Family Bonds- Drew and Amanda (Amore Island Book 2)

by Natalie Ann

  She turned to leave and saw Kayla standing there looking at her, then rush forward and grab her arm to pull her away and hug her when they were in private.

  Yeah, this was the family she never had. This was the one she always wanted.

  When they were in the penthouse, Kayla finally said, “Do you want to talk about it?”

  She burst into tears. “You heard most of it.”

  “Why didn’t you tell me?”

  “No one knows. I never wanted anyone to know. It wasn’t a good time in my life.”

  “I can only imagine. You were so young. You lost the baby and you still had to deliver it?” Kayla asked.

  “Yes. It was horrible. My mother, she was so mad when I got pregnant. My father, he wouldn’t even look at me.” She shook her head, the tears just rolling down. “I went for a checkup by myself when I was having cramps. I didn’t know they were contractions. My mother never wanted to go even though I was seventeen. They couldn’t find the heartbeat and I was going into labor. I don’t want to tell you this, Kayla. No pregnant woman wants to hear these things.”

  “I know,” Kayla said. “But I think you need to say it. I can handle it. I really can. This is about you, not me.”

  “There’s not much to say. I was a kid. My body took a beating during that delivery and I was told there was some damage.”

  “Damage meaning you might not be able to get pregnant again?” Kayla asked, gasping.

  “Maybe. Or maybe I won’t be able to carry to term. No one knows until the time comes. I’ll be watched I’m sure.” She waved her hand. “I don’t think about it. I try not to.”

  “You think about it all the time, Amanda. That’s why you are a little mother, isn’t it?”

  “Yes. I wanted that baby. I never would have ended the pregnancy even though Randall’s mother wanted me to. Even though my mother wanted me to.”

  “And it was a little girl?”

  “Yes, my daughter. Randall’s mother gave me a hundred thousand dollars months prior and told me to get out of his life. He’d stopped calling or texting me and I wasn’t sure what was going on. I still had hope, but as you can tell it was unwarranted.”

  “You took the money or gave it back?” Kayla asked.

  “I hadn’t cashed it, but once the baby was gone I did. Shortly after my eighteenth birthday, when I was healed enough, I just packed up and left. I had a job, I found a place and I’ve been on my own ever since. And I like it that way.”

  “But do you really?” Kayla asked.

  36

  Suck It Up

  Drew looked up when he saw Rachel get up from her table during the presentation and exit the room while she was looking at her phone.

  She returned a minute later frowning but maybe it wasn’t an emergency with work. Though the office managers were all here in the small conference room for two days he knew business still went on as usual.

  When they had a break she left the room quickly again, then returned not looking really thrilled. He wanted to find out what was going on but figured he’d have time to talk to her when it ended before they had dinner for everyone.

  Two hours later, they were done for the day and he made his way to her. For some reason he really liked her. After his talk with her a few weeks ago, he’d kind of listened to her advice for herself to just let things fall and not push. It seemed to be working for him.

  Amanda was more relaxed. They weren’t scratching to spend every waking moment together like he wanted, but he still felt somewhat calm over where they were heading.

  His foot was still ready to take that last move to get him to the top, but he held back waiting for her to catch up.

  It was too soon still, so many unanswered things in his mind, and he wanted her to feel comfortable enough to talk to him when she was ready. Maybe before he even had to ask her.

  “Is everything okay?” he asked Rachel before she could sneak out.

  He had plans to show her and her fiancé around the Retreat a bit and introduce them to Hunter. Not that Hunter did wedding setups or explained how things went, but since Rachel worked for him, he thought he’d give her a little bit of the royal treatment. If she liked the place enough then she could set up a time to talk with the wedding coordinator.

  “Yeah. My fiancé was calling me. He never calls and I figured he was either pocket dialing me or it was important. I’m sorry I left the conference. Once I got in the hall I told him I’d speak to him on break.” She shook her head. “Sometimes he just drives me insane.”

  “What happened?”

  She moved to the side. “He ran into his ex here. I mean of all the rotten luck.”

  “So...”

  “The one I told you about. The one that broke his heart in college. He’s all bent and he wants to leave right now and that if she is here he doesn’t want anything to do with the Retreat.”

  “That’s a bit harsh, don’t you think?”

  “I told him that. He can be a little selfish and childish at times. I blame his parents for controlling so much in his life. I get what they did was wrong and maybe they proved the girl wasn’t right for him, but to take away the one thing I really want because of something that happened almost fifteen years ago. It pissed me off and he knows that. I don’t lose my temper often either.”

  He laughed. “Good for you. I wanted to tell you that I’d listened to how you handled things with your fiancé and how you didn’t push but rather waited until it was right. I loosened up myself and it does seem to be working.”

  “I’m glad. I really am. I wasn’t trying to give you advice. What works for me doesn’t work for everyone. I get many wouldn’t have waited, but I really do love him, flaws and all. And I told him we are still looking at the Retreat. Just because she was here on vacation doesn’t mean anything to me.”

  “Good attitude to have. So when do I get to meet him?” Not that he was looking forward to it now. The guy was starting to sound like a dick and that maybe Rachel deserved better, but who was he to judge when he was only hearing one side of things?

  “Here he comes right now. Are you sure you don’t mind showing us around and introducing us to the owner? I’d really love to get married here. His family will just eat this up and it might win me some points with them for choosing this location.”

  “You still need to win them over?”

  “I’ll probably always have to do that.” The man walked up and stood next to Rachel. He was about her height at about five foot eight or so, short hair with more product in it than Drew wanted to ever use. He had expensive clothes on, Drew knew because he bought some of the best himself, but he never dressed out of place. Not like this guy in a suit and tie even though he was supposedly not working. “Randall Vernon, this is Drew Bond. He owns Bond Realty with his brother Bode ”

  “Nice to meet you,” Drew said. “Bode was here earlier but then left to take care of something. He’ll be back later. Let me show you around the Retreat. My cousin Hunter will be down shortly.”

  “I told Rachel I’m not sure I want to get married here now.”

  Drew fought the roll of his eyes, looked at Rachel and saw her eyes get almost misty. He was going to suck it up and put on the charm and sell his cousin’s place if it was the last thing he did for his employee.

  “She told me you ran into someone that you would rather not have,” he said, hoping he wasn’t overstepping himself.

  “I shouldn’t be shocked she was here with someone. Probably some older man with money. That’s her MO. I didn’t even know she was in this area now. It seems to me like it’s not meant for me to do this if I see her when I’m here looking for my own wedding.”

  “Really?” Drew said. “I’d think just the opposite.”

  “How’s that?” Randall asked, not looking pleased with the statement but you could see he was holding back since Drew was Rachel’s boss.

  “This island is all about love and fate. Don’t you think it’s fate that you’d come full circ
le with an ex so that maybe you can close any loop? To show that you’ve got the right choice here in front of you?”

  “Yeah,” Rachel said, putting her hands on her hips. “What about me? You’d think running into Amanda would prove how much you love me not how much you hate her.”

  Amanda? What was the chance of that?

  Randall started to stutter like he didn’t expect to think that way. “I guess so.”

  “You’ll probably never see her again,” Drew said. “We all have learned our lessons when we were younger. Trust me, I know.”

  “I suppose you would with your name and wealth,” Randall said. Which was kind of tacky to point out.

  He looked up when he saw Hunter making his way toward them. “Here comes my cousin now. Hunter Bond, this is Rachel and Randall. Rachel is one of my office managers and they’ve just recently gotten engaged. She’d like to look around if you don’t mind answering a few questions for them.”

  “Not a problem,” Hunter said. “Are you joining us?”

  “Sure. Maybe it wouldn’t hurt to hear these details.”

  Hunter lifted his eyebrows at him, but Drew just grinned and moved along, following behind the couple.

  “I was recently married here myself a few weeks ago. Not a big affair, less than a hundred people.” Hunter moved them to the other end of the building to the ballroom. “The ceremony was held in here with the chairs set up in rows, an aisle down the center. When it was done, the wedding guests were moved to another area for drinks and hors d’oeuvres while the staff set up the room for the reception.”

  “Interesting. No one had a problem getting up and moving?” Rachel asked.

  “No. I think many were fine with walking around and stretching their legs. If you get married in the summer, we have outdoor ceremonies and then receptions can blend inside and outdoors. Through those doors we have a large deck where people can go to the beach or come in here. We are pretty flexible as long as the weather holds.”

  “We are getting married next June,” Rachel said to Randall. “That would be nice.”

  Drew wasn’t listening to them but rather thinking of something like that for him and Amanda and then had to dial it back to one where he’d been ready to blast it to ten again.

  “It’s something to think about. The place really is beautiful,” Randall said.

  “We just opened up a spa a few months ago. The brides and their wedding parties have seemed to enjoy it,” Hunter said. “My own wife and her bridal party got pampered the day before our wedding.”

  Amanda had loved spending the day at the spa. She still hadn’t used her gift certificate from Christmas yet because she’d already had that day with Kayla and Hailey and had been talking about booking another soon.

  He jumped in. “They do couples spa days here too.”

  Hunter laughed. “Are you looking to book one of them?”

  “Maybe,” he said back. “Nice and romantic, don’t you think? Isn’t that why you put the addition on for it?”

  His cousin laughed. “We are all about building the legacy of the island here at the Retreat. Love at first sight, fate. Whatever words you put on it, it’s what we want to do. We want to make it the best day of your lives.”

  “That’s what I want,” Rachel said. “I’ve waited so long and I can see it here.”

  Randall frowned as if it was a shot at how long she’d had to wait, but she was running her hand up and down his arm and he could see the guy’s eyes softening. Maybe he wasn’t a total douche. “Maybe we’ll get some information and schedule a meeting with your coordinator.”

  “Great,” Hunter said. “Why don’t you come this way and I’ll show you to Marissa’s office. She might still be in.”

  Drew watched them walk away and was going to call Amanda to see what she was doing tonight since he was here with work for a few more hours, but when his call went to voicemail he figured she was busy so he left a message.

  “Hey, you didn’t happen to be at the Retreat today, did you?” Then he laughed. “Just kidding. I heard the name Amanda and it always makes me think and look around for you.”

  37

  Better Off

  By the time Amanda had stopped crying at Kayla’s place, she’d felt sick to her stomach. “I need to leave. I don’t want anyone to see me like this.”

  She knew beyond a doubt she looked like hell. Probably as badly as she did when she realized that she was going to be on her own to raise a child.

  “We’ll go down through our private entrance and out to your car. I’ll make sure no one sees you. Bundle up and put your hat on your head and keep your head down.”

  “You’re already turning into a little mother yourself. It’s like you are sneaking me out of here so my husband couldn’t catch me messing around. Or my lover’s girlfriend didn’t.” Then she started to cry more. “Stupid statement, I know. All things considered.”

  “Stop it. It was funny. You always do like to make a joke about things, so do that now.”

  “I can’t believe what he said. That he thought I would have terminated my child. He never knew me at all to believe that.”

  “It sounds to me like you are better off without him. I’m just so sorry that you lost a child and it’s making me weepy thinking of it. But being so young and having no one. Being on your own. I know that feeling too, but it was still only me. In some ways you had it much harder than I did.”

  “No,” she said. “Kayla, I had a family and a roof over my head my whole life. I was never homeless. I never worried where I’d sleep or where I’d get money to buy food. Don’t think that. I had something that I thought was wonderful and I was stupid and naive.”

  “If you believed it. If you felt it, it’s not stupid or naive.”

  “No,” she said. “It’s not. It wasn’t then but it is now.” They got to the parking garage and Amanda hugged her. “There is something I need to do now.”

  “What’s that?”

  “I’m going to call my sister when I get home. I need to know the truth.”

  “Do you think she knows it?” Kayla asked.

  “I’m not sure. She was just a kid, but she knows something. I don’t ever want to talk to my mother again. Not if what Randall said is the truth. That she allowed him to believe I’d do that. But Charlotte, she might have answers for me.”

  When she got home, she’d noticed that Sidney was there since it was her day off, but Bri wasn’t. She’d take that as a blessing that Bri was still at work. Sidney didn’t pry like Bri did.

  She parked in the driveway and went in the side door, then snuck into her bedroom on the first floor, shutting and locking the door.

  After taking a deep breath, she found her sister’s contact information in her phone and dialed, hoping she’d answer. She wasn’t sure she could leave a message and talk later. It was in her mind now and she wanted it over with. She pulled her silver star necklace out that Kayla had given her and clasped it in her hand.

  “Hello,” Charlotte said, “Amanda? Is that you?”

  “It is. I’m sorry to bother you like this. Can you talk or is it a bad time?” Please don’t let it be a bad time, she silently prayed while she rubbed her thumb over the star.

  “I can talk. I’m at work but in my office. Let me just shut my door.” She waited a minute and then Charlotte said, “What’s wrong? I can hear it in your voice. Are you hurt? Are you sick?”

  Funny how Charlotte was so nervous to talk to her on the street yet jumped right into sisterhood on the phone.

  “I need you to be honest with me. I need to know the truth of what happened.”

  There was silence on the other end. “About what?”

  “With Randall. Did he come looking for me after I left home? When he was on break from college?”

  “Yes,” Charlotte said quietly.

  “Did Mom tell him I had an abortion? What happened? Do you know?”

  “I’m so sorry,” Charlotte said. “I wasn’t supposed to kn
ow any of it. I don’t think Mom even knows I was there at the top of the stairs listening.”

  “Tell me, please. I just ran into him and the things he said to me. I can’t bear it right now. I need to know the truth.”

  “He’s an ass, Amanda. You deserve so much better than him. I don’t care what anyone says or what Mom thought—he wasn’t good enough for you. He knew you were pregnant and he left to go to school and stopped calling you. He told Mom that his mother said she offered you money and you took it and left. After a few months he realized you would have given birth and decided he wanted to know about the child he had.”

  “I never told him the baby died. I figured he didn’t care. Mom knew and she could have told his parents if she wanted to. I’m guessing she never did?”

  “I don’t know if she did. I really don’t. I don’t think it matters. But Randall asked where you were with his child.”

  “He knew it was a girl. I’d told him. He couldn’t even ask for his daughter?”

  “I’m not sure why he didn’t, but I remember him specifically saying ‘my child.’ Mom laughed at him. I’m sorry, but she did. She was pretty bitter over the way things happened and how you were treated.”

  “That’s funny considering she never gave me that impression.”

  “I think it had more to do with she saw you as stepping up another class level and when the Vernons rejected you it was like a personal rejection to her. She didn’t care who she hurt and she still doesn’t.”

  That made Amanda think more was going on with her sister that she’d have to find out about. “It was always more about Mom than us. You know that.”

  “I do,” Charlotte said. “Mom told Randall there was no baby. He asked if you gave it up for adoption and she said no. She just repeated that there was no baby. I believe he took it as you got an abortion but she never used that word. I’d remember if she did.”