Finding Kylie (16 page)

             
“Thank you so much for dinner. I had planned to walk to beach tonight, but the sun’s going to go down so ...  I need to get home.” 
Ask me to walk on the beach!

             
“It was the least I could do.”
Does that mean she wants to walk on the beach with me?

             
Timothy chastised himself.
No idiot! She’s not asking for a walk on the beach … is she? 

             
He ran his hand through his hand through his hair, unsure of what was going on between them and offered a suggestion.

             
“
Maybe next time I’m in town I could join you for that walk?”

             
“That would be nice.” 
He’s just being polite.  Chastity, you’re so obvious.
 

             
“Let me show you out … after you.”  He held his arm out and waited for Chastity to take the lead. 

             
They walked in silence through the hotel and outside, to where her car was parked.  He wasn’t ready to see her leave, but it was time to say goodbye.

             
As she unlocked her door, he leaned in to open it, saying, “It was a pleasure.  Thank you for staying and having dinner with me.  I hate to eat alone.” 

             
He flashed a bold smile, which had her stomach in knots. 

             
Something tells me that he doesn’t have to eat alone very often.

             
Chastity withdrew her hand from her purse, and pressed one of her cards into his hand. 

             
“It was so very nice to meet you.  Thank you for everything.”               

             
Nice to meet you?  Chastity, can’t you think of anything clever to say?
Of course it was nice to meet him ... look at him!  He’s definite scenery I wouldn’t mind having a regular view of. 

             
“
My paralegal will be contacting you soon to finalize the transaction.  Have a safe drive and call me if you need anything.” 

             
Timothy shut her door and sent her off. 
Call if you need anything?  Banks, you’ve got to get a better pick up line.

             
Chastity drove off shaking her head.

             
Did any of that just happen?  Two million dollars with a dreamboat attorney as a perk!  Pinch me.  I think my someday turned into reality. 

             
Chastity laughed aloud. 
What is reality? 
She didn’t know anymore.

             
She slowed at the four-way stop and looked up through her windshield, toward the mountains.  Her mind wandered to her mother’s attorney.
The thought of her mom matchmaking from beyond was ridiculous, but deep down it felt like she had a hand in it.

             
Mom, did you know that I would find him extremely attractive?

             
Maybe it was the slow music from her radio, or maybe it was the beauty of the ocean, as the setting sun reflected over its smooth water, but Chastity felt extremely sentimental.  The barriers she had built around her heart slowly slipped away, and she knew it was because Timothy was someone special. 

             
This is probably nothing more than an intense attraction,
she justified, trying to stuff her emotions back down.  She bit her bottom lip and turned up the music.

             
Did he keep looking at my mouth or was that all in my head? 
She shook her head. 
No... I bet I just had food on it. He probably was trying to keep from laughing at me. 

             
She lifted her hand, to push her hair from her eyes and internally groaned.

             
I made such a fool of myself.  He said to call if I needed anything, but that was just for legal purposes ... not for personal ones. 
She shook her head.
I guess that’s it then.

             
She pulled onto the highway and looked over her shoulder, to merge in with traffic.  The sun was going down, and the symbolism wasn’t lost on her. 

             
Goodbye Timothy Banks.  Too bad ... it could have been interesting.

Chapter 21

              “Ladies and gentlemen, we are now arriving at Will Rogers Airport in Oklahoma City.  Please stay seated and keep your seat belts fastened until we’ve come to a complete stop.  For those of you traveling on to...”

             
Chastity tuned out the air flight attendant and looked out the window.
  I can’t believe it!  I see bales of hay.  There is so much land here.
 

             
“I don’t think I’ve ever seen so many fields from the air,” she commented to the woman next to her, laughing half-heartedly.  “I’m definitely in Oklahoma.”

             
“Is it your first time here?” Her curios travel mate had a slow twang, which intrigued her.

             
“Yes, my mom was from here, but I’ve never been.”               

             
Chastity looked to the blonde woman, who was accessorized and dressed to the nines.

             
“Oh my!  You need to go check out the downtown area.  Between the Bricktown development with the Riverwalk, and the Murrah Bombing Memorial, it’s pretty amazing!  There are also some great restaurants down on the Riverwalk.”

             
“Thanks for the suggestions.  I’ll look into it.”  She nervously smiled and tightened her seat belt.  “I am just glad to be landing right now.  I’m not a big fan of being in the air.”

             
“You did just fine honey.” The blonde waved her manicured hand in dismissal. “You staying long?”

             
Man! She’s a talker. 
“Maybe … I am visiting some friends of the family.  We’ll see how long they let me stay.  I bought a one-way ticket.”

             
“Well,” the blonde drawled. “Welcome to Oklahoma City.  Have a good stay, and don’t forget to make your friends take you out.  There’s a whole lot more to see than just those fields from the air.”

             
“Thanks.”  She lifted her shade and turned to watching their landing. 

             
Chastity undid her lap belt once the plane pulled into the gate.  Once she was able to reach for the overhead bin, she stretched – grateful to be on the ground. 

             
She watched the passengers struggle for position, hoping to get out first.  It hit her that she couldn’t remember a time when her mother flew them anywhere.  They shuffled from state to state in their old beat up station wagon, because her mom said they couldn’t afford to fly.

             
Why did we live so poorly?  If mom had all this money, why didn’t we fly anywhere for holiday like most families?  A little fun would have been good for us.  What was she saving it for?

             
So many questions about her mom’s past had been answered, but it seemed like every time she turned a corner – she ran into a new revelation. The last couple of months had been an emotional roller coaster, much like the turbulence on her flight. 

             
Why couldn’t she just tell me?  We both would have been better off, emotionally and financially!

             
Chastity smiled at the stewardess when leaving the plane.  She walked through the gate and started for the baggage claim area, surprised at what she saw. Even though she wasn’t sure what to expect in Oklahoma, she sure didn’t expect such a classy airport.

             
The breezeway, which connected all the gates, had silver metal arches that reached up the both sides of the walkway. The windows spanned from top to bottom, giving her a clear view to the outside and the stone exterior. The artist in her appreciated the mixture of cool metals and warm stones that were combined to give the impression of a modern cowboy fortress. 

             
Impressive,
she thought.

             
After retrieving her bags, she stood outside by the curb and watched for Cheryl and her daughter, who were supposed to pick her up.  In glancing to her watch, she saw she was only a few minutes away from the time they’d agreed on.  She looked up in time to see Whitney run to her for a big hug. 

             
“Look at you, Whit.  My goodness you’ve grown up overnight.”  She pulled back from their embrace, thinking she was a carbon copy of Cheryl. “When was the last time I saw you?”  She gave her a once over. 

             
“When we came to see you guys two summers ago,” Whitney said, immediately wishing she could kick herself. 

             
Don’t bring up Aunt Kylie.  That was stupid! 

             
Chastity didn’t seem to notice.  “That’s right.  My gosh you’ve grown up.”  She was amazed at the transformation. 

             
Whitney was dressed in the latest trends and though only seventeen, looked to be in her twenty’s.  Cheryl had kept her up to date with pictures, but they didn’t do her justice.  Chastity thought her shiny black hair looked like it should be in a shampoo commercial. 

             
She smiled knowingly to Cheryl in seeing some of her fellow male passengers staring at her friend’s daughter, as they passed them by. 

             
“Watch out mom.” Chastity leaned down to the car window toward Cheryl. “You’re going to have to start locking her up to keep the boys away.” 

             
“Ha!” Cheryl got out of the car. “Don’t think I haven’t already tried.” 

             
Cheryl was glad she made Whitney come with her.  Her daughter provided the distraction she was hoping for.  She didn’t even know if she should get out of the car after last night’s conversation.

             
Chastity called to confirm her flight plans and told her about her inheritance. It was obvious Chastity was primarily in shock, but Cheryl knew she was going to have to answer a lot of questions.  She wasn’t quite sure what to tell her best friend’s daughter.  She knew this day would come, but still wasn’t ready for it. 

             
Cheryl shook off her apprehension and helped load up Chastity’s luggage, remembering Kylie’s words.

             
“When the attorney contacts her, Chastity is going to be mixed up.  I knew someday she would figure it out, but I didn’t intend on it happening this way.  I always thought I would sit down with her when she was much older.” Kylie confided, to Cheryl, while resting after a dose of chemo. “She’s going to come to you Cheryl, and she deserves the honest truth.  Secrets don’t hide forever, but I wanted to protect her as long as I could.  She’ll probably think I did her a disservice, but I did the only thing I knew how to do - and that was to protect my daughter.  One day she’ll understand. I never told her because I couldn’t, and I am sorry to lay this burden on you.”

             
Cheryl felt bound to honor her friend’s wishes.  She had tried to push Kylie into telling Chastity years ago but it was ultimately Kylie’s decision. 

             
After Kylie’s diagnosis, she was torn between telling her daughter right away and waiting until she recovered from cancer.  Cheryl told her to get well, and then she could decide.  The plan to give Chastity the information after recovery just unraveled from there, and eventually Kylie was too sick to handle it. 

             
It left Cheryl to be the responsible one, and she promised Kylie she’d try to protect Chastity as much as she could - under the circumstances.

             
Whitney struggled to lift the last bag into her mom’s car. 

             
“Good thing we have lots of trunk room! Did you bring your whole closet?” 

             
“Almost! I didn’t know how long I was going to stay.  I even gave my resignation from the children’s art clinic, where I work.”

             
Although she didn’t have to work after her receiving her substantial inheritance, that’s not why she resigned.  She wanted to dedicate time to finding out about her family.