Boxed Set: Intercepted by Love (The Complete Collection): Books One - Book Six (44 page)

“This is absolutely insane.” Andie’s mother shook her awake the next morning. “Did you see the news? Dick Davis is Bret and Cade’s father. We better get away from all the fallout.”

Andie groaned and cracked her eyes open. She’d finally fallen asleep in the wee hours after crying her eyes out while sitting up with Bret who also had a bad night. Unable to calm him, she had given up and brought him to bed between her and her mother. The baby was still fast asleep.

“I know, but who’s going to take care of Bret? Did Cade come home last night?” Andie’s shoulders shook from a lingering sob, and her mind was in a dull and painful fog.

The party last night had been hell, but she’d pulled it off like the actress she was becoming. No one had suspected how wounded she was under her skin—well, no one except Sylvia who practically held her hand through the rest of the evening, including meeting all of the famous stars of Hollywood and the big directors and producers.

“He hasn’t come home,” her mother said. “I checked the garage. Look, we can’t keep the baby. Why don’t you call Roxanne?”

“She’s living at Declan’s.”

Her plan seemed to be working. Roxanne was hanging over Cade before the cake explosion, but soon after, when Declan was brought in on a chariot, Rox had stumbled drunkenly onto the stage and thrown herself into the chariot, landing on her knees with her arms around Declan’s legs—ready to play the role of concubine and suck up to the king.

“Oh? Really?” Her mother shook her. “You kids are something else. Playing musical partners. I thought swinging was a thing my parents did in the nineteen-seventies.”

“She’s helping me get that divorce from Declan.” Andie hadn’t yet told her mother or anyone else about Cade’s damning remarks, how he thought so little of her. Maybe her mother was right. Cade only wanted her to take care of little Bret. As cute as he was, he wasn’t her son, and sooner or later, his real parents would take him back.

“Hopefully it works.” Her mother flipped through the news site on a tablet Cade lent her. “If we can’t find Roxanne, we have to look up Mr. Davis. He shouldn’t be hard to find.”

“I don’t know. This is so weird. Mr. Davis is Cade’s father. Let me see the news.” Andie peered at the tablet her mother was reading.

Todd Irvin had been standing behind Roxanne when she’d spilled the news to Cade, right before the giant explosion of confetti. In the article, Todd blamed Mr. Davis for playing favorites and letting Cade get away with as much bad behavior as Devon Davis, his known son.

“This explains why Mr. Davis insisted on keeping Cade Prescott on the squad after he threw away the Super Bowl. I’m calling on all fans everywhere to stand up against this reprehensible behavior. Thankfully, I won the starting quarterback job, fair and square. I will be working with my teammates at reforming the tarnished image of the Los Angeles Flash.” Todd was quoted as saying in a press conference he gave shortly after the party at Ronaldo’s.

Andie shook her head. Poor Cade. Scattered thoughts sprinkled her fuzzy mind. Thoughts about Cade feeling abandoned by his parents, not adoptable, growing up fatherless. Something about Cade driving around looking for a dog—her dog. And snow. Lots of snow.

“Andie, why are you crying?” Her mother sat beside her on the bed and put her arm around her. “I know this is tough for Cade. Do you care about him that much?”

“Yes, I do. It breaks my heart. His father treated him like a dirty secret, exactly the same way he’s treating Bret—a problem to be palmed off.”

Her mother hugged her. “I guess Cade was telling the truth about Bret. I couldn’t believe that story at first, but now that Dick is his father, it explains why they chose Cade to take the baby. Maybe the original plan was to have Cade and Roxanne marry.”

“How gross. Marrying your own father’s mistress?” Andie snorted. “Cade’s mother must have known. Well, duh, of course she knew. You think she was in on this from the beginning?”

“I don’t know about the beginning, but for whatever reason, she kept it a secret from Cade. I feel sorry for the guy.”

“Speaking of, where is he?” Andie grabbed her phone and scrolled through it. No messages.

Despite hurting her pride last night, she knew Cade only meant it for good. What if it was true that Dick had put up the money for the movie? It was one more lever he could use against Cade in case he reneged on posing as Bret’s father.

“Let him go,” her mother said, taking her phone. “He has a lot to deal with right now. You, meanwhile, need to check in with the doctor. How are you feeling?”

“I have a slight headache, but I’m getting some memories back. Something about Roxanne in a fur coat, and Cade telling me he never had a father, how his mother refused to even talk about him. Now we know. He’s married to some rich woman.”

“With a pre-nup. This ship’s going to go down fast. I feel sorry for Mrs. Davis.” Andie’s mother tapped on the tablet and googled her. “I know I shouldn’t be so interested, and I hated it when everyone was talking about you.”

“Me? When was that?” Andie’s blood sizzled in her ears. “Someone mentioned something about me being on the internet. Maybe I should look myself up.”

“No, don’t.” Her mother palmed her hand. “Remember, the doctor said you should recall your own memories, not try to discover them externally.”

“Yeah, right, but it’s gotta be bad if you’re trying to stop me from looking.”

“The media can be very cruel.” Her mother sighed. “Are you sure you want to be an actress? Just imagine being splattered on the tabloids at the grocery checkout line. Nothing you ever do will be private again. They’ll also lie about you and Photoshop you in all sorts of ugly ways.”

Andie watched the baby sleep, his eyes rolling inside his eyelids and his cheeks and mouth twitching. Being a child of a celebrity was hard too, growing up under the spotlight.

“Do you think I’ll be any good as an actress?” Andie’s voice barely squeaked through her throat. “Be honest, Mom.”

“I’m sure you could do it. Aren’t they putting you through acting school?”

“Yes, but why me? And Sylvia? We’re just these ordinary girls they decided to promote.”

“Maybe they wanted fresh faces. People who aren’t jaded and worn out.”

“Seems strange, that’s all. You really think I’ll be good enough?”

Her mother fluffed her hair the way she always did when Andie was little and sought reassurance. “You’re good at anything you put your mind to.”

“Except I haven’t gotten my mind back. You said I was a brain injured woman, and you’re probably right. I don’t know much about Cade. Maybe he isn’t who I think he is. Maybe he doesn’t support my dreams and aspirations and only wants me to be a mother to this baby.” Andie picked up Bret and cradled him. “Not that he isn’t sweet and all, but I can’t be solving all the world’s problems. You and Dad need me.”

“We do, sweetie, but someday you’re going to have a life of your own. I spoke to Dad, and he wants you to try this acting thing. He’s proud of you.”

“Are you, Mom? Because I get the feeling you disapprove of things I’ve done.”

Her mother cleared her throat and pursed her lips, blinking hard. “I just don’t want you to get hurt. I think Cade Prescott needs some time to grow up. For one thing, how can he stay out all night and leave his baby with us? We’re practically strangers.”

A jolt of fear sliced through Andie’s heart, and she gasped. “What if he’s hurt? I should have thought of that earlier.”

She grabbed her phone and texted him,
Cade, are you okay? Where are you?

# # #

Cade waited in the lobby of the rehab clinic, nursing his coffee. He couldn’t face going home, especially since Andie’s mother was still there taking care of Bret. Yes, it was a chicken shit thing to do, but he’d hurt Andie badly. She must have heard everything he’d said about her lack of talent and skills. For whatever reason, ever since she woke from the coma, she’d insisted acting was her dream come true. Maybe it had been a secret wish she’d never admitted to, simply because she’d never believed anyone would have wanted her.

And now, all he’d done was pierce her bubble on the night of her big debut. He should kick himself and wring his own neck.

But not now. He had bigger problems, like the gossip buzzing all over Los Angeles. Roxanne had blown it big time, spilling out the secrets she was supposed to keep. No wonder her brother had spirited her away after the party, ripping her from Declan’s arms. That had to be the good news Andie hinted at in her text message, that Rox was with Declan now. Except Andie probably regretted giving up Declan—now that he’d squashed her dreams while Declan had believed in her enough to work with her as his costar.

Cade glanced at the lobby receptionist. The woman was tapping away on her computer and wore a sneaky smile on her face. Every so often, she’d catch Cade’s eye and look away. Yep. She was no doubt reading up on all the lurid details.

He strode toward her. “Any idea when my mother will be ready to see me?”

“Oh.” The receptionist’s mouth gaped while she clicked her mouse quickly. “I can call her again. I doubt she’ll change her mind.”

“Tell her, I’m not going away until I speak to her.” Cade glared at the receptionist who quailed under his gaze and hastily punched the buttons on her phone.

“She’s not answering. I’m sorry, there’s nothing I can do when a patient refuses to see a visitor. We have to respect their wishes.”

“Let me leave her a note then.”

“Sure.” She handed him a notepad and a pen.

Cade stared at the pad, unsure what to put down. He was angry, that was for sure, but he was also sad. Dick was probably the one who’d refused to acknowledge him, who forced his mother to keep silent. What if Dick was also the one who’d kept her addicted?

All his life, he’d dreamed of finding his father, but he should have known better. Any father who would abandon him and force his Mom into silence was better off not found.

Alarm jangled his nerves and perked the hairs on his scalp. What if he’d silenced his mother for good?

Cade rushed to the receptionist, interrupting another web search she was making, since she clicked quickly before looking up. “Can you send an attendant in to check on her? I want to know if she’s alive.”

“Why wouldn’t she be? Just because she doesn’t answer the phone doesn’t mean anything’s happened to her.”

“Please, let me go check.” He headed to the electronically locked door.

“Listen, I know you’re a famous football player and everything, but you can’t go barging in there without permission.” The receptionist picked up the phone. “I’m calling security.”

“Go ahead. I want them to check on her. Someone’s trying to kill her. Most likely Dick Davis.”

“Calm down, sir.” The receptionist picked up the phone. “We need security to check on a patient. Yes, room twenty-three. Barbara Prescott.”

Cade returned to the counter and gripped it so hard his knuckles hurt on his good hand. His other hand throbbed and pulsed with pain, and his heart clenched. Dick was the one with the motive to kill his mother since she’d kept the secret for him.

“You know, you should relax,” the receptionist said as she went back to her web browsing. “Now that the cat’s out of the bag, there’s no reason for him to kill your mother. I mean, everyone knows you’re his son and he tried to pass off his little baby on you.”

Ain’t it wonderful being a celebrity? Everyone and their mother knew his business and felt empowered to give him advice.

“I’d feel better knowing my mother’s safe,” Cade grumbled under his breath.

“She is. We have state of the art security. No one gets through us. Anyway, Dick’s got more problems than snuffing your mother.”

“I hope his wife fries him and cuts the spigot.” Cade bent over and peeked over her shoulder. “What does it say about his wife?”

“She’s really hard to find.” The receptionist’s tongue hung out as she scrolled through a gossip site. “Oh, here. Her neighbor said Dick’s been kicked out. She’s been dumping his stuff on the driveway.”

“Serves him right.”

“Oh, look, she gave a statement to a reporter. It says here, ‘Dinah Silver Davis has frozen all the accounts her philandering husband, Dick Davis, had access to.’”

Cade sucked in a breath. “Wait, Dinah Silver? That’s her name?”

“Yep, her family’s made of money. Her brother, Monty, owns Silver Studios and her mother is Amanda Silver.”

“Yeah, I know her nephew then, Ronaldo.”

“You do?” The receptionist’s eyelashes fluttered. “Ronaldo and Fernando, both of them?”

“Ronaldo more than Fernando, but yes, they’re my friends.”

Or Ronaldo
was
his friend.

“Can you, uh, introduce me? I’m not sure which one’s cuter. Oh, duh, they’re twins.” The receptionist practically drooled as she babbled.

A security guard exited from the double doors. “Mr. Prescott? We’ve called an ambulance. Your mother was found unconscious.”

“No!” Cade howled as he rushed through the door, following the guard.

Andie sat in the rocking chair and fed Bret. Worry squeezed her heart. Cade hadn’t answered her text. Either something had happened to him, or he didn’t want anything to do with her, not after she’d French kissed Ronaldo’s twin brother, Fernando.

Darnit. Why had she felt the need to prove him wrong, to show him that she was as good an actress as any one of those women whom he used to date and play around with? Wait. Was this another memory? After all, he had been with Roxanne, hadn’t he?

“We have no choice but to take Bret to the doctor’s with us,” her mother said, interrupting her gloomy thoughts. “I’m not sure Mr. Davis is in any condition to take care of him. I read he’s been thrown out of his house and all his accounts are frozen. There’s talk that all the players’ salaries are in danger and the team could be sold.”

“Oh, wow. Poor Cade.” Andie’s insides squeezed, and she wrung her hands. Cade’s only skill was football, and he needed the money to pay for his mother’s rehab. What more horrible things could happen to one man?

Her mother tapped her shoulder. “You almost ready? Your doctor’s appointment’s in an hour. Let’s get Bret dressed and take him on an outing afterwards. I want to buy some souvenirs before going home.”

“Home? When were you planning on going?” Andie pulled the empty bottle away from Bret. She flipped him over her shoulder and rubbed his back. Home seemed so far away.

“I haven’t booked my tickets yet. Waiting to see if the doctor gives you clearance to fly. Have you checked in at work yet? Told them you’d like some time off?”

“I didn’t have to,” Andie replied with a huff. “Mr. Silver says I can take my time returning. Declan’s in a lot of pain with his wired jaw and can’t talk much anyways. I guess I should go by and read the new script. Maybe on our way back from the doctor’s we can stop by work.”

With Declan out of commission, the project could be in danger, or maybe Cade was right. It had only been a smokescreen. She’d have to wait for the fallout and see if it was still on now that everything was exposed.

“Sounds like a plan,” her mother said cheerily. “Why don’t you drop me and Bret off at some of the tourist places while you go to your office? I need to buy some souvenirs.”

“Good idea. I better pack lots of formula and a picnic lunch for you.” Andie handed the baby to her mother. “Or you can try the food trucks. They’re pretty awesome.”

Several hours later, Andie had been cleared by the doctor to fly. She’d had another brain scan which showed everything was okay, and she’d run out of excuses. Her mother was right. The only reason she really wanted to stay was Cade, only she wasn’t sure he was the right man for her anymore.

She texted her mother who said she was in the chapel with Bret, so she headed that direction. The hospital chapel was conveniently located next to the gift shop which sold flowers, chocolates, books, and toys. Knowing her mother, she preferred to pray rather than to shop.

Andie opened the heavy wooden door and stepped into the air conditioned chapel. Where were her mother and Bret? Andie scanned the darkened room with a giant cross at the front over a trickling fountain made of smooth black stones.

Cade knelt in front of the altar, his shoulders heaving and his breath caught up in sobs. Andie’s heart clutched in her chest, and she crept silently toward him.

Wordlessly, she knelt at his side and placed her hand on his shoulder, resting her head against his.

“Thank God you’re here.” Cade reached for her. “Pray for my mom. She overdosed again.”

“Again? At the rehab?”

Cade’s eyes were bloodshot and swollen with tears. “Yes, she somehow got ahold of drugs again.”

“I’m so sorry.” Andie hugged Cade, feeling his brokenness and grief. She kissed the side of his head and inhaled his moist, woodsy scent. “I’m glad I found you here. Let’s pray for your mother.”

With one arm around Cade, she bowed her head. “Heavenly Father, we come to you, broken and destroyed, needing you to heal us. Please pull Barbara through her drug problem and give her the strength to overcome her addiction. Please heal her and forgive her for what she’s done. Every life is precious to you, Father. Bring Barbara back to you, and let her give glory to you by staying clean so she’ll be able to enjoy her children and grandchildren. Please heal our hearts too of the pain that we inflict on those around us, and forgive us our sins. Touch our hearts and help us because we are weak. Bring those who need to be saved into a personal relationship with your Son, Jesus. Forgive me and bless my mother and father. In the name of Jesus, Amen.”

“Amen,” Cade repeated and lifted his head to stare at the cross.

They sat in silence, listening to the soothing water trickle over the stones. Andie breathed her own prayer, but it was all jumbled up with broken wishes and empty promises. What did she want out of life? Could she follow Declan’s footsteps and make it big in Hollywood? Or was she willing to live quietly in the library and speculate on the lives of ancient people? Or be a mommy like her mother had been? Giving up all her aspirations to follow her father around the world from one archaeological dig to the next?

The big man next to her remained silent and still, almost as if he hated to break this moment as much as she did—this tentative connection—joined in prayer for his mother.

The door opened behind them, and a male voice said, “Mr. Prescott, your mother’s awake.”

“Thank you, God.” Cade leaped to his feet and took Andie’s hand. “Will you come with me?”

Andie swallowed, now that the danger had passed, the pain of Cade’s disparaging remarks flooded her. He would never consider her dreams worth living. “Maybe you should go alone. Your mother might have things to say to you in private.”

“Will I see you later at home?” Cade pressed her hand.

She blinked and touched the splint on his left hand. “What happened?”

“Broken finger.”

“What did you do, punch someone?”

“I wish. The police are going through the records to see who visited my mom and gave her the drugs.”

“Let me know how she’s doing.” Andie couldn’t meet his gaze. “I have to find my mother. She still has Bret.”

“I know. I saw her.” He leaned in and kissed her forehead. “I’m sorry about what I said last night. Forgive me?”

“Go see your mother.” Andie’s stomach churned. No matter how sweet and tender he acted in front of her, his real feelings about her abilities had been exposed last night. Of course, he saw her for what she was, a wanna-be who would never win any beauty pageants. Someone only good enough to be a nanny for his baby. “I’ll talk with you later.”

He held her hand, lingering. “I don’t deserve you.”

“Go, your mother’s waiting.” Andie stepped back and slipped from his grasp. She wasn’t going to pity him, since he’d hate it if she did, and right now, she wasn’t sure what to feel about him. Every cell in her body screamed to press herself against him and love him forever, but at the same time, he wasn’t supportive of her dreams and he didn’t respect her enough to believe she could make the right choices.

Cade said nothing more. He shoved his hands in his pockets and exited the chapel.

# # #

Andie gawked at Sylvia, blinking in disbelief. Her friend was wearing an ordinary gray suit skirt. Moving boxes were piled up behind her, and all the pictures on her wall had been taken down. Behind her, Ronaldo Silver’s office door was closed with no sign of light underneath it.

“Did I miss something? What happened?” She waved her hand at the packing tape and labels.

“We all have to find jobs,” Sylvia said, twisting her lip downward.

Andie’s heart skidded to the floor. “Why? I don’t get it. Last night, we were the hit of Hollywood.”

“That’s how Hollywood is. Here today and gone tomorrow.” Sylvia curled a finger around her hair. “You probably heard all about Cade’s father being revealed as Dick Davis. His wife found out he’d been cheating on her since before Cade was born, and her pre-nup automatically freezes him from all his funds and any obligations or contracts.”

Crap. So it was true. The only reason they had this project was due to Dick Davis. Andie closed her eyes and rubbed her temple. “Does this mean our show is canceled?”

“Yep. You should have seen Dinah Silver storm Ronaldo’s office. She’s his aunt. It turns out Ronaldo had been blackmailing Dick into funding his pet projects. He knew about Bret, but he claims he didn’t know about Cade being Dick’s son. Dinah grabbed Ronaldo by the ear, and he was screaming, saying she ripped his cartilage, and she let him have it—called him an ungrateful wretch and a family traitor.”

“So, we’re all out of a job?”

“Pretty much.” Sylvia hooked an arm around Andie. “I ran home and changed as soon as I heard. This is my mourning outfit.”

“Oh, Sylvia, that looks just like the suit I wore my first day.” Andie couldn’t help the gallows chuckle. “And look at me. I’m wearing rainbow colored jeans and a paisley top with a daisy headband and flowery sneakers.”

“You go, girl!” Sylvia grabbed her by the arm. “Let’s go talk to Leroy.”

“Yeah, Leroy. I guess it’s goodbye then.” Andie walked arm in arm with Sylvia down toward the cubicles.

Leroy also was wearing regular clothes, well, if regular meant a pair of crisp jeans and a navy blue polo shirt. He wrapped Andie in a bear hug. “You were right.”

“Right? About what?” Andie patted his chest. “You’re looking almost normal today.”

Leroy grabbed Andie’s copy of
Michal’s Window
and handed it to her. “Right about David being Michal’s true love. That ending and that song she composed blew me away.”

Andie flipped to the chapter near the end and smiled.

“Read that song to me,” Leroy said. “And that part about their souls knit together.”

Andie read:

“You were meant to have my love for always, not only in this world but the next. Our souls knit together forever, is that not better than our bloodlines?” He spoke the truth, although I still would have wanted both.

“I love you,” he said. “I’ve loved you since the moment I saw you. And I never want it to end.”

A flame of joy anointed my chest and I sang:

Our love tried by fire, and purged of the dross,

Melted together as pure as fine gold.

God tried our hearts, and revealed His plan.

In darkness of spirit, He comforts us still.

And we shall rejoice in the LORD and sing Him a song.

And follow His Word, in His steps we will trust.

When it is time, to lay down to rest, we will appear as Him.

David smiled broadly. “That was beautiful. Seems I’m not the only psalmist in Israel.”

We walked to the scroll room. David pointed to a tiny scroll on the top shelf. He brought it down and blew off the dust. “My wife, you shall dwell with me in the House of our LORD forever.”

Our marriage covenant. He unrolled it and smoothed it on the table. We read the words together. “David, son of Jesse of Bethlehem is hereby joined in marriage to Michal, daughter of Saul of Gibeah, in front of the LORD God. Presided over by Elihu, the Priest of the LORD. Witnessed by Saul, son of Kish and Jonathan, son of Saul.”

“That is awesome,” Sylvia said, sighing and pretending to swoon. “And a fitting ending to our project.”

“Yes, I agree,” Leroy said. “I hope our paths will cross again. It’s been a pleasure working with you.”

“Oh, Leroy, I feel the same way.” Andie sniffled and wiped a tear from the corner of her eye. “But I prefer to think of every ending as a new beginning. Did you read the Epilogue?”

“I did. I’ve never, ever read an ending like that. I was looking forward to you decorating the set, although I wasn’t quite sure how we’d pull off the plants growing out of the jeweled walls.”

“I would have loved the bed of pearl and the drumbeats in my sleep.” Andie turned the page and gasped. “You signed it here.”

“Me? Oh, no, that says David in Hebrew. It wasn’t me, I swear.” Leroy raised his hand palm out. “Methinks the King himself came down from Heaven and autographed your book.”

“You two are too much.” Sylvia put her arm around both of them, one on each side. “Let’s go to Nouveau Richer and expense some two-hundred dollar burgers before Ronaldo closes the account.”