Chapter 4 Shocking Revelation

CHAPTER 4: SHOCKING REVELATION

It rained for the rest of the morning and afternoon. During Bonnie's final session of the day at the retreat —an interactive panel discussion about managing stress and keeping the right balance between her career and personal life — she discreetly sent a text message to Alice.

I'm scooting out early. Need to take care of something personal.

She didn't tell Alice what it was, because she didn't want to worry her. Hurrying back to her room, she traded her cowgirl boots for a pair of hiking boots.

Instead of taking the elevator down, she moved stealthily toward the stairwell at the back of the building. After watching the rain through the windows all afternoon, she wasn't surprised to find herself stepping around scattered puddles as she hiked across the pastureland toward the hills beyond.

While she walked, she dialed Holt. Now that he was working two jobs, she wasn't sure if he would pick up, but he did.

"Hey, babe," he greeted her in a cheerful voice.

"Hey, Holt," she answered shyly. She liked being his babe. "How's the new job going?"

"Really well, actually. It's a new adventure." Some of the joviality in his voice faded. "I'm enjoying everything but the occasional flash of light in the distance that makes me wonder if someone is keeping tabs on me through a long-range lens."

Her insides chilled. "Are you serious?"

"This is the part where you tell me I'm being paranoid," he said dryly. "Then we'll laugh and move on."

"I wish it was that easy." She hated to break it to him that she'd just this morning experienced the same thing. He already had enough on his plate to worry about.

"Go on," he ordered quietly.

Here goes nothing. "The same thing happened to me."

"When?" Holt's voice rose in alarm. "And why am I just now hearing about it?"

She should've been annoyed by his show of overprotectiveness, since her brothers dished more than enough of that her way. Instead, she was charmed. "Relax. It was only once. This morning at the rope bridge obstacle. Alice saw it, too. It was before the thunderstorm hit. We were swinging through the treetops like Tarzan when it happened."

"Did you call the police?"

"What would we tell them?" The question puzzled her. "All we saw was a flash of light, Holt. It was blinding, but there's nothing illegal about someone being in possession of a piece of glass."

"I'm more worried about the odds of it being a long-range camera lens." He sounded agonized. "This is serious, Bonnie. Someone might be targeting you because of me."

"What do you mean?" She couldn't imagine why.

"I recently helped put some really bad dudes behind bars, babe. It's possible they're going to retaliate, which means everyone I care about might be in danger."

Oh. She hadn't considered that. "I guess it's a good thing we're only pen pals," she said lightly. Since nobody else knew about their status as pen pals, there was no way she could be targeted for it.

"We're more than pen pals, Bonnie, and you know it," he protested. "Anyone who's seen me hanging around you lately can probably connect the dots."

She blushed hotly. "Well, I'm about to get us some answers, cowboy. I'm hiking out to the spot right now to see if I can figure out what caused that flash of light this morning."

"Alone?" He barked out the word.

"I'm doing it in broad daylight," she assured. "There are ranch hands everywhere. Literally crawling all over the place like ants."

"Please keep them in sight at all times, you hear?" His voice was pleading. "The last thing you need to do right now is go off alone."

"I'm fine, Holt." She wasn't sure why he was making such a big deal out of her trek across Anderson Ranch. It was safe here. According to Alice, there were embedded security guards at every big event like theirs.

"I wish I could convince myself of that." Holt sounded more worried than ever. "Any chance you'd be willing to wait about ten minutes so I can join you?"

His obvious concern touched her heart. "If you feel that strongly about it."

"I do. Where's Alice?"

She heard a door slam. It was followed by the rev of a truck motor in the background. "Attending our last powwow session. I cut out early."

"I'm on my way, babe."

He met her in the parking lot in well under the estimated ten minutes.

She jogged to the driver's side of his truck, anxious to see him in person for the first time since the start of the retreat.

He was still in his grease-spattered work clothes, but she didn't care. She wanted to throw herself in his arms and hug the living daylights out of him. Since they weren't officially dating yet, she settled for teasing him. "It's nice of you to get all dressed up to see me."

"You didn't give me any time to change." He gave her jean-clad figure an appreciative once over. A breathtaking mix of admiration and adoration glowed in his dark gaze.

"I honestly don't care. I was just messing with you," she admitted. "It's really great to see you, Holt." She hesitated a beat before adding, "I've missed you."

"Missed you, too. Like crazy." His gaze darkened with exhilaration as he kicked the truck door shut and held his arms out to her.

She stepped into them, really glad he'd made the first move. She slid her arms around his middle. "I know we're just pen pals, but?—"

His hard mouth came down on hers, silencing her.

She fisted her hands in the back of his shirt, hanging on for dear life as her emotions swam dizzily. This was what she'd been missing. This was what she'd been aching for.

As Holt deepened their kiss, tears leaked from the edges of her eyes. It wasn't simply their first kiss. It was her first kiss ever! And no one had warned her that a person could feel this much all at once. She felt like she was melting from the inside out.

Holt broke off the kiss and raised his head to gaze down at her with concern. "You okay?"

She nodded dizzily. "I, um…yes."

Her answer didn't erase the worry lines on his forehead. "I'm sorry if you feel like I'm rushing things between us. I didn't mean?—"

"You're not," she assured quickly. "I was going to give you my answer over dinner, anyway." She gulped. "About dating you… I was going to say yes."

"Are you sure?" He cupped her face between his hands, using his thumbs to brush away her tears.

She caught her lower lip between her teeth before answering. "It's probably the only thing I'm sure about right now," she admitted. "The rest of me is all tangled up inside."

He continued brushing his thumbs over the damp skin beneath her eyes. "At the moment, I'm pretty tangled up myself. Over you, babe."

She smiled.

"Was it good for you?" he inquired anxiously.

"Our first kiss?"

"Yeah." He bent his head to touch his mouth to hers again.

"It was amazing," she said softly. Though she had nothing to compare it to, she seriously doubted anything in the world could top it. "I didn't know it could be like this."

He nuzzled the corner of her mouth. "Like what?"

"Kissing," she confessed breathlessly. "I didn't know it would be…so intense."

His head came up in astonishment. "Are you telling me?—?"

"Yes." Warmth infused her from head to toe. "You're my first boyfriend. My first kiss."

"Unbelievable!" He hugged her tightly. "How is that even possible? I mean…come on, Bonnie." He buried his face against the side of her neck. "You're sweet, gorgeous, and irresistible."

"Brothers," she reminded with a sigh.

He chuckled. "I'll be sure to thank them the next time I see them."

"Please don't," she begged. "They're already impossible to deal with. Their egos don't need a boost."

"But they saved you for me, babe." His voice was muffled against her neck. "I'll always be grateful for that."

They stood there, wrapped in each other's arms by the side of his truck, until a chattering group of real estate agents spilled from the building into the parking lot.

Bonnie slipped out of Holt's embrace. "We've got company," she hissed.

He grinned down at her. "We're official now. We don't need to hide our relationship any longer."

"Right." She peeked at the group of agents from beneath her lashes. Though she'd met every one of them throughout the course of the retreat, they were some of the attendees she was least familiar with — a group from Houston.

The senior partner of their firm, an older gentleman, waved at her. She waved back, feeling conspicuous.

"We should probably get going on our hike." She met Holt's gaze again, feeling shy. "I don't want to be late for our dinner date."

"Now you're talking!" He reached for her hand as they retraced her steps from earlier across the pastureland toward the distant hills. They paused a few times to talk to the horses grazing in the fields.

Holt had a way of nickering at them that made them come right up to him. One of the trail riding horses pressed her nose against his palm.

"Sorry, Trixie." He ran a hand down her long, sleek, reddish-brown neck. "I didn't bring you any snacks today."

"Oh, wow!" Bonnie exclaimed, making the horse's head swivel in her direction. "How'd you know her name?"

Holt's expression grew shuttered. "I give trail rides out here now and then."

"Since when?" She gave him an incredulous look, wondering when he had the time for something like that. He already worked two other jobs.

"Since I signed on at K&G Security," he returned carefully. "They have staff on duty at nearly all the events here. Every employee takes their turn working security at Anderson Ranch."

That made sense. "Alice told me we have guards embedded at the retreat, too."

"I don't doubt it." He didn't look the least bit surprised.

"Are you one of them?" She slapped her hands down on her hips.

"Nope. I'm with my girl." He broke into a celebratory two-step before hiking the final stretch of pastureland with her toward their destination. He paused as they faced the tree line together. "Where exactly was that flash of light coming from?"

She tipped her head back and gazed up at the trees. "There." She pointed at a massive oak. "I'm sure of it."

"Okay." Holt took a running jump and hefted himself into the lowest set of branches. From there, he began to climb. "Tell me when to stop."

She pointed and called out directions until he reached the general area she remembered the flash coming from. Shading her eyes, she shouted up to him, "Did you find anything?"

"Yep." He climbed down a few minutes later to show her a cigarette butt inside a clear plastic bag. "Found this jammed in a crevice between two branches. Someone was smoking up there."

She eyed the cigarette butt curiously. "What are you going to do with it?"

"Hand it off to K&G Security. They know some forensics experts." He shoved the plastic bag into his pocket. "Could be something. Could be nothing. I'll let you know if they find anything. In the meantime," he faced her, "you need to be extra careful. We both do. What we found here today means we're not just imagining things. Someone may be tracking us."

Someone who might be seeking vengeance for going to jail. She studied him for a moment. "Are you telling me this as a K&G Security employee or as my boyfriend?"

"Both." He frowned at her. "Promise me you'll be cautious while we try to figure out what's going on here."

It was a promise she'd have no trouble keeping. "Don't worry. I've got five brothers breathing down my neck, day in and day out. Caution is my middle name, mister!" Attending the retreat was the first break she'd gotten from them in years. A break that would be coming to an end in roughly twenty-four hours.

Holt gave one of her shoulders a gentle squeeze, reclaiming her attention. "You gonna tell them about us when you get back home?"

She wrinkled her nose at him. "Are you sure you want me to?"

"Yep." He drew her close, folding her in his arms. "You know my sister, and you've met my parents. It's only fair that I get to meet your folks in return."

"It'll be five against one when you meet my brothers," she moaned against his shoulder.

"Nah." He brushed his lips against her temple. "Pretty sure we're on the same team."

She could only hope her siblings would see things the same way. The wind blew through the tops of the evergreens as the sun dipped lower on the horizon. Already the temperature was dropping. Thanks to the rain, it was shaping up to be a cooler evening than the last one.

"Time to get ready for my big dinner date," she murmured. Though Bonnie was in no hurry to leave Holt's arms, she was getting hungry. He had to be, too.

He reluctantly let her go. "Anybody I know?" he joked.

She shrugged, playing along. "Just some guy I met. He's a bit of a mystery. Claims he's a mechanic, but I'm pretty sure he does some clandestine work on the side. I'm starting to wonder if he's a Fed," she mused, watching for his reaction. "Or CIA."

"Nothing like that." He nudged her shoulder with his as he fell into step beside her. "The thing is…he's gotta girlfriend now. He has no interest in getting involved in anything that would take him away from her."

"Do you really mean that?" She shaded her eyes against the glowing rays of sunset.

"Do you think your brothers would allow you to settle for anything less?" he countered, reaching for her hand as she lowered it to her side.

His question sent a thrill of hope ricocheting through her. "I'm starting to think you might actually stand a chance at convincing them."

He raised her hand to his lips. "That's the plan, babe." Despite her protests, he insisted on walking her all the way to the door of her suite.

She wrinkled her nose at him as she scanned her key card and stepped backward into the room. "You're going to get along just fine with my brothers, because you're just like them!"

"Am I?" He used their joined hands to tug her back into the hallway, flush against him.

"Now that we're dating," she pointed out in a breathy voice, "you're becoming just as over-protective and?—"

He stopped her tirade with a tender kiss. "I'm not feeling too brotherly right now."

"That's better." She let go of the doorknob to wind her arms around his neck.

He kissed her again. "The biggest reason I spend time with you isn't to keep an eye on you, Bonnie, though I'll admit it's a side perk. I'm with you because that's where I want to be. You chase away my darkness."

"From when you were abducted?" she whispered.

"Yeah." He kissed her again. "I breathe easier around you. Hope that's not too much to put on you right now."

"It's not." She touched his cheek. "I'm glad I do that for you." It was a wonderful feeling to be both wanted and needed by him. Her fears that he was only with her because he felt sorry for her evaporated.

He reluctantly let her go. "I better go shower and change. Gotta girl to impress."

"What do you mean?" She glanced down at his stained jeans. "Ever since I met you, I've kind of been into grease."

"Very funny." He gave one of her braids a playful tug.

"But true." Laughing, she stepped into her suite and shut the door…and promptly skidded sideways on something slick.

She did a little dance to regain her footing and discovered an envelope lying on the floor. White. Sealed. Her room number was written in fat black marker letters.

What in the world? She bent to pick it up, wondering if the front desk had delivered the bill to her for her B&B stay by mistake. Alice had already paid for it in advance.

She ripped open the envelope. It contained a single sheet of paper — not the bill she'd been expecting to see, but a letter. She scanned its contents and grew still.

Dear Bonnie,

What we're about to tell you may come as a shock. Locating you took years of searching. Eighteen years, to be exact.

We're your birth parents.

What? Bonnie's hands started trembling so badly that she nearly dropped the letter. She sank to her knees on the floor and continued reading.

You disappeared while playing in our backyard a few days before your third birthday. The police issued an amber alert and followed every tip that came through their tip line. Days, weeks, and months passed. Then years. Long after your case grew cold, we still refused to give up hope, not until we located a body to lay to rest. It never occurred to us that you would end up in an orphanage. Or adopted. One of the private investigators we hired finally figured it out.

We've enclosed a photograph of your mother rocking you in our nursery. We're also enclosing forensic sketches of what you would've progressively looked like as you grew older.

From the information we were able to gather, it's unclear if you're even aware you were adopted, much less taken from your rightful family.

As you can imagine, we would give anything to see you again. Absolutely anything. We understand it's your decision. You're an adult now. You already have a family and the life they gave you. But if you can find it in your heart to pay us a visit after all these years, this is how you can reach us.

Besides the forensic sketches, the letter included a telephone number, a hotel name and address, and the signatures of Greg and Bonita Williamson.

Bonnie's lips parted in astonishment at the similarity between her name and Bonita's name.

Is this the woman I was named after?

Bonnie had never given much thought about where her name had come from. Or where she had come from, for that matter. Sure, every kid gets angry sometimes and wonders if they're adopted, but most of them don't actually want it to be true.

Bonnie sure didn't. The very thought of Preston and Pearl not being her real parents made her heart ache as she examined the sketches enclosed with the letter. Each one looked eerily familiar. Other than the fact that the clothing and hair styles were a little off, they looked an awful lot like her school pictures over the years.

Is it true, then? Am I adopted?

If she was, her family's exorbitant display of over-protectiveness might not be about her protection after all. Maybe they were in on the kidnapping. My first kidnapping. Bonnie's stomach grew queasy at the possibility that she'd been unlawfully taken from her home — not once, but twice.

Her thoughts reeled chaotically, but her common sense eventually kicked in. Her gut told her there was no way the kindhearted Yates would've ever taken part in something so despicable. Was it possible they'd suspected something was amiss with her origins, though? That would certainly explain their overprotectiveness, wouldn't it? But so would her second kidnapping. It was all so confusing.

One way to get some answers to the many questions swimming through her head would be to call the number listed in the Williamson's letter. But something held her back.

What if none of Greg and Bonita Williamson's claims were true? For one thing, they hadn't disclosed any details about how they'd located her, and she wasn't exactly sitting at home or at work at the moment. She was attending a business retreat, for crying out loud. How had the people claiming to be her birth parents pinpointed her exact location at the B&B? The more Bonnie thought about it, the more questions she had.

Am I in danger right now? She rose shakily to her feet and moved across the room to peer out her second-story window. Below her was the parking lot, containing a handful of customer vehicles. Beyond the parking lot stretched the pastureland, where horses and cattle grazed lazily beneath the setting sun. It was a picture of peacefulness — exactly what their glossy brochures had promised.

Which in no way explained why someone with a long-range camera had been snapping photos of her. Or how the bizarre letter she was clutching had found its way beneath her door. She tossed it on her bed and did a frenzied search of the suite, but found nothing out of the ordinary. No hidden cameras. Nothing that didn't belong there.

Her suitcases were where she'd left them, unzipped and sitting open against the far wall. She'd worked her way through most of the clothing she'd packed for the week. Her dirty laundry was forming a small mountain in a corner of the bathroom, waiting to be taken home and washed.

A quick glance at her cell phone proved that time was ticking away faster than she'd expected. Holt would return soon to escort her downstairs for dinner.

She numbly went through the motions of showering and getting ready. All the while, new questions continued to pop into her mind. Another way to get answers would be to simply call her parents, but that didn't feel right, either. If any of what the letter stated was true, then they'd been lying to her for her entire life.

She shook her head, nowhere near ready to write Preston and Pearl Yates off as criminals. If they'd adopted her, that didn't mean they'd known she'd been kidnapped. A lifetime of memories with them told her they were too full of good old-fashioned morals and standards for that.

But that didn't excuse them from keeping her adoption a secret from her. If she was, in fact, adopted…

A knock on the door made her nearly jump out of her skin. Adrenaline pumped through her veins as she crept silently across the room to peer through the peephole.

Holt was waiting on the other side.

She raced back to her bed to snatch up the letter and envelope she'd tossed there earlier. Smoothing a hand down the ruffled blue skirt of her last clean sundress, she returned to the door. Taking a deep breath, she opened it.

Holt's frame towered dizzily in front of her. She took a moment to drink him in. He looked downright delicious in a navy and white plaid shirt, stone-washed jeans, and black snakeskin boots. She drew another deep breath, forcing herself to relax.

He frowned as he scanned her features. "What's wrong?"

She shook her head as she joined him in the hallway. "You're not going to believe it. I'm not sure I even believe it."

"Believe what?" He slung an arm around her shoulders as he led her to the elevator.

She waited until they stepped inside and the doors rolled shut behind them before answering. "It's possible I was adopted."

"Oka-a-ay." His expression was impossible to read. "Where is this coming from?"

She handed him the letter. "Someone stuck this under my door. It was waiting for me when we returned from our hike."

As he read it, his forehead creased. "Did you call them?"

"Not yet." She nibbled on her lower lip. "I didn't know what to do."

They reached the first floor and stepped out of the elevator.

"Good. We need to verify their identities first." He lifted his cell phone to hold it over the letter. "Mind if I take a picture of this letter and show it to my team at K&G Security?"

"I don't mind." She watched as he snapped pictures from a few different angles. "What's this about a team?" It was a detail about his new position that made her wonder more than ever what he did for the company.

He gave her a sweeping look from head to toe as he handed back the letter. "Listen, Bonnie, I don't like keeping secrets from you."

"I don't like it, either." She folded the letter and put it back in the envelope. Then she tucked it into her crossbody purse as they walked up to the hostess station.

Moments later, they were led to a table for two on the perimeter of the room. A few of the attendees from the retreat waved at her as she passed by their tables.

She forced a smile and waved back.

Holt held out her chair for her. She took a seat and leaned across the table in his direction as he claimed the second chair. "Never knowing where you are or what you're doing is a tough way to start a relationship." Her life was quickly dissolving into unanswered questions. She didn't want where she stood with him to be one of them.

"I agree." He reached for her hands. "Which is why I had a long talk with my new bosses on the way here." He rubbed his thumbs in circles across the tops of her hands. "They gave me the green light to tell you I'm part of a new covert operations unit they're trying to get off the ground."

"Wait a sec." Bonnie couldn't believe what she was hearing. "I thought K&G Security was into, well, security. Like bodyguard stuff."

"They are." He continued toying with her fingers. "That's all they did when they started out, but now they're branching into other things — private investigating, surveillance, and contract work with various law enforcement agencies."

She didn't like the sound of that. "You mean dangerous stuff?"

He shrugged. "Right now, I'm simply the eyes and ears of the unit. Still a full-time mechanic. Still moving around town like I normally do. I just add in a few extra stops when I'm asked to."

"To watch and listen?" She was surprised he was telling her any of this at all.

"Mostly." He studied her seriously. "I'm in training to take on a bigger role when I'm ready. I'd greatly appreciate it if you'd keep that between us."

"Of course!" She couldn't believe he felt the need to say that. "I feel like you're the only person I can trust right now. There's literally no one left in my life to run and tell." She shrugged. "Unless you include Alice. Does she know what you just told me?"

"Nope, and I'd like to keep it that way for now." He didn't say why.

A cute waitress in jeans and a blonde ponytail arrived to take their drink orders. She introduced herself as Shayley and jotted their requested drinks in her notepad. A welcoming smile rode her lips.

"Two ice waters with lemon," Holt said.

Bonnie's eyes widened. "Really? You like water?" Most people didn't.

"Yep. I used to drink from a hose when I was a kid."

Their waitress chuckled. "Spoken like a true country boy." She was still chuckling when she walked away.

Bonnie returned her attention to Holt and asked her most burning question. "Are you breaking the rules, or are you allowed to tell me what you just told me?" She ignored his smirk. "Not the part about drinking from a hose. The part about your job."

"I got permission, worry wart," he affirmed, "after swearing to them you'd keep my confidence. If you don't, I can be fined for violating my employment contract. Even worse, you'd be putting innocent lives at risk."

"I already said I wouldn't." She met his gaze squarely so he could read her expression for himself.

"That's what I told them." He glanced at her crossbody purse. "I trust you, Bonnie. Thank you for trusting me in return. Not just with my job, but also with the letter from the couple claiming to be your birth parents."

Claiming to be. It didn't sound like he believed it was true.

"Okay." She gently pulled her hands away from his. "I'll wait and see what the folks at K&G Security can find out about them, if anything…before I do anything else." She shivered at the thought of calling Mr. and Mrs. Williamson. "It sort of creeps me out that the Williamsons tracked me all the way to my suite upstairs."

"Yeah. Me, too." He pulled out his cell phone. "Especially since someone's been watching you."

"It sounds like they've been watching both of us." The fact that he was being watched worried her even more than the fact that she was being watched. She had a family keeping an eye on her at all hours of the day and night. He didn't.

"Maybe." He continued typing a message on his cell phone. "Then again, what's happening to me might have no connection to what's happening to you."

She found little comfort in that possibility. The waitress approached their table again to drop off their glasses of water. She lingered to take their orders.

Bonnie's appetite was long gone. "Want to split a meal?" She caught Holt's eyes beseechingly.

"Sure." He reached for her hand again. "What sounds good to you?"

"Anything," she murmured. "You decide." Please.

He ordered a twelve-ounce sirloin steak, a baked potato, and a side salad. "Mind bringing us an extra plate?" he inquired, quirking a smile at Shayley.

"I can do better than that," the waitress promised. "I'll have the chef divide everything in half and bring your meal on two plates."

"Perfect." Holt nodded his thanks to her, and she took off again.

"I'm not hungry," Bonnie admitted in a low voice.

"Figured that." Holt laced their fingers together on the tabletop. "Regardless, you need to eat. You need to keep your strength up for what's coming."

She made a face at him. "What's coming is a confrontation with my parents." Her gaze grew glassy. "The people who raised me and gave me a home for the past eighteen years. If what's in the letter is true, why would they keep something like this from me?"

"I don't know." His voice was infused with empathy. "No doubt they had their reasons."

"I can't think of any good reasons to keep an adoption secret for this long." She glanced away from him, blinking rapidly. "I'm twenty-one, Holt. When were they going to tell me?"

"That's a good question." He squeezed her fingers. "How about you ask them?"

"I will." The words slid out of her. "Right after dinner. No phone call in advance to warn them we're on our way. I want to catch them off guard."

"Okay." He nodded. "I'll go with you."