When Wishes Collide (12 page)

He drew in a breath. "I appreciate the sentiment, but you've waited long enough. And there's still a chance I'll have her back before the wedding. We have a month."

She put her hand on his arm. "I really hope so. I'm sorry if I shouldn't have mentione Stephanie. I never know if I should talk about her or not."

"You can always talk about her. I wish she could be here, too."

"I didn’t think it would take this long to get her back. I thought Jen would change her mind, or if she didn't, that you'd find them."

"That's still going to happen. We should get you back to the party." He held open the door for her.

As she walked through it, she said, "So who's the woman you brought with you?"

"She's a … friend," he said. The word wasn't quite right. There was a connection between them that was more personal, more tense, but he couldn't explain that to his sister.

"She's beautiful with all that hair. Like a woman in an Italian painting."

When he didn't reply, Summer gave him a pointed look. "Don't tell me you haven't noticed."

"I've noticed."

"It's nice to see you with someone."

"Don't make any assumptions. She's just a friend," he repeated.

"Sometimes that's a good way to start," Summer said, a sparkle in her eye.

He knew he wasn't going to talk her out of anything, so he simply shrugged.

"You better go find Adrianna before Mom tells her all your dark secrets," Summer added as they walked down the stairs. "Or Mom starts showing her pictures from your childhood."

He nodded, then stopped abruptly as he saw Mandy enter the house.

Summer followed his gaze. "I'm sorry if she brings back bad memories, but she's dating Ron's best man. I had to invite her. And she's apologize to the family a number of times for not believing you right away."

"It's not a problem. I'd like to talk to her again."

"Really? Can it wait?"

"Don't worry. I'm not going to get into a fight with her."

"You know, it's fine if that happens. Whatever it takes to bring our girl home is okay with me."

"Thanks." As his sister walked away, he jogged down the stairs, catching up with Mandy in the living room. A short, busty redhead, Mandy had always been one of his favorites among Jen's friends. But their friendship had changed when Mandy had taken Jen's side.

Mandy stiffened when she saw him, but she held her ground. "Hello, Wyatt."

"Mandy," he said. "We could exchange polite conversation, but all I really want to ask you is if you've heard from Jen."

"You know I haven't," she said. "If she'd gotten in contact with me, I would have told you. I know now the things she said about you were lies. I'm sorry I ever doubted you. I didn't realize that Jen could be so devious or manipulative. And I never imagined that she could stay hidden so long."

"She has to have had help," he said.

"Her parents swear they don't know where she is. They're still friends with my folks. It came up again last Christmas."

Her answer jived with his investigation, so he let it go. "Right now I'm more interested in locating another woman about Jen's age. She has two kids, a boy about eleven or twelve and a girl about nine. The boy's name is Ben. Does that ring any bells?"

"I'm sorry, it doesn't," she said slowly. "Do you have some new information?"

He wouldn't tell her if he did, because he still didn't trust her. "I'm just following some leads."

"Maybe it's a new friend. Most people gave up on Jen after you won custody and she disappeared. No one wanted to get involved with her."

"It's possible that it's someone new," he said. "But what about someone further back in the past – maybe from high school?"

"That was a long time ago, Wyatt. I went away to college in another state. I didn't keep up with everyone."

"Just think, Mandy. It's important."

Mandy stared back at him for a long minute. "The only person I can think of is Rebecca Mooney. She has a boy and a girl and lives in San Francisco somewhere, but I don't think she and Jen have been friends in years."

"That name wasn’t on anyone's list of Jen's friends." He'd been in contact with every person he'd ever heard Jen mention.

"I don't know if they've seen each other since high school. But she has a boy and a girl. I don’t know the boy's name."

"Okay, I'll follow up on it."

"Do you really think Jen is in San Francisco?"

"I have a feeling she might have come back, or maybe she's been here all along."

"But she would have to know that you'd still be looking for her. It's hard to believe she'd risk getting caught now."

"Sometimes people start to believe they've gotten away with the perfect crime. That's usually when they mess up. If you hear anything, even if you don't think it's relevant –"

"I'll let you know," she said.

"Thanks." As he turned, he saw Adrianna in the hallway, surrounded by his mother, sister and an assortment of cousins.
 
They all seemed to be talking at once and Adrianna looked a little like she was drowning. Time for a rescue.

* * *

"Did Wyatt tell you that he broke the national record in swimming when he was in college?" Daria asked.

"No, he didn't," Adrianna said, her mind now spinning with facts about Wyatt. She hadn't had to ask any questions. His mother and the rest of his family had been more than happy to share what appeared to be an endless supply of stories.

"He's so modest," Daria said.

"That doesn't sound like my big brother," Summer put in. "And if we're sharing personal records, you should know that Wyatt also set the record for the most beer drunk in a five-minute period."

"Oh, sh-sh," Daria said, shaking a finger at her daughter. "That was ages ago."

Summer laughed. "It still counts."

"Now tell us how you and Wyatt met," Daria suggested.

"Yes, tell us," Summer echoed.

"Well, we were both throwing coins in the Fountain of Wishes at McClellan Square and somehow they collided in mid air. Wyatt's coin knocked mine to the ground, and I went searching for it."

"And you found Wyatt instead," Daria said with a smile. "What a charming story."

"What's a charming story?" Wyatt asked as he joined the group.

"How you and Adrianna met."

"Oh, that," he said. "That was a fluke."

"Or maybe not," Summer said. "You were both making a wish."

"It wasn't to meet each other," he said sharply.

While Adrianna agreed with him, for some reason his quick denial irritated her a little bit -- also, his reference to their meeting being a fluke. Earlier, he'd implied that their meeting might be fate bringing him closer to his daughter. Now, she was being relegated to a chance flip of a coin?

"You can really be stupid," Summer told Wyatt, making a face at him. "I'm going to go find my smart husband-to-be."

Daria and Wyatt's cousin also excused themselves, leaving Wyatt and Adrianna alone in the hall.

"What did I say?" he asked Adrianna, confusion in his eyes.

"Nothing. Your family doesn't realize we're just friend. They want there to be something more."

He stared back at her. "Adrianna."

When he didn't keep going, she found her nerves tightening. "I'm hungry," she said, breaking the growing tension. "I think you promised me food."

He looked relieved by the change in subject. "I did. The buffet is in the dining room."

"Care to show me the way?"

"No problem. How about a drink first?" he asked. "It looks like you lost your champagne."

"I drank it in between stories about you. According to your family, you're a brilliant student, a talented athlete, a gifted musician –"

"Whoa, they did not say musician."

"You didn't play the clarinet in the 7
^th
grade?"

"I did, but only at my mother's insistence. She wanted to see her boy in an orchestra. When we had the recitals, I didn't actually play. I just pretended."

"And she didn't know?"

He laughed. "I honestly don't know how she couldn't know. She heard me practice. I was terrible. Did she think I suddenly turned into a musician when I put on the shirt and tie and sat in the orchestra?"

"She's very proud of you. They all are."

Wyatt handed her a glass of punch. "This is spiked."

"Thank goodness," she said, taking a sip of the mango flavored rum punch. "I met your brother. He told me you'd received some medal for being injured on the job."

"It was stupid. I did nothing to deserve it."

She gave him a thoughtful look. "Are you really modest? Or just trying to put your best foot forward with me?"

"It really was nothing," he said. "I got shot in the shoulder. It was a graze. I've been hurt worse playing shortstop."

"I heard about your baseball career, too," she said.

He groaned. "I wasn't gone that long."

"Your mother talks really fast." She paused, taking another sip of punch. "What did Summer want to talk to you about?"

"She was having a panic attack about getting married."

"Really? Does she have reason to be worried? Have you met the groom?"

"He seems like a good guy. She was more concerned about following in my footsteps. I told her she'd never followed me in anything else, why start now?"

"That was nice of you, very big brotherly. I always wanted a big brother, someone to look out for me. She's lucky to have you and Connor."

"Most of the time she thinks I'm a pain in the ass. Connor -- she likes a little better. Ready for some food?"

"Did your mother make all this?" she asked, as they approached the buffet table. It appeared that most people were already eating, so there was no longer a line.

"She had it catered by some of Gloria's friends. You'll note the abundance of Mexican food."

"I love enchilada's," she said, grabbing a plate. "Actually, I love all food."

"What's the strangest thing you've ever eaten?" he asked, as she put some enchiladas on a plate.

"Probably sea urchin."

"Really? You ate sea urchin? Doesn't that have spikes?"

"It does, and it was part of a culinary class I took. It was on the menu one day. I didn't care for it, but I did learn how to cook it."

He shook his head. "And I thought I was being adventurous trying snails."

"Are you kidding? That's nothing. Snails taste just like chicken."

"I tried to tell myself that," he said with a laugh.

She grinned back at him. It was nice to see him in a lighter mood. He might have been dreading this visit home, but it was clear that being around his family was good for him. "I don't think I can fit anything else on my plate," she said.

He gazed down at her full plate and nodded. "I agree. Shall we find somewhere to eat?"

"I think there are some tables outside."

"I know a better place. Come with me."

A few minutes later, Wyatt led her into what appeared to be his old bedroom. She set her plate down on the desk and looked around. "So this is where the glory days began," she said, waving her hand toward the wide array of trophies.

"Right here," he said, sitting down on the double bed. "I would have thrown all the hardware out years ago, but my mother insists on keeping it. She says she paid for all my uniforms and batting lessons, and swimsuits, and the trophies are partly hers. I think she just likes to come here and pretend I'm still twelve instead of thirty-two."

"I think it's sweet."

"I think you should eat before your food gets cold."

She pulled out the desk chair and sat down. As she ate, she glanced at the books on the shelf in front of her. "You liked mysteries, didn't you?"

"I did until my life turned into one."

"Speaking of which …" She turned sideways in her chair so she could see him. "I saw you having a rather intense conversation with a woman. What was that about?"

"That was Mandy, one of Jen's high school friends. I asked her if she knew anyone in the group who might have a boy named Ben and a girl about Steph's age."

"I assume she said no, or we'd already be on our way back to San Francisco."

"It's a long shot, but she gave me a name to check out – Rebecca Mooney."

"You have a name, and we're still here. You're showing amazing restraint."

"I searched the Internet on my phone before I came to get you."

She nodded, not at all surprised. "And …"

"And I texted Josh. He's at work tonight."

"So you have your bases covered."

"I knew I couldn't cut out on Summer that fast. She is my sister after all. And I really have no idea if Rebecca Mooney is anyone important." He paused, tilting his head. "So what do you think of me now? Have I convinced you that I'm a good guy?"