And Lexie might as well have felt them digging into her heart.Out of everything that had happened, that was what she regretted the most.Why had the other couple walked away?How could they have left a beautiful little two-year-old on her own?“I’m just sick about that, Roxie.If—”
“Ifs and maybes get us nowhere.What’s done is done.”Roxie dragged a hand through her wild hair.“It’s obvious the Underhills never wanted you to find out, but you did.”
“Wedid.”
A vengeful grin pulled at her sister’s lips.“Yeah, and that knocked them for a loop.Big time.”
Lexie frowned.She took no joy from what had happened on that sunny veranda.She’d never felt a deeper split between herself and her family, and she didn’t know if she wanted to go through the motions to fix this one.Roxie was right, excuses and apologies could only go so far.Actions spoke more loudly than words.
The grin slipped from Roxie’s face.Reaching out, she toyed with the peanuts.“I’m sorry I snapped at you earlier.That was a low blow.”
Lexie twirled her straw slowly in her drink.“We were both upset.”
“Yeah.”
Their table fell quiet amongst all the noise and movement.
Cam took a drink of his beer.“Just how upset were you, Rox?”
She swiveled her head in his direction.“What does that mean?”
“Cam.”Lexie knew that tone of voice.He’d been watching and waiting and analyzing.
He ignored her.“We heard that you’ve been busy making calls.”
Roxie’s eyes widened before the fire flared again.Her chin set, and she looked back and forth between the two of them.Finally, she sat back in her chair.“Ah, now I get it.You’re worried about who I’ve told.”
“So you did go to the tabloids.”
Lexie caught Cam’s forearm when he leaned forward onto the table.
“Hell, yes, I called them.”Roxie leaned forward too.“You keep talking about burying a story I want the whole world to hear.I want to know why this happened.”
Lexie’s throat tightened.“The Underhills—”
“Not that,” Roxie said, cutting her off.She pushed back her hair and lowered her voice.“I want to know why we were put up for adoption in the first place.Don’t you understand?Somebody out there might know.Our parentsmight still be out there.”
The noise of the bar faded, and Lexie’s grip on her glass turned slippery.She’d never… Her thoughts hadn’t even turned in that direction.All at once, though, the possibilities started churning.Their parents wouldn’t be that old.Could they still be nearby?Had they moved away?Did they have any interest at all in knowing what had happened to their children?
“Have you tried to find them before?”she asked.
Roxie reached into the bowl and took a peanut.She cracked the shell but just toyed with the two halves.“I’ve done some internet searches.A few years ago, I tried to find out more through official channels, but the foster care people told me I couldn’t learn any more without our parents indicating that they wanted to be contacted.”
“I was told it was a private adoption,” Lexie said softly.“And, well, Julian and Anne Marie obviously weren’t very forthcoming.”
“But there are two of you now,” Cam said.“Identical twins… That has to be unique.You’ve got a date and a city.Somebody should be able to take all that and run with it.”
Roxie’s eyes flashed.“My point exactly, smart guy.That’s why I made some calls.After what happened with the billboard, I thought that maybe my luck had changed.So sue me.”
Cam drummed his fingers on the table.“Have you ever dealt with the media?Thatkind of media?”
She shrugged indifferently.
“Be careful what you wish for, Evil Twin.They won’t leave any stone unturned.Can you risk that?”
Her lips thinned, and she cocked her head.“What are you saying?That you want me to stay quiet?”
“Maybe.”He lifted his beer.“How much would something like that cost me?”
