“Well,” Shar said. “When I got out, Buck still had time left on his sentence. I was able to reconcile with my parents, so I went and lived with them. I filed for divorce right away. Years later, after I’d remarried and moved on with my life, my mother told me Buck had been killed in a car accident after he got out.”
“Just as well,” Harper said. “We don’t need any more complications.”
“I don’t know,” Frankie said wistfully. “I think it’s sad. Everyone deserves a second chance, don’t they? Would have been nice to at least meet him.”
“He loved you girls,” Shar assured them.
Harper made a face.
Frankie understood. Their father might have loved them, but not enough to make better decisions. This meeting had been one bombshell after another.
Harper’s decision to have pie made perfect sense.
ChapterFifty-Five
When the server returned with their food, Harper felt a slight twinge of regret at her choice. The pie looked delicious. Probably would taste that way, too. The kitchen would have to try pretty hard to mess up chocolate and caramel.
But it was undoubtedly loaded with sugar and simple carbs and tons of calories. Nothing like what she usually ate. Her body wasn’t going to like it. She’d probably end up with an upset stomach, a sugar hangover, maybe even some pimples. Just not a smart choice. But she hadn’t been in a smart head space.
Finding out both your parents were convicted criminals who’d done time could do that to a person.
She was grateful that she and Frankie were the only ones who knew about their biological parents’ past. If this information had been part of what the press had uncovered about her, there was no way any of her clients would have stayed. Maybe Mitch, but then again, maybe not. People with that much to lose generally didn’t want to associate with the criminal element.
Shedidn’t want to associate with anyone from the criminal element. And now, she was related to them.
The pie was calling her name. The quick sugar fix might not be good for her, but it was exactly what she wanted. She picked up her fork and sliced through the end of the wedge of pie, getting a little ice cream along with the chocolate and caramel.
As soon as the pie touched her tongue, the muscles in her cheeks seized up at the rush of sweetness.
“How is it?” Frankie asked. “It looks amazing.”
“It’s…very sweet. But really good.” Too good. No wonder people got addicted to sugar. She glanced at her sister’s club sandwich. “That looks really good, too. Healthier than what I picked.”
“You want some of it?” Frankie pushed her plate closer to Harper. “Take it, please. I’ll never eat all of this. Take some of the fries, too. You just have to promise to save me a part of your pie.”
“Okay. Deal.” Harper snagged a fry, then helped herself to a quarter of the sandwich.
Shar was smiling at them. “You girls get along so well. I’m so glad about that.”
“I’m glad about that, too,” Frankie said.
Harper pointed to Frankie with the end of her fork. “She’s the reason we reconnected. Her parents helped her find me.”
“And yours didn’t?” Shar asked.
“My parents were older and didn’t have a lot of money. I did some looking on my own, but it never amounted to anything.” She’d tried, but Frankie had been underage, the records still sealed, and professional help meant money neither she nor her parents had. Then her dad had passed and life had gotten complicated.
Frankie nodded. “My dad was a police detective. He knew exactly how to find people. He was therealreason I got Harper back in my life. Also, I started looking as soon as I became of age. It was a lot easier to find her, since she was older, and by then the records had been unsealed.”
Shar picked a sliver of onion off her sandwich. “I’m sure that helped a lot.”
Harper finished chewing the bite of sandwich she’d taken. She didn’t want to talk about herself or focus on Frankie or their lives. That’s not why they were here, at least not in her mind. “You said you remarried.”
“I did,” Shar answered. “And, yes, I did have children.”
Even though she’d been expecting it, the news slugged Harper in the gut. “So…we have siblings?”
“A half-sister and a half-brother.”
