The Best Goodbye (Rosemary Beach, #13)(20)

Her blond curls, so like my own natural hair, bounced as she walked, and her smile looked almost identical to my own. Her blue eyes danced with mischief, and all I could do was hope he didn’t see it, too.

Turning back to him, I could see even through the sunglasses he was wearing that he was following her every move. This wasn’t the way a man reacted to seeing a nine-year-old girl he didn’t know. He saw me—his Addy—in her.

Franny’s hand wrapped around mine and squeezed. She smiled up at the silent man watching her. “Hi. I’m Franny. Do you work with Mom like Brad does?” she asked innocently.

There was a flinch at the mention of Brad, and his gaze finally moved from Franny to me. I felt exposed. I needed to cover up or hide. He was seeing too much, and I wasn’t sure if he’d even put it together. Did I want him to?

“Who are you?” He finally spoke, his voice gravelly.

“I’m Ann Frances, but everyone calls me Franny. Who are you?”

The innocence in her answer made my eyes sting and my stomach tighten. This was not how it was supposed to come out. Not like this.

I squeezed Franny’s hand. “Go through those doors right there, and turn right. You’ll see the restroom sign on your left.”

She nodded, before hurrying inside to see exactly what she wanted to see.

Once she was gone, I turned back to look at Captain.

“Who are you, Rose?” he asked.

Who did he think I was? If he saw the similarities between Franny and the girl I once was, then couldn’t he see beyond my hair color, glasses, and mature body to see me, too? “Not sure what you mean,” I replied carefully.

Captain took a deep breath and looked past me toward the building. “Is that your daughter?”

“Yes.”

He moved his gaze back to mine. “Then who are you?”

I wasn’t giving him that. “You have all my info on file,” I reminded him.

He pulled off his sunglasses, and his eyes narrowed slightly as he studied me. I tried not to hold my breath, but I couldn’t help it. There was a part of me that wanted him to see me. But the part of me that knew he wasn’t my River anymore wanted to remain hidden. Not just for Franny’s sake but also for my own.

River had wanted to protect me, but this man . . . I wasn’t sure how I’d survive him. He could break me in a way I wouldn’t recover from.

“Take off the glasses.” Captain’s words sounded like an order, although his voice was just above a whisper.

I stared up at him. This time, I was frozen. Did he see me now? Was that it? If I took off the glasses, it was over. He’d know, and then what? Would I just gamble on him accepting Franny? Accepting that I’d been hiding my identity all these years?

“This place is so cool!” Franny’s excited voice called out.

I couldn’t have been more relieved to see her. Turning from his intense gaze, I headed toward my daughter, hoping the smile I’d pasted on my face was enough for her to get into the car without any questions. “We’re going to be late for the dentist. We need to go,” I told her, as calmly as I could manage. I could barely contain the edge of panic in my voice.

“I hate the dentist,” Franny grumbled, her excitement suddenly vanishing as she remembered where we were headed.

“But you want to keep your teeth,” I reminded her, like I always did. I was more than aware of the set of eyes following our every move, but although the heat from his stare could be felt against every inch of my body, I didn’t look back. I kept walking to the car, praying he would just let us go.

Franny turned and waved at him, and I shut my eyes tightly, wishing my daughter wasn’t so damn friendly sometimes. She climbed back into the car, and I did the same.

My prayer was answered. He let us go.





Captain


I went straight to the employee files and pulled out the folder for Rose Henderson. I read over her personal information, her past jobs, and her address. She’d received a GED. There was no mention of college in her file. She’d been working since she was eighteen and had excellent references from all of her former employers. Especially the elementary school in Oklahoma where she had recently worked as a secretary.

But this was all bullshit.

Pulling my cell phone out of my pocket, I dialed Benedetto DeCarlo’s private line.

“Cap,” was his only greeting.

“I need info on someone, ASAP,” I told him.

“OK. Who?”

“Her name is Rose Henderson. I’m going to scan her file and send it to you now. I need everything you can find on her.”

“I’ll put my men on it,” he replied.

“Not your men, you. I want just you checking on this. No one else.”

DeCarlo was quiet a moment. “Going to tell me why?”

“I think . . . I f*cking think . . .” What did I think? That little girl had looked just like Addy, but what did that even mean? Addy was gone. So who was Rose? “I think she’s connected to her.” I knew he’d understand. There was only one her in my life who had ever mattered.

“I’ll have your info within the next few hours,” he said before we disconnected.

Once I had the file scanned and sent to DeCarlo, I sank into my chair and stared at the paperwork in my hands. So many similarities. Was I grasping at something in desperation? Yes, Rose had Addy’s laugh, and when she smiled, I sometimes felt like I’d been kicked in the stomach. Those could have been coincidences, but the little girl looked like Addy. So goddamn much like Addy that I hadn’t been able to speak at first. She was younger than the Addy I’d first met, but she still looked so much like her. It had been hard to breathe.