For You (The Shore Book 2) (16 page)

“I noticed you had another on your ribcage. What’s the story behind that one?” He slid his hand beneath her arm so he could run his fingers along the ink.

“It’s from a children’s story.”

“Hmm…” His fingers continued to trace what he could see.
 

She took his hand in hers and interlaced their fingers. “What about you? I noticed the barbwire tat on your leg. Do you have any others?”

“No, just the one.”

“Do you have any interest in getting another?”

“I’m not sure yet. I haven’t found anything I want to have on my body forever.”

“What made you pick the barbwire?”

“Not a clue. I was pretty drunk when I got it. I’m not even sure the artist should have let me do it, to be honest.”

“Let me guess, you and Cody were out hitting the town one night?”

Declan laughed. “No. That happened during college. One of my buddies was getting married junior year and decided to get a tat the night of his bachelor party. While he was getting his, I was talking with the other artist, and she offered.”

“I see. So you just did it so you could flirt with the girl, huh?”

Declan reached his arm under hers and cupped her breast. “The only girl I want to talk about flirting with is you.”

“Yeh, well, your fingers keep that up, there won’t be much flirting going on.”

Madison wiggled her ass and felt Declan start to harden behind her. Deciding she hadn’t had enough, she turned her body to face him.
 

“I think you’ve denied me long enough, Mr. Healy,” she teased.

Chapter 14

Madison hadn’t felt this happy in, well, she hadn’t
ever
felt this happy. Things with Declan were going well, even if her feelings did freak the shit out of her. If she didn’t stop and really think about it, she was fine.

She had basically changed gyms now. And being a woman, she was definitely in the minority. The Madison of only a few weeks ago would have loved all the eye candy she saw while she was working out, but the only guy she had eyes for now was the boss.

Madison reached for the toilet paper only to realize there was one measly square left on the roll. “Oh, come on. You’ve got to be fucking kidding me.”

 
“Madison?”

Madison cocked her head. She hadn’t realized anyone else was in the locker room. “Who’s there?”

“It’s Issy. What’s the matter?”

Chuckling to herself, she tore the empty roll off the holder and stuck it under the door so Issy could see the problem.

“Ahh. Gotcha. Give me one second, and I’ll be right back.”

A minute or so later, Issy’s hand appeared under the stall door with a roll of toilet paper attached to it.

“Thank you!”

Issy chuckled. “Glad I could help.”

Madison had always found it odd how women would talk to each other while one or both of them was using the toilet, but that’s exactly what happened. Madison finished up and then Issy took her turn. All the while, Issy talked about the party she had gone to the night before.

“Yeh, it was at one of the frat houses. This guy my best friend is dating, well, his friend turned twenty,” she explained.

“And let me guess, any reason for a frat to throw a party, right?”

“Exactly! It was wall-to-wall people with loud music and people doing keg stands.”

“Sounds like maybe it wasn’t your kinda party?”

Issy shrugged as she walked out of the stall and went to the sink to wash her hands. “I guess not. I just don’t understand why girls let their IQ drop twenty points just because there are frat guys in the vicinity. They aren’t that special.”

Madison laughed. “I remember thinking that exact same thing when I was in college.”

As Issy dried her hands, she looked in the mirror to see Madison standing next to her locker in only her sports bra and panties. The last thing she wanted to do was stare, but when she noticed Madison’s tattoo, she couldn’t help it. It was a few inches wide and took up the bulk of her ribcage on the left side. And it was distinctive.
 

She felt as though she had seen it before, she just couldn’t place it.
 

It looked like …

Holy shit.

Just as the realization hit Issy that she
had
seen this particular image before, Madison looked up. Her smile quickly faded as she saw Issy’s face pale. “Are you okay?” Madison started walking toward her.
 

Issy nodded numbly, never taking her eyes off the tattoo. “I … I have to go.” She turned and quickly made her way out of the locker room, never having actually looked Madison in the eye.

Returning to her locker, Madison wasn’t sure to make of what happened. The way Issy acted was a far cry from her usual happy and chipper self. She hoped Issy was okay. “Well, that was weird.”

Madison finished getting dressed and went toward the reception area looking for Declan. She couldn’t help but notice the hair on her arms was sticking straight up again. Rubbing her hands over her arms she tried to ignore the sensation.
 

When she finally spotted Declan, he was talking with one of the members so she took a seat and waited.

There had been something about Issy since the day they met she just couldn’t quite put her finger on. The girl was nice enough, cheery, and always willing to help when she needed it. Hell, she even brought her toilet paper. But there was just
something
.
 

Her mind was so focused on her interaction with Issy, she didn’t notice Declan walk up beside her.

“You ready to head out?” he asked, startling her.

“Yeh,” she answered quickly. “I’ve got some things to do at home this afternoon.”

“Okay,” he smiled softly. “Text you later? Maybe we could grab some dinner.”

“Sounds good.”
 

Madison stood, kissed him goodbye and made her way to the front door. She didn’t notice Issy standing in the doorway to the employees room watching her.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Seeing Madison leave, Issy knew she needed to do something. She needed to know. Thankful no one was standing at the desk needing help, she looked up something on the computer then gathered her things and went to the office to find her boss.

“Declan?” she asked, knocking on the door.

“Hey Issy. What’s up?”

“Would it be okay if I took off early?”

“Is everything okay?” There was concern in his eyes.

“Yeh. I’m just not feeling very well.” It wasn’t as if she was lying. Her stomach had tied itself into knots and she wasn’t sure what was going to happen. He had been a really good boss to her, both he and Erin, but she wouldn’t know how to explain herself now if she had to try.

“Yeh. It’s only a couple more hours. I can handle things,” he added with a soft smile. “Feel better, okay?”

“Thanks,” she answered and quickly headed for the door.

She sped home, thankful she didn’t cross the paths of any police officers. With so much determination to get home she broke more than a few laws getting there. When she finally arrived at the house she shared with three other girls, including her best friend, Brooke, she ran straight to her room.

“Hey girl. Why you home so early?” Brooke shouted as she watched her friend bound up the stairs, completely ignoring her.

Issy quickly closed the door, threw her purse on the bed, and headed straight for the closet. She reached to the top shelf and pulled out a purple box with a colorful paisley pattern that looked like it could have once held stationery.

Almost reverently, she placed the closed box on the bed and sat next to it. She simply stared at it, knowing full well what was inside.

A light knock on the door was quickly followed by Brooke’s voice. “Iss? You okay?”

“I’m fine.” But there was a strain in her voice.

“I’m coming in.” Brooke waited a moment to give Issy a chance to tell her to go away. When she didn’t hear anything, she slowly turned the knob and opened the door to find Issy sitting on her bed looking at a box she’d never seen before.

Taking a seat on the floor, Brooke looked up to her friend. “Are you sure you’re okay?” It wasn’t like Issy to ignore her. Even when she had raced into the house because she had to pee or was mad or … whatever, Issy always answered when Brooke called out to her. Now she wouldn’t even look at her.

Still not speaking, Issy slowly lifted the lid off the box and set it aside. She pulled out an envelope with bent corners and coloring that had started to yellow.

Carefully opening the unsealed flap, Issy pulled the paper from the envelope and unfolded it. She moved the first piece of paper behind the other and gently ran her fingers across the contents.
 

On the paper was the same image Issy saw on Madison’s body.

“I found her,” she whispered to herself.

“Found who?” Brooke’s voice was gentle and patient.
 

“My mom.”

Brooke sat quietly, staring at Issy, completely baffled. Brooke knew Issy’s mom. Her name was Hannah. She had taken them shopping for bedding and dishes and bathroom stuff when they decided to make the jump from the dorms to off-campus housing this year. She had come up to visit them just last weekend.

“Honey, I’m confused. Your mom is Hannah Montgomery. We had lunch with her a few days ago.”

Issy shook her head in silence, still staring at the image in her hands.

Finally, she handed the piece of paper to Brooke. “My mom drew that.”

Brooke looked at the paper but it still wasn’t making any sense. “Issy, I still don’t understand –“

“I was adopted, Brooke. Mom and Dad, Hannah and Tom, are my adoptive parents.”

“You were what?” Brooke was completely taken by surprise. She’d known Issy since they were in sixth grade and was sure she knew everything about her. How could she not know this? “They’re your what?”

“They adopted me when I was a newborn. The day I was born, actually.” Issy finally looked up to meet Brooke’s eyes. “I’m sorry I never told you.”

“When did you find out? How did you get this picture? How did you find your mom?” Brooke bombarded her gently with questions. “Have you told Zach? You mean Adam and Zach aren’t your real brothers?”

“Mom and Dad and Adam and Zach
are
my real family.”

“But then, who is your biological mom?”

“Madison. Madison Quinn. She’s one of the members at the gym.”

“How did you figure it out?”

“I saw her tattoo this morning. It’s the same image as what’s drawn on that piece of paper.”

“Are you sure, Iss? Maybe this is a popular tattoo.”

“I doubt it’s that common. Plus, she has red hair, too.”

“Red hair? Are you sure it didn’t come from a bottle?”

“I’m telling you, Brooke, she’s my mom. There’s been something about her, something so familiar since the day I met her. She’s funny and feisty and qwerky, kind of like me. I just … I just know it has to be her.”

 
“Holy shit, Iss. What are you going to do? Are you going to tell your parents? What will your mom say?”
 

Brooke looked down at the image and saw something she hadn’t noticed before. “Iss? Do you realize the name ‘Elisabeth’ is part of this drawing?”

 
“What?” She held out her hand and Brooke handed the piece of paper back to her. “Elisabeth is my middle name.”

“I know.”

Issy studied the picture for a moment and suddenly the name popped out at her, plain as day. The letters had been incorporated into the design. “Holy shit.”

Mom and Dad said it was an old family name. That was why they gave it to me. Was it really because of the picture?

Setting the paper aside, Issy ran her hands over her face, suddenly feeling extremely overwhelmed. “I won’t tell anyone anything until I’m sure it’s her.”

“What if she’s some crazy lady?”

Issy finally smiled at Brooke’s concern. “She’s not. I’ve talked to her a few times at the gym, and she happens to be dating the owner. I think I’ll be okay.”

“She’s dating Declan? Could this get any more bizarre?”

“Probably.” Issy rolled her eyes as she wondered just how much more bizarre this situation could get.

“Do you know where she lives? Does Declan know about you? Do you think she told him?”

“I don’t know. He hasn’t said anything, and he hasn’t acted weird around me or anything.”

“Have you looked on Facebook or Instagram? Let’s Google her. Hell, if she really is your mom, you could have more brothers, or a sister.”

“I hadn’t thought of that.”

Issy grabbed her computer off the desk and flipped it open. She typed “Madison Quinn” into the search bar and read through the results.

Brooke pointed to a link. “Check out this one. Maybe she’s a movie star?”
 

Issy followed the link to IMBD and saw a listing for an actress that had been in one movie. “Yeh, I’ve never heard of that one before, but I don’t think she’s an actress. I’ve heard her say something about her office being close by.”

They skimmed a few pages of links and saw the typical obituary listings and sports stats, but nothing that seemed to match the Madison Issy had seen at the gym.

Brooke looked at her, finally in silence.

“I need to ask her.”

“I could come with you. Do you want me to come with you?”
 

“No, I think this is something I need to do on my own. Thank you for offering though.”

“When are you going to see her?”

“Now is probably as good a time as any. I overhead her tell Declan she was heading home to work on house stuff this afternoon.”

“You sure you don’t want company? I could stay in the car and wait for you.”

Issy smiled, picking up the paper and folding it back into the envelope. “I’m sure. I’ll be okay.”

“Alright. But text me, okay? I’m going to worry until I hear from you. Don’t make me hunt you down.”

Laughing, Issy slid off the bed next to her friend and hugged her. “I won’t. I promise I’ll text.”

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

It had been a couple hours since Madison left the gym and she was sitting on her couch, taking a break from the cleaning and bill paying she had neglected the last couple weeks. She loved spending time with Declan, but it didn’t do much for getting her personal shit done.