It was quiet in the car all the way to his mother’s restaurant.When David stopped the car, Dale parked right behind him, and the two of them got out of the cars without a word and walked to the front door, leaving Darryn still sitting in the car.
Before he even opened the car door, they’d disappeared inside.
Reluctantly, he got out and closed the car door behind him.The last thing he wanted to do at this point was to talk to his family, but it seemed he had no choice in the matter.
As he started toward the restaurant, Brenda, Hannah’s mom, appeared in the doorway.Her eyes were red; it was clear she had been crying.And just like that, the last of his anger faded.
Hannah’s mother rushed to his side.“I know you’re angry with Hannah, but please come in and listen, we’ve heard something, and we’re trying to figure out what it means,” she said, her eyes glistening with tears, her lip quivering.
He hugged her.Damn, he couldn’t stand anyone crying.
“I’ll listen,” he said after clearing his throat.
Everyone was waiting inside.It was late; the waiters were cleaning the last of the tables.
His mother was the only one with a welcoming smile.“Sweetheart,” she crooned and hugged him.
She stared up into his face for long minutes.“You love Hannah.We all know that.”
Surprised, he took a step back.“How did you know?Oh, Don probably told you.”
His mother smiled.“It has been so obvious to all of us how you feel about her.We were only waiting for you to acknowledge it.”
Brenda clapped her hands and smiled through her tears.Darryn grimaced.Hannah’s mother was always looking for the next real-life love story.
“I knew it!And Hannah loves you?”she asked breathlessly.
“That’s what she said, but then she—” Darryn began, but Brenda stopped him with a touch on his arm.
“Hannah never stops talking about you.Of course, she never says anything nice, but that’s what alerted me to the fact she has feelings for you.And, Darryn, she has never told any man that.”
His mother touched his face.“And you’re hurting because she left you.I understand that.But—”
Zoe stormed forward, interrupting his mother, and punched him on the shoulder.“But if you love her, you should know she would never walk away without a good reason!”
He rubbed his shoulder.Damn, the woman packed quite a punch.He looked up to see Dale’s eyes twinkling.His brother was obviously pleased his wife had managed to do something he had probably been thinking about doing as well.
Dana moved toward him with purposeful strides, and he backed up a few steps, holding up his hands.“Okay!”he called out.“Sheez!I’m here.I’ll listen to your news but don’t expect me to be happy about it,” he snarled.
Dana pressed a finger against his shoulder.“You’re an idiot.We all love you, but I don’t much like you at this point,” she said coldly before turning back into David’s arms.
His dad slapped him on the back.Hard.
Wincing, he turned around.
“Damnit, stop slapping me.I’m hurt badly enough.I get it!You’re all mad at me because I left Hannah’s flat.But, damnit, why the hell did she leave?We spent the whole night together.I told her I love her, but when I opened my eyes, she was gone.What the hell else was I supposed to do?”
“Trust her and find out why she left,” his dad said succinctly and put his hand on his shoulder.“Sit down and listen.Don phoned about an hour ago.Because he didn’t run away like some people,” he said nearly crushing Darryn’s shoulder, “he has been able to pull a few strings, call in favors, and had people scouring airports in all the major cities in France and the neighboring countries.As a result, we now know that Hannah boarded a plane from Paris to Cape Town, and Stephen White got on a plane heading for Cape Town from Brussels.Don and Caitlin are also on their way.”
Stunned, Darryn stared at his father.It took him a few minutes to digest his dad’s words.He shook his head.Did that mean…?Thousands of chaotic thoughts bounced around in his head—what if?Is it possible?But why would… And then he finally realized what his dad’s words implied.
“She’s here, in South Africa, and he found out and followed her,” he whispered through dry lips.“But why didn’t she say anything?”
“For the same reason she missed most of our family gatherings over the last few months,” David said and pulled Zoe closer.“The same reason she hasn’t been back home, or hardly made any contact with her sisters—because…” He paused dramatically, holding his one hand in the air.
“She’s worried he may hurt someone else,” Darryn finished his sentence.
Everyone else started talking.Darryn fell back against the chair.The roaring in his ears made it difficult to assimilate what he’d just heard.But finally, all the pieces of the puzzle fell into place, and he jumped up.
