Under a Vampire Moon (17 page)

Christian grunted, but his mouth was full of burger and she turned her attention to her own food. It was several moments before either of them spoke again and then it was Christian who said, “So what does a business lawyer do exactly?”

Carolyn smiled wryly and picked up a fry, as she admitted, “I don’t really use my degree at all anymore.”

When his eyebrows rose, she shrugged.

“Life kind of took a turn in an unexpected direction several years ago.”

“Oh?” Christian asked curiously.

She nodded, and contemplated her plate, but then decided there was no reason not to tell him. It wasn’t likely to affect their budding friendship and that was all it was ever likely to be. “You remember I said my mom was my only family?”

He nodded.

“Well, it turned out that wasn’t exactly true. It seems we had loads of family. She just didn’t dare go near any of them for fear my father would find her.”

Christian paused in his chewing, his eyes narrowing. “Spousal abuse?”

She wasn’t terribly surprised he’d guessed. What other reason would make a woman flee her husband and family and raise a child on her own in abject poverty?

“Yeah. I guess he was free with his fists. She told me she nearly lost me when he threw her down a flight of stairs while she was pregnant.” She grimaced. “She put up with it so long as he only hit her, but when I was four he started in on me.”

“Is that from him?” Christian asked.

Carolyn paused in confusion, but then realized she was rubbing the small tear-shaped scar by her right eye. Retrieving her hand, she reached for her burger, but then paused. “Yes. I guess I had my elbows on the table.”

Christian’s expression darkened. “And for that he scarred you for life?”

Carolyn shrugged. “I gather he had a temper. Besides, it was kind of an accident I guess. I mean, he apparently hit me and sent me flying into a glass or pitcher or something on the table. It was the glass that cut me, not him, but the fact that he’d hit me that hard was enough for her. She was afraid it wouldn’t be the last time, so she took me and ran. She changed our name to her maiden name of Johnson, and worked a series of horrible low-paying jobs under the table to avoid leaving a paper trail he could follow to find us.”

“And did he look?” Christian asked.

Carolyn nodded. “He apparently hired several private detective agencies and kept them working for ten years before giving up.”

“He never thought to look under her maiden name?” Christian asked.

Carolyn grinned. “Johnson is almost as common as Smith. He could have looked till the cows came home and he wouldn’t have found us. Besides, she was working under the table,” she reminded him.

“Right.” Christian nodded. “And you found this out, how?”

“Some of it I found out when Mom was sick, just before she died. The rest I found out from him when they found me,” she admitted quietly. “Before Mom got sick, I thought my father had died just before I was born.”

“When he found you?” he asked. “You didn’t go looking for him?”

“Heck no,” Carolyn said with amusement. “I mean, he was just a name, and from what my mother described, hardly someone I wanted to know.”

“So what made him start looking for you again?”

“Cancer,” she answered at once. “He’d never remarried, didn’t have any other kids, got cancer, and decided it was time to try to find us again. Only this time he figured I’d be working so he had them search for me.” She popped a fry into her mouth, chewed and swallowed and then continued, “It took a while, but he was lucky to find me at all. I almost changed my name legally to Carolyn at one point.”

“Carolyn’s not your real name?” he asked with surprise.

“Yes, well, it’s my middle name.”

“And your first name?” he asked.

Carolyn grinned. “Guess.”

He blinked at the suggestion. “How could I even begin to—”

“It’s Christiana,” she interrupted with amusement.

Christian blinked and then raised his eyebrows. “You’re kidding?”

Carolyn laughed at his expression. “My birth name was Christiana Carolyn Carver. My parents were into alliteration, I guess.”

Christian flopped back in his seat and she chuckled softly, but continued, “Anyway, I went through life as Carolyn Johnson, my middle name and my mother’s maiden name. I don’t know how she managed that. I thought they needed birth certificates or some form of ID to register a kid in school, but if so, she must have bought some fake IDs.” Carolyn pondered that briefly, trying to imagine her hardworking and upright mother dealing with black market types to buy fake IDs. It was very hard to imagine. Still, she must have, she supposed.

“While she apparently didn’t mind fake stuff for my schooling, she used my real name and birth certificate to get me a social insurance number when I was a teenager. But she insisted I expend my energy on schoolwork and would never let me get a part-time job to help out, so I never actually used it until I graduated from university and started to work.” Carolyn laughed. “It was really rather weird to have to learn to sign everything Carver. And anytime someone called me Chris or Christiana, I had no idea who they were talking to. I still went by Carolyn.”

“And that’s how he found you? Through your social insurance number?” Christian asked.

“Eventually,” she agreed. “But Rob—” She paused, her mouth tightening, and then simply said, “It took a while. By the time his private detective tracked me down my father was in the final stages of cancer and on his last legs.”

Christian was silent for a moment, his eyes solemn and she knew he wanted to ask her what she’d started to say about Robert. She wasn’t ready to answer that and was tensing up at the thought of his even bringing it up, but he merely asked, “What was your father like?”

Carolyn’s tension eased and her lips twisted. “Repentant. But then isn’t everyone when they know they’re about to meet their maker?”

Christian’s eyebrows flew up at the words and she smiled wryly.

“Why so surprised that I would say that?”

“I guess you just don’t seem the type to be so cynical,” he admitted quietly.

Carolyn glanced down. He was right. She’d always been a little Pollyanna according to Beth and Brent, but she’d learned a lot the last couple of years. Still, Christian hadn’t known her long, so it was surprising he had figured that out about her already.

“Anyway,” she said. “He was full of apology and regret both for what he’d done to drive Mother away, and for the hard life she’d had because of it. He wanted to make up for it by leaving me his business and fortune.”

When Christian’s eyebrows rose, she smiled bitterly.

“It seems my mother gave up a lot to keep me safe. Daddy was wealthy as hell, with a couple of companies and loads of land. It’s why she’d feared he would hunt for us; he had the funds to do it,” she said dryly.

“And he left everything to you?”

Carolyn nodded. “The companies were based in Quebec. I sold a couple and moved the head office for the one I kept to Toronto and took over running it on his death.”

“What business did you keep?” he asked curiously.

“An advertising agency,” she admitted with a self-deprecating laugh. “I don’t know why I chose to keep that one. I don’t know a damned thing about advertising, or I didn’t. But I just left the creative stuff to the staff at first and concentrated on the business end of things and now I know a heck of a lot more than I did.”

“So you don’t even use your law degree?”

“Well, I do, I suppose. When it comes to contracts I’m a whiz. It’s handy there,” Carolyn admitted, and then glanced down to her plate to see that she’d finished her meal. When she saw that Christian had finished his as well, she sighed and peered at her watch. “I suppose I should get the ginger ale and crackers and head back to the villa.”

Christian nodded and ushered her out of the restaurant. The one they’d chosen was on the little strip across from the main building and Carolyn glanced curiously in the windows of the few small shops along the boardwalk as they went. When she saw the selection of T-shirts in one window, she paused.

“Did you want to go in?” Christian asked.

She glanced at his dark T-shirt and jeans and nodded. It was a tiny shop, full of baubles and clothes, and Carolyn wove her way through the place until she reached the clothing section where a selection of shorts and shirts waited. Her gaze slid over a group of Hawaiian-type prints, but didn’t pause. She just didn’t see Christian wearing them. Smiling at the thought, she continued on to the T-shirts and picked up a white one with the resort logo on the bottom-right hem.

“What do you think?” Carolyn asked, turning to hold it up to Christian.

He shook his head. “I don’t need anything.”

“Uh-huh,” she said with disbelief. “So you have something in your suitcase that isn’t black?”

“What’s wrong with black?” he asked with a frown.

“Nothing. And you look good in it,” she assured him. “But it’s too hot here for it. You need shorts too.”

“I don’t do shorts,” Christian assured her grimly, his nose rising and Carolyn laughed.

Leaning up to whisper in his ear, she teased, “You’re pretty lame about fashion for a gay guy.”

“I’m glad to hear it,” he said dryly, his hand rising to graze her back before she lowered to her feet.

Shaking her head, she turned to pick up a pair of canvas shorts to look them over and Christian immediately winced. “Caro, I won’t wear them.”

“Why not? You have good legs. You should show them off.”

“Jesus, Carolyn. I’m not Beth. Men don’t have good legs,” he said with disgust.

“I meant nice guy legs,” she said quickly. “All muscular and sexy.”

Christian blinked, his annoyance giving way to a grin, and he asked with interest, “So you think my legs are sexy?”

Carolyn flushed. “I’m sure you know they are. Just see if they have a changing room and try these on. It makes me hot just to look at you all in black.”

His eyebrows rose, his grin widening. “So, you’re saying I make you hot?”

“I didn’t mean—” she began with alarm, aware that she was flushing. But catching the twinkle in his eyes, she shook her head and said with exasperation, “Who knew you could be such a smart-ass?”

“I’ll get the shirt,” he conceded, chuckling, and took it from her, then led the way to the till. She supposed that was better than nothing.

They stopped in at the little grocer’s for the ginger ale and crackers and then headed up the hill on foot, chatting as they went.

“How long do you need before heading back to the beach?” Christian asked as they neared the villa she shared with Beth.

Carolyn hesitated. If she just dumped the stuff and left, she’d only need a minute. However, she kind of felt she should stay and visit with Bethany, at least for a little bit. “Give me an hour?”

He nodded easily. “It will give me time to shower, change, and feed.”

“Your Italian is showing, it’s eat, not feed,” she said with amusement. When Christian stiffened with what she thought must be embarrassment, she regretted teasing him. He was really very good with English. “Besides, you just ate. How can you be hungry again already?”

Christian relaxed and shrugged. “I just am.”

“Hmm, you must still be growing then,” she decided.

“
Cara,
I am well past the growing stage,” he said firmly.

Carolyn ignored the Italian endearment. They seemed to use it freely enough. She also ignored his words and simply turned up the walk to her villa saying, “I’ll meet you down there in an hour then.”

The villa was cool and silent when she entered. Carolyn carried the bag into the kitchen and stored the ginger ale in the refrigerator, then set the crackers on the counter and went in search of Bethany. She found her sound asleep in her room, and gently eased the door closed. After a hesitation, she then headed back to the kitchen to write a note stating that she’d been back and gone and to call if she needed anything else or just wanted company. Carolyn then slipped out of the villa again and headed down the road. She’d almost reached the turnaround when the sound of pounding feet made her glance over her shoulder. Spotting Christian jogging toward her, she paused and smiled.

“You’re early,” he said as he stopped beside her.

“She was asleep,” Carolyn said with a shrug. “Besides, so are you.”

“I saw you head out and thought I’d catch up,” he admitted.

“What about showering and eating?” she asked with surprise, wondering that he’d caught up so quickly . . . and wasn’t the least bit out of breath.

“I grabbed a bite,” Christian said easily. “And I decided why shower when I can just take a dip in the sea again.”

Carolyn stared at him and then glanced back up the road to the villas, hers and then his on the next level up. It was hard for her to believe he’d even gotten back to his villa that quickly, let alone eaten something and come down again.

“We need to stop in the grocer’s on the way back to the beach,” Christian announced suddenly.

“I knew it,” Carolyn said, starting to walk again. “You didn’t even make it back to the villa and want to get munchies.”