Operation: Normal (17 page)

He tensed and framed my face, raising it so he could look me in the eye. "You don't trust
me?"

I had to laugh at that. "I don't trust
me
."

That made him look like he really wanted to kiss me again. But he didn't. Instead, he
turned, which put me beside him, then sat up and pushed his hair out of his eyes. He gave me a
rueful grin.

"If your dad could see us now, he might regret telling you to stay with me."

"I think my dad would like you."

"And your mom?"

"We'll find out tonight, I guess. That is, if you go with me to the airport. Or I can gently
break the fact that Kayly's met her big brother over the next few days."

"If that means I can't see you until you do, forget it. I'd rather go with you tonight and
get it over with."

I liked the sound of that since I honestly believed when my mom saw how much Zach
loved Kayly, she'd be glad I'd contacted him. As for how much Zach loved me and I, him, well,
we'd spring that on her in a week or two, after she dealt with the apartment crisis, Esme's
weirdness, my questions about Dad, and Sergeant Pitt.

"If you drive, we can take Kayly, too. I know Mom's dying to see her, and our car is a
two-seater."

"Sure." He gave me one last kiss and got up off the couch. "You never ate your birthday
pancakes. Oh, and I have a present for you."

I followed him to the kitchen. He got my plate and stuck it in the microwave. While the
pancakes reheated, he went to his room. He came back with something wrapped in red paper and
tied with a white bow. I tore into it and found Imogen Heap's latest CD.

"You don't already have it, do you?" he asked.

Touched that he'd remembered my T-shirt, I shook my head and thanked him with a kiss
that turned into three before we realized the pancakes were growing cold again. They were
delicious, by the way--the pancakes and the kisses.

Once we'd cleaned up the kitchen, Zach drove me and Kayly to our apartment to get our
car. Imogen serenaded us all the way, of course. We saw Alex, the super, in the parking lot. He
told me that the owner of the building had suggested Mom and I move into one of the renovated
apartments on the fifth floor while ours was being cleaned up. I really liked that idea. So we
walked upstairs and looked at possibilities. I chose one with newer appliances than ours, a totally
different color scheme, and an eastward view.

At exactly 11:00 a.m., Zach and I began moving everything that wasn't burned, stinky or
wet to our new digs. Somehow the word got out, and before long other renters showed up to
help. One of them, a friend of mom's, graciously took Kayly back to her apartment to keep her
out from under foot. Esme began laundering bedspreads and linens; Buddy and Zach moved the
smaller pieces of furniture from one apartment to the other, a matter of crossing the hall.

I transferred the contents of the kitchen and bathroom cabinets to our new home. When
only the things that needed laundering and the larger pieces of furniture remained, Buddy called
for reinforcements from still more of residents of the building. We all worked hard, but I still
found opportunities to steal a kiss or two, thinking no one noticed.

As if.

By eight, when the new apartment had at least seventy-five percent of our personal
belongings in it, every single person helping out had either told Zach an embarrassing story
about me or warned him not to break my heart. Poor guy.

Mom's friend and Kayly showed up around eight-thirty with a layer cake she'd baked
and decorated. Everyone sang "Happy Birthday," which brought me to tears. So I sort of leaked
the whole time we ate cake and finally went to hide in my new bedroom to get a grip.

That's when I suddenly thought of Dad. Relieved to the point of nausea, I dashed to my
purse and dug out my cell phone just as it rang in my hand.

Before I could answer it, a wide-eyed Zach said something I knew I'd never forget: "It's
your dad."

I flipped the phone open. "Dad! Where are you?"

Static. "Fine." Static.

That answer, which did not match my question, made me look at my boyfriend in
dismay and whisper, "Bad connection."

"But he's okay?"

"I guess." I tried again. "Dad?"

"...here..." Static. "...accident..."

"Accident? Did you say 'accident'? What kind of accident? Are you okay?"

"I will be. Happy eighteenth birthday, honey."

His voice suddenly sounded crystal clear and as calm as anything. Impulsively, I put the
phone on speaker so Zach could hear Dad, too.

"Thanks. Adele told me you said to stay with Zach. Tell me how you know him."

"Did you say 'Adele'?"

"Yes. I know everything, Dad. Well, almost everything. I have about a zillion questions
I need to ask."

"No time for that. You tell me what's happening. I know something's wrong."

"Someone trashed our apartment. And then there was a fire on Saturday."

"Say again."

"Our apartment burned. And there have been threat letters. Two of them. Addressed to
m--"

A really loud crackle made me jump.

"Dad? Dad!" When he didn't answer, I snapped the phone shut in frustration and looked
at Zach. "Lost him again, damn it."

"Tell me exactly what he said before I put him on speaker."

I told him every word, which wasn't hard since there weren't that many. "This is starting
to freak me out."

"Tell me about it," he said with a rueful grin. "You know that's the voice I heard telling
me to check on you?"

That didn't surprise me one bit. "I sort of figured that. So Dad is able to communicate
with you directly for some reason, but not with me...well, beyond my knowing he's about to call
before he does." I smiled at Zach.

He didn't smile back. "I need to tell you something."

I tensed. Uh-oh. Had he changed his mind and decided he didn't want to be my
boyfriend after all? At this point, I couldn't blame him.

"You know the other night, when you called to tell me your mom's flight plans?"

"Ye-ah..."

"I knew before the phone rang that you were calling me."

My heart lurched, then kicked into overdrive. I couldn't have replied even if I'd known
what to say.

"It sort of knocked me sideways."

To say the least, I thought, remembering how odd he'd acted. "Um, Zach?"

"Yeah?"

"That goes two ways. I know when you're calling, too. Every single time so far."

He grinned really big. "That is so...rad."

Rad
? Surely my super hot boyfriend hadn't just said "rad." "Ever been tested for
ESP or anything?"

"No. Well, once, actually. As a sort of joke. An old roommate was working on a paper
or something and tested a whole bunch of us when I was a freshman at UT Dallas."

"How'd you do?"

"He said I scored highest of anybody. I thought he was just screwing with me."

"Apparently he wasn't."

"Thank God." Zach suddenly pulled me into his arms. "I kind of like being in your
psychic loop."

Man, his hug felt wonderful, and I liked what he'd just said.

"Try not to worry about your dad. He's obviously okay. We'll tell your mom everything
in a matter of hours. Maybe she'll have an idea what's going on or at least know who to call to
find out."

I sincerely hoped he was right.

* * * *

Our helpers finally left at nine-thirty. The apartment looked amazing, all things
considered, so I felt a lot better about picking up Mom, who didn't have a clue that there'd even
been a fire, much less a relocation. I had my fingers crossed that she wouldn't freak out too much
when I told her.

In the end, we decided to leave the Miata parked in the apartment lot. We drove to
Zach's on the way to the airport to get our things, since we had a place to sleep again. We loaded
everything into the trunk of his car.

Mom's plane landed right on time. As usual, it took forever for passengers to disembark,
but I finally spotted her. It felt like an eternity since she'd left, even though it had only been one
week. But so much had happened. My life would never be the same.

Mom, who looked great in khaki capris and a denim jacket, waved really big and rushed
forward when she saw Kayly and me in the crowd of people waiting for passengers. She
engulfed us both in a bear hug, all the while saying, "Oh my God. Kayly looks so different!" She
smiled at me. "You do, too, actually. Happy birthday, honey. How does it feel to be
eighteen?"

"Way different than seventeen," I admitted, which was no lie. "At least so far."

I have to say it felt good to have her home. The weight of the world seemed to lift off
my shoulders and onto hers. I couldn't wait to tell her everything that had happened and get her
spin on things, but first, I had to get past the hurdle of introducing Zach.

Just as I opened my mouth to do exactly that, she saw him, standing patiently behind
me. For a nanosecond, I think she assumed he belonged to someone else. There were people all
around us, after all. But then I glanced over my shoulder and gave him a quick smile.

"He's with you?"

I nodded.

"Hello," my mom said, looking questioningly from Zach to me, then back to him. "Kat
Mills." She stuck out her right hand.

"Zach Thomas," he told her, taking, shaking and releasing it.

I watched carefully, but Mom didn't react at all to the name. She did glance at me for an
explanation. I could imagine how Zach looked to her. Hispanic, handsome, older.

I cleared my throat and swallowed hard. "I have to tell you something right now, before
we go one step further. And I need you to hear me out before you start yelling, okay?"

She made no promises. I'm sure she wondered what kind of trouble I'd gotten myself
into. Not that I'd ever been in much trouble, but I sounded nervous to my own ears and surely to
hers.

Abruptly, I handed Kayly to her and swiped my sweaty hands down the legs of my
jeans. I felt Zach slip his finger through the back center belt loop of my jeans and gently tug--a
move my mother couldn't see, a move that gave me courage to forge ahead.

"You remember what we talked about right before you left? My list?"

"Of things that would make Kayly's life normal? Of course, I do." She smiled
affectionately at her precious baby. To my amazement, Kayly leaned close and very deliberately
put her parted lips to Mom's, something she might have learned from watching Zach and me
most of the day. That's the first time she'd ever done that, and Mom's eyes immediately brimmed
with tears.

"That's the one," I quickly answered, taking advantage of her tender mood. "Well, I
know I promised not to contact Kayly's dad, but--"

My mom suddenly tensed and reached out to touch two fingers to my lips, successfully
halting my confession. She shifted her gaze to Zach, studying his face for several seconds, before
she zoned in on his eyes. Her own eyes narrowed slightly. I knew the exact moment she guessed
who he must be.

"Oh, Ally," she said with a soft sigh, resting her chin on Kayly's head. "You didn't."

Gulp. "I did. Or tried to. I wound up with Zach, here, instead. I guess you've figured out
he's Kayly's half-brother. You should know that I'm not one bit sorry, and neither is he. You
won't be, either, once you get to know him."

For at least a minute, Mom just stood there, wondering I'm sure, what to do.

"If I hadn't screwed up," I continued, "Zach would never have met his sister. That
wouldn't have been right or fair, Mom. I know that you know that."

"But Seth--"

"Still hasn't met Kayly, and there's no reason for that to change. But this--" I drew a line
in the air between Zach and my baby sister, connecting them. "--was meant to be. That's why it
happened like this."

"Can we talk about this at the apartment? I just can't... I mean I..." She tried again. "It's
been a really long day, okay? I'm so tired I simply can't think straight."

"Um, sure. But I think I'd better tell you one other thing before we leave."

Her expression guarded, my mom just looked at me for several moments. I grew more
tense by the second, waiting for the worst.

"Just one?"

I smiled, which made her smile. It was all going to be okay, I realized. At least until she
found out that Zach and I were more to each other than half siblings of the same baby. Of course,
I didn't plan to confess that until she knew Zach much, much better and loved him, too. Maybe a
month or two down the road.

"We can talk on the way to the car."

Zach took Mom's bag. I took Kayly. We led the way to his car with me talking the
whole way. I explained about the fire and our temporary housing.

"Oh, sweetie, I'm so sorry you had to go through that alone."

"I had a lot of friends helping me," I said, explaining how everyone helped us move,
Zach most of all.

"Thank you," she said to him, adding, "Anything else I need to know?" By now we
stood in the parking lot.

"I think that covers it for now," I answered with a quick glance at Zach.

He opened the car door for my mother.

Mom liked the new apartment even better than the old one, which was great, because I
did, too. In fact, I'd almost decided to forget about buying a house. I kept thinking of all that
upkeep, not to mention the yard that would need mowing. I wasn't really into home repairs or
lawns. And I wondered who'd look after Buddy, Adele and Esme.

Since Kayly had fallen asleep on the drive home, Mom put her right to bed, then came
back to the living room where Zach and I sat at opposite ends of the couch, drinking sodas. We
watched some old movie on the television, which still worked in spite of its shower Saturday. I
couldn't say the same for Mom's computer, something I'd forgotten to share with her. But I could
definitely save that for later.

Sinking onto the rocker, Mom settled back, set it in motion and closed her eyes. She
looked exhausted. "I guess I should call the police tomorrow to ask if they've made any progress
on the threat letters."