Uncovered by Truth Page 19

  I have friends now. Actual, real friends who are there for me. I was pretty closed off once I got on my own and even when I moved in with Bryce. But once I started my job as a teacher, I slowly opened up to some of the girls there. At first, it was such a foreign feeling. I was so used to being this fake person in front of other women, or associating with people that benefited Cal that I forgot what it was like to have a glass of wine and just talk and laugh. These girls have become the sisters I never had and my life is more complete with them in it.

  Inserting the eighteenth candle into the cake—nine for Alex, nine for Matt, I step back and look at it.

  Happy 9th birthday Alex and Matt.

  I never knew how hard it would be to name our kids. There’s a lot of pressure involved with what seems like such a monumental task. I mean, this is what they’ll be called for the rest of their lives. What if they end up hating it? What if they get teased? Bryce and I went back and forth for a long time, never agreeing on anything. One day, I made a joke about using his cover name, but instead of Alex, name our daughter Alexandria. He actually considered it and those were the names we settled on. Alexandria and Matthew, or Alex and Matt for short. Now we kind of look at it as a tribute to how Bryce and I found each other, so it fits.

  All the kids come barreling in through the house, sounding like a herd of buffalo. Alex and Matt sit down at the kitchen island as I light the candles. Their eyes light up with excitement as the glow from the flames illuminates their faces.

  “You ready to make your birthday wish?” Bryce asks them. They nod enthusiastically in response. I love watching my husband with our kids. He’s so attentive and caring, but it’s the way that he looks at them that melts my heart. Everyone identifies love as a feeling, but when he looks at the twins, it becomes a tangible thing that’s reflected in his eyes. It’s like you can see it. Some object you can grab and hold on to.

  “Okay, one . . . two . . . three.” Everyone joins in and sings Happy Birthday to them, but I’m lost in memory. All nine years of their lives flashes in front of me. I’m amazed at everything we’ve been through and experienced. All of the good and challenging times. All the love and fun.

  The pregnancy was difficult. I’d wake up a lot at night drenched in sweat, terrified that my babies had been taken from me again. Bryce was there for me each time, helping me breathe through my panic attack. I felt like I had failed our first child by not protecting it and I couldn’t—wouldn’t—let it happen again. He suggested I go to therapy to try to work through some of the fear that haunted me, and it helped. The therapist made me realize that there wasn’t anything I could have done differently that would have changed the outcome of what happened. Cal was a sick, twisted, evil man and I was just as much a victim as our unborn child. Looking at them now—healthy, active, and loving—it makes the worries almost seem silly.

  We all clap as the song ends and Matt and Alex take in a lung full of air before blowing out their own nine candles on each side of the cake.

  “Did you make a wish?” Bryce asks them.

  “Yeah,” they reply.

  “What’d you wish for?”

  “Daddy, we can’t tell you or it won’t come true,” Alex informs him. She has this ‘duh’ look on her face that cracks me up. That child is sassy and knows exactly what she wants from life, and I’m with her every step of the way in encouragement.

  “Well excuse me.” He holds his hands up in surrender and we laugh. She definitely gets her attitude from her daddy.

  I start cutting out slices of cake when my mother comes up beside me. “Here, let me help.” I smile warmly at her and hand her a knife and grab some more plates. Things between us are great and she’s still in remission.

  “You want some cake?” I ask my dad as I hold a plate out to him.

  “Sure, thanks.” He takes it from my hand. “Kids had a nice party today.” My dad is a man of few words. He hates crowds and is a homebody, but he makes sure he’s at every party and spends as much time as he can with the kids. Now that he’s retired, I think he’s trying to make up for all the things he missed with me growing up because he was constantly working.

  “They sure did. Thanks for coming.” I bend over and give him a hug.

  “You know I wouldn’t miss it.” He smiles and takes a huge bite of cake. I leave him to it and continue to help my mom.

  After cake, the kids all run back outside to play. I sit on the back porch and take it all in with a glass of water in my hand. Watching my husband run after our children is a sight I’ll never tire of seeing. Time has been good to him and he’s just as sexy now as he was ten years ago. He has a little graying at the temples, but I like it. And he can still disarm me with one look from those piercing blue eyes. He’s been the most incredible husband and an even better father. He loves the three of us fiercely, and that’s all I could really ask for.

  Bryce picks up Matt, kicking and screaming, and throws him over his shoulder as he runs after the other kids while growling. A soft smile touches my face. When he catches me watching him, he sets Matt down and comes toward me.

  “Hey, sweetheart. Whatcha doing up here by yourself? Want me to chase you, too?” he jokes as he sits down next to me.

  “I’m just watching you guys play. They’re getting so big now.” I sigh, a little depressed that they’re growing up so fast. Soon enough they’ll be graduating high school and heading off to college. The thought alone makes me want to replace this water with some wine.

  “You’re telling me. You weren’t the one running with one of them on your back. I’m getting too old for this stuff.”

  I laugh as he rubs his back pretending that it hurts. “They’re perfect.”

  “Yeah, they are.” I hear the admiration in his voice, and when I look at him my heart melts. There it is again.

  Love.

  “Mom! Dad!” Alex shouts as she approaches us.

  “Uh oh, here it comes. Wanna take bets on what they’re fighting about this time?” he asks me quietly.

  “I say one of them is tattle-taling,” I guess.

  “I say they’re fighting over a game,” he replies.

  “Winner gets a back rub,” I say quickly since she’s almost in front of us.

  “Deal.” And we shake on it.

  “Mom!” she shouts again.

  “Yes, Alexandria.”

  “Matt won’t let me be the agent. He said I have to be the criminal because girls can’t be undercover.” Matt comes up and stands beside her with his arms crossed over his chest. Every day he looks more and more like his dad. He’s going to break some hearts when he gets older.

  “Did you say that, Matthew?” Bryce asks him sternly.

  “Yeah,” he responds as he looks down at his feet.

  “Eyes up, buddy.” When he looks up, he continues, “What have I told you about that?”

  “I know. I’m sorry.”

  “Don’t tell me, tell your sister.”

  “I’m sorry, Alex.” He flashes her the same puppy dog eyes I’ve become all too familiar with. It’s the Daniels signature look, and I hate that I can’t tell him—or his father—no when he gives them to me.

  “Good, now why don’t you both be agents and go investigate Papa Walt?” They give each other a look, nod, and run off in Walter’s direction.

  “At least we still have a couple of undercover agents in the family,” he teases. After the whole situation with Cal went down, it was hard for Bryce to keep his anonymity. Everyone involved thought it was best not to send him in anymore. He still does investigative work, just from the outside. Personally, I like this a lot better. He’s home more and I feel like the risks are lower. We both lean back, his arm draped over my shoulder, and supervise the chaos that’s in our backyard.

  The trial took a long time, but verdicts and sentencing was finally handed down a year and a half after the arrests were made. I didn’t watch the trial. Honestly, I didn’t care about the details. That part of my life was in the p
ast and I wanted to keep it that way. I did hear that Henry Williams was found guilty on the long list of charges and will spend the rest of his life in prison. I’m a firm believer in that everything happens for a reason. There are a few things that I would change if I could, but I think I’m exactly where I should be. Sometimes you lose yourself and get buried in the lies, only to be uncovered and saved by the truth. Just like my childhood shaped the person I would become, this reshaped me into who I am today. And I can honestly say that I love who I am and where I’m at in my life.

  After everyone leaves, the house is cleaned up, and the kids are in bed, Bryce and I go upstairs to our bedroom. He immediately flops down on the bed and smiles salaciously at me.

  “I do believe I owe you a massage, Mr. Daniels.”

  “Oh, I’ve got something you can massage.” He thrusts his hips a few times and I roll my eyes. “Come over here, you had a long day.” I walk to the bed and he grabs my arm, pulling me down toward him. His thumbs kneed my shoulders, getting rid of the exhaustion from today.

  “Mmmm, that feels good,” I moan.

  “Did you enjoy yourself today?” he asks.

  “I did. Days like today make me so thankful.”

  “What do you mean?” His hands travel lower, moving down my back.

  “I was really close to never having any of this. To never knowing what it was like to be loved unconditionally and feel the same in return. To feel such pride and joy when I look at our kids. It just takes me back sometimes.”

  “Oh, sweetheart.” He wraps his arms around my shoulders and pulls me back against his chest. “You deserve all of this. You deserve to be happy. And you’re not the only one that came close to missing out. You saved me, remember?”

  “No, we saved each other.”

  AS ALWAYS, I have to thank my family first and foremost. My wonderful husband and two beautiful girls are my motivation, always pushing me to follow my dreams. I love you guys more than anything and just know that the sacrifices you make don’t go unnoticed.

  To my girls Laura, Judy, Alexis, Jody, and Ena. You are seriously the greatest group of girls, and I’m so blessed to call you my friends. I’ve had more laughs with you than I can count. A simple thank you just doesn’t seem like enough for everything you do for me. You guys rock and I love ya!

  I want to thank Nichole Strauss and Christine Borgford with Perfectly Publishable. Nichole, for working with me to perfect Alex/Bryce’s story when I lost it a little bit. And Christine, for creating another beautifully formatted book. Thank you for your flexibility and attention to detail.

  Marisa-rose Shor with Cover Me, Darling made an amazing cover. This is the second time she has worked her magic for me, and I couldn’t be happier with the results. I can’t wait to see what you come up with next.

  Thanks to Enticing Journey Book Promotions for hosting another flawless cover reveal and blog tour. Ena and Amanda, you take the stress out of these events for me. I know I’m in good hands when you’re running things, and I can’t thank you enough for that.

  I want to also thank Ali Gordon who was kind enough to appear on my cover. I saw this photo a while ago and knew this was the one. This was the exact look I pictured when I started writing Alex. Thank you so much for working with me again. Like last time, you were a pleasure to work with and gave a face to my character. You brought him to life and I sincerely appreciate it.

  To Linda and the other ladies at Sassy Savvy Fabulous PR and Marketing: Thank you for all the hard work you do in getting my book out there for people to enjoy. That extra little push makes a world of difference. Knowing that you’re just as invested in my success as I am is truly appreciated. Thank you.

  My readers!! You guys are so amazing and awesome. You have no idea how you make me feel when you send a message telling me how much you enjoyed my characters. Your kind words and reviews are what push me on those long nights where the words aren’t flowing and I want to bang my head against the desk. I love each and every one of you, and am truly humbled that you took the chance on a new author and read my books. From the bottom of my heart, thank you.

  Last, but not least, all the amazing bloggers. You guys put a lot of time and hard work behind the scenes that I think goes largely unnoticed. Your passion for reading and willingness to spread the word is amazing, and I want to send a huge thank you to all of you.

  Rachael Duncan is an Army wife to her amazing husband, Steven, and mother to their beautiful daughters, Natalie and Zoe. She grew up in Nashville, Tennessee and went off to graduate from the University of Tennessee with a bachelor’s degree in political science. With initial plans to work in politics, she moved to Washington, D.C. and worked on Capitol Hill for a House Representative. She’s currently a stay-at-home mom to her two kids and writes whenever she has some quiet time.

  When she’s not writing or chasing down her children, she enjoys reading, cooking, and shopping.

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