One Hundred Decisions: An Aspen Cove Romance Read online

  One Hundred Decisions

  An Aspen Cove Romance

  Kelly Collins

  Copyright © 2020 by Kelley Maestas

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  Cover design by Victoria Cooper Art *

  Contents

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  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

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  Chapter One

  Glancing around the office, Natalie took in the austere atmosphere. It looked more abandoned than the orphans who came through the door. The cracked linoleum and soiled white walls spoke more of despair than hope. It was almost as if the room knew the children passing through could end up in far worse situations than anyone could imagine.

  Natalie Keane chewed the last bit of her thumbnail down to the quick. Her nerves were raw, and her insides shook. The last time she’d been in a room like this, she was six, her mother was dead, and they told her she had a new family. The social worker announced it in a way that sounded like she was getting a new pair of shoes.

  “Ms. Keane, are you ready to meet your brother?”

  Natalie’s heart raced to fight or take flight. She’d been in Los Angeles for weeks, jumping through hoops to save a boy she’d never met. Was she ready? Hell no. She didn’t do commitments, and becoming a guardian for her brother was a six-year gig. If she said yes, she had to be all in.

  A thunderous beat boomed inside her chest before her heart stilled. “I still can’t believe I have a brother.” Until everything checked out, they had kept her away from him. “No use giving the boy false hope,” they told her.

  Mrs. Todd, a Los Angeles County social worker, nodded. “It was hard for Will to believe too. If there wasn’t a written will, we would have never found you.”

  “I’m surprised you did; shocked, really. I’ve moved around a lot. And … my father abandoned me over twenty years ago. Hard to believe he even remembered who I was.” She rubbed her eyes. “Hard to comprehend that a man who discarded his family started a new one years later.”

  The situation still shook Natalie. Was it really two weeks ago that she had gotten the call? Ms. Keane … this is Roberta Todd from Los Angeles County, and we have your brother. You’re listed as the chosen guardian. If you don’t come to claim him, we’ll have to find him a suitable home.

  Right then, it wouldn’t have mattered if Will was her brother or not. At the mention of foster care, she would have gone to get the boy, regardless. As a product of the system, she knew there was a range to what they considered suitable care.

  “It wasn’t easy. We moved through the records by your name, then the driver’s license number, and finally, your social security number to find you. It’s always better to place a child with a responsible relative if possible.”

  Natalie’s head felt like it was spinning. “How do you know I’m even his sister, or that I’m responsible? And where were you when my mother killed herself? Where was my father?”

  Mrs. Todd frowned. “Thankfully, we have a more connected society. Two decades ago, we didn’t have the resources we do now to locate a person.” She looked at her desk, where Will’s file sat. “Honestly, you were probably better off not being with your father. By the looks of it, he wouldn’t get a parent of the year award. You can say no. There’s no shame in knowing your limitations.”

  She shook her head. “No, I’d never abandon him.”

  “Let me get him.”

  Mrs. Todd walked out the door, giving Natalie more time to think. She had no idea how she would support a preteen boy. She could barely make ends meet herself, but there was no way she’d leave him here to face who knows what.

  Do or die; I’ll try. She repeated the mantra that got her through the worst of times.

  The door opened and in walked a lanky kid dressed in tattered jeans and a Harry Potter T-shirt. His hair was too long, and his suspicious eyes told her he’d already seen too much in his twelve years, but she couldn’t deny he was her brother. Looking at him was like looking at herself more than a decade and a half before.

  Sadly, as she was gaining her freedom from the system, poor Will was being born and raised to live in it.

  Natalie approached him with the same reserve. She grabbed courage from some hidden resources inside and said, “Hi, I’m Natalie. You must be Will.” She held out her hand.

  He looked at her open palm and stepped back.

  “Will,” Mrs. Todd scolded. “This is your sister who drove all the way from Colorado. Don’t you think she deserves more—maybe a hello?”

  For a long moment, he studied her. “Sorry. Hi.” He shoved his hands into his jean pockets and stared at the floor. “I don’t know why I can’t stay in the house. It’s not like my father was around, anyway. I can take care of myself.”

  “The house didn’t belong to your father. It was a rental, and we can’t set a twelve-year-old free to care for himself,” Mrs. Todd answered. “It’s your sister or back to the center until we can find you a home.”

  Natalie’s heart ached for him. At twelve, she’d thought she could care for herself too. She ran away from her third foster care family and hid in a treehouse in the next town over. All it took was the pangs of hunger a day later to bring her home. Turned out, her foster family hadn’t even realized she’d left. She’d learned then that she was worthless in their eyes, and several foster families later proved her assumption was right. They never wanted her, just the money they got for taking her in.

  Looking at Will tugged at her heart, which was odd because emotional attachment wasn’t a strength for her. Not that she couldn’t love—it was that she didn’t trust love. She hoped he was only looking for stability. At this point, it was all she could offer.

  “How about we try it,” Natalie said. “I passed their tests, took their classes, and filled out the paperwork. We can leave for Colorado now.” Her shoulders raised in a shrug. “Sometimes, a new beginning can change your world.”

  He lifted his head to look at her, and he rolled his eyes. “Colorado might as well be a different world. What about my friends?”

  Natalie imagined he didn’t have many, if any. Kids like him were never part of the in-crowd. They were the outliers who walked on the fringe of society. “You can call them, or maybe they can visit you in Aspen Cove.”

  Will let out an exasperated exhale. “Whatever.” He looked around the room. When his eyes lit on the backpack in the corner, he rushed to pick it up.

  “Is that all you have?” Natalie stared at the blue
backpack with alarm. There couldn’t have been more than one change of clothes inside.

  Her finances were already tight, with only a little wiggle room for extras.

  “Hold on.” Mrs. Todd went to her filing cabinet and pulled out a Visa gift card. “We have a donor that sends a few of these a year for kids who really need it. I’d say Will could use a few extra items.” She held the card in the air. “Here’s two hundred and fifty dollars for clothes and necessities.” She eyed Will. “That doesn’t include toys or video games. Got it?”

  “We’ll see.” He rose up to swipe it, but Mrs. Todd was quicker than Will and handed the card to Natalie, who took it and put it straight into her bag.

  “Necessities mean necessary,” the social worker said.

  Will groaned. “Ugh.”

  Mrs. Todd walked them to the door. “We have notified Colorado Social Services of the transfer, and they will be in touch.”

  Natalie wasn’t sure what “be in touch” meant. She knew they’d eventually do a home visit and check on the welfare of her new ward. If it was anything like when she grew up, Will might be in college before they got around to it. She wasn’t against the system that saved many children. With anything in the world, there was a failure rate, and she had fallen in that small percentage.

  “You ready?” she asked.

  He stood tall and stiffened his shoulders. Despite his tough exterior, she could see the indecision in his cautious green eyes. Rather than stand his ground, he followed her. No doubt because his options were limited, and sadly she was the best one he had. They walked past Mrs. Todd and out the door into the overcast day.

  “Take care, Will. Good luck, Natalie.” Mrs. Todd gave them a wave before she went back inside.

  “What kind of car do you have?” he asked.

  “Who said I had a car?” she teased. “Maybe I have a horse. Or … maybe we’re hitchhiking.” She held up her thumb.

  He stopped and narrowed his eyes. “Are you sure you’re my sister? They could have duped you into taking me.”

  She led him to the parking lot toward the beat-up green Subaru.

  “Nope, I’m not sure, but they said I was, and I’m inclined to believe them. We could take a DNA test, but if you’re Gerald Palmer’s son, then I’m confident we’re related.” She opened the door and climbed behind the steering wheel. “Besides, we look similar.”

  “I look nothing like you. You’re a chick.” Will stood at the front of the car as if debating to get inside or bolt.

  She pulled the door shut and rolled down the window. “You’re observant, and I’m starving. How about In-N-Out?”

  His eyes grew wide, and the tiniest of smiles lifted his lips. He raced to the passenger side and hopped into the front seat.

  “Are you rich?”

  She laughed so hard she snorted. “No, I barely keep myself above the poverty level.”

  “Great, so nothing will change.”

  She turned to face him. “Listen, Will, I don’t know what your life was like, but I’m guessing it wasn’t all that great.” She heaved a sigh. “All I can promise is a place to live, a full stomach, and an ear when you need one. Living with me will not be rainbows and unicorns, but it keeps you out of the foster care system.” She started the car and backed out of the parking spot. “Let me tell you, you don’t want to be a ward of California. I’ve been there, and sometimes it’s not pretty.”

  He buckled in and turned his head to face her. “Why didn’t you grow up with me?”

  She took a left and drove across the street to In-N-Out. It was a splurge, but all new experiences should start right, and a burger and fries seemed perfect.

  “Our dad left my mom, and she died a short time later. His name wasn’t on the birth certificate, and no one knew to look for him.”

  She placed their order and pulled around to the window to pay.

  “Were they married?”

  She shook her head. “Nope. What about your parents?” She paid for their meal and took the bag. The car filled with the smell of fresh fries and grilled burgers. To a twelve-year-old growing boy, it must have smelled like heaven.

  “Same, although my mom didn’t die. She was a stripper, and she didn’t want a kid. I don’t even know her name.” He dug into the bag and took out his meal.

  Karma is a bitch. It seemed fitting for Gerald to get saddled with a kid when he’d done the same to her mom. The bastard walked out one day, and he never came back.

  She reached inside the bag and pulled out a few fries. They were a perfect amount of fat and salt to make a girl swoon. “These are so good.” She dipped her hand back into the white paper sack to get a few more. “There isn’t an In-N-Out where I live, but I hear they’re building one in Denver soon.” She turned onto the street that led to the freeway. If she got on the road now, they could make it most of the way to Colorado that day.

  “How far is it to Denver?”

  “From home or from here?”

  “Both,” Will spoke with his mouth full.

  She’d have to correct that habit. Bad manners weren’t a character defect, and changing them was possible, but now wasn’t the time.

  “We’ve got a twenty-plus hour drive to Aspen Cove. From there, Denver is another couple of hours.” She pulled her hamburger out of the bag and unwrapped enough to take a bite.

  “So, basically, you live in the middle of nowhere.”

  She swallowed. “It’s somewhere. Give it a chance; you might like it.”

  “Does it have an arcade?”

  She turned onto the highway heading north. “No.”

  “Skateboard park?”

  She shook her head. “No. Do you ride a skateboard?” She could put that on the wishing wall at B’s Bakery and hope someone had one they weren’t using.

  “No, just wondering. What does it have?”

  Thinking about Aspen Cove made her smile. “It has nice people.”

  “Basically, you’re moving me to hell.”

  She glanced at him quickly enough to see a frown, but she didn’t reply.

  They drove the next six hours in silence. When her tank teetered on empty, she pulled into the truck stop and gassed up.

  “If you need to go to the restroom, do it now. I’m not a fan of rest stops. They aren’t safe for women or children.”

  Will dragged his feet toward the store while she filled up the Subaru. When she finished, she walked inside. In the third aisle, she found Will shoving a candy bar into his front pocket.

  “Ready?” she asked.

  He jumped back and looked around. They walked toward the door, but she moved to the right and stopped at the register. Reaching for a pack of gum, she smiled at the cashier. “I’ll take this, and my brother has a candy bar in his pocket.” She stared at Will. “Give it to him so the man can ring us up.”

  Will opened and closed his mouth a few times before he tugged the bar of chocolate free and slapped it on the counter with a huff.

  Once she paid, and they were back inside the car, she gripped the steering wheel tightly, then turned her head toward him.

  “It’s time to lay down some rules. We’re family, and that means I’ve got your back. I saved you from foster care, but I can’t save you from yourself, and I won’t visit you in jail. I don’t know what Gerald allowed or expected, but from this point forward, you don’t steal. Got it? We have just enough money to live on. I can’t afford a lawyer to represent you when you get arrested. If you want or need something, you ask for it or work for it.”

  He buckled his seatbelt and crossed his arms. “You got any more rules for me?”

  “Probably, but we can make them up as we go. I’ve never been a big sister, and I don’t know how this family stuff works. I’m flying by the seat of my pants here. Don’t make it harder.”

  He growled. “I really am in hell.”

  She pulled out of the parking lot and headed northeast. “No, hell is moving from home to home because no one wants you. Or their liv
es are more messed up than yours, and they can’t keep you. It’s sleeping three to a bed and eating a meal a day until the social worker comes. It’s being punished in a way that doesn’t show the bruises. I came for you because I want you to have better.”

  “You don’t even know me. I could be a serial killer. Hell, you could be one.”

  She laughed. “Statistically, serial killers are middle-aged white men. I think we’re both safe. I know more about you than you think. At twelve, you’ve probably had more adult responsibilities than most adults. You steal what you can’t buy. You’re used to having little, but you crave something more. Am I close?”

  He twisted in his seat and leaned his head against the window. “You’re right about one thing—I want more.”

  She reached over and ruffled his hair. “Well, I’m more.”

  “How much longer do we have?”

  “Forever. We can stop at a motel, we can’t afford, to rest, or we can push through and make the trip on caffeine and adrenaline, and then crawl into bed when we get home. What do you think?”

  He shrugged. “Let’s go home.”

  * * *

  In the early hours of the morning, she pulled into her driveway. The sound of gravel crunching under the tires was all she could hear. Her tiny house was a sight to see. It wasn’t much, but it was home.

  Will woke and rubbed the sleep from his eyes. “Are we here?” He leaned forward and looked at the wooden box in front of them.

  It was eight feet wide and twenty-five feet long for a whopping two hundred square feet of living space. Basically, she lived in a furnished storage container.