Page 121 of The Lost Book of First Loves

She was both unsettled and flattered that he had discussed his wife with her. She remembered that heated kiss and could feel herself flush.

“Shall I take this into the kitchen?” she asked, eager to change the subject.

“Sure,” Ali said and led the way down the hall.

They found Loretta at the stove, wearing an apron over jeans and a tidy yellow blouse. To June’s astonishment, the older woman dried her hands and wrapped her in a hug.

“Juniper, my dear. You are looking wonderful, may I say? You have more color in your cheeks. I love to see it.”

Loretta’s kindness touched her deeply, especially when the other woman had no idea they might be connected. She was being kind simply because it was her nature.

“Thank you.” She smiled and handed her the fruit salad.

“That’s so nice, but you really didn’t need to bring anything.”

Loretta opened the refrigerator and set the bowl inside.

“I’m actually making some dessert crepes now. I cut up some strawberries for them, but now people can add your fruit to them, too. Delicious!”

“Yum,” June said.

“I’ve been trying to think of heart-friendly things for you. I’ve got a Mediterranean feta cheese salad I found in a heart-healthy recipe book and I’ve got shrimp and summer squash marinating in olive oil with a tiny bit of low-sodium soy sauce and honey.”

June wanted to hug the woman again for being so conscious of her new dietary concerns. “Oh, that’s so kind of you. Thank you for thinking of me.”

“Of course. It’s really nothing. We should all be eating healthier.”

“I always thought my diet was fairly healthy, but in my case, it wouldn’t have made a difference. My heart condition is apparently congenital, not related to lifestyle at all. I just didn’t know about it until my cardiac event.”

“What is it that you have again? I’m not sure Alison ever told me what it’s called.”

“CPVT, which stands for a mouthful of a name, catecholaminergic polymorphic ventricular tachycardia. Basically, it’s an abnormal heart rhythm. It’s a genetic condition. Very rare.”

Loretta looked up from pouring more crepe batter into a small frying pan with an arrested expression. “That is so odd. You’re the second person I know with that condition. I have a great-niece who was diagnosed with it when she was a young girl.”

“Who’s that?” Ali asked as she snagged a green olive out of a bowl on the counter.

“My brother’s granddaughter. Jennie. She lives in Montana. Do you remember when we drove up for her wedding while you were in high school?”

“Oh, yeah. That was a fun barn wedding. Lots of burlap and jute decorations and line dancing.”

“She’s a darling girl. She recently had her second baby.”

“Did she?” June stared. “I wasn’t aware someone with CVPT could bear children.”

“Doctors watched her very closely through the pregnancies, but she did fine.” Loretta shook her head. “How funny that I know two people with the same rare genetic condition. I wonder if we’re related somehow.”

She said the words with a smile as she took out the crepe after less than a minute and poured more batter in the pan.

Alison exchanged a look with June, a question in her expression that June interpreted easily. She wanted to say something about the DNA results to her grandmother, but she wanted June’s permission first.

June didn’t know what was the right decision. In light of Alison’s unshakable conviction, her own doubts about her paternity were beginning to fade.

After a pause, she made a go-ahead gesture and shrugged slightly.

Ali waited until her grandmother had taken the next crepe out of the frying pan before she stepped forward and put a hand on her grandmother’s arm.

“Grandma. I need to tell you something. June and I had talked about waiting until we knew for sure, but I don’t feel right about keeping it from you. If we don’t tell you, you’ll be the only one at dinner who doesn’t know. That hardly seems fair.”

---