A Boy To Remember

He slowed his pace when he got to Alex, gave her a brief smile as he walked past, and said, “Morning.”

Then he refocused his attention on the stage. A hint of silver threaded the dark, wavy hair at his temples. Hair the same color as Lizzie’s. He moved with the purposeful gait of a politician, each step determined and powerful. There had been nothing subtle about Daniel back then. There wasn’t now.

And all the self-esteem and confidence Alex had acquired during her marriage to Teddy vanished in that one awful moment. Daniel Chandler didn’t have the faintest idea who she was.

Eighteen years earlier

“SO WHAT DO you think, Alexis? Does Birch Shore Resort look any different now that you’re going to be working here? You used to love coming here when you were a kid.”

Martin followed the signs leading to the employees’ dormitory, keeping his large SUV within the twenty-mile speed limit.

Alex’s anxiety had reached new heights in the last five miles. Granted, she was only seventy-five miles from Dancing Falls, but this home away from home seemed remote and alien, while at the same time exciting.

Martin pulled up in front of Pelican House, a two-story wooden structure built for Birch Shore employees. “Remember, Alexis, the first floor is for girls only. The second is for the boys. No wandering around in the middle of the night.”

Martin’s smile took the sting from his words. “Stop teasing, Daddy,” Alex said. “I’m here to earn money for college.”

“And don’t I appreciate it!”

Martin and Alex got out of the car, and he opened the back cargo door. She’d managed to cram her most necessary possessions and three months of clothes into two suitcases and three large boxes, but getting them to her room wouldn’t be such an easy task.

“I don’t want you carrying this stuff,” she said. “We need a cart or something.”

As if by divine miracle, one appeared, an old grocery basket steered by a tall, incredibly good-looking boy. Alex swallowed, blinked her eyes. Actually, he wasn’t a boy at all. She’d left all the boys behind in Fox Creek. This guy had to be two or three years beyond boy. Mature, handsome, smiling. Oh, my.

“Hi,” he said. “Need some help?”

“Thank you, son,” Martin said, giving the young man a thorough scrutiny. “You look familiar.”

“I’m Daniel Chandler,” he said, shaking Martin’s hand. “I’m from Greenfield. I’ll be working here this summer.”

“Aren’t you Gus Chandler’s kid? I’ve seen you at the hardware store.”

“I am.”

“Small world. My daughter Alexis will be working here, too. This is her first extended stay away from home.” Alex wished she had worn something much more fashionable than cutoffs and a T-shirt. She was mortified because her father made her sound like such a kid. Martin had told her this would be her chance for adventure, freedom, independence, and already he’d pegged her as an inexperienced child. And to this mature man!

Daniel’s grin spread, showing remarkably cute dimples. “Sounds good,” he said. “Follow me.”

The trio and their wobbly cart headed up the sidewalk to Pelican House. Daniel asked Alex for her room number and steered her belongings to a cramped bedroom for two at the end of the hall. The only furnishings were twin beds, two small dressers and one drying rack for towels and such. But to Alex it represented a whole new life, one where this wonderful boy would be living just upstairs.

Once the boxes were unloaded onto Alex’s bed, Daniel wished her good luck and said he’d see her later.

Alex wanted to say something clever to ensure that he would, but nothing cute or flirty or even intelligible came to mind. She didn’t know how to flirt, a skill she wished she’d perfected before this.

She walked outside with her father, hugged him and assured him she would be fine. When she went back inside Pelican House, Daniel was in the small lobby. Was he waiting for her? She could barely breathe.

“We’ve got a busy day tomorrow with orientation,” he said. “How about if I pick you up at your room this evening at five thirty and show you where the employee cafeteria is?”

“Thanks. That would be nice.”

She raced into her room and set her clock.

CHAPTER TWO (#ulink_effa5eac-b49f-510f-b9e7-b449ca1b607c)

HAD THERE BEEN a place to hide, Alex would have run for it, but all the nonpublic places were backstage, and to get to them, she would have had to approach the three people on the stage. So, until the flare-up in her cheeks returned to normal—darn the curse of women with fair complexions—she sank into the audience seat and waited until Lizzie had auditioned.

How ironic that Daniel, the guy who had suggested she join the musical revue at the Birch Shore Resort, the man who’d dazzled her and changed her life, was now about to offer an opinion on Lizzie’s immediate future. She couldn’t trap a sigh as more memories of that magical summer flooded her mind. Her father had been right. Working at Birch Shore had given her opportunities. She’d met new people and shown off her talents. But Martin hadn’t known that three days into her summer she fell in love with a charismatic Greenfield boy.

Alex sat forward in the theater seat, trying to hear her daughter’s read for the part of Zaneeta. When Lizzie squealed her character’s famous line, Alex couldn’t help smiling. When Lizzie argued with Glen, who was playing her father, Alex felt proud. Lizzie had never argued with Teddy. Within reason, he’d given her everything she’d ever wanted, as if he was compensating for the family secret, the fact that he wasn’t her real father.

She heard Daniel’s booming baritone. “I can’t see any reason to audition another girl. This one is perfect.” He grinned at Lizzie. “Great read.”

“So what do you think?” Glen said. “Do you want the part? You realize we have three weeks of rehearsal before the run of the musical begins. Then it’s a full week of performances, a total of eight shows. Are you up to the challenge?”

Lizzie glanced into the theater. “I’ll have to talk to my mother, but yes, I can do it.”

Daniel moved to the edge of the stage. “Is that your mother out there?”

Lizzie nodded and Alex involuntarily sank farther into the chair.

“Hi, Mom,” Daniel called. “We need to talk.” He strode to the steps at the side of the stage and came down the aisle.

This was it. If he didn’t recognize her now, she could maybe pull off anonymity until the summer was over. The only other choice was to deny Lizzie the opportunity to be part of the play, and Alex wasn’t about to do that. This was the first time in months Lizzie had shown such enthusiasm.

Standing next to her, Daniel offered his hand. “Daniel Chandler. Among other things, I am an amateur actor—sort of.”

Daniel had never been an amateur anything.

“May I join you?”

Alex took the hand that had felt as natural as a glove during that summer. “Hello, Mr. Chandler.” She moved over a seat so he could sit next to her. What else could she do?

He did, giving her the same friendly smile that had won her over years before, a smile that was as genuine as it was memorable. “Daniel, please. I don’t even get called Mr. Chandler at the statehouse.”

Alex didn’t comment, not wanting him to realize that she knew anything about him. As far as he was concerned, this was a first—and hopefully a last—meeting. After all, Glen was in charge of directing and producing. With any luck, Alex wouldn’t even see Daniel again.

Daniel stared at the stage. “Your daughter gave a good read,” he said before turning his attention to Alex. “We want her in the production.”

Alex’s gaze was caught in the warm beam of deep olive green eyes she’d never forgotten. She wanted to look away, look down, anything to keep him from scrutinizing her so closely. But his stare only became more intense.

And then his eyes widened. His brow furrowed. Another grin, slight, but just as charming as she remembered, tilted his full mouth. “Wait a minute,” he said. “I know you.”

She shook her head. “Well...perhaps...”

“Alex? Alex Foster?”

“No longer Foster now,” she stammered. “Alexis Pope.”