Capture Me

by Sherry Kyle

  Could she forgive him? Forgive Shelly?

  “Ashley, you’re the love of my life.” Bryan reached into his pocket and produced a small box. “You’re my heart and my soul.”

  Oh no, God help me. Not yet. She still needed more answers.

  He opened it, and a solitaire diamond ring glistened in the sun. “Ashley, will you marry me?”

  Hot tears slid down her cheeks, and she shook her head. “I can’t.”

  “Can’t marry me or can’t forgive me?” Bryan’s brows furrowed, her answer apparently not what he was hoping for.

  “Not until you tell me who you were eating lunch with today.”

  His eyes grew wide.

  “Tori and Drew saw you at Palapas—”

  He rested a hand on her arm. “Ashley, please, it’s not what you think.”

  “Then tell me. Who is she?” Her voice shook.

  Bryan snapped the box closed and put it in his pocket. “Hold Tanner’s leash. I’ll be right back.”

  Ashley’s eyes narrowed. “Where are you going?”

  “The truck.”

  A couple minutes later he came back, an envelope in his hand. “I had lunch today with Kayla. I gave her your address and phone number. Told her she had until Sunday to contact you.”

  “Who … who’s Kayla?” Ashley opened the envelope. The photo—the one of her and the younger girl sitting in the wagon. “Kayla.” She said her name out loud. “You found my biological sister?” Her voice rose.

  “Not me. Lauren.”

  “I don’t understand.”

  Bryan dug his hands into his pockets. “Lauren called and asked if I would meet with Kayla, hoping that after we talked she’d want to connect with you. So far that hasn’t been the case. I’m not sure why, but I get the feeling Kayla’s had it rough. She’s probably overwhelmed and a little scared, too.”

  Her heartbeat picked up its pace. “She knows about me?”

  Bryan nodded.

  Ashley’s eyes misted. “And she doesn’t want to meet me?”

  “She just needs more time. She’ll come around.”

  Could she trust God to bring Kayla back in her life? As afraid as she was of the unknown, God would always be by her side. “I’m sorry I never told you about the photo—”

  “Shh.” He closed the distance between them and touched her mouth with a finger. “I told her how sweet and kind you are. How you love animals and have helped me with my niece.” He cupped her face with gentle fingers and brushed his lips across her cheek. “I also told her that you are the most beautiful woman I’ve ever met and how I can’t wait to make you my wife.” He wiggled his brows and smiled.

  Ashley’s heart softened, and she grinned back. “You didn’t—”

  “Are you going to kiss me or leave me hanging?”

  Tanner tugged on the leash.

  Bryan laughed. “Even the dog is getting antsy.”

  Ashley wrapped her arms around Bryan’s middle, his strong back beneath her fingers. “If I kiss you, will you show me the ring again?”

  “Only if your answer is yes.”

  “I love you, Bryan. Yes, I’ll marry you.” Her eyes glistened as she brought her lips to meet his, soft at first, then she deepened the kiss. His mouth lingered on hers a while longer before he slipped the ring on her finger.

  38

  Ashley fixed the last of the photos into a scrapbook, thankful the project was ready for her grandmother’s perusal. She’d be proud of the work Ashley had done. Three complete albums now sat on the coffee table, perfect timing for her sisters’ visit. Both Lauren and Tori had asked the reason for the get-together, but Ashley had been vague, saying she’d tell them when they arrived.

  Her diamond ring once again caught her eye. She’d been staring at it all morning. A bubble of laughter danced its way up her throat. She was engaged to marry Bryan. He was her best friend, her confidant, and soon to be her lover. The thought heated her neck and cheeks.

  Ashley glanced at the clock. Her sisters would arrive any minute. She quickly moved into the kitchen, poured water and grounds into the coffeemaker, and flipped the switch. Next, she arranged oatmeal cookies on a plate and set them in the middle of the dining room table.

  A knock sounded on the front door. One of her sisters had arrived. Ashley took a deep breath before answering. “You’re both here!”

  “Yeah, we pulled up at the same time,” Lauren said.

  “Hope you don’t mind I brought Max.” Tori looked apologetic. “I know you said sisters only, but I was pushing my luck leaving the girls with Drew. None of us is getting much sleep lately. Poor Max has his days and nights mixed up.”

  “Not at all.” Ashley gestured. “C’mon in.”

  “Before you ask, no, I’m not pregnant.” Lauren carried the baby’s diaper bag into the house. “Maybe Sean and I aren’t meant to be parents—”

  “You sure you’re not stressed?” Tori set the infant carrier with sleeping Max on the floor beside the sofa and removed her sweater. “I’ve read stories where women get pregnant when they finally give up and relax.”

  Ashley cringed at Tori’s insensitivity.

  “I’m afraid there’s something wrong with me.” Lauren set the diaper bag beside Max’s car seat. She dropped on the sofa. “But I don’t want to talk about it right now.”

  “Give it a little more time,” Tori encouraged, sitting beside her.

  The discussion between the siblings reminded Ashley of when they were younger; Tori acting like a protective mother and Lauren always over-analyzing.

  “So, what’s the occasion?” Lauren dodged further talk of babies and pregnancy. “Why’d you invite us over?”

  Ashley flashed her diamond ring.

  “Are you? Is that?” Tori rushed to her side. “What happened? I thought you were mad at Bryan.”

  “Mad?” Lauren asked. “Why would Ashley be upset with Bryan? He’s one of the most caring guys I know. Just the other day he—”

  “Went out with another woman, that’s what.” Tori set her hands on her hips. “I saw him with my own eyes.”

  “Lauren, why don’t you tell Tori who Bryan had lunch with?” Ashley quirked a brow. “You should know since you’re the one who set him up.” She couldn’t resist goading her sister and watching her squirm. Served her right for keeping Kayla a secret for all this time.

  Tori’s mouth hung open. “Why would you set up Bryan? That’s wrong and just plain rude.”

  “Tell her.” Ashley folded her arms across her chest. “I want to hear the explanation myself.”

  Lauren’s hand shot to her mouth. “So Bryan told you?”

  Ashley pressed her lips together and nodded. “How long have you known about Kayla? Since before I showed you the photo?”

  “I wanted to tell you, I did, but I didn’t want to hurt your feelings just in case—”

  “Which photo?” Tori’s eyes widened. “The one you showed me at the flower shop? Please, someone tell me what’s going on.”

  Lauren snagged Ashley’s hand and brought it close. “Bryan has exquisite taste. Your ring is gorgeous.”

  “It is, isn’t it?” Ashley smiled then lowered her brows. “But you can stop buttering me up. I’m not letting you off the hook.”

  Since Bryan had told her that Lauren found her biological sister, Ashley daydreamed about how she found her and what she was like. Now the time had come to learn all the details. Apprehension and excitement wove together like one of June’s quilts. “I want to hear the whole story. Why don’t we sit at the dining room table? I made coffee and cookies. We have all afternoon.”

  Sunday had come and gone.

  Kayla’s sewing machine hummed at a frantic pace. The A-line dress she was making for Chloe needed to be complete by Friday, the night of David’s dinner party with his boss, the perfect excuse for not calling Ashley.

  “Whoa. Slow down, friend,” Chloe called from across the room. “I know you’re good, but even you might make a mistake going
that fast.”

  Kayla let up on the pedal. “Sorry. You’re right.”

  “Why don’t you call her already? You haven’t been yourself since you came home the other night.”

  Kayla released the presser foot, clipped the thread with a scissors, and turned the dress around to start on the next seam. “What do I say? Hi, Ashley. I’m your long-lost sister. I know you have two others and don’t need me in your life, but I have no one and need a sibling. Want to be my sister?”

  “Sounds good to me.”

  “You’re joking, right?” Kayla rolled her eyes, turned her attention back to the dress, and stepped hard on the pedal. The hum of the sewing machine drowned out further conversation and Kayla’s thoughts. As long as she kept her mind on making Chloe’s dress, she didn’t have to think about how much she longed to have Ashley in her life.

  Chloe handed her a tall glass of ice water, stopping her from sewing. Kayla accepted it readily and took a long drink.

  “Have you talked with Jeremy?”

  “Jeremy knows I only have room for one new relationship right now. He’s not pressuring me.”

  Chloe grinned and danced around the room. “He likes you; he really likes you.”

  Kayla grinned. She loved the way Chloe could lighten the mood. The girl knew how to have fun.

  “C’mon. Let’s put on some music and release some of this pent-up tension.” Chloe danced her way to her computer and pulled up her music account. “I’ve got to take care of my little dress designer. What song would you like? Oh, wait. I’ve got it.”

  Kayla set her glass down on the bookshelf next to the sewing machine and lurched to her feet. She rotated her shoulders and leaned her head from side to side, stretching her knotted neck and back muscles. Chloe was right. She did have pent-up tension.

  After half an hour jumping up and down and moving to the beat, beads of perspiration dripped down Kayla’s forehead and lower back. The water glass now sat empty. Exercise was exactly what she needed to clear her head, but it was time to get back to work.

  Kayla swept up her hair in a ponytail using the holder she kept on her wrist and sat in front of the sewing machine. She adjusted Chloe’s dress under the machine and lowered the presser foot.

  “Oh no, you don’t.” Chloe grabbed her arm and tugged. “You have plenty of time to finish my dress. I want you to take the rest of the day off.”

  Kayla resisted, holding tight to the seat of the chair. “But I have no other plans. This is what I want to do.”

  “Read a book, go shopping, watch a movie. Take time for yourself.”

  “You don’t understand. I’m tired of focusing on myself. I’ve been alone my whole life.” Kayla’s voice grew loud.

  Chloe’s eyes softened, and she released her hold. “Then call your sister. She wants to meet you. You don’t have to be by yourself anymore.”

  “Think I’ll take that break after all. I’m going for a walk.” Kayla purposefully left her cell phone on the bookshelf next to the empty drinking glass. She maneuvered around Chloe to the front door and slammed it on the way out.

  Her roommate had good intentions, but she didn’t understand. Possible rejection was too great a cost.

  The minute Ashley and her sisters settled at the table with coffee cups in hand, Max started crying.

  “Hold that thought.” Tori rushed to the living room and returned with a squirming baby in her arms and a small blanket draped over her shoulder. “Let me get him situated.”

  Lauren’s face visibly fell. Her forehead creased and her mouth drooped. It must hurt to see Tori with her third child when Lauren hadn’t been able to conceive one of her own. Her sister downed a cookie in a few bites.

  As much pain as Lauren was going through, Ashley struggled with her own thoughts. Why hadn’t Kayla connected with her? Maybe Lauren could shed some light on the mystery.

  Max’s little body relaxed under the blanket. “Okay, I’m ready,” Tori said.

  All eyes were on Lauren, except Max’s, of course. “Well?” Ashley asked. “How did you find out about Kayla?”

  Lauren hesitated, looking first at Tori then at Ashley. “As you know, I’ve been in charge of renting the beach house for a while now. The last time Grandma was in town, I did a thorough cleaning of the attic, placing stuff in boxes and encouraging her to throw other things away. I never touched the photos. Grandma put them in the trunks herself a while back when she was brave enough to climb the ladder. She told me about the box she kept for you. Said there were photos of when you were small going through cancer. I didn’t want to look at them, to remember you that way, so I never did. Not until you showed them to me.”

  Tori set her mug down. “Then how did you know about the photo of Ashley and Kayla, is it?”

  “I’m getting to that.” Lauren took another cookie and set it on her plate. “A while ago, Grandma told me how she had reconnected with one of her friends, the one who made the quilts.”

  “June?” Ashley asked. “Grandma mentioned her to me.”

  “Yes. Grandma and June were close a long time ago when they were young and newly married.”

  “I’ve come across pictures. They’re in the first scrapbook,” Ashley said.

  “A short time before you moved in, a box was delivered to the beach house,” Lauren continued. “Since Grandma had already gone to Arizona, she said I could open it. I discovered June’s obituary, a letter from her lawyer, and a stack of her journals.”

  “But what does June have to do with the photo of me and Kayla?”

  “Because she’s the one who took you and Kayla to get the photo. Ashley, June is your biological grandmother.”

  Ashley’s mouth went slack. “My grandmother?” Her eyes suddenly misted and her throat burned. She lurched off her chair, retrieved the blue photo album from the coffee table in the family room, and thumbed through the pages, trying to locate a photo of June. Her breath released when she found one. Although June had dark hair when she was younger, there was no denying the family resemblance. Her grandmother had the same nose and chin.

  Lauren opened her purse and retrieved a piece of paper. “I found this letter within the pages of one of June’s journals. It’s for you.”

  Ashley clutched the letter with nervous fingers, and read it silently to herself.

  My dear Ashley,

  If you are reading this letter, then you have discovered my journals and the history behind your difficult start in life. My darling girl, I wish I could tell you that your mother loved you unconditionally, but in truth she was drawn more to pills and the bottle than relationships, including your father when he was alive. This is a harsh reality that no child should endure.

  Oh, how I miss you.

  As a young child, you had a tender heart for others, especially animals. You would squeal and smile to your heart’s content whenever there was a dog around—but those were hard times. Your illness took its toll on everyone, but especially on you. But God in His infinite grace and mercy not only healed you from the cancer that nearly took your leg and your life at the age of three, but also gave you adoptive parents and two sisters to watch over you—a wonderful family to call your own.

  In truth, I’m afraid that all that you’ve lost has affected many areas of your life, including your ability to trust and feel loved.

  Even though we’ve been separated all these years, nothing can separate you from God’s love: “For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8:38-39)

  I pray God brings someone special into your life. Wait for God’s best. I love you and your sister, Kayla, and I pray that one day we will all be together again, if not on earth then in heaven.

  With Love,

  Grandma June

  Ashley swiped at the tears sliding down her cheeks. “I’
ve always understood that my birthparents were unfit to raise us, but why not June?”

  Lauren reached over and gently grasped Ashley’s hand. “In one of the journals, June mentioned that her second husband, the one she married when she was a widow after you and Kayla were born, didn’t want to raise another family. Said the two of you were better off with a couple that could keep up with young children. He was a harsh man, prone to yelling, and June didn’t want you growing up that way. She knew Kayla would be adopted quickly, being a toddler and all, but she was afraid for you.”

  Tori held Max over her shoulder and patted his back. “We all were.”

  “That’s when she called Grandma and told her about a sick child who needed a home.”

  Ashley narrowed her brows. “But I asked Grandma about the photo of Kayla and me. She said she didn’t remember.”

  Lauren shook her head. “As far as I know, I’m the only one who knows about it. Grandma didn’t know about the photo or the fact June was your biological grandmother. It’s all in the journals.”

  A lump formed in the back of Ashley’s throat.

  “Then how did the photo get into Ashley’s box?” Tori asked.

  “Remember when June came to visit Grandma to give her the quilts?” Lauren asked. “Grandma had mentioned Ashley was going to create the scrapbooks, and June slipped it in your box. Another thing June mentioned in one of the journals was that it was her deepest desire for you and Kayla to be reunited again. It became my mission to find her to keep my mind away from trying to get pregnant. But then—”

  “I moved into the beach house,” Ashley said. “I remember you weren’t happy about that.”

  “When you found me climbing down from the attic, I was looking for the photo. I didn’t want you to find it before I knew whether or not Kayla wanted a relationship.”

  “I wondered.” Ashley squirmed in her seat. “But how did you find Kayla without it?”