predated Lance. She was eager to dig into that, even if Jade wasn’t interested. For the most part, Sophie’s life was wrapped up in her work. Being a lawyer took up long hours, leaving her little time for much else. As such, Sophie was always interested in exciting tales to live vicariously. She would also push Jade into situations from time to time. Like doing that news interview after the hospital sent her a letter that politely told her to get bent.
“Was he as cute as you remembered?”
Jade twisted her lips in thought as she pictured the solid wall of man standing in her doorway. “Cute isn’t the word I’d use for Harley. Cute is for puppies and babies. He was...hot. Ripped-guy-on-the-cover-of-a-romance-novel hot.”
Just thinking about him holding her hand was enough to make her face feel warm and her whole body languid. It was an innocent touch. A supportive gesture not meant to titillate or entice, but the impact on Jade had been massive. It had been a long time since a man had touched her. Even longer since a man had looked at her the way Harley had. Her body could recall the feeling instantly, making her want to turn on the fan despite it still being February.
Maybe it was the red wine on an empty stomach. Or a bad mix of alcohol and unfulfilled desires.
“I think you need to sleep with him.”
Jade shot to attention in her chair. “What? You’re joking, right?”
“Not at all. I think after everything, a hot tryst with some serious man candy is just what the doctor ordered.”
“Harley is not the kind of guy for me to start a relationship with.”
“Who said anything about a relationship? I was just thinking about a hot tumble. You don’t have to keep him.”
Jade could only roll her eyes. It was a tempting thought, but a silly one. Why would someone as successful and handsome as Harley want someone like her? Even short term. He could do better and avoid dealing with the past in the process. “I wouldn’t even know what to do with a man like that, to be honest. I’m out of practice and he’s not rookie material.”
“I need to see a picture of this guy. He doesn’t sound like he could be real.” Sophie picked up her phone and immediately set off to search for him on the internet. “Nothing is coming up when I hunt for Harley Dalton,” she said. “No Facebook. Not even his company website has a photo of him.”
“I’m not surprised. With the kind of work he does, I imagine he has a limited online presence. You’ll just have to take my word for it.”
“For now,” Sophie said, making Jade worry that her friend would nose in where she didn’t belong. “Next time I come over, I expect you to have hauled out your yearbook, if nothing else.”
“What’s more important is that the hospital isn’t blowing me off now,” she said, trying to switch the subject from her hunky ex. “Hiring an investigator is a big step.”
Sophie grinned and took a sip of wine. “I told you I knew what I was doing. There’s nothing quite like public shame. Now they’re going to get to the bottom of the case and you don’t have to pay a dime. No reason to worry.”
Jade wasn’t so sure about that. At this point, she almost wished that her parents had just been lying to her about being adopted. That certainly would’ve been easier to cope with. Instead, they’d been adamant that she was the baby they’d left the hospital with. She had a tiny birthmark on her hip that her mother had noticed before they went home. What her mom couldn’t be sure of was whether or not the baby she’d delivered had had that same birthmark beneath her swaddling blankets and diapers.
“How am I not supposed to worry? This scenario can only end badly. My parents insist I wasn’t adopted. The only time and place something could’ve happened to me was while they were still in the hospital and I was in the nursery. Someone made a huge mistake and two families have paid the price for it.”
“That’s not an impossible mistake to make. Especially during Hugo.”
Jade shook her head and sighed. How had she gotten caught up in something like this? Being switched at birth was the stuff of television movies, but Sophie was right about the storm. It had been a Category Four when it hit Charleston. The whole town was in chaos amid power outages, massive flooding and large numbers of casualties being rushed into the hospitals for treatment.
It sounded like the perfect storm for something to go wrong in, and if something would go wrong, it would happen to Jade. She was a magnet for that sort of thing. But being switched at birth? It was a crazy thought.
The hospital agreed, dismissing the claim as nonsense. And until she’d gone on the news, they would’ve gladly brushed her off. Instead, they’d hired Dalton Security, a company she now knew was famous for getting the job done no matter what it took. Harley had always been a rule breaker when he felt the cause justified it. Now that seemed to be the company motto. He would do what he was hired to do and find out the truth, although she worried about how many lives would be upended in the process.
Jade set her wineglass on the kitchen table and sat back in her chair. “Maybe this whole thing is a mistake.”
“What do you mean?” Sophie asked.
“I mean, maybe I’m digging into something that’s better left buried. It’s been almost thirty years since the switch happened. I’m looking for answers, but what...what if all I find is heartache? It’s going to destroy families.”
“Or unite them,” Sophie countered. “Your parents know that you love them, and they love you no matter what they find. That isn’t a risk. But I’m willing to bet a part of them would want to know what happened to their biological daughter, too. They have to wonder if she’s safe and happy. They wouldn’t trade you for the world, but this will bring them peace of mind, if nothing else. You’re going to gain family, not lose them.”
“You can’t be so sure. Maybe my parents will realize their real daughter is so much better than I am, and they’ll choose her over me.”
“That is the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard. Anyone would be happy to have you for their daughter. I have no idea who you were swapped with, but your parents did not get the short end of the stick with you, Jade.”
“I know,” she admitted reluctantly. That was her insecurity speaking. Her parents would be shocked to hear her even suggest such a thing. “I just don’t like not knowing how any of this will turn out.”
Sophie crossed her arms over her chest in exasperation. “Well, you’ll never know until you try. And even if you stopped the investigation now, it’s too late. The genie is out of the bottle and there’s no way you’d be able to pretend you don’t know the truth any longer. You might as well follow the trail to see where it leads, or you’re always going to wonder and harbor regrets.”
Jade frowned at her friend. That’s all she could do, because she knew Sophie was right. The minute she got that DNA test in the mail there was no turning back.
“Your biological parents are out there, somewhere. You’ve always wanted to have that connection to someone that you felt you lacked. You’ll have more family now. More people to depend on. More people to love you.”
“You make it sound like this is all going to end like a Disney movie. I’m not about to find out I’m a secret princess. Birds aren’t
