Total pages in book: 110
Estimated words: 102620 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 513(@200wpm)___ 410(@250wpm)___ 342(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 102620 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 513(@200wpm)___ 410(@250wpm)___ 342(@300wpm)
“So no one would out your secret.” I cut her off and shake my head. “A secret everyone in my life kept.”
“We got a call one night; I can still remember the exact time. It was five thirty-seven in the evening, and we had just gotten home with Chinese food.” My mother looks at me and puts one hand on her stomach. “We didn’t know anything about you except you were abandoned.”
The gasp comes out of me without me even knowing. “From what we could find out at the time, you were dropped off at a fire station”—he puts the article on the table—“in the middle of the night.” I swallow down the bile that is rising up my throat. “They didn’t ring or anything. You were found when one of the firemen heard crying.” I close my eyes. “You were in a brown box and a hospital blanket.”
“They called the police right away, and you were rushed to the hospital. The only thing they could tell us was you were a couple of hours old. You were also dehydrated and had a bit of jaundice.” My mother helps him with the story.
“They put the story in the paper, hoping someone would have information or come forward, but no one did,” my father continues. “They called us the next day. It was a miracle.” He wipes away the tears from the corners of his eyes.
“From the minute I got that call, I knew you were mine.” My mother’s voice quivers. “Then we got there, and I held you for the first time and had this overwhelming sense of love that you can’t explain. I looked down at you, blinking your eyes and looking around, and said, ‘Hello, angel,’ and you squawked at me as if you were telling me hello.” She holds the picture out to me. “This was taken right after.”
“I called my father right away and made sure we got everything we needed in order to make sure you were ours,” my father says. “We moved here a month after you were born. No one knows that you aren’t biologically ours. We also made sure the adoption was sealed.”
“But you kept these and those.” I hold up the paper in my hand.
“We never wanted you to find out like this, never,” my mother admits. “We thought maybe when you turned sixteen that we could tell you, but then it just didn’t seem like the right time.”
“When did you think was a good time to tell me everything I thought was real was a lie?” I ask. “You should have told me when I was younger so I could grow up always knowing. Not keep it locked up in a box.”
“We did what we thought was best,” my father says, and I push away from the table, standing.
“You mean what was best for you.” I fold the now semi-crumpled paper and put it in my back pocket. “You did what was best for you and—” I stop before I say Mom as I shake my head. “I can’t be here.” I turn and walk out of the house. I run down the steps to my car, getting in and driving away with tears pouring down my face.
I don’t know how I do it, but I make it home, then walk up the steps to my house in a daze. Unlocking the door, I collapse on the couch. I pick up my phone and call the only person I can think of. Lilah. “Happy birthday,” she says again with a cheerful voice.
“Lilah.” My voice breaks. “Lilah,” I sob.
“Sierra,” she says my name in almost a whisper, “what’s wrong?”
“It’s a lie,” I blurt between sobs, trying to catch my breath. “It’s all a lie.”
“What is?”
“My life.” I close my eyes. “I just found my adoption papers.” Her gasp fills the phone.
“I’m on my way,” she states, disconnecting.
Chapter 3
Caleb
“Okay, I’m off.” I walk out of my office and head toward the front door, seeing my business manager, Mikaela, sitting at her desk with her coffee cup. She self-appointed herself that title, which is just another title for receptionist/secretary/accounts payable and receivable/ assistant, but she likes to call herself the business manager. I would have agreed to any title she wanted to give herself, because I know without her I can’t run my business.
“Good,” she mumbles. “I was wondering when you would be leaving. When you’re here, I can’t do what I want.”
“Like what?” I ask, my eyebrows pinching together.
“Like call my friends and talk smack about my boss.” She smirks and winks at me as I roll my eyes. The first person I hired was Mikaela when I decided to open this place, and she is worth every single penny.
“I have two meetings.” Now it’s her turn to roll her eyes at me.