Jolene knocked on the door and Barbie answered. She immediately gathered her into an embrace and whispered, “I’m praying for you all.”
When they parted, Jolene smiled. “You are a gem, Barbie. My father is lucky to have found you.”
“Well, come in. Craig is here and I suspect the others will make a grand, but late entrance.” The women chuckled and joined the men that waited quietly on the lake-side balcony. Jolene drank in the peace of the evening air and sprawled out on a lounge chair.
Within five minutes, another knock sounded and Barbie went to receive her guests. When they stood to meet the newcomers, Jolene did not view the confident magazine women she’d expected, but rather ladies just as nervous as the rest of them were in this moment.
Sheki smiled and attempted to take the lead, a role which she was most comfortable. “Shall we get this over with, Trace?”
It came as a surprise when Sheki plunked down on the swing seat next to Trace and stared straight ahead at the group gathered around them. Barbie sat beside Jolene and took her hand, grasping it tightly in hers. She squeezed it, her smile oozing with kindness. It was obvious that her husband had told her the secret before their arrival, for the seating plan did not seem to phase her a bit. Selene squeezed close to Craig on an over-sized seat designed for one.
Selene’s eyes made brief contact with Jolene, and although she was relieved to see the hostility gone, she grew concerned with the fear that had replaced it. Craig was right. The woman wasn’t nearly as strong on the inside as she portrayed on the outside.
Trace exhaled deeply and then cleared his throat. “Thank you all for coming. I’m afraid this meeting is long overdue—when in fact, it was never supposed to happen. Sheki and I made an agreement and for twenty-four years have managed to keep it between us. Although it served our purposes at the time, it has weighed heavy on my conscience.”
He looked toward the woman seated at his side and she smiled encouragement. It was a lovely smile and Jolene wondered why she didn’t show it to the world more often.
“I refuse to let Trace take all the blame. I pushed him, as I tend to do on a regular basis, and he succumbed. Girls, we hope you will not hate us for our decision.” She looked at Trace again and said, “continue.”
“Sheki and I were married for four years before we became pregnant. The good-news was ill-timed as her next great career move was on the horizon. She spent the final months in a depressed state. Our marriage was on the rocks, mostly because our careers had taken over our lives, and God had chosen the wrong time to bless us with the baby we might have welcomed in year one of marital bliss. We both portrayed the perfect couple to our colleagues and friends, but it was a façade. When delivery day arrived, we believed the answer to our problems dropped into our laps. A solution from above—which of course was absurd—but it helped to blame the Almighty when we came to our senses too late.”
“You see, on June18th, twenty-three years ago, I not only delivered my darling daughter, Selene, but also her twin sister, Jolene—not identical, which just added fuel to the plan raging in our minds.” Seika’s eyes lingered on Selene while silent pain shot like invisible arrows between the two grown women.
Trace continued with the account. “I took Jolene and moved to Sebring for a fresh start, and when my daughter asked about her birth mother, I told her she was dead.” His lips quivered as he held Jolene’s gaze. “That was unfair and wrong on every level, but death was what our young selfish hearts agreed on so that the girls would not go looking for one another at a later date. A clean separation—it sounded so noble back then.”
“I stayed in Atlanta and my career grew bigger than I dreamed possible, providing ample funds to supply Selene with the best nannies the city offered. I married immediately after and gave Trace’s daughter the new husbands surname; Gabel. His was a marriage of convenience and I am ashamed of the men I’ve gone through while trying to replace my first love.” She turned to Barbie. “Not to say, I want him back. That would be ridiculous, and I know he has found happiness with you.” She nudged the man at her side. “Trace was the smart one to wait all those years for the perfect match, while I stumbled with one obsession after another, none of which brought me lasting happiness. I am a career woman and should stick to what I love most.”
Trace looked at Selene. “I’ve watched you grow from a distance. Your mother and I agreed to send yearly updates to one another of our children’s progress. But I have no idea how the girls managed to show up at the same resort as I had booked for my honeymoon.”
“Mrs. Claus might have something to do with that,” Craig said, and when doubtful stares were cast his way he added. “Forget I said anything. Continue, please.”
Sheki took a turn. “When Trace called me in sheer panic at the situation evolving here, I couldn’t deny coming to his aid, and then, as if things weren’t bad enough, he added the final nail to our coffin in the fact that Craig was also present and has somehow managed to date both daughters. A bit of a tailspin for us all.”
Silence filled the room until Jolene thought she would scream. “How can a mother
