against her dad’s shoulder, she tried to get her emotions under control. “Stories?” she murmured.
She wanted to hear them all.
He tucked a curl behind her ear. “You, in particular, were hell on wheels.”
“She still is.”
Billy! Roxie spun. She’d forgotten about him entirely. He was standing right behind her. She took one look at his face and leapt at him, arms open wide. She’d found her family. The dream had come true, and he was there to take part in it. The impact was enough to send him back a step, but he caught her and stayed upright.
“Congratulations, babe,” he whispered into her ear.
“It came true.” Her impossible dream had come true.
“I see that.”
“And I’ve got you back, too.” Her gaze lifted, catching his brilliant green one. He was so tall, so strong, so sexy… and so hers.
Impulsively, Roxie went up onto her toes and kissed him. Wholeheartedly and lustily. He fisted his hand in her hair and lifted her right off the ground. She kicked up her heels and hoots and more hollers rang throughout the bar.
Billy was breathing hard when he put her back on her feet. Sheepishly, he held out his hand to the tough guy who’d just claimed her as a daughter. “Billy Cannon. I’m Roxie’s husband.”
Her father’s eyebrows jumped up in surprise, but he caught Billy’s hand and gave it a firm shake. “Dexter Jones. I’m Roxie’s dad.”
For such an imposing man, his voice cracked on the word.
“Jones,” Billy whispered into her ear. “It really was your last name.”
Roxie swallowed hard. She’d had a name. She’d had an identity.
Tears stung her eyes again, and she waved her hands. Enough with weeping and blubbering.
“Come on,” she said, catching her dad’s hand. “Sit down. I think we all need to talk.”
Intro
ductions were made all around as more chairs were pulled up to the table. Maxie introduced Zac and Lexie held Cam’s hand tightly as she introduced him as her significant other.
Finally, Dex and Alexis sat down, their chairs close enough that they could hold hands. Their intertwined fingers turned white, but neither complained and neither let go. Reaching out, Roxie latched onto Billy, holding him the same way.
They took the chairs near her mother. Roxie stared so hard she felt like a stalker, but she couldn’t help it. She didn’t want to help it.
“I can’t believe this is happening,” Lexie said shakily. Cam helped her to a seat next to her father. She reached out timidly, her pinkie finger brushing her dad’s hand. He latched on tightly. With a shuddering sigh, she leaned her head against his shoulder. Lexie had spent so much time trying to please her adoptive father, but this was the daddy she’d needed. Roxie knew it intuitively.
Meanwhile, Maxie had taken Maddox under her wing. She was smiling as she sat down across the table with Zac and her brothers. The girl who’d grown up an only child suddenly had four siblings. She’d come a long way. Instead of fainting, she seemed to be taking it in stride.
As was Blaire. She was watching everything with keen interest. She took a seat by Roux, who didn’t seem so distracted anymore.
Roxie glanced over her shoulder when Charlie squeezed it.
“Bourbon?” he asked.
She laughed. That sounded perfect. “All around, except for those two.”
She nodded at Blaire and Maddox, who seemed surprised.
“I love ya, kids, but I’m not going to lose my liquor license on you.”
Alexis looked at her sharply. “This is your place?”
Roxie was caught off-guard and, for a moment, didn’t know what to say. The Ruckus was a biker bar. She’d never been embarrassed by it, and she wasn’t going to start now. Yet it wasn’t pretty or dainty or somewhere most people would want their daughter working.
But her life was what she’d made of it. Tilting her head, she said quietly. “Yes.”
The smile that settled on her mother’s face was warm and happy. “You have your own business? I’m so proud of you.”
Roxie Page 21
