Page 43 of The Addendum

I had looked for the shirt again, but it was gone. I searched for it, never discovering it, and finally gave up on the hunt. Gradually, the memory faded from my mind. My curiosity about my father grew dimmer, and eventually, I stopped asking. My mom and I were close, and it didn’t matter as much as I grew older. When my mom died, and I found the shirt tucked away in a box, I had stared at it for a long time, then brought it home and put it in my drawer along with her journals and some old pictures. Nothing in any of her pictures or journals hinted at who he could be, although her journals only started when she was about four months pregnant with me. She talked about moving to Ontario, her hopes and dreams. Her fears. The excitement of impending motherhood. The worry of starting her own business and juggling both. Her plans for the future. But not once in all the notes and memories did she reference him. My register of birth didn’t list my father when I had looked it up after she died. By then, I assumed it was an affair gone bad, and at the stage of my life I was in, I stopped looking and I no longer cared.

Or, at least, I thought I didn’t.

A knock at the door brought me out of my musings, and I shook my head to clear it of the odd thoughts. Tonight wasn’t about me or my past. It was about spending time with Luc and being part of his world.

I opened the door, meeting Luc’s appreciative look. He lifted his eyebrows and whistled under his breath. “Whoa. Ashley, love, you look amazing.”

Laughing, I reached out and tugged him into the hall, shutting the door behind him. I admired his deep blue suit, set off with a white shirt and a jaunty tie. It framed his wide shoulders and lean torso and highlighted the muscles that rippled and tightened as he moved. His brown hair curled around his ears, and his heavy eyebrows set off his rich blue eyes. His face was long and lean with high cheekbones, and his scruff shadowed his sharp jawline. He was tall, which, for me, was a bonus. Even when I was in heels, he stood over me, making me feel feminine.

“You clean up pretty good too.”

I pressed my mouth to his, sliding my tongue over his full lips and groaning in happiness when he pressed his inside my mouth.

Luc kissed like no man I had ever met. Long, sensuous passes of his tongue on mine, deep explorations, stinging nips of his teeth, followed by gentle swipes to soothe. He wrapped his arms around me, pulling me close, sliding his hands under my dress and cupping my ass, his fingers long and firm. He pulled back, his eyes darkening.

“If that’s hello, I can’t wait until later.”

I smiled and kissed him again, this time a simple press of our lips together.

“I missed you,” I said simply. I hadn’t seen him in three days.

His grin was wide. “I missed you too. But I get you tonight and then all weekend, right?”

“Right. I have the lunch event tomorrow, but the rest of the weekend, I’m yours.”

“Perfect.”

We walked out to the car, our hands clasped together. We’d been dating for about six months. I adored Luc. He was everything a girl could want in a boyfriend. Sweet, funny, charming. Good-looking and kind. A tiger in the sack. He was also intense and protective. He ran the network and systems for a big money management company, overseeing a department of twenty. He was a genius with a computer and could write software, hack, do all sorts of things I had never even heard of with his machines, although he assured me he didn’t do anything illegal.

“Good to know how it works,” he assured me. “Know what to watch for and beat them at their own game.” I knew he and Reed could talk computers for hours.

I had met Luc when he’d attended an event I was running. Our eyes had connected across the room, locking and focusing on each other as if we were the only two people in the world. We’d circled each other all evening, the anticipation building with each glance. When he’d approached me, offering me his hand, it felt as if something inside me settled when his fingers closed around mine. The flare of desire in his gaze made my heartbeat pick up. We’d been together ever since.

“You’re quiet,” he observed as he skillfully weaved in and out of traffic, heading toward Port Albany, where the party we were attending was happening.

“A bit nervous,” I admitted.

He shook his head. “No need to be. Everyone is great. Down-to-earth. You already know Heather and Reed.”

I nodded but didn’t say anything. When Luc had asked me to attend Reed and Heather’s wedding with him, I was excited to go as his date. When he added they were having a party a couple of nights before for her dad’s retirement, I was happy to go with him. But still, I was nervous. These people were important to him.

“I know how highly you think of everyone. I want to make a good first impression.”

He lifted my hand to his mouth and kissed the knuckles. “You will. They’ll love you.”

“I’m not sure I’ll be able to keep everyone straight. Growing up, it was just my mom and me. No family at all.”

Luc knew of my past. Growing up with a single mom. He could sympathize with his rough upbringing, and it was another thing we had in common.

Tall, gangly, awkward, and shy, I was a misfit at school. Teased about my height, how skinny I was, my lack of social graces and wealth. Teased because my mother was part Asian, which was reflected in my almond-shaped eyes, the color unusual, and both emphasized by the glasses I wore. My skin tone was lighter than hers but not pale like most of my classmates, and they liked to point out that fact as if it was a defect. I bore the teasing, knowing there was nothing my mom could do about it. She worked hard, and I hated adding to her stress. She struggled to make ends meet. We moved a lot when rents would be increased and Mom would have to find us a cheaper place. I never felt settled. Safe. I always worried about when the next move would happen. I hated every new apartment a little more. Each one was a little smaller, a little shabbier. Mom tried, making each place as homey as possible, and I hid my fear and worry from her. Changing schools was always tough, yet they all blended together after a while. I never really fit in anywhere.

By the time I was a teenager, I started to outgrow the awkward stage, although I was still taller than most of my classmates. When I went to university, I left the shyness behind me, immersing myself in young adult life. I switched to contacts, developed a style, learned my mom’s tricks of gracefulness, and became proud of my heritage. I no longer wanted to blend in but enjoyed standing out more in a crowd. But at times, the insecurity still hit me and I was that lost little girl.

“It’s fine,” he soothed. “You’ll get used to it. I don’t see them all as a group as much as I see Reed and Heather and their families. But they’re all good people. Richard, Heather’s dad, has always been great to me. One of the many mentors this family has. I wanted to help him celebrate.”

“Of course.”

“You can meet people tonight, and Saturday at the wedding, you’ll be more comfortable.”