Proof of Life: A Christian Romance (BlackThorpe Security Book 4) Read online

  Her cell chimed a text alert, drawing Rebecca from her thoughts. She picked the phone up, hoping it would be something from Jordan, but it wasn’t.

  Maureen: Just checking to see if you’ve found Jordan yet and if he’s okay.

  Rebecca realized she had no idea if Jordan was okay, but at least he was safe. She sat for a moment, contemplating her response to Maureen. She’d made sure over the years to never discuss Jordan’s father with anyone. Even Connor had no idea. She’d wondered if he’d figure it out when he heard Jordan’s middle name, but since she and Alex had been so careful to never be seen together, Connor hadn’t even suspected it might be his friend from high school.

  But Jordan’s parentage wasn’t the only thing people hadn’t known about. No one had known that she and Alex had actually gotten married. They had secretly gone out in high school since her folks had forbidden her from dating until she was out of school. Alex had joined the military just after graduating, but Rebecca had had one more year, so they’d kept in contact through emails and online chatting for the next year. The December following her graduation, they’d received word that he was going to be doing a tour in the Middle East. He’d taken a short leave and come back to Minneapolis.

  Looking back now, Rebecca couldn’t believe that she’d actually thought that getting married so quickly was a good idea. And not only quickly, but secretly. Their plan had been to have a church wedding once his tour was over. They’d hoped that by that point, things would have settled down with Alex’s family and that her own would have been more accepting.

  But then she’d ended up pregnant. A honeymoon baby—even though their honeymoon had lasted just over a week. However, it had been his response to her panicked message when she’d realized she was pregnant that had shown her how little she’d actually known about the man she’d married.

  I’ll send you the money. You just need to get rid of it. We can’t deal with this right now.

  She’d studied the message so often those first few weeks that it was burned into her memory. Her message to him in reply had been five short words.

  I’ll take care of it.

  And she had. She’d cut off all contact with Alex, which wasn’t too difficult since he couldn’t travel to Minneapolis to talk with her even if he’d wanted to. When her dad had gotten transferred to Chicago a couple of months later, she’d gone with her family who hadn’t yet realized she was pregnant. Later, with her parents’ reluctant help, she’d managed to take a course in medical transcription and eventually had found a job that allowed her to work from home. Her dreams of being a teacher were long gone, but eventually, another dream had taken its place, and she’d begun to write.

  Her success had surprised everyone…including herself…but Rebecca was beyond grateful that she’d had a means to support herself and her son while still being able to homeschool him. She told people she homeschooled him because she’d always wanted to be a teacher, and while that was partially true, the other part was that she just didn’t want to put him into the system where maybe one day Alex might find him.

  Given his response to her pregnancy, Rebecca hadn’t been too surprised when Alex didn’t make any effort to find her. She hadn’t buried herself so deeply that, with a little effort, he couldn’t have figured out where she’d gone. But he never had.

  Which still left the question…how had Jordan found out about his father?

  But it was a question that would have to wait. She needed to focus and get this book published so she could give the situation with Alex and Jordan her complete attention.

  After taking a minute to respond to Maureen’s text letting her know Jordan was safe and sound, Rebecca turned her attention back to her computer monitor.

  ~*~*~

  “Well, what’s this all about, Alex? It’s not often we get summoned to the exec floor like lowly peons,” Melanie declared as she dropped down in the chair next to Adrianne.

  It was still a little surprising for Alex to see them looking so much like each other now that Melanie had returned her hair to its natural color and stopped wearing the brown colored contacts.

  “Like you’re complaining,” Adrianne said, a smirk on her face. “You’ve probably already told Tyler you’ll meet him for lunch afterward.”

  Melanie grinned, and if he hadn’t had so much weighing on his mind, Alex might have joined in. Unfortunately, none of his meetings had improved his mood and now he was going to have to reveal his secrets to his sisters. There was no way to hide the presence of a teenage boy in his life.

  As if sensing his mood wasn’t aligned with theirs, Adrianne’s brows drew together as she looked at him. “What’s going on?”

  “Do they have some news on Alana?” Melanie asked, her smile sliding away.

  “No news on Alana.” Alex picked up a pen and ran his fingers up and down the smooth surface. He’d tried to figure out the best way to tell them about the events that had unfolded earlier that morning.

  “You’re starting to worry me, Alexander Jordan Thorpe,” Adrianne said, her voice tight.

  At the sound of his full name, Alex took a deep breath and looked up at his sisters. “You know how I never date, right?”

  “Uh, yeah,” Melanie said as she shot a quizzical look at Adrianne.

  “Well, I have a really good reason.” Alex paused, waiting to see if either sister would say anything, but they remained quiet, their expressions a mix of curiosity and concern. “I don’t date because I’m already married.”

  The looks on their faces morphed into identical expressions of shock. Not surprisingly, Adrianne was the first one to regain her composure. “Say what? Is this some kind of joke, Alex?”

  He shook his head and ran a hand through his hair. “No. It’s not. I’m married and have been for almost fifteen years.”

  Melanie’s eyes widened. “What? To whom?”

  “Rebecca Mackenzie.”

  Adrianne shot to her feet. “Rebecca Mackenzie? Connor Mackenzie’s sister?”

  The tone of Adrianne’s voice as she said the names made Alex frown. There was definitely a thread of anger in her words. Even Melanie was staring at her in surprise.

  “Yes.”

  Adrianne’s expression was tight as she sat back down in her chair. Her hands were clenched in her lap, but she didn’t say anything more. For all that he knew his sister, Alex couldn’t figure out what would have caused her to react the way she had. As far as he knew, she’d gotten along with Rebecca even though she’d been a grade behind them.

  “Why are you telling us this now?” Melanie asked softly, her gaze darting between him and Adrianne.

  Given Adrianne’s reaction to the first bomb he’d dropped, Alex wasn’t sure she could handle a second one. Unfortunately, he had no choice because, at the end of the day, he was going to be bringing his son to their home.

  “Well, this morning, a young man showed up and said he was my son.” It was strange…up until that point in his life, Alex had never really understood the saying so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

  Melanie reached out to lay a hand on Adrianne’s arm as she looked at him. “Where is he?”

  “In the lunchroom,” Alex said, recalling the last time he’d checked in on the boy. He’d been staring out the window, his tablet clutched in his lap. Though Jordan had assured him he was fine, Alex had seen the apprehension and worry in the young man’s eyes. “Would you like to meet him?”

  Though Adrianne didn’t say anything, Melanie nodded her head. “I would.”

  When she got to her feet, she grabbed Adrianne’s hand and pulled her up as well. Alex couldn’t help but wonder about his twin’s reaction to his news. Melanie was definitely taking it all in stride, but Adrianne…he had no idea what was going on in her head. No doubt she was hurt that he’d kept a secret like this from her for so long. But now was not the time to deal with his regrets. He’d lived with them for years…a little while longer wouldn’t make any difference.

  As the three
of them made a silent exit from his office, Lynne glanced up but didn’t say anything. Alex lifted his hand so she could see his phone, and she nodded her understanding.

  When they reached the lunch room, he spotted Jordan in the same place he’d left him earlier. Thankfully, the room was otherwise empty. Not that that was too surprising since the only ones who used it were those on the executive floor and most only came to get fresh coffee.

  The boy’s eyes widened as he took in their approach, and he quickly got to his feet, pressing his back to the window he’d been looking out of.

  Alex held out a hand to reassure him and smiled. “Jordan, I’d like you to meet my sisters.”

  Jordan’s gaze darted to the women on either side of him. Alex had no idea what was going through his teenage mind, but the confidence he’d had earlier seemed to be slipping away.

  It didn’t surprise Alex that the first person to move was Melanie. She walked toward Jordan and held out her hand. “Hi, Jordan. I’m Melanie. It’s nice to meet you.”

  Jordan stared at Melanie for a long moment before taking her hand and shaking it. “Uh, nice to meet you too. I didn’t know I had an aunt.” His gaze slid to Adrianne. “Aunts.”

  “That’s Adrianne,” Melanie said with a wave of her hand. “She’s actually your dad’s twin sister.”

  “Twins?” Jordan asked, his eyes widening briefly.

  “Yep,” Melanie said as she stepped to his side and slid her arm through his. “She’s just a little shocked at your dad’s news. We had no idea about you.”

  “Yeah, I didn’t know about him—or you—either,” Jordan said, shifting from one foot to another but apparently not too uncomfortable with Melanie’s nearness because he didn’t pull away from her.

  “Are you hungry?” Melanie asked. “It’s almost lunch time.”

  Jordan glanced at Alex and then back at Melanie before giving a quick nod. “A little.”

  “How about you come with me to the deli for some lunch? I think Adrianne and your dad need to talk for a little bit.” Melanie motioned to his backpack. “You can leave your stuff here if you want. It’ll be safe.”

  “Okay. I’ll just bring my phone.”

  Alex felt a sense of relief as he watched Melanie take over the situation. At least, Jordan was in good hands. He had a feeling that Adrianne was going to be the first of many difficult conversations he was going to have over the next few days.

  “I think we’re going to go snag Tyler to come with us,” Melanie said to Alex as they walked past. “We’ll come back up here when we’re done, but phone if you need us back sooner.”

  “Let’s go talk in private,” Alex said once it was just him and Adrianne.

  She nodded and walked in silence beside him as they made their way back to his office. He shut the door behind them and then went to his chair while she sat down across from him.

  “Why didn’t you ever tell me?” Adrianne asked as soon as he sat down. Her expression gave away nothing of what was going on in her head.

  Alex let out a sigh. “There was so much going on back then. We were all still trying to recover from Melanie’s kidnapping. We’d been quietly dating for awhile, and after she had graduated, when we realized I was being sent overseas, we decided to elope.”

  “But I don’t understand. It’s been years. Why haven’t we heard about it before this?”

  “Because I did something incredibly stupid. Horrible, in fact.”

  Adrianne tilted her head. “Did you cheat on her?”

  “No.” Alex looked away from his sister, not eager to see the disappointment his revelation would surely bring to her face. “When she let me know she was pregnant, I told her to get rid of it.”

  “Oh, Alex.” Adrianne’s voice was low, her eyes sorrowful.

  The ache that had finally dulled over the years exploded into a breath-robbing pain. He rubbed his chest. “She told me she’d take care of it, then about a month later, after not hearing from her at all, I got a letter saying she couldn’t be with a man like me. A man who could so easily dismiss proof of our love. A life we had created together.” He paused. “She was right, so when she disappeared, I didn’t try to find her. She was definitely better off without the man I was back then.”

  “So you never got a divorce?”

  Alex shook his head. “I didn’t know where she was. I suppose I could have found her—especially once we got BlackThorpe up and running—but, honestly, I had no desire to date or remarry, so I just put it out of my mind. If she’d served me with divorce papers, I would have signed them, but for whatever reason, she didn’t.”

  “So what happens now? Does Rebecca know he’s here?”

  “Yep. We had a brief conversation this morning.” Alex leaned back in his chair. “She’s going to be here tomorrow.”

  Adrianne’s eyebrows rose at that announcement. “Oh boy.”

  “Yeah, exactly. Jordan can stay with me tonight, but I’m not sure where Rebecca will want to stay when she gets here.”

  “Do you want me and Melanie to get the apartment set up?”

  “Could you? I know you’re busy too, but I have appointments all day and no time to arrange for anything.”

  “What about Jordan? Is he just going to hang here?”

  Alex let out a sigh. “I’m sure he’ll be bored out of his mind here waiting for me to finish. I’ve cleared my schedule for tomorrow, but there’s nothing I can do about today.”

  Adrianne got to her feet. Whatever her reservations were from earlier, they seemed to have been forgotten. “Leave it to Melanie and me. We’ll take care of him. Just be home in time for supper.”

  Alex pushed up from his chair, rubbing a hand over his face. “Just one thing…no Mom or Dad just yet, okay?”

  Adrianne gave a huff. “Yeah, that goes without saying.”

  Once she’d left, Alex sat in the quiet of his office still trying to wrap his mind around everything that was going on. He prayed that he’d have the wisdom to deal with Rebecca. He knew better than anyone that he really didn’t deserve this opportunity to get to know the child he’d rejected. He had no doubt Rebecca would see it that way as well. But now there was Jordan, wanting to get to know his father—worthy or not. And underneath the guilt he carried there was a part of him that cried out to be allowed to have this second chance at fatherhood.

  He only hoped that Rebecca would give it to him and that he was up to the challenge.

  ~*~*~

  Rebecca pressed a hand to her stomach as the plane touched down at the Minneapolis-St. Paul airport. She hadn’t been back to the Twin Cities since the day her family had left fifteen years ago. There had been absolutely nothing to draw her back in the years since, but today there was.

  She’d texted Jordan to let him know what time she was arriving then asked him where he was staying so she could rent a car and get to him. He’d replied that he was staying with Alex but hadn’t gotten back to her with the address before she’d boarded the plane. Hopefully, there would be a message waiting when she got off the plane. If all else failed, she would go to the BlackThorpe offices.

  The plane had barely come to a jerking halt at the gate when people surged out of their seats and into the aisle. Rebecca considered joining them but then decided she was in no rush. Instead, she pulled out her phone, hoping to see a text from Jordan once she was connected again. Unfortunately, nothing popped up.

  Hey, sweetie! Still need an address so I can figure out where I’m going. Xoxo

  She kept an eye on the queue of people in the aisle as she waited for his reply. Once the doors opened, the line began to move forward, but Rebecca stayed in her seat, her laptop bag and purse on her lap.

  There was still no message by the time the line of people had thinned out. With a sigh, Rebecca slid the phone into her purse and got to her feet. Mentally she began to make a plan as she walked up the jetway.

  Get her bag.

  Rent a car.

  Find a hotel to stay at.


  Look up the address for BlackThorpe.

  Go get her son.

  And see her husband for the first time in fifteen years.

  Rebecca closed her eyes briefly. She could have done without that reminder. Gripping her laptop bag handle more tightly, she looked around for information on getting to the baggage claim. It wasn’t long before she had exited the secure part of the terminal and was on the escalator to go down one floor.

  As she stepped off the escalator and began to head in the direction of the baggage claim, she heard a familiar voice.

  “Mom!”

  Spinning around, Rebecca spotted Jordan heading toward her. Relief swamped her to see that he was okay—even though she’d reassured herself countless times that he was. As he got close, she set her laptop bag down and wrapped her arms around him, hugging him as tight as she could. Given how he’d been with her on the phone, she was a bit surprised—but very relieved—when he returned her hug.

  She stepped back from him and gripped his face in her hands. He had gone through a growth spurt recently and now she found herself looking up at him. So many words tumbled through her head—things she wanted to say to him—but finally she just said, “I love you, sweetheart.”

  “Love you too, Mom.”

  As she stood there, relief coursing through her, the realization slowly came that if Jordan was here…so was Alex. The thought made her stomach clench, and she wondered briefly if she was going to be sick. Swallowing hard, she continued to look at Jordan as she gave herself a quick lecture.

  I am not that eighteen-year-old girl who was in love with him. He told me to get rid of Jordan. Remember that. I no longer have stars in my eyes where he is concerned. He is not the man I thought he was.