скачать книгу бесплатно
She’d covered the hardwood floor of her spare bedroom with an old sheet to protect the surface. She hadn’t gotten around to furnishing the room yet, so it was a large empty space. When her college friend had visited several weeks ago, Charlotte had given Joanie her own bed, and Charlotte had slept on an inflatable air mattress in the spare room. She wasn’t expecting more company anytime soon, so using the room to spread out Mom’s papers should work perfectly.
“Bank statements, receipts, tax returns,” she said aloud. “Even her pay stubs from when she worked at a fast-food chain in high school.” Charlotte couldn’t help laughing.
She had to admit that even though her mother might seem like a hoarder to some, the files were definitely meticulously organized.
A thought came to her. Would her mother have had to pay money at the time of Charlotte’s adoption? If so, a receipt of such a transaction might give Charlotte a clue about who her mother had dealt with. She must have at least paid for legal or medical expenses. Charlotte searched the box for records from 1986. Nothing. Wrong box.
She carefully climbed back into the attic to find the right box. The two bare bulbs with pull chains didn’t provide the best light, so she had to bring several boxes down before she found the right one.
With each descent, she checked the box to see if it contained the bank statements from 1986. Finally, on the fourth box, she found them.
Her heart beat wildly.
Like the others she’d found, the 1986 bank statements were in one of the small boxes inside the plastic tub that Charlotte had used in order to ensure nothing was ruined by moisture or heat in her attic.
She pulled out the small box from the plastic tub and sat cross-legged on the floor. For a moment, she simply stared at the container in front of her. What would she discover? Perhaps something life-altering? Maybe nothing at all.
Her hands shook and she laughed at her nervousness as she opened the box to find twelve identical envelopes in chronological order. She began with January, thinking there may have been a payment to someone several months prior to her birth.
She removed the pile of checks, which were in numerical order. There were canceled checks for rent, utilities, groceries, even a check made out to a local family-owned furniture store long out of business. The notation on the check said crib.
Charlotte’s eyes teared up. Her mother had been nesting before bringing her baby home.
A single tear escaped and ran down her cheek. She brushed it away and blinked several times to clear her vision. She studied the bank statement. Nothing unusual. The only deposits were identical checks that Charlotte assumed were from the accounting firm where her mother had worked. One near the beginning of the month and one right after the middle. Direct deposit wasn’t readily available in those days.
She took out the February statement. Nothing looked any different from January, except for a check with a notation of changing table, made out to the same furniture store where her mother had bought the crib.
March was the same, but there were no extra checks written for baby items. Mom must have used her credit card for the other purchases. Charlotte was sure to discover those records eventually.
Finally, April. The month of her birth. She could barely breathe. She carefully opened the envelope. This time she pulled out the bank statement first.
She immediately saw a deposit for thirty thousand dollars. “Where the heck did that come from?” she asked out loud. Her mother’s yearly salary at the time wasn’t much more than that.
Who could have given her that much money? Had she taken out a loan? Charlotte would have to dig through more paperwork from 1986 to find out.
She looked at the statement again and noticed a check for thirty thousand had been written by her mother two days after Charlotte was born.
Who had given or loaned her the money? More importantly, who had she written the check to?
Charlotte quickly pulled the checks from the envelope. Her fingers trembled as she went through each one. Finally she came to the one she was looking for. Thirty thousand dollars, but it was made out to Cash.
She quickly turned it over to see who had endorsed it. Her heart sank. As hard as she studied the signature, she couldn’t decipher the scribble. She couldn’t make out the first letter in either the first or last name. Even worse, the check had been cashed at the same bank as her mother’s account, not deposited, because there wasn’t even an account number along with the signature.
Definitely a dead end.
* * *
ALLIE SPENT NEARLY an hour on the internet, trying to find local businesses that might need assistance with their advertising. She found three prospects to contact, meeting the daily goal she’d set for herself.
Next she went on Twitter and participated in a discussion on branding. She would check later to see if she had any new followers. Other advertising professionals would be good, but finding companies or individuals who were trying to do their own advertising would be ideal. She could assist them in improving their public presence both online and anywhere else that might be beneficial to their individual goals.
Finally, she decided her newly formed company needed a blog. She figured she could find something worthwhile to say at least twice a week, so she started on her first entry. She called it “How a Brand-New Ad Agency Handles Its Own Advertising.” Her website already had a blog page ready to go, so uploading her piece would be simple.
With a draft of her blog entry set aside to review later, she turned her attention to searching for information about getting a DNA test done. Lots of ads came up with the search, but after reading some websites, she had a better understanding of the process.
She picked up the phone and called Charlotte. “Any news on your end?” she asked without preamble. “This is Allie, by the way.”
Charlotte laughed. “I know. You sound like I do when I listen to myself on my voice mail message.”
Allie grinned and paid attention while Charlotte told her about finding the deposit and the check to Cash in her mother’s files.
“That’s a good start, but it brings up a lot more questions.”
“I know. Believe me, I’ve been making a list,” Charlotte told her. “I’m guessing she got a loan for the thirty thousand dollars since it all showed up at once, and as far as I know she had no living relatives, but I haven’t found any documentation. Which is surprising, since she was so organized.”
“Keep looking. You’re sure to find the answers. Maybe she transferred it from a savings account.”
“That’s true. I haven’t come across her savings account records from back then yet,” Charlotte said. “I don’t actually know if the money in and out of her account is even related to my adoption. Just because it occurred two days after I was born, that doesn’t make it conclusive. Maybe she bought a car or a really nice piece of jewelry.” Charlotte paused. “Although she wasn’t the expensive jewelry type.”
“Back then, for that price, that would have been a pretty nice car,” Allie commented. “Do you really think she would have spent that much on a car, or anything for that matter, knowing she’d need money for the baby she was about to adopt?”
“Probably not. You’re right. She never had expensive taste,” Charlotte said. “She was able to pay for my education and left me more than enough money to buy my house—all on her accountant salary.”
“Sweet,” Allie said. “The advantage of being an only child.”
“One of the few.” Charlotte’s voice turned somber.
Allie needed to change the subject before Charlotte’s mood sank lower. “I’ve been checking out DNA testing online,” she said. “It sounds pretty straightforward. You’ve probably seen it done on TV. You swab your cheek and send it off to the lab.”
“How long before we’d get the results?” Good. Charlotte had snapped out of her melancholy.
“That information wasn’t available on the website, so I emailed to ask and also to find out exactly what the results might tell us. If they don’t contact me by tomorrow, I’ll make some phone calls.”
“Sounds good. Anything else going on with you? How did your presentation go?”
“Postponed. The CEO’s dog might have kennel cough. Is that a real thing? I meant to look it up.”
Charlotte laughed. “Yes, it’s a real thing. They give dogs vaccines for it. I would think your animal-food CEO would have had that covered.”
“You’d think so, wouldn’t you?” Allie checked the time on her computer and realized she had to leave in a few minutes. “Hey, can I call you later? I’m supposed to meet Jack for coffee at two.”
“You are?” Charlotte’s excitement was clear. “Why didn’t you tell me? When did that happen?”
Allie told her that he had come out of his house as she was leaving Charlotte’s the day before. “It’s just coffee. Nothing more.”
“Well, have a good time. He’s really nice, and funny, too.”
“And you’re sure you’re not interested in him?” Allie needed confirmation.
“Absolutely.”
“You don’t have to sound so positive about it,” Allie teased. “You make it seem like there’s something wrong with him. Is he a serial killer? A pervert? Please don’t tell me he has a third nipple or six toes.” She giggled at the thought.
Charlotte laughed, too. “I didn’t mean it that way, but for all I know, he could have webbed feet or something equally as disturbing. I just don’t have feelings for him like that, that’s all.”
“Okay, if you’re sure. You would tell me if there’s something I should know, right?”
“I swear. He’s a good guy. He even seems to be the sole caretaker for his grandfather.”
“That’s a good reference,” Allie said. “Now tell me his faults.”
“I don’t know him well enough to know his intimate secrets, but I should warn you about how he feels on the topics of marriage and commitment.”
Please don’t let him be looking for a wife. Please, please, please.
“Go on.” Allie held her breath.
“He’s commitment-phobic, completely against settling down. I’m not sure exactly why, but I think it has something to do with his dad.”
Allie expelled the breath that was burning her lungs. “Whew! You had me worried. Have I mentioned that I’m off men? Sometime I’ll tell you about my last boyfriend.” Allie closed her laptop and put it into her rolling brief case. “I’m only having coffee with Jack so I can tell him that—that I’m off men.”
“Don’t be so hasty,” Charlotte said quickly. “You never know how things will work out. Besides, you have other things in common, too.”
“Like what?”
“Well, you’re both in the same profession.”
Allie’s heart stopped. “The same profession?
“Yes, he’s in advertising, too. I’m surprised he hasn’t mentioned it.” Charlotte laughed. “Wouldn’t it be funny if you two were competitors?”
“Yeah, real funny.” Allie wasn’t laughing, though.
CHAPTER FIVE (#ulink_7f79580e-485d-553e-9a52-de6dea751cde)
JACK LEFT HIS suit jacket and tie in his office and walked the two blocks to the coffee shop to meet Allie. He’d unbuttoned his top shirt button and rolled up his sleeves on the warm, sunny day. He hoped the weather was a favorable forecast of his time with Allie.
Meeting for coffee wasn’t his usual go-to for a first date, if that’s what this could be called. Drinks were more his style, followed by a nice dinner or maybe a club with a great band playing. For some reason, he didn’t quite feel like himself when he was around Allie. Not that it was a bad thing. In fact, he felt pretty good when she was close by.
He reached the large front door of Café Lisbon with its thick glass panel surrounded by a wooden frame with years of worn paint. A bell tinkled as he opened the door and stepped inside.
“Hey, Jack.” The barista greeted him from the cappuccino machine. “What can I get you?” She added a plastic lid to the drink she’d just created and handed it to her customer. Coffee was the main event here, but they also served a small selection of breakfast and lunch items.
“The usual,” Jack answered. “Medium black coffee, dark roast if it’s already made.” He looked over the room of small, round tables with assorted styles of well-worn wooden chairs. There were several people sitting alone at tables either with a laptop or electronic device that they were concentrating on, or they had their noses buried in a newspaper or book. Two women sat chatting quietly at the table by the window, but he didn’t see Allie anywhere.
“Here you go,” the barista answered with the confident smile of a woman who knew she was attractive.
He pulled out his wallet and paid for his coffee. “This is for you.” He gave her a large tip. “And this money is to pay for whatever a certain woman with chin-length, dark hair and piercing blue eyes wants.” He glanced at the front door. “She should be here any minute.” He didn’t know Allie that well, but he had a hunch that she wouldn’t allow him to pay for her coffee unless he caught her off guard.
He took his coffee and chose a seat at a table where he could watch for her. He didn’t have long to wait. Even through the glass, she sucked him in completely. She wore a black blazer and matching skirt with a red blouse that buttoned down the front. Her red high heels were what made her outfit go from office attire to downright sexy.
She went straight to the counter to order without even acknowledging him. Jack couldn’t hear the conversation between her and the barista, but Allie didn’t have a pleased look on her face when she looked over in his direction. Her lips were pinched and her eyes narrowed.
Was she upset that he’d paid for her coffee? It wasn’t that big a deal, was it?
She turned her back to him, dug in her purse and removed her wallet. She gave the barista money and must have told her to keep the change, because the barista dropped money from the cash register into the tip jar. Allie didn’t turn around again until her drink was ready.
She was a vision as she came toward Jack, drink in hand. He stood as she came closer and was about to offer her a friendly hug when he saw the expression on her face go from ticked off to full-blown angry.
“Did you think you could make everything better by paying for my coffee?” She carefully placed her cup on the table and then yanked the chair from under the table before he could pull it out for her. She sat down across from him.
What was she talking about? Make everything better?
“I need more information to go on here,” he said calmly while he lowered himself into his chair. “Why would I need to make things better? Did I do something to offend you?”
Her eyebrows shot up. “Did you do something?” She removed the lid from her coffee. “It’s not what you did, it’s what you didn’t do.”
He did a quick scan of his memory to figure out what she was talking about. “I’ve got nothing,” he said. “What didn’t I do?”
“You’re serious?” She obviously didn’t believe him.
“Absolutely.”
“So you thought it was okay to keep your occupation a secret?”
A secret? “I didn’t do it on purpose,” he said slowly. “The subject never came up.” What was the big deal?
“You’re right, the subject never came up. Probably because you already knew what I do for a living.”
“Actually, I don’t. What is it you do?”
She cocked her head and smirked suspiciously. “I’m in advertising.”
He relaxed. “Oh, that’s great. Then we do have a lot in common.” Why would that anger her?
Allie rolled her eyes. “A lot in common? We both had presentations this morning, right? Well, after learning you’re in advertising, it didn’t take me long to figure out that we’re both competing for the Naturally Healthy Animal Food account.”
“Ah!” Now he understood. “I had no idea we were rivals. Honest.”
“I’m supposed to believe that?” She spoke loudly and looked around to see if anyone overheard.
“Why would I keep that information from you on purpose?” he asked.
She leaned in and lowered her voice. “To sabotage me. You knew I was going after the account, so you thought you’d blindside me with your charm and good looks. You must think I’m a sucker for a free cup of coffee.”
He blinked. “You really think I’d do that?” Although he did kind of like that she admitted he could throw her off her game. “Charm and good looks, eh?” He couldn’t hide his grin.
“I’ve been through worse.” She blatantly ignored his last comment. “But I just met you. Who knows what you’re capable of?”
