But, ironic though it might be, Silken’s defiance was like a magnet. All this trouble with the twins must have driven him insane, but where Silken was concerned it was a long time since he’d felt this level of attraction to a woman he hardly even knew.
His thoughts were halted when Suave walked over to take Silken’s hand. “I’m sorry I said that,” she said, her voice soft and her look earnest. “I just wanted Mr. Davidoff to understand you and not judge you.”
“I understand Silken fine.” Max gave them a crooked smile. “She just needs to be taken in hand by the right person.”
Just like he knew it would, that brought a flash of fire to Silken’s eyes. She turned to stare up at him. “Oh, really? And who would that ‘right person’ be?”
Max took a step closer and looked down at her, his eyes holding hers captive.
“That ‘right person’,” he said, his voice cool and matter-of-fact, “would be me.”
CHAPTER FIVE
Silken stifled a sigh as she watched Suave peering at the laptop screen. Her sister had been at it for almost an hour already and she was still there, scrolling through name after name and still coming up with nothing. After five more minutes Silken had had enough. “Give up, will you? You’re never going to find her.”
“Oh, stop grumbling over there.” Suave waved her off. “I’m the one killing my eyes with this everlasting search and you don’t hear me complaining.”
“Well, at least let me get you a cup of tea.” Silken slid off the sofa and padded across the living room.
“Thank you,” Suave called after her.
“You’re welcome.”
In the kitchen Silken plugged in the electric kettle and pulled two cups from the cupboard. What they needed was some hot ginger tea to wake them up. It would be another long night of searching.
In another few minutes she would throw Suave off the computer and then she’d be the one scrolling through reams of records and information, trying to find their mystery woman. It was like searching for one special grain of sand on a mile-long beach. Winning the Lotto jackpot would be easier. Sometimes she didn’t even know why they kept on trying. But they did, night after night.
She was on her way back to the living room, tray in hand, when she heard Suave’s squeal.
“Silken, come quick. I found something.”
Silken’s heart leaped and she tried to hurry, but it was hard with two steaming cups of tea balanced on a tray. When she got to the room she saw that Suave had hopped up from her chair and was standing there, her eyes glued to the computer screen, flashing her hands in her excitement. “This is it, Silken. This is it.” Her voice was a high-pitched squeak.
“What is it? Tell me.” Silken dumped the tray on top of the piano and rushed over to peer at the computer screen. “What are you so excited about? I don’t see anything.”
“There. Look at it.” Suave pointed at row after row of names, the font so tiny you had to squint to read them.
“What?” Silken's voice rose with frustration. She plopped down on the chair and stuck her face close to the screen. “You’d better start talking before I shake it out of you. What the hell are you seeing that I’m not seeing?”
“Don’t you see?” Suave was hopping from one foot to the other now, like she was hardly able to contain her excitement. "It’s right there. Our names.”
And that was when Silken saw it. In tiny print, right in front of her nose, “Silken McCullen. Suave McCullen. Monday, September twenty-three, seven p.m. Live births. University of Wisconsin Hospital.” Her eyes snapped from the screen to Suave’s flushed face then back to the screen. “Oh, my God,” she breathed, “that’s us. That’s really us. How the heck did you find this?”
“I don’t know. I mean, I’ve searched this database so many times I’d given up hope. I…I…” She was stuttering now, still flashing her hands, and Silken had to reach up and grab the tail of her shirt to still her agitated movements.
“Calm down, Suave. We have to think this through.” She turned her attention back to the screen. “Okay, so we finally figured out exactly where we were born. Now how do we go from here to finding the woman who gave us birth?”
***
Max took another sip of his lemonade and leaned back in the lounge chair. It was a good thing he was wearing sunglasses because the light reflecting off the shining water in the pool was near blinding. Relaxing into the shade, he shifted the cell phone to his other ear. “When is he going to be here?”
“Two weeks from today,” his brother said, “and it’s about time. I’ve been inviting that kid to come chill in California for almost two years now. What is it with London? He just can’t tear himself away.”
“Our kid brother’s a workaholic. That’s the problem.”
Duke chuckled. “Good thing he loves what he does. At least he’s having fun on the job.”
“Yeah, who wouldn’t?” Max asked, his tone sardonic. “He chose the fashion industry so he could surround himself with scores of beautiful models.”
“Do I detect a note of envy?” Duke asked, ribbing Max. “I haven’t seen any beautiful women on your arm lately. You’ve got to get with the program, big bro.”
“Don’t you worry about me,” Max countered. “What about you? I don’t see you looking like you have any significant other in your life. What’s up with that?”
Duke groaned into the phone. “Too busy with the business,” he said, then gave a grunt. “And too soon. I’m not ready for the dating game.”
“Aw, come on. It’s been almost a year since you and Amy broke up. When are you going to move on?”
Duke sighed. “After what she did to me, I don’t know if I can ever trust a woman again. Lying, cheating-”
“All right, let’s not go there. You found out in time to cancel the engagement before she got her claws on your money. Give thanks little brother. Things could have been worse.”