He nodded and smiled. That’s when Bailey saw a little of herself. They had similar smiles, and the shape of his eyes was like hers, too.
“She looks exactly like Theresa.” His mouth pointed down into a frown, and he turned away for a moment.
Bailey had no idea what to do next. She felt like an idiot on display with everyone looking at her expectantly.
Vince raised his hand. “Hello, I’m Vincent Walker. This is my son, Ryan Walker. We’re close friends of Bailey’s.”
He turned to introduce Mae and Lucas, and Bailey knew he was trying to give her a minute to get her feet under her before she had to talk. Ryan didn’t release her hand, and for that, she was incredibly grateful.
After Vince introduced everyone, Alex turned back, his face clear of tears and his smile genuine. He looked Bailey up and down, but his gaze stopped at the hand clutched in Ryan’s.
“It’s good to meet you, Marianne.” His eyes met hers, and she couldn’t stop the next sentence before it blurted from her mouth.
“My name is Bailey.”
He nodded. “Of course. I’m sorry. You’ve just always been Marianne to me. Your mother gave you the name, after her and my mother.”
That confused Bailey, and he must have recognized the look.
“Your mother was Theresa Anne, and my mother was Mary.”
Bailey nodded, trying to set it all to memory. “Bailey Grace,” she said, trying to smile. “It’s good to meet you, too.” She held out her hand to shake his. He took it in both of his, and the warmth was comforting.
He looked from her hand in his and again at her other hand in Ryan’s. “Is this your husband?”
Bailey was taken aback by the question. They knew she’d had a relationship with Dex. Did they believe she was married and had cheated on her husband? “I’m not married,” she said, trying to make a point, but also trying not to come off as offended by the questions. “This is Ryan Walker. He’s my best friend—boyfriend,” she corrected.
Ryan released her to shake her father’s hand. “It’s nice to meet you, Dr. Spatz.”
“Please, call me Alex, and may I call you Ryan?”
Ryan smiled, and his face lit up, making Bailey’s heart skip a beat. “Yes, of course.”
“We’ve known Bailey since she was a small child. We were close with the Mortons,” Vince explained.
Alex nodded, but when she and Ryan reached for each other’s hands once more, it caught his attention again. As much as Bailey wanted to excuse Alex’s questions and behavior as nerves, she wasn’t so sure, but also aware that she may have been overly sensitive.
Bailey looked around and realized the two FBI agents had retreated to the other side of the suite, obviously trying to give them some privacy. This was a relief. Bailey didn’t want to be gawked at like a circus animal.
“Oh,” Alex said, leaning down and peering into a tote bag on the floor next to his chair. He pulled out a large filigree-framed photo. “Here, I brought this for you.” He handed the frame to her.
At first, Bailey was stunned by the photo. It took her a few seconds to realize it wasn’t her. The woman in the photo had a mane of thick dark hair that waved around her face, exactly like Bailey’s, but without the bangs. Everything else was almost identical. She traced the photo with her finger and suddenly felt like her lungs couldn’t get enough air. She swallowed and blinked, praying her tears would dry up before they dropped from her eyes.
Ryan’s hand rested on her back, and she took a deep breath. When the moment had passed, she looked at Alex and said, “Is this my mother?”
“Yes. Theresa Anne Spatz, formerly Theresa Anne Milan.”
Mae leaned forward and looked at the picture. “You look just like her.”
Bailey nodded and looked down at it again. The picture was just of her head and shoulders, so Bailey couldn’t see the rest of her.
As if he knew what she was thinking, Alex said, “She was little, like you, barely five feet tall. Little bitty shoes, like yours.” He pointed to her feet, and Bailey brought her boots together to look down at her size five feet.
“I have more photos, but they’re put away. I’ll get them out for you when you come visit.” He pointed to the photo in her hand. “You can take that one with you.”
Bailey clutched the picture to her chest. “Thank you.” And she meant it with all sincerity.
Alex smiled wide and bowed his head. “Even your voice…it’s just like hers.”
“I’m sorry,” Bailey heard herself say.
He shook his head and made eye contact with her. “No, don’t be. I’m sorry. I should’ve kept looking for you. I just gave up. What was I thinking?”
Linda sighed heavily. “Alex, don’t do that.” She turned in her chair, grabbing his hand. “You thought she was dead. You did what you could. Stop beating yourself up.”
Bailey wanted to comfort him, too, but she didn’t know how. She honestly didn’t know what to think. Maybe he should have kept looking. Then she thought about strangers coming to take her away from her mother, and that scared her to death.
“I was fine,” she said, placing the picture in her lap. “I’ve never been hurt—” As soon as the words were out of her mouth, she felt the ones she held back vibrate her core… Until recently. Until Dex tried to have me killed. She shoved the thought from her head and said, “I was very happy with…” She stopped talking, not sure whether to call the Mortons her family. Jesus, this entire conversation was a fucking minefield. She didn’t want to hurt his feelings. Her eyes fell to the photo. “I don’t want you to feel guilty about me. I was fine, and I think we should focus on moving forward.”
“Yes,” Linda agreed. “Very smart. Let’s move forward and not wallow in the
