Abandoned (The Beckett Series Book 6)
Page 1
Abandoned (Book VI)
The Beckett Series
By
Mary Martinez
Other books by Mary Martinez
Watching Jenny
Romance and Misconceptions
Classic Murder: Mr. Romance
Chick Magnet
Three Brides and a Dress
Four Sisters
The Beckett Series
Disappear Book I
Innocent Book II
Quiet Book III
Illusion Book IV Utopia the Beginning
Profit Book V Utopia the Conclusion
Novella eBooks
Charmed and Beguiled
Honky Tonk
Meet Me In Fantasyland
Abandoned
Book six of the Beckett Series
Copyright @ 2018 Mary Martinez
www.marymartinez.com
This book is a work of fiction. While references may be made to actual places or events, the Names, characters, incidents, and locations within are from the author’s imagination and are not a resemblance to actual living or dead persons, businesses, or events. Any similarity is coincidental.
Published by Canyonland Press
This book is licensed to the original purchase only. Duplication or distribution via any means is illegal and a violation of International Copyright Law, subject to criminal prosecution and upon conviction, fines and/or imprisonment. The book cannot be legally loaned or given to others. No part of this book can be shared or reproduced without the express permission of the publisher.
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Released in the United States of America
Cover artists: Sheri McGathy
Editor: Cyndy Gleave
DEDICATION
As always, a huge thanks to my family and friends for
all of their love and support.
To Ron, my wonderful husband, and Toni Batt, my traveling friend, for humoring me and exploring New York and documenting, with pictures, my characters’ neighborhoods.
Thank you, Kim, Cyndy, and Sabrina for the help all of you have given me! I couldn’t have done it without you.
Chapter One
Glenna Beckett peeked around the sheer curtain at the window of Jessica, her sister’s, old bedroom. The little generals, Gabby and Sophie, were busy with all the last minute details of her wedding. The up and coming wedding planners had turned the Elders’ back yard into an elegant fairyland. Her nieces had a promising career in front of them. Though Reagan and Christine, their mothers, had laid down the law about a college education first.
Glenna smiled as she watched her nieces. Maybe they could fund their education with parties and weddings on the weekends. She exhaled and looked for the familiar figure of her fiancé. He was conspicuously absent. She glanced at the old bear figured clock of Jessica’s childhood and confirmed the time. The clergyman had arrived a few minutes earlier, and the wedding was set to commence in twenty minutes.
It was looking more and more as if she were going to be jilted at the altar. Why? She’d been the one dragging her feet, she’d never been able to lose the tiny niggle of unease. But Lance Gordon was a force to be reckoned with when he’d set his mind to something.
And he’d wanted a fall wedding.
A rap on the door startled Glenna, her thoughts flew as the knob turned and her father walked in.
“Glenna, don’t you look beautiful. It’s enough to take my breath away.” He stepped toward her and she launched herself into his arms at the same time almost knocking him over.
“Dad!” She wailed. Yes, she’d been known to wail.
“Oh, Glenna.” He rubbed her back as he’d done when she was young in the midst of some teenage drama. “It’s going to be okay, little one.”
She couldn’t hold in her worries anymore and stepped out of his arms so she could gather her emotions around her. A very unlike Glenna-of-the-past move.
“I don’t think Lance is coming.” She sniffed loud enough her mother would hear and probably join them to complete the Elders. “Everything happened so fast and then he was gone for months and I started to have doubts. And again he swooped in and…”
She paced to the window. Glenna felt her dad step up beside her, he placed a calming hand on her shoulder.
“Glenna, tell me at your own pace. I’m not going anywhere.”
For a moment she’d been afraid he’d call in her mother. She loved her mother, but her confidences had always gone to her dad. Unless it was female stuff. She sighed, moved from the window to sit on the edge of the bed, or tried, her full skirts and slips didn’t allow her to sit. She didn’t really want to stand. Oh, to hell with it.
She reached behind her with both hands and drew up the yards of material and sat, the acres of lace and silk piled high enough to tower over her like the Alps.
“One day Lance walked in my shop and my first thought was…” She closed her eyes, had she really been a fool? “Dad, I thought he was gay. Tyler and Matt are right, my gaydar went ding, ding, ding.”
She opened her eyes and her dad stared at her in bewilderment. The Elders’ may be trendy for their age, but at times they could be dense.
“You mean you thought he was homosexual? But why would he ask you to marry him? More importantly, why would you say yes?”
“Well, that’s my point dad. I didn’t think anything more about him because that’s what I thought. But he kept coming in my shop and looking around. Then he introduced himself and said he was an Arts dealer and had come in my place looking for treasures. We had a mutual love of art and rare antiques and before I knew it, he was taking me to showings. Then we’d go to fine restaurants and discuss our shared passion.
“Then he asked me to marry him, all very romantic, you know a candlelit dinner, expensive wine. He even had a violinist come to the table to serenade while he made a production of asking me.”
The bed dipped, her father’s arm snaked around her shoulders. She let her head drop to rest on his. She had to sniff back the tears that threatened.
“Dad, I had to say yes. It was a fairytale moment and I was caught up in the magic. Even more, he never tried to be, you know, intimate with me. He wanted to let the tension build until we were married. The romance of it all was overwhelming. The next day he had to jet off to some European country for a rare antiquities showing. International dealers would be there. He’s always looking for that one treasure that will bring his name to the forefront of the inner circles. Get his face on the cover of London’s premier art magazine, Blackmans. ”
“You’ve seen him since then?” He hugged her a little closer.
“And you don’t believe that?”
She didn’t have a chance to answer, the door opened without warning and a waif of a woman slipped in. Effie her best friend. She couldn’t help but smile when she saw her. Effie, as always, looked like a loveable mess. Her blonde hair piled on her head, strands slipping out of their restraints in every direction. One thin strap slid down her shoulder and her dress billowed around her knees. She looked like a disreputable pink elf.
“Oh, I’m sorry Glenna I didn’t know you were talking to one of the Elders’.” She started to back out of the room, the main problem was, the door had closed behind her, she met it with a thud. “Ouch.”
“Effie, are you okay?”
The pixie rubbed her posterior but grinned. “Yeah. Just a bruised ass.”
Her giggles brightened the mood that had fallen over the room.
“Has my groom decided to make an appearance?”
Her question caused her good natured friend to actually frown. It was a very rare occasion when Effie did anything but grin or smile. The slow burn that had started in Glenna’s stomach an hour earlier flamed into a full blown inferno. Her hand found her tummy and rubbed.
Her dad frowned. “Glenna, are you okay?”
“Could you hand me my purse, it’s over there on the dresser.” She held her hand out as her dad retrieved her bag. She’d take her anti-acid the doctor had prescribed. Then things would cool down and she could cope.
“Effie, what is wrong?”
“No one has seen Lance. When you didn’t come out at noon, we thought maybe he’d snuck in here with you. Reagan sent me in to see what the holdup was.”
Her dad handed her a glass of water, she quickly tossed back the gel tab. Then Glenna dug through her purse to unearth her smart phone. She punched in the number to Glenna’s Surprisingly Vintage. A few rings and her assistant picked up.
“Alex how are things going?”
Worry tightened her chest as Alex exclaimed in surprise about her call.
“Yes, I am supposed to be at the altar…”
There was another bout of excited chatter and Glenna let her assistant run out of words. Though she knew the answer, Glenna asked anyway.
“Have you seen Lance?”
After another smattering of exclamations Glenna finished the call and sat the phone at her side. Her insides were a twist of emotions. The bastard had left her at the altar. On the trail of that thought, fear gripped her with sharp talons. Where was Lance? Was he hurt? The air suddenly too thick to breathe she inhaled but nothing seemed to fill her lungs.
With a sensation of falling over, the room filtered from gray to black.
*****
“Come on Glenna, let’s get you up. We need to get this blasted dress off you.” Fred tugged at her arm. He shot a look over his shoulder. “Effie can you find Martha for me?”
The pink confection whirled as she pulled the door wide and dashed out the door, and then he heard an ‘Ooof.”
Again he twisted to glance toward the door. Effie hadn’t needed to go far to find Martha. His wife rushed in, bellowing orders about cold cloths, glass of water, and help in one giant breath.
Effie didn’t bother to reset her other strap that was now falling down, the constraints on her hair had lost the battle, without a care she raced off to do Martha’s bidding.
“Fred, what happened?”
“She was sitting on the edge of the bed, though how I’m not sure with this bundle of material she has on.” He shook his head. “It was the weirdest thing. When Effie told her Lance wasn’t here, she called her shop. She seemed so calm. After she sat her phone down and she literally in slow motion began to topple to the ground.”
“Why didn’t you catch her?”
“Well, Martha dear, that’s the weird part.” She tilted her head and raised a brow. “It happened to fast.”
“But you just said it was in slow motion.”
“Yes, but by the time it registered what was happening it was too late.”
A soft groan pulled their attention to Glenna. Effie raced in with the armful of instructions and plopped down beside them, spilling the glass of water in the process.
Glenna sputtered. “What was that for? You didn’t need to throw cold water in my face for God’s sake.”
“I’m sorry,” Effie said. “At least you’re awake now.”
“If you say so,” Glenna grunted.
Fred wished he could do more than to help Glenna to a sitting position. When his children hurt, his heart ached right along with them. It didn’t matter how old they were.
“Come on little one, let your friend and mother help you out of your dress and meet us in the kitchen.”
“For a family meeting?”
Fred couldn’t tell if she sounded hopeful or sarcastic. Nonetheless he patted her shoulder and left. The family discussions always took place in the kitchen, he’d gather the others.
No one walked away from his daughter on her wedding day. If Fred got a hold of that Lance Gordon, heaven help him.
*****
Glenna let her mother help her pull the heavy fabric over her head. With Effie trying to help and mostly getting in the way. Finally, when she was free of her dress, she sank onto the bed and put her head in her hands and waited for the tears.
None came.
It appeared she’d just been jilted, and no tears. What was wrong with her?
“Are you all right, dear?” Her mother wanted to know.
She sighed, was she? Yes, but could she admit that? What kind of bride would be okay after being abandoned at the altar in front of all of her family and friends? The kind that got caught up in the romance of the proposal and not the man. Because really, did she love Lance?
She cared for him.
“Dear?”
“Sorry Ma, I’m not sure how I feel.”
That at least satisfied her mother’s question. But when she glanced at her friend, Effie hadn’t been fooled. There’d be some answering to do later. She’d worry about it then.
Effie held her jeans out to her. “Time to slip these on.”
Once she had the jeans on, she slipped her tee over her head. She caught sight of herself in the mirror and gave an inward groan. She could imagine what her brother’s would say about the deranged mop listing to the side of her head.
“Hand me that brush over there, please.”
She didn’t care who gave it to her as long as she could do something. She needed to be confident when she faced the clan. Being the youngest was tough and her family could be intimidating to say the least.
“I’m going to make some tea, dear. Gabby made the announcement that due to technical difficulties, there wouldn’t be a wedding today and Sophie is currently ushering people out of the yard.” She chuckled. “Sorry dear, but those girls…”
“It’s okay Ma, really.” She gave her mom a hug. “I’ll be there in a moment.”
“Effie dear, thank you for taking care of our girl.”
Glenna held in a chuckle. If anything she was taking care of Effie. She was always getting herself into one scrap or another. The woman was the most kind hearted, lovable, crazy, gullible, naïve, scatterbrained, and optimistic person she’d ever met. Effie had saved her life, maybe not literally but she had, when Glenna had first moved to Calistoga. She didn’t know what she’d do without her friend.
“Do you believe me now?”
“What?” Glenna blinked. It took her a minute to understand the question. “About Lance? The
re are so many things you’ve told me about Lance, which one do you think I believe now?”
Effie giggled. “Come on, I’ve always wanted to be in on one of the Beckett family round tables in the kitchen.”
She reached for Glenna’s hand to pull her toward the door. With a surprisingly strong grip.
She let herself be pulled downstairs. Effie needed no directions, the sound of voices directed just fine.
“Glenna,” her oldest sibling, Tyler said. “Come sit at the head of the table”
“The seat of doom,” she muttered under her breath.
Unfortunately, her mother heard. “Honey, we’re here for you. There is not going to be any doom.”
The Elders busied themselves setting food that should have been for the reception, in the center of the table. Then drinks all round. Tea for some, beer for others. Glenna thought it would be prudent to keep to the tea side for now. After a few minutes had passed, everyone seemed settled with either a drink or food or both. As if on cue there was a collective sigh and their attention settled on her. A heavy weight of expectation.
She drew in a fortifying breath as she gazed around at her family. The younger Beckett’s were in the family room with the generals in charge. She noticed her brother Tyler and her two brother-in-law’s Gabe and David all had a small notebook, pen raised in anticipation. What did they think this was an interrogation?
Tyler tapped the end of his pen against is lips, she recognized the action. He’d been doing the same since school. His thinking persona. As if he felt her attention he lowered the pen to the notebook and pinned her with an intent look.
“When was the last time you saw Lance.”
“Tyler you already know that,” Glenna answered.
“No, I just know he didn’t come with you from the airport and that he was to meet you here today.”
All true, she’d needed to do some last minute wedding shopping and she wanted to spend some time with her family. She shut her eyes a moment and tried to picture the last time she was with him, what had he said?