Chapter 3
Three
Kenzie shakily knocked on her sister’s door. She heard the music playing inside get turned down followed by footsteps approaching.
‘Oh, hi,’ Brook greeted her, then paused, peering closer at her face. ‘What’s wrong?’
‘I tried calling you,’ Kenzie said and suddenly, she was crying.
‘Kenzie? What is it?’
She heard the alarm in her younger sister’s voice and felt bad for arriving in such a state, but she hadn’t known where else to go.
She allowed Brook to lead her into the lounge room and sit her on the sofa, before she disappeared, returning a moment later with a glass of something that she pushed into her hands and commanded her to drink.
Kenzie took a sip, gasping as a burning sensation traced a path down the back of her throat. ‘What the hell, Brook?’ she managed in a voice that sounded like sandpaper on gravel.
‘It’s bourbon. You needed something strong to calm you down. Now, tell me what’s happened.’
‘I found him,’ Kenzie finally said, staring down at the liquid in the glass.
‘Found who?’
‘Poppy’s father.’
Brook’s mouth dropped open as Kenzie made a rueful sound in her still-raw throat.
‘How did you track him down?’
‘I didn’t actually find him so much as he … just turned up. For an appointment. With my client this afternoon.’
‘With your client?’ she asked slowly.
‘As the groom.’
‘Oh. My. Gawd.’
Her sister stared at her, seemingly speechless, which was almost a first. The only other time Kenzie could recall her being too stunned to speak was moments after Kenzie had told her she was pregnant. That damn déjà vu is working overtime today.
‘Did you tell him?’
‘No,’ Kenzie said irritably. ‘He didn’t even remember who I was until he saw my name and worked it out.’
‘So what happened? Once he recognised you?’
‘Not much. I was trying to get away before he could ask too many questions. I didn’t exactly stick around to have a conversation with him.’
‘What’s he even doing here? Wasn’t he some backpacker, leaving to head back home when you guys met?’
‘That’s what he said.’ Kenzie shrugged.
‘So what are you going to do?’
‘Nothing.’
‘Kenz,’ Brook said in a warning tone. ‘This has happened for a reason.’
‘I don’t care. I never asked him to come back. I don’t need him reappearing in my life now, just to ruin everything.’
‘He has a right to know he has a daughter, Kenz.’
‘He didn’t even remember who I was. He doesn’t have any rights.’
The two sisters sat side by side as Brook’s chillout session music played in the background. The bourbon Kenzie had drunk slowly began to reach her toes.
‘I can’t believe he showed up out of the blue like that. What are the odds?’ Brook mused, taking the glass from her sister and draining its contents.
‘I’m going to have to tell them I can’t do the wedding,’ Kenzie said.
‘Is it a big one?’ Brook winced.
‘Yep.’
‘Bummer. Can you afford to?’
‘I’d rather not give it up,’ Kenzie said reluctantly. While her business was doing great, ditching a major client felt like a backwards step.
‘Can’t you get someone else in-house, to handle it?’
‘No.’ The more she’d thought about it, the more she realised that passing it on to Tara wasn’t going to solve her problem.
‘I don’t want the business associated with this in any way, in case it all somehow blows back on us.
’ Kenzie really wasn’t looking forward to making that call.
They were already well into preparations, and it would mean the Delsantos would have to find another event planner at short notice.
Oh God. Her reputation was going to take a hit either way.
If she walked away from the contract now, she was leaving herself open to a very rich, very unhappy client telling all their very rich friends and potential other clients how unreliable she was.
On the other hand, if she continued representing them and they found out she had a past with the groom—not to mention a secret love child—she couldn’t see that ending in a glowing recommendation either.
She wished Brook hadn’t drunk the last of her drink.
‘I don’t know what to do,’ Kenzie groaned. ‘It was all so simple when I didn’t know his name or where he came from and didn’t have any way to find him again. I just got on with it and planned my life. Poppy and I have been just fine.’
‘Well, I suppose, technically, you don’t have to tell him,’ Brook pointed out. ‘I mean … you could just continue doing what you’re doing. Once you’ve finished with his wedding, you’ll never have to see him again.’
‘Yeah, but … it’s different now. I legitimately couldn’t find the man. Now, I do know who and where he is, so if I don’t tell him, it feels dishonest. I’d be making the decision to keep it from him, and it would really be my fault.’
‘Hey,’ Brook cut in seriously. ‘You are not at fault here. He had just as much responsibility as you did, only he went off on his merry way without a backwards glance, without leaving any way to contact him. You were left to deal with the consequences.’
While Brook’s assessment of Ewan probably wasn’t entirely fair, the rest was true.
One night and a very bad lapse of judgement had turned her life on its head.
The dream job she’d been offered after university had suddenly disappeared when she told them she was pregnant, and she’d been left pregnant, jobless and completely out of her depth, while he—her mystery man—had gone back to wherever he’d come from and started a new life that had evidently led to a wealthy fiancée.
Everything had turned out okay. She’d had her family, who’d supported her and helped her start her own business.
And she had a beautiful daughter who was her entire world.
Everything had been perfect. Then she’d stumbled upon that damn photo as she’d been scrolling through a friend’s Facebook page, searching for a mutual friend she was hoping to contact for work.
Four years ago, the caption had read. See your memories.
And there had been a photo of a group of very drunk people in a nightclub, laughing and having fun.
She still couldn’t quite believe the girl in the photo had been her.
She’d allowed her friend to talk her into going out and having some fun before their final major project was due.
She never went out during the week and she sure as hell had never gone out just prior to submitting one of the most important projects of her life.
But she’d been under so much stress at the time, much of it self-induced.
She’d always been a perfectionist and had a very particular plan, then suddenly felt completely overwhelmed, and all she could think was what if she couldn’t get through her assignments, or got less than perfect marks?
Her whole plan would be in jeopardy. She’d always known exactly where she was going to be in one, five and ten years’ time.
She’d start with a great job at a big event planning firm in Brisbane.
Once she had some experience under her belt, she’d go to New York and work for an elite firm there, planning celebrity music tours and festivals and maybe even society weddings and special events.
But all that hinged on creating a perfect final project that would get her foot in the door, and form the cornerstone of her first portfolio.
In a moment of desperation, she’d allowed herself to be talked into going out—her roommate, Lara, promising she’d be able to get back on track once she got rid of some of her stress.
The nightclub had been packed. The music vibrated through her chest and drowned out everything, including the endless loop of anxiety that had been playing in her head for the last few weeks. She’d begun to think that maybe there’d been something in Lara’s theory after all.
After the first few drinks, Kenzie started dancing and, for the first time in longer than she could remember, she’d felt free. There were no exams or projects or assignments. Nothing she had to do at all except dance and let the pounding music drown out reality.
They’d met up with a group of guys—backpackers on their last night in town before they headed out of Australia—and she’d been drawn to the tall one with dark hair and a smile that had made her feel like she was floating.
In hindsight, that could have been the shots they’d been drinking kicking in, but she hadn’t cared.
He’d made her feel good. He was older, nothing like the boys she knew, and he had a maturity that she liked, despite the fact they had both had a lot to drink.
Still, their conversations—the fleeting bits she could still recall—had been surprisingly deep.
They’d laughed and talked and danced and, before she knew it, they were dancing close together, their bodies moving almost as one as their mouths locked and they’d begun devouring one another right there on the dance floor.
One of them must have regained a modicum of sanity at some point, because it was decided that they should leave and go back to his motel.
By that stage, Kenzie had been beyond even trying to rein in this out-of-character behaviour.
She’d never picked up some stranger at a nightclub before, or even contemplated having a one-night stand.
It just wasn’t something she did … usually.
Once they’d made their way into the room, they’d started kissing once more and she was lost again. They’d fumbled to remove clothing, barely pausing long enough to shrug out of the bothersome garments.
For the first time in months, she hadn’t been obsessing over projects and classes and exams. She hadn’t been thinking of her step-by-step career path or her five-year plan … she was just there, in the moment. Living. And it had felt … wonderful.
Every time her mind tried to fix on something she should have been stressing about, his touch distracted her. His kisses had made her light-headed and everywhere he touched left a trail of tingles in its wake.
Kenzie remembered they’d talked for ages, well into the early hours, laying in each other’s arms as their bodies cooled until, eventually, they’d both drifted off to sleep, still entwined.
It had been one perfectly magical night …
until a few weeks later, when it had become Kenzie’s worst nightmare.