“I don’t know. We never talked about it again.”
“Did Dad know Roger died?” Tessa asked, still rocking with dissatisfaction over these responses.
“He must have,” Jo Ellen said. “I found a copy of Roger’s obituary in your father’s papers, and it was from an Atlanta newspaper, so he had to have known.”
“Really?” Kate asked on a gasp. “Why wouldn’t he tell us? We didn’t find out until two months ago.”
“He must have had a really good reason,” Jo Ellen said.
“Of course he did,” Tessa replied. “But we want to know what that reason was.”
“Maybe I do know,” Kate said, making them both look at her in shock. “Eli and I spoke with Betty and Frank Cavallari a while back. Do you remember them, Mom?”
Her brows furrowed. “The couple who owned the deli? Oh, yes, we socialized with them a lot those summers. I loved Betty. She was so funny. I’m glad they’re still alive because if I’m seventy-eight, then Betty’s nearly eighty-seven now.”
“They’re both alive and in good health,” Kate said. “They live in Santa Rosa Beach.”
“Well, that’s nice to hear,” Jo Ellen said. “But they don’t know anything about this.”
Kate cocked her head. “They think they do.”
Jo Ellen’s expression darkened slightly. “Then they’re lying.”
“Or confused,” Kate said, glancing at Tessa with a question in her eyes. The fact was, Betty had told Kate that their father had been in love with Maggie, and Frank had told Eli that Roger had been in love with Jo Ellen.
No one believed either version of that story, but Kate and Tessa had decided not to bring it up with their mother, just in case there was a grain of truth to it. That could hurt…someone.
Kate and Tessa looked hard at each other, both of them thinking the same thing—was it the right time to ask? Did it make any sense? Would it answer any questions?
At the very same moment, they both gave their heads imperceptible shakes, proving that they were still connected, these twins who’d shared a womb. Because they both knew that it wasn’t the time, it made no sense, and nothing would be resolved by bringing up that conjecture.
“I do know this,” Jo Ellen said, picking up her coffee cup. “Your father was a man of ethics, of strong morals. He loved us all, and he protected us no matter what.”
And that, Tessa knew, was the only truth that mattered. After the conversation with Lacey, she’d been thinking about him even more than usual. How he’d been the only person in the world who could help her, hold her as she cried, and promise that he’d always be there for her, no matter what.
Could that loving, kind man of genuine integrity have torn another family apart? Why would he do that?
“I don’t know what his true role was in Roger’s arrest,” her mother continued. “And, honestly? I don’t think Maggie knows, either. I think both men took the truth to the grave, and we need to accept that.”
“Can you?” Kate asked.
“Of course—I’m here, aren’t I? The real question is, can Maggie forgive and forget? I loved the woman dearly, but those two attributes are not exactly her strong suit.”
“Tessa!” Lacey came out to the deck in a rush. “The models are pulling up. Akari will be here in five minutes. Guests arrive in two hours.”
Tessa pushed up, giving a wistful smile to her mother and sister. “It’s showtime.”
* * *
“You have blown me away,Tessa Wylie.” Akari turned and looked at Tessa with nothing but gratitude glimmering in her dark eyes. “Truly exceeded my highest expectations.”
“Thank you,” Tessa said with a humbled tip of her head. “But the music for the first set hasn’t even started yet, so hang on for the real good stuff.”
“The good stuff is that there are well over a hundred people here,” Akari exclaimed. “Oh, I see someone I have to talk to.” She blew a kiss and floated away, leaving Tessa standing at the edge of the boardwalk runway.
From this perch, she could take in the breathtaking spectacle they had pulled off, and it did indeed exceed expectations. The late afternoon sunlight bathed everything in a dreamlike glow, the polished wooden planks gleaming beneath the cloudless sky.
Guests gathered along the dunes and under the tents, champagne flutes in hand. Ivory fabric draped elegantly from wooden archways, billowing with the breeze, while floral arrangements of white roses, peonies, and eucalyptus added a lush romance to the setting. The entire event looked like something out of a bridal magazine—perfect, seamless, magical.
