Page 42 of Secret Cinderella
“Thanks.” His heart thumped and he wasn’t sure what to do.
Lucy twirled the end of a pigtail. “Can I help?”
Lucy and his mother were usually the ones he wanted to take care of, but he told his sister the quick version of events and concluded, “Charlotte left and I don’t know what to do. I can’t find her.”
Lucy’s eyes twinkled. “As Morgans, we can have a team of detectives track her down.”
He shoved his hands in his pockets and brushed against the ring, widening his eyes at the realization of what he had at his disposal. “You think?”
Lucy took a stack of cards out of her skirt pocket like she had a connection to everyone she’d met at the party. She flipped through her new collection, and then handed him one. “Here's Rafe’s card, but he’s sitting with his wife, our half-sister, over there.”
He glanced in the direction she’d pointed and saw the dark-haired man and blonde woman who’d just finished their French toast. “Thanks.”
All he had to do was ask for help. He crossed the room and towered over their table, clearing his throat. Both strangers smiled up at him. Tension made his shoulders stiff. “Are you Rafe Soliz?”
Rafe stood and gestured to the empty chair beside him. “Jack, right? Sit down. This is my wife, and your half-sister, Elizabeth.”
Right. Jack still had no idea about most of the half-siblings but to him family helped each other, and Antonio had told him the same. And Elizabeth resembled Lucy a little, in her cheekbones. Charlotte was his family too. He sat down, a bundle of nerves. “Happy to meet you.”
The other night introductions had been some hazy dream but his recalled a detail. “You’re the one that just had a baby.”
Elizabeth smiled at him like she was pleased he’d remembered. “Yes, we have an older son too. When you come to Miami, you’ll meet them both.”
Happy family. Happy life. He hoped one day that Charlotte looked at him the way his half-sister and her husband glanced at each other.
Love wasn’t a fantasy. He folded his hands on the table. “I’m looking forward to it. Rafe, Peter mentioned that you’ve helped the family find people?”
Rafe’s face grew serious when he asked quietly, “Who are you looking for?”
Asking for help from a stranger made his skin jitter, but he needed to find his girl. “Charlotte Masters.”
“Your fiancée?” Elizabeth asked.
A shot rushed through him like he’d been judged but surely that was wrong. He could trust them. Family was family. “We had a… a disagreement, and I was stupid and didn’t follow her.”
Rafe took his phone out of his back pocket and said, “Get a coffee and give me five minutes. Security would have followed her.”
“Thanks.” Hope warmed the chill inside him. He would soon know that Charlotte was safe, and where she’d gone. Rafe jumped out of his seat to walk away. Jack stayed with Elizabeth, and a waiter brought him coffee. “So, I don’t know much about everyone here. What can you tell me about them all?”
Elizabeth sipped her coffee. She had a calming air about her that made him relax when she pointed to the table next to them. “Many of our half-brothers and sisters are married with children. Peter and Belle just had a baby, too.” She directed his attention to the next table. “Victoria and Colt also have two.” Elizabeth shifted slightly as she nodded at the next table with two couples eating together. “John and Alice had triplets who will be two soon. Matthew married Ashley and she’s pregnant.”
Jack appreciated the rundown. “I know Matthew from his movies.”
She then pointed to the third table over and said, “Luke and Caro were childhood sweethearts but no children-”
“I got it,” Rafe said and rejoined the table.
Good. Jack’s heart raced as he sat straighter and asked, “That fast?”
Rafe grinned and pushed his phone back in his pocket. “Charlotte boarded a bus to Miami. She won’t arrive till tonight, but a security guard is on board and they report that she’s fine.”
This had come from announcing their engagement—the Morgans had family protection, and they’d extended it to Charlotte.
Now he just needed to figure out how to get her to listen.
When she made a decision, sometimes she was pig-headed, like staying in that store at all hours to somehow keep her father’s dreams alive. Surely he'd want her to be happy, not suffer.
Elizabeth said, “Sounds like we're all going home then. You’re welcome to fly and stay with us.”
