by Amy Hale
“Listen, Colt, something has happened. A man showed up, claiming to be her father.”
That got his attention. He sat upright, letting the sheet fall to his waist. “No kidding. Do you think he’s legit?”
“I’m not sure. He gave me some interesting but disturbing details, including her real name.”
Colt looked at the woman lying next to him. “So, she might finally get the answers she’s been looking for.”
“Possibly. I didn’t say I knew her, only that I’d keep an eye out. He gave me his number in case I heard anything. I thought it would be best for Jane to make this decision.”
“Agreed.” Colt continued to watch her sleep as he let the news sink in.
“I’ll text you the info he gave me. You two can discuss it from there. If she wants me there, I’m happy to be a mediator. Just let me know.”
“Thanks, Doc. I know she appreciates it.”
“Keep me posted, Colt.”
Dr. Weston hung up, and Colt placed his phone back on the nightstand.
He had an odd feeling about this family business. Something in his gut told him to be careful, but that wasn’t his call. He hoped Jane would feel it, too, and not rush into anything. He reached over and lightly ran his fingers across the back of her neck, brushing away a couple of stray strands of her hair. Then, he leaned over and placed a warm kiss at the base of her neck. She stirred for a moment, so he continued to shower soft kisses down her back. She stretched and rolled over to see him hovering over her.
Jane smiled. “Mmm…I haven’t slept that well in days.” She looked out the window. “Is it morning already?”
Colt kissed her on the lips and then settled next to her, his head resting on his hand. “Yes, it’s morning. You’re welcome by the way.”
“I am? What am I welcome for exactly?”
“The amazing sleep.”
“And just how was that your doing?”
He gave her a wicked grin. “I satisfied your every need and completely wore you out.”
She rolled her eyes. “Yes, I’m sure it was that and not the fact that I’ve spent the last couple of nights essentially camping out in the forest.”
He stretched out on his back and put his hands behind his head. “Never underestimate the value of a good roll in the hay.”
She laughed. “I’ll remember that.” Then, she sat up and swung her legs over the edge of the bed. “I’ll also remember that you have a colossal ego.”
As she stood, Colt’s arms grabbed her, pulling her backward. He was pressed against her back—one arm securing her to him, the other reaching around to roam her body.
He whispered in her ear, “Admit it. You like my colossal…ego.”
She laughed again and tried to push away, but he held his grip.
“Colt, I need to get up.”
He growled in her ear, “So do I.”
“Oh, dear God…I can’t even have a simple conversation with you without it turning sexual.”
He shrugged. “You’re the one saying all the dirty stuff.” Then, he laughed and let her go.
She threw a pillow at him and then shut herself in the bathroom.
He sat on the bed and contemplated their next move. He grabbed his phone again and scanned the text message Dr. Weston had sent. He supposed the next step would be to meet this Mr. Daniels, assuming Jane was even interested.
Deep down, he knew she would be. The possibility of knowing her identity and having a family connection would be too great a pull to ignore. He’d just have to ensure he was by her side, giving her whatever support she needed each step of the way.
She exited the bathroom and grabbed her clothes from the nearby armchair. As she started to dress, Colt gathered his own clothes.
Once they were both dressed, he pulled her into a hug. “Are you hungry?”
“Famished.”
“I’ll make breakfast.”
Colt busied himself with mixing pancakes and frying sausage. Jane watched, hoping to learn something about cooking since her skills were nonexistent. He enlisted her help, insisting she would learn by doing. In no time, they had a warm meal before them. She attacked her breakfast with enthusiasm and spent part of the meal declaring that pancakes were officially her favorite food.
After they cleaned up, Colt led her to the sofa. “I might have some news. I don’t know if it’s good or bad yet, but it’s a possible lead to your past.”
Jane’s eyes went wide. “Really?” She’d almost given up on finding information about the person she used to be.
“Doc called this morning. He met a man claiming to know who you are.”
She smiled. “That’s amazing!”
He didn’t seem as enthused. She figured this was where the bad news would come in.
“What’s the catch?” she asked.
“No catch. Maybe a complication. Maybe not. It might be a great thing, sweetheart. I just don’t know yet.”
“So? Don’t keep me in suspense!”
“He claims to be your father.”
Jane stared at him in disbelief. “My father?” She wondered if it were actually possible. She didn’t consider herself a fortunate person, and this almost seemed too good to be true.
Colt gave her hand a squeeze. “You don’t have to meet him, if you aren’t comfortable. Doc didn’t tell him you were here. He just said he’d keep an eye out for you. That way, you could make the decision to meet this man or not.”
She nodded, seeing the logic in Dr. Weston’s judgment. “I appreciate his thoughtfulness.” She twisted her fingers together as she considered her options. Looking up at Colt, she nodded. “I need to meet him. Nothing says I have to have further contact with him, but I at least need to try.”
Colt attempted a smile to encourage her, but he was struggling to make it look genuine. He wasn’t sure what he was worried about. It was just a meeting after all. But his gut twisted at the prospect. He considered the possibility that he was just being selfish. He liked having her to himself, and he’d never been too good at sharing anything that meant something to him. It was entirely plausible that he was afraid her family would take her away from him or warn her against him. It wouldn’t be the first time a concerned father stepped in to keep his daughter from falling in love with Colt.
He shook off his doubts. He was determined to be happy for her, regardless of the outcome. “When do you want to meet him? Doc said he could set it up, or we could call Mr. Daniels directly.”
“Mr. Daniels. My last name is Daniels?”
“So he claims. Alice Daniels, to be exact.”
She let the name roll off her tongue a couple of times. It felt right. It felt familiar, yet she wasn’t ready to claim it. “Let’s stick with Jane for now.”
“There are some other things you need to know about. They aren’t all good.”
She inhaled a deep breath. “Okay. Well, let’s set up the meeting for tomorrow, somewhere public. That will give me time to let all this new information sink in. I’ll do this one step at a time. Until then, I have something I need to show you. And I need to find my backpack.”
Colt gave her a questioning look.
She explained further, “I hid it in a log near an area where I set up camp. I overexerted myself and woke up in the hospital. The two guys who found me didn’t know about the pack, so I need to go back and get it.”
“Overexerted? What two guys?”
Jane gave him an exasperated look. “The short version is that I passed out, and two hikers found me and took me to the emergency room. I woke up and didn’t want to be there, so I left. That was when Lance found me, and we got something to eat. You know the rest.”
At the mention of Lance, Jane noticed a muscle twitching in Colt’s jaw.
Silly man. Can’t he see I only have eyes for him?
“Anyway, something amazing happened while I was gathering my thoughts out there. I want to show you.”
She grabbed his hand and pulled him toward the fr
ont door. He grabbed his keys off an entry table as they passed it, and then he locked up behind them. She walked toward the bike while fashioning her hair into a quick braid to avoid the tangles she’d battled the previous evening.
Colt hesitantly followed but seemed less than enthused about the upcoming trip.
“C’mon, big guy. I promise, you’ll like this surprise.”
He sat on the motorcycle and waited for her to climb up behind him. Once she was settled, he started the engine.
“So, where do we find the backpack and your surprise?”
“It’s just off of one of the trails not far from your cabin.”
He sighed. “Seriously? I looked there. How did I miss you?”
She laughed. “I wasn’t there until early yesterday. I was slowly making my way back.”
He shook his head in disbelief, raised the kickstand with his boot, and pulled out of the driveway.
Jane spent the next forty-five minutes watching the scenes change from town to country and back again. When they pulled onto the familiar dirt road leading to Colt’s cabin, she couldn’t help but think of how this was where it had all started for them. She smiled at the thought of Colt taking care of her even though he hadn’t known her at the time. Now, look at where they were. It seemed poetic in a strange way.
Arriving at the cabin, Colt went inside for a couple of bottles of water. He handed one to Jane. “Lead the way.”
“Thank you.” She smiled at him.
It was very much like the smiles he remembered from when he’d first met her. It was full of sunshine and vibrancy. Somewhere along the way, she’d lost that, and he was glad to see it had returned.
He reached out and caressed her jaw. “I missed that smile.”
She blushed a little as she stepped forward and put her arms around his neck. She softly kissed him and then stepped back. “This way.”
She led the way down one of the lesser-traveled paths, but after about half a mile, she veered off between some bushes and followed a trail that only she seemed to see. Colt followed behind, hoping she knew where she was going. It wasn’t long before she was jogging toward a large log near a small clearing.
“Here it is!” She pulled the backpack from the hollow log and dusted it off.
“Great. Glad you found it.” He looked around. “So, what’s this surprise you keep talking about?”
She absentmindedly waved a hand at him as she faced the clearing. “So impatient.”
He grinned but said nothing.
She smirked and motioned for him to come closer. He stepped next to her.
She pointed to the clearing in front of them. “What do you see?”
He looked puzzled. “I see weeds and grass.”
“What would you like to see?”
He looked at her. “You. Naked. In my bed.”
She gave him a playful shove. “No, not that. I mean, in the field. What is your favorite flower?”
He raised an eyebrow at her. “I’m pretty sure I’d get my balls confiscated if I actually had a favorite flower—man code and all.”
“Ugh. You are so frustrating! Fine. Name a flower, any flower.”
Colt had no idea what she was getting at, but he’d humor her. He named the first thing he could think of, “Dandelion.”
“Dandelion? That’s a weed, too, Colt.”
“Hey, it has color and petals and crap.”
She rolled her eyes. “Fair enough. Now, watch.”
She closed her eyes and allowed joy and life to fill her thoughts and her heart. The colors in her mind swirled until they resembled a field of yellow. She opened her eyes and raised one hand in front of her. Squatting down, she touched the earth and let the emotion flow through her fingertips.
Colt’s eyes widened as he watched dandelions sprouting from the ground, starting at Jane’s fingers and making their way through the clearing until the entire area looked like a landscaper’s nightmare.
Jane stood and turned to him, beaming with pride.
He slowly looked back to her. “How in the hell?”
She giggled with an almost giddy excitement.
“But…” He was speechless. Then, a wide grin replaced his confusion. “You did it? You figured it out?”
She nodded her head. “I did! It took lots of practice, but I’m learning to use these gifts for something other than destroying things and scaring or hurting people.”
He picked her up and swung her around. “That’s fantastic!”
He kissed her soundly. “But remember, those other times, you were protecting yourself. That’s not a bad thing.”
“I know, but I couldn’t control it. Now, I can—for the most part anyway.”
He wrapped his arms around her tighter. “So, what else can you do?”
She smiled sheepishly. “I can sorta control the weather.”
“No damn way!”
“Not in big ways. Just little things. Like the night it rained so badly? I was able to keep dry, thanks to some very accommodating clouds.”
He looked at her with amazement. “I’m proud of you for not giving up. I’m sorry I assumed you were running from your problems.”
“To be honest, at first, I was. But once I got out here, my curiosity overcame my fear.”
“Speaking of curiosity and fear, we should get back to the cabin and call Doc to set up that meeting.”
She nodded and then turned to grab her backpack. Colt picked it up before she had the chance, and he slung it over his shoulder. With his other hand, he grasped hers. They walked, hand in hand, toward the path and back to the cabin.
At ten the next morning, Jane and Colt sat on a park bench, waiting for Dr. Weston to arrive with the mysterious Mr. Daniels. Jane was once again twisting her fingers, letting her nerves get the better of her. Colt placed a hand over hers to still her busy fingers.
“I’m right here, beautiful. Nothing is going to happen that you don’t want to happen.”
She nodded in agreement but didn’t seem to relax at all.
“Besides, if he turns out to be a dirtbag, you can zap him with your powers and turn him into a toad.”
She couldn’t help but laugh. “I’m not a witch, Colt.” She thought about it for a moment longer. “Am I? Don’t witches use spells and stuff?”
Colt smiled at her. “I haven’t the foggiest idea. I’ve never met one.”
“Me neither. I didn’t believe they even existed, but now, I wonder.”
She didn’t have time to expound on it further. Dr. Weston and a tall man who looked to be in his fifties approached their bench.
“Jane and Colt, I’d like to introduce Mr. George Daniels. Mr. Daniels, this is Jane and Colt Henderson.”
Mr. Daniels raised his eyebrows in surprise. “Jane and Colt Henderson? Are you married?”
Dr. Weston gave a nervous laugh. “Oh, dear. I’m so sorry. I bungled that introduction. Let me try again.” He gestured to Colt. “This is Colt Henderson. He’s a good friend of Jane’s.” Then, he presented Jane. “This is Jane, the young lady I was telling you about.”
George shook Jane’s hand and warmly smiled at her. “My dear girl, it’s so very nice to see you.”
Jane looked at the man before her, and a small spark of recognition registered somewhere in her subconscious. “It’s nice to meet you, Mr. Daniels.”
Colt stood and offered his hand as well. When George placed his hand in Colt’s grasp, he felt his strength and the underlying message Colt was sending him. Colt expected him to be exactly who he’d said he was, or he’d face the consequences. He gave Colt an acknowledging nod and then stepped back.
George cleared his throat. “I know this is unconventional, but would it be possible for me to speak with my daughter—I mean, Miss Jane alone for a few minutes?”
Colt started to step between them, but Jane placed a hand on his arm.
“It’s okay, Colt. We’ll go sit at that table over there. I promise, we’ll stay in sight.”
&nb
sp; Colt didn’t like it at all, but he knew that Jane had to do what she thought was necessary.
“I’ll be right here, watching. If anything looks off, I’m coming over there.”
Dr. Weston, in his effort to be her champion as well, chimed in, “Me, too!”
She squeezed Colt’s arm and smiled at Dr. Weston. Then, she walked to the nearby picnic table with the man she thought to be her father.
She was acutely aware of George’s mannerisms, noting that each gesture felt familiar. Even the inflection in his voice seemed to register with her in a way she couldn’t explain.
He pulled a photo from his shirt pocket and passed it across to her.
“This is a photo of my daughter, Alice, when she was around twelve. I assume Dr. Weston explained my situation to you?”
“Yes, he did.” She studied the photo, familiar eyes staring back at her from the worn paper. Her hand shook. “Oh God.”
George looked concerned and reached for her other hand. “Are you okay?”
She dropped the photo and clamped her hand over her mouth. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Colt stalking toward them. She waved him away, assuring him all was fine. He stopped, unsure if he should continue forward or turn around. He watched her for a moment and then walked back to Dr. Weston.
She looked at George. “I’m okay. She just looks like someone I know.” She wasn’t about to tell him that Alice was the little girl in her visions. She wasn’t ready to disclose that information to a stranger, father or not.
He gazed at her and smiled. “She looks like you. I know this all seems crazy. Dr. Weston told me you had no memories of your life before your accident, but I can feel it in my heart. You are Alice Daniels.”
She looked at him, wide-eyed and conflicted. A part of her really wanted to believe him. Another part wanted to run and forget she’d ever met him. She didn’t know which to trust.
He sighed. “Listen, it’s a lot to adjust to at once. Take some time to think. Ask me any questions you might have. If you decide you aren’t Alice, I’ll leave you alone. But if even a tiny part of you feels recognition, please allow me to try to reconcile—on your terms, of course.”
