Authors: Marie Higgins
Yes. It was easy to see where Eli had received his rugged good looks.
A guard dressed in a black and gold uniform walked by, peering at her through narrowed eyes. She smiled and nodded, hoping to appear unaffected. When the man turned his back on her, she looked at Joshua. What could she say? She had to say something.
She took a deep breath to begin, but didn’t get the chance.
“You’re not my cousin.”
Joshua’s voice was deeper than she’d expected and reminded her of Eli’s sexy tone. He lifted his gaze and met hers. Her heart flipped. Heaven help her, Joshua had Eli’s
fascinating
green eyes.
He took a quick glance at the guard then looked back at her. He placed his clasped hands on the table and leaned closer. “I don’t know you.”
She smiled and resisted the urge to reach out and touch his hands.
He’s not Eli
, she reminded herself. “I know. I had to say I was family or they wouldn’t let me see you.”
He nodded. “Do you know who I am?”
“Yes. You’re Joshua Montgomery,” she whispered.
“Son of Adam Montgomery, former President of Montgomery Aisle.”
His eyes misted over, and her heart tugged with emotion.
“Be careful not to say that too loud.” His voice was low, also. “They might want to put you in here for being crazy.”
“You’re not crazy.” She followed her instinct and touched his hands. In one smooth movement, his fingers gripped with hers. Once again, her heartbeat pounded lively, quickening her breath.
“How do you know?” he asked.
No way could she tell him about Eli. “Let’s just say I know someone who convinced me of your innocence.”
The guard walked back their way, and Joshua lowered his head again. She continued to hold his hand, even used her other hand to stroke his arm, trying to look like the grieving relative.
“...And m
y mom and dad say hi. Remember C
ousin Billy?” She raised her voice for the guard’s affect. “He’ll be getting married next month. I feel sorry for his wife, though. Billy eats like a pig and probably out-weighs one, too.”
Joshua’s mouth quirked at the corners, a dimple flas
hed in his chin. How adorable. She had no clue if Eli had a dimple because of his goatee. But that was all right. It helped her to keep Joshua and his some separate in her mind.
The guard walked by, and Joshua met her gaze. His eyes sparkled, just
like
his son’s had done. “Are you purposely trying to make me laugh?”
She shrugged. “I had to say something in front of that guard so he doesn’t think we’re being secretive.” She tilted her head. “Why? Don’t you laugh in here?”
“Rarely.”
He glanced around the room. “What’s there to laugh at?”
Once again, emotion suffocated her. No matter what, she must get him released.
“Joshua, I have people looking into your case—”
“Don’t,” he said roughly. “
Terrel
will do something awful to you just like he did to me and all my father’s servants. You shouldn’t put yourself in harm’s way for a man you have never met before.”
She smiled. “But I feel as if I know you really well.” She squeezed his hands. “My father will help protect me if it comes down to it.”
“Who is your father?”
“He was senator of New York, but he’s not now.”
His forehead creased. “Why are you doing this?”
“Because...I love the person who told me about you, and I want to get you out of here.”
The guard came their way again, so she quickly changed the subject and lifted her voice. “...And Cousin Jill, well, she broke her arm the other day. She’s been interested in body-building and looking like Popeye, so she challenged a man three-times her size and lost.” She shook her head.
“Poor, foolish idiot.”
This time she noticed the guard hide a grin as he walked by. Once he passed, she looked back at Joshua. His smile had widened, as had the dimple in his chin.
“Will you quit?” he asked.
She chuckled. “Sorry. I like to make jokes when I’m nervous.”
“Why are you nervous?”
“Because I don’t want anything to go wrong.
I want to be able to get you out and have everything fall right into place.”
He shook his head. “If you know
Terrel
at all, you know it won’t work like that.”
“I can dream, can’t I?”
His thumb stroked over her knuckles, and the gentleness of his action caused tingles to shoot up her arm. Good grief. What’s wrong with her? Why was she getting these feelings from Joshua? She shook the crazy thoughts from her mind. This was Eli’s father, for goodness sake. Yet, he was
approximately
the same age and
resembled
Eli
quite a bit.
She pulled her hand away and tucked it in her lap. “I came here today to get to know you, and to tell you what I’m doing.”
“How do you know
Terrel
?”
Kendra
gulped. Hopefully Joshua would believe her even after she confessed... “
Terrel
and I were engaged.”
His forehead creased and his gaze narrowed. “
Were
? You’re not any longer?”
“No.” She ran her fingertips over his hand. “Even before I discovered what he’d done to you, I wondered why I couldn’t bring myself to love him fully.”
His expression relaxed, and a gleam sparked in his eyes. “How will you keep all of this from
Terrel
?”
She shrugged. “Eventually he’ll find out, but I hope by that time, it’ll be too late. My father knows a few people on the Medical Board of Directors who will look into Doctor Goodwin’s past. We know
Terrel
is paying him to keep you here, but there’s got to be a reason the doctor is willing to jeopardize his practice.”
He nodded. “You’re right. But how will your father accomplish this?”
“He still has connections and can help us.”
“Have your father check out a couple of names. They’re connected to
Terrel
one way or another.”
“Who are they?”
“Thomas
Pett
and Lance Monroe.”
“I will, I promise.”
He shook his head. “I don’t know how I became so lucky all of a sudden. You’re a walking dream, Miss
Kendra
Whitaker...it is Miss, isn’t it?”
“Yes, I’m
available.”
He arched an eyebrow.
Good grief! Why
did I say
it that way?
“I mean, I’m
single.
”
Joshua smiled again, and her heart jumped.
When the guard walked by again,
Kendra
pushed away from the desk. “Of course I’ll come see you again, Joshua. Is tomorrow all right?”
He raised his gaze, his deep green eyes penetrating into hers, and she almost melted. He nodded.
It wasn’t until the older nurse touched her elbow she realized the woman had walked behind her. “Ms. Whitaker, I must say what a remarkable difference you’ve made. Why, Joshua rarely smiles and he hardly ever speaks.”
Kendra
let her grin widen as she continued to gaze into his warm eyes.
“Good, because this man needs to smile a lot more.”
The nurse moved around
Kendra
, helped Joshua up,
then
led him back out of the game room. He didn’t look over his shoulder at her, but she didn’t mind. She partook of the magnificently built man as he left the room, wishing he were Eli instead.
The next time she visited Joshua, she stayed a little longer. They couldn’t go outside the game room, so they strolled around the mostly empty space. She couldn’t stop comparing him to his son, especially when she realized Joshua was as tall.
Good grief, even his broad shoulders reminded her of Eli.
It was nearly impossible not to look at
Joshua
and
not
see
his son
, but sometimes she didn’t see the future-man. Joshua acted more reserved, and didn’t have the nutty humor his son had. Of course, being cooped up in a mental ward for five years,
but
she
couldn’t
blame Joshua for not being as spontaneous.
Although she could visit, there was still a guard or a nurse looming near, which meant they couldn’t talk serious for very long.
After their little stroll around the room, they sat at a table, and set up the checkers game. She teased him about how she was going to whip his butt, and it took him a few minutes, but he soon returned her taunt
—but slowly as he if doubted his own ability
. She loved to make him grin just to see the adorable dimple on his chin.
“
Kendra
,” Joshua whispered. “Has your father found out anything about Doctor Goodwin yet?”
“No. Why?”
“Because he’s been acting different lately.”
She arched her brows. “What’s he doing?”
“He’s treating me differently. He hasn’t really talked to me for a few months anyway, but suddenly he thinks he needs to do more tests on me. He hinted around about my visitor last night, but he never really said anything.”
She sucked in a quick breath. “Is he here now?”
“No. He leaves to go home around five o’clock, unless he decides to stay to check things out.”
Fear lodged in her chest and her hands turned cold. “Do you think he stayed after today?”
“No, but I’m sure once he learns of your visit today, he just might stick around tomorrow.”
She fumbled with the game pieces. “Then, perhaps I shouldn’t come tomorrow.”
He grasped her hand and squeezed. “I don’t want you to get hurt, but it makes my day when you come.”
She gave him a shaky smile. “It makes my day to see you, too.”
Pulling her hand away, she concentrated on the checkers again. Once they were all set up, she lifted her gaze. His eyes met hers, and the tender emotion in his green stare nearly shattered her.
“
Kendra
, can I ask you a personal question?”
She shrugged. “Depends how personal it is.”
He chuckled. “Will you tell me how you know so much about my family?
About me?”
As much as she wanted to tell him all about his wonderful son, the fact still remained—Eli hadn’t even been born yet. How could she talk about a man from the future?
She nodded and licked her lips. His attention dropped to her mouth, the color of his eyes darkening. Her heart thumped crazily. There was another similarity between him and his son. They could both make her quiver by one look of their passionate gaze.
“Well, I when I was engaged to
Terrel
, I didn’t know what a terrible person he was at that time.” She picked up a checker piece and rolled it between her finger and thumb. “Since then, I’ve discovered his deception.” She met his gaze. “He not only lied to me, but to others, and he ruined the life of one terrific man.”
The anger lines in his face quickly disappeared, and a smile touched his mouth. “I guess I can be happy you finally saw the light.”
She nodded. “I was finally shown the light.”
“So, are you ever going to tell me who it was that led you in my direction?”
“Not yet.
Maybe someday.”
He chuckled. “If you keep that up,
you’ll
be the one driving me insane.”
She laughed with him.
When the guard came back, they were playing checkers and not talking about anything personal. She found Joshua as delightful as his son, but thankfully, he wasn’t as flirtatious. She didn’t know what her reaction would be if Joshua started charming her as his son had done. Already, she had a soft spot in her heart for Joshua. Was it only because he was helpless and needed her assistance? Or was it because of what Eli meant to her?
She rubbed her forehead. Everything was so very confusing, especially her feelings. She could never have Eli. He was in a different time. What about Joshua? Could she ever have feelings for him like she had for Eli?
Most importantly…would it be right if she did?
Perhaps Eli’s purpose for coming into her life was to lead her to Joshua. But, if that were so, why did he make her fall in love with him? Unless
Eli
didn’t know what his true purpose of coming would be.
She rubbed her forehead again, the headache she thought had disappeared was returning. She needed to get rid of this extra stress in her life.
“Are you all right?” Joshua asked.
She smiled at him. “Yes. I’m just developing a headache.”