Forbidden by Cheryl Douglas Page A

pain. She wouldn’t wish that on anyone.
    “Your parents loved you. So did Amy. They still do.” Before Indie could interject, Penny said, “Think about the girl you were back then. You had a wild streak a mile wide. That whole goth thing you had going on: the purple hair, piercings, that crazy makeup.” She smiled. “Skipping school, setting off the fire alarm in the girl’s bathroom by smoking, stealing booze from your parents, sneaking out at night to be with…” She snapped. “What was his name again?”
    “Hal.” Indie smiled, thinking of the sweet, shy boy who hid behind scary clothes, hoping he could fool people into believing he was stronger and braver than he was. She had thought he was the guy who would be her first.
    “You were really into him, weren’t you?” Penny asked, a teasing glint in her eye. “I remember you telling me you thought you loved him. Still think you did?”
    Love. It seemed such a foreign concept to her now. Indie couldn’t even speculate about what her first crush might have evolved into had they been given more time. “Who knows? For all I know, he could be married with a couple of kids by now.”
    Penny snorted. “I doubt it. He’s the same age you are. That’s hardly old enough to be locked down with the old ball and chain.”
    “You don’t know that.” Indie propped her chin in her hand. Maybe life had dealt Hal a blow that had forced him to grow up fast.
    “No, I don’t. But I do know you should come with me this weekend. I know your parents would give anything to see you again.”
    “How do you know that?” Indie asked. She wasn’t sure she wanted to know.
    “Your mama tells me so all the time. I can’t tell you what it does to me hearing her say she misses you and not being able to tell her where you are.”
    “I’m sorry,” Indie said, feeling her heart soften. “I didn’t mean to put you in an awkward position.”
    “I did what I had to do to protect you,” Penny said. “I’d do it again in a heartbeat.”
    “I love you.” Indie wished those words didn’t feel so foreign on her lips. “I don’t tell you that often enough, but I hope you know I do.”
    “I know.” The two women shared a tender look before Penny said, “As long as we’re on the subject, your mama says your daddy hasn’t been the same since you left. I think once they had time to process what happened, they realized you’d been telling the truth.”
    “You can’t speak for them.” Indie tried to keep the resentment from her voice. “If they wanted to find me, they wouldn’t have stopped looking until they did.”
    “We talked about that once, your mama and me,” Penny said. “She said she didn’t think you wanted to be found, that you felt you were better off without them.”
    “I am. I don’t need a family who accepts a stranger’s word over mine.”
    “He wasn’t exactly a stranger,” Penny said. “He and your sister had been dating a long time. Your parents saw him as a member of the family. So did you.”
    That was what hurt the most. Indie had trusted Kendall. She thought of him as a brother, and he turned on her. He was deaf to her protests, ruthless in his pursuit of taking what he wanted.
    “I have to get back to work.” Indie reached into her purse for her wallet.
    “Lunch is on me. Just promise you’ll think about going with me.”
    “Don’t get your hopes up,” Indie muttered, sliding out of the booth.
     
    ***
     
    Indie was useless for the rest of the day. She was so lost in thought that she barely heard Lee knock on her door.
    “What’re you doing here so late?” Lee asked. “It’s after dark.”
    “It is?” Indie glanced out the window. “I guess it is.”
    “Mind if I come in?”
    “Sure.” She gestured to the chair on the other side of her desk. “Take a load off. How was your first day on the job?”
    Lee chuckled as he sat down and stretched his legs out in front of him. “I’ve been freelancing for Drake for a