The Common Thread (35 page)

“What about Rae?” Ann asked. She looked up at the sky and then flecked imaginary lint from her shorts, and her obvious disinterest told Nic just exactly how interested she was in the answer to her question.

“She’ll help, too. The kids love her.”

Her mother smiled at her. “I can see why. I like her very much, Nic.”

“Me, too.” That was about as much information as Nic had ever revealed to her mom about a date, and for the moment, it was all she was prepared to say. Each hour she spent with Rae seemed to strengthen the bond forming between them, and she was growing more comfortable with Rae and the idea of them together. The attraction between them was undeniable, but Nic had learned all too well that attraction faded quickly when there was no substance to support it.

For most of her life, that would have been fine. A brief affair with Rae would be passionate and fun, but now for the first time, Nic wanted more. She’d glimpsed what it might be like to be in a relationship with Rae, and she loved the pictures—Rae’s strength in the face of adversity, the gentleness with which she’d held her, the sound words of advice she’d shared. For the first time since high school, when Virginia Yoon had broken her heart, she didn’t feel alone.

All of the signs indicated that Rae was interested in more, too. She’d asked her to the Barnes and then for dinner. She’d comforted her after the disaster at the hospital. She came to find her, coerced her into taking Katie’s kids, and had been helping her with them ever since. She had no obligation to be with Nic, and so Nic reasoned Rae was with her because she wanted to be.

Taking baby steps now seemed prudent as she waded into these unfamiliar waters. Yet the current of attraction was powerful, and for two nights she lay beside Rae and fought its pull, fought the impulse to scooch over beside her and kiss her senseless. And run her fingers through Rae’s shiny black hair. Was it as soft as it looked? The brief kisses they’d shared had been teasers, but Nic could still feel her lips burning with their heat, and her stomach did flips anticipating a
real
kiss.

Disappointment filled her as she realized it probably wouldn’t happen any time soon. Although they hadn’t discussed it, Rae would probably be leaving tonight to go to her parents’, and Nic knew she wanted to spend some quality time there. Perhaps later in the week, when the kids were gone, they might meet for lunch. Nic would be traveling back to Philly in a few weeks to help Louis pack for his move, and they might get together then. After that—who could tell?

Suddenly the idea of a long-distance relationship occurred to her. Was that really something she wanted to do? It had never been an option before, but with Rae, it might work. Perhaps it was the perfect solution to her dating troubles—a lover who she could see on a regular but limited basis, who gave her space and freedom but all the benefits—sex, a traveling companion, and a date for parties.

She looked to the early evening sky, avoiding her mother’s gaze. That scenario suddenly didn’t sound so great. She feared she wanted what she’d had for this wonderful weekend. A partner. And perhaps a couple of kids, too.

Her father handed her a cocktail, calling her out of her daydream, and she talked with her parents about Katie and the children. Jeannie had kept them up to date through the years, so they had an idea of her troubles, but they were as shocked as anyone to hear about her run-in with the bullets. Then Rae, Chloe, and Andre came scampering down to the patio, and all talk of their mother ceased. Nan followed them and was introduced to the Coussarts, and they all got to know each other while Nic put the chicken in a grill basket over the fire.

Their group of seven sat on the patio, enjoying Nic’s efforts, and Nic realized it was the most animated dinner she’d ever shared with them. Her parents were much more reserved than the two children and friends who’d joined her family. Nic decided she preferred the current setting over the one she was used to, and she realized how much she’d changed in just a few days. When the cleanup was finished, she was sorry to see her parents leave.

“I guess you’ve forgiven them?” Rae asked after they’d put Chloe and Andre to bed. Nan retired before all of them, claiming exhaustion from exposure to clean mountain air, and so they were alone as they walked out onto the deck.

“It was good advice that you gave, Rae. I’m never going to have any other parents. I have to make it work.”

“Have you ever thought of finding your biological mom?”

“All the time.”

“So why didn’t you?”

“I’m afraid of what I might find.” Nic had read horror stories on the Internet about bad reunions with birth parents, and she was understandably cautious about initiating a search.

Rae was silent for a moment. “I guess I never thought of it that way, but I imagine it is a scary prospect.”

Nic digested Rae’s words. “Maybe someday. What I am looking forward to…don’t laugh…is talking to Katie.”

“Really?”

“Well, I have to try to make friends with her so I can see my niece and nephew from time to time.” Nic didn’t say that she was curious about Katie, too. She already knew they shared a love of cheeseburgers and women, but what other interests did they share? The idea of a sister was growing on her, and thanks to Rae, she might have an opportunity to actually meet Katie, and get to know her. Who could tell? They might actually share some common threads beyond DNA.

“That’s a good enough reason for me. But you might actually like her.”

“Maybe. How about you?” Nic asked, trying to divert the conversation away from the topic she wasn’t quite ready to discuss. “Any plans to see your family on your trip to their house?”

Rae chuckled. “My parents won’t be home till midnight. They’re squeezing every last drop of wine out of those grapes.”

“So I guess you’ll be leaving soon.”

“I suppose I should.”

“I don’t want you to go.” Nic looked up and their eyes met, a gaze filled with heat and longing.

“Do you want to come in the hammock with me?” Rae asked.

Shaking her head, Nic stood and reached for Rae’s hand. “Let’s skip the hammock and go to my room.”

Rae stood, and before Nic could blink, Rae’s lips were on hers, singeing her with their heat, and Rae’s tongue was in her mouth, gliding over Nic’s with an ease that suggested they’d been doing this for years. Nic led her through the house and to her room, where she locked the door behind them. “I don’t think I’ve ever locked this before. We’re lucky it works,” she said.

“I would have just shoved the bed against the door,” Rae said, and then pushed Nic, gently, toward that bed.

Nic reached out to her, tugging Rae’s shirt from her shorts, feeling the silkiness of her skin as she ran her fingers across the planes of her back and then her abdomen. Up and over she lifted the shirt, and then she softly kissed the place between her breasts, where her bra pushed them together in a tantalizing display of cleavage.

Nic moaned as she felt their softness, and again as Rae ran her fingers across Nic’s shoulders and down her back and gently tugged on her shirt, pulling it up, forcing Nic to pull away. Their eyes met, pools of desire bubbling with heat, and then their lips found each other, too. The kiss was deep, but tender, as they cautiously explored each other’s mouths. In seconds Nic’s bra fell away, and she felt fire in the places Rae’s hands touched her, along her flanks, and then her belly, and finally, her breasts. Tongues slid in slow, lazy circles around each other, and then Rae’s hands dropped as she pulled her closer, allowing their breasts to graze each other. Her mouth never left Nic’s, even as she grasped the waistband of her shorts and began sliding them down.

Nic stopped her by holding her hands and then pushing them away, and then, she stepped back and sensually slid them down over her hips, as Rae stood watching, anticipating. Rae took the hint and slid her own shorts down, then dropped to her knees before Nic, burying her face in the triangle of fabric that covered her. Rae reached up, cupped Nic’s ass, and slowly pulled the underwear down, kissing the flesh as it was exposed, following the path until she had Nic on the bed, with no underwear to impede her, her mouth buried in the soft curls between her legs.

Simon sat at his desk, trying his best to follow the conversation between the computer wizards who kept Happy and Healthy Pharmacies running. It wasn’t even eight a.m., and already he was bombarded with the problems that came with running a multimillion-dollar corporation. In their attempt to explain the most cost-effective remedy for a problem with one of their computer servers, they’d just confused him. He wouldn’t admit that, though. He was the boss; therefore he was always right and always understood every facet of his business, no matter how complex the issues. To admit otherwise would have been a sign of weakness. Weakness would make him a target, and that would never do. He was the hunter, not the prey.

The men before him had no idea of the thoughts running through his head, and if they did, they themselves would have been running. None of the fifty employees in the building understood, and neither did the three hundred other people who worked at his pharmacies. His wife and children were clueless. The only one who understood was Angelica, and that was why at this moment she was preparing them to leave the country.

That Katie had survived his efforts to kill her not once, but twice, was reason enough for him to flee. That he’d shot a cop—even one wearing a bulletproof vest—was an even bigger incentive. One of his top distributors had been hauled in for questioning. He too was a parking attendant, and after the police linked the bullets in the shootings at the lawyer’s office with the killing at the parking garage, things began to really get interesting. Simon assumed the man would talk to the police, which was yet another reason to hasten his retirement plans. The temperature in the kitchen was suddenly getting way too hot for comfort.

The risk really wasn’t the parking attendant—although he could become a nuisance. The problem was Katie. On the streets he was known only as Simon, a person of his own creation, and only Angelica knew his real identity, until Katie had stumbled upon the truth, resulting in a ton of problems.

Her discovery was totally random, unpredictable, and unpreventable. He’d been in Rehoboth Beach with his family, strolling along the boardwalk like thousands of other tourists. When his son, Justin, asked for an ice cream, he didn’t hesitate to queue behind the others at the vendor’s window. Just as Katie turned around with her cones in hand, his wife had touched his arm. “Marc, we’ll meet you at Funland,” she’d said.

Katie had looked from his startled face to hers, offered a generic smile, then walked across the boardwalk to her own children.

Marc Simonson didn’t resemble his alter ego Simon Simms in the slightest. Of course, he couldn’t change his height, but the way Simon carried himself made him seem larger than he was. Bulky clothing helped in that regard as well. Other than the physical attributes, the two had few similarities. Their language, personalities, and manner of dress were all radically different. Simon was a street thug and acted the part. Marc was a nerdy but highly successful businessman. If he hadn’t met Katie face-to-face, hadn’t been so startled by seeing her in that setting, she probably wouldn’t have guessed it was him. She would have gone home wondering about the similarities but ultimately would have dismissed them as simply too improbable. But instead of a calm, cool, reaction, he noticeably flinched when their eyes met, and he knew that she recognized him.

From the moment she walked away, cones in hand, he was left wondering how to handle the situation. A part of him had hoped he wouldn’t have to kill her, but in the back of his mind he knew it would ultimately come to that. He couldn’t rest with her knowing his secret. He’d been sitting at the bar, nursing a beer, when Billy walked in that fateful night. “Katie said she saw you at the beach. You workin’ on your tan?”

Simon knew then that he had to act quickly. Who else would Katie talk to while he was trying to figure out what to do? He’d shot Billy and tried to kill her, yet she seemed impervious to his bullets. Now, he’d have to try again. No, he thought. He’d have to do it right this time. She was the only witness that any crime was committed, and eventually, she’d tell someone what she knew. The police might be able to trace him to the islands, and they might not, but it wasn’t a chance he wanted to take. He’d worked too hard to allow a little detail like Katie Finan fuck up his plans. When he disappeared, there’d be no reason for anyone to look for him.

He’d already shut down his factory. His pharmacist had left with a severance package of $25,000 and no explanation. They’d wiped down the place, and the next day he’d begin moving the machinery, so all evidence of their illegal activity would be gone.

And tonight, he’d tell Heather that he wanted a divorce. Simple and clean was his goal. The money he had in his safe was enough to sustain him, if he could get it to the islands undetected. If not—well, he didn’t want to think about that possibility.

Hopefully, Heather would his accept his reasons and allow him to walk away. He planned to offer his shares of the pharmacy as lifetime child and spousal support. She could have it all—more than a million dollars a year, and several million in equity, in exchange for his freedom.

“Just fix it!” he told the computer experts. “Cost isn’t an issue.” The bottom line of the Happy and Healthy Pharmacies no longer concerned him.

Sunrays, filtered through the sheer fabric of her bedroom curtains, bathed Nic’s face, and although the warmth was delightful, the brightness of the light blinded her. She pulled the down comforter up higher, shielding her face, and breathed deeply, intoxicated by the wonderful smell of…sex.

Even as her eyes flew open, she was rolling over in her bed, searching for Rae. Before disappointment could dampen her mood, someone knocked on the door and opened it. Rae, Chloe, and Andre entered. Rae was carrying a tray, Andre the newspaper, and Chloe a flower.