“Thanks, Luke.” Now that she was allowing herself to heal and believe she would be okay she could truthfully say she felt their prayers and could internalize their belief in her. Interesting how before when she was feeling bitter inside she hadn’t felt much of anything but the pressing fears and darkness. She remembered her mom saying the Lord’s hand was always outstretched and they had to choose to put their hand out to feel the blessings he was waiting to bestow. Abe was definitely a blessing she hadn’t seen coming and was even more of a blessing than she could ever have hoped for. One dark thought still lingered though. Someday, somehow she had to forgive Flint Brooks and put the accident completely behind her. That was a tough thought. She’d have to request more prayers from her family.
“I can’t wait to meet him,” Luke said. “What’s his name so I can research him to make sure he’s worthy of my sister?”
Rachel laughed. “There are no worries there, he’s the best.”
“His name?”
Rachel smiled, not stressed at all about what Luke might find. Abe was perfect in her eyes. Her only stress was how to spend more time with him after they left the island. “Abe Bradford.”
“Abe Bradford?” He paused for a second then said, “Big guy? Played lacrosse against Caleb?”
“Yeah. Why?” She’d pushed to the back of her mind Abe’s distant connection to Caleb, but something in Luke’s voice set her on edge. Had Abe been a jerk on the lacrosse field? Luke couldn’t possibly know something bad about Abe. There couldn’t be anything. Cold sweat pricked her brow. Abe simply had to be as good as she believed.
“There was something about him in the news years ago. I just remember because I’d watched him play against Caleb and been impressed. He was a great defender.”
“The name probably stuck because he’s a fellow billionaire. You guys all stick together, right?” She tried to tease but her stomach was tumbling. Something about him in the news? The news rarely reported anything positive.
Luke chuckled. “That’s right. If he’s a ‘fellow billionaire’ he must be a good guy.” His voice was full of irony. Luke was not caught up on status or money and he didn’t treat people differently based on their income. “I’m remembering something, but I definitely need to look into it and get the right details. Hold on while I Google him.”
She clutched the phone uneasily, begging her Father above like she hadn’t begged since she woke up from surgery after the explosion and found out her life would never be the same.Please let Abe be the man I think he is. Please. She’d fallen so hard for him, the thought of something being off with Abe was inconceivable. Yet there was a niggling worry in the back of her mind. She’d never taken the time to research him like she usually would. They were on this exotic island, removed from the world, and she was so far off her dating game from years past that maybe she’d been too innocent, too trusting. Abe had to be good. He just had to be. Hadn’t she been through enough pain with her face and her life being torn apart? If Abe wasn’t good …
“Yeah, sis …” Luke pushed out a breath. “You might want to pull up your computer and read all of this yourself. The internet is really good on the island because of the satellite system I pay to be part of.”
Rachel didn’t really care about the internet connection. “What about Abe?” Her voice came out in a high squeak. Luke had found something bad enough he’d rather have her read it herself? Why wouldn’t he just share it with her?
“It’s not bad,” he hastened to say. “Okay, it’s bad, but he was wrongly accused. I mean you hope he was wrongly accused. With embezzling you just never know.”
Rachel’s legs seemed to collapse. She sank to the floor and knelt there, clinging to the phone. Embezzling … Abe? “No. Not Abe. He’s so good and honest. I can see it in his eyes. He would never …” Her throat seemed to close off. He did seem good and honest, but she could also sense he was insanely driven. A man didn’t own a yacht like his and bring a crew of twelve to a vacation like this without being as wealthy as Joshua and Luke, who were both great guys but definitely workaholics and driven. They struggled to find a balance with work and family and would do almost anything to be successful. But her brothers had never embezzled or cheated someone. She pushed a hand to her forehead and tried to slow down her elevated breathing.
“There are quite a few articles about it,” Luke said cautiously, not confirming or denying that Abe could never be an embezzler. “The initial ones show he’d embezzled from a company called McKnight Enterprises, apparently they’re a big home security company. Shows Abe worked for them doing summer sales through college then they hired him after graduation. Less than six months later he was arrested for embezzling.”
“Arrested!” Rachel shot back to her feet, the very word coursing fear and a fight or flight instinct through her veins. Arrested? Abe? She couldn’t even fathom him in prison. It wasn’t even possible. Was it? Had she been so taken by this handsome man professing she was beautiful even with her scars that she’d overlooked his deception? He was Preston’s friend. Preston and that woman were obviously shady. Preston might be embezzling from Luke. Yet … what if Abe was the one Preston and that woman were trying to steal from?
“Yeah. Three months in the Federal Correctional Facility in Cumberland, Maryland. It’s a white-collar type prison, so not awful. He was initially given eighteen months to three years but was released after only three months when a woman named Angel Falslev disappeared with millions from the company and they determined that the original embezzlement was all on her and she’d set Abe up to take the fall.”
“So he didn’t do it? He was framed.” She took a deep breath. It was okay. Abe wasn’t a thief. Then why hadn’t he told her he’d been in prison? They’d spent the past two days together, talked through a lot. He’d Googled her and knew all about her family, the bombing, and her scars. He should’ve told her. Prison was a big deal.
Luke didn’t sound very sure when he said, “Probably not.”
“Why are you thinking the worst of him?” Rachel all but shouted. Abe had been framed and she needed her brother to support her. She’d finally found the right man for her, a man who was so good he embraced even her deformed face; she needed Luke to support her and Abe. What she really needed was Luke to reassure her that Abe wasn’t a thief, and of course he wasn’t a liar, and he truly did love all of her.
“Well …” Luke cleared his throat. “He and this Angel were engaged. And as soon as Abe got out of prison he started his own business and it skyrocketed quickly without any outside funding. Seems a little suspicious to me.”
Rachel clung to the phone. She walked slowly to the couch and sank into it. Abe had been engaged? Had the woman framed him or was he in on it and he’d made it possible for Angel to escape with the money? Then after he was released, she shared it with him so he could start his business? Could they still be in contact? She pressed two fingers between her eyes trying to relieve the pressure forming there as her mind raced to even more awful possibilities. Abe hadn’t fallen for her, didn’t think she was smart, impressive, and beautiful even with her deformed face. He was in league with Preston and that blonde woman and was trying to use Rachel to trick Luke. No. Not Abe!
Despair coursed through her. Abe. She’d fallen so hard for him. Why couldn’t he be perfect like she’d assumed? Why had she been so trusting and not checked him out right at first? She could’ve saved herself so much pain. Hadn’t she had enough pain this past year? All her supposed faith crumpled and anger at not just Flint Brooks, but Abe as well, stirred her stomach until she was biting down the delicious dinner she and Abe had recently shared.
“You okay, sis?” Luke asked quietly.
“Yeah,” she lied. “I’ll hang up and read the articles.” Her voice sounded as lifeless as she felt inside. It was a strange and uncomfortable combination—lifeless and in despair, yet so angry she wanted to go punch Abe in the gut.
“Are you going to confront him?”
“Of course I am.”
“Do you think he’d get upset or violent with you?”
Rachel’s eyes widened and she gasped. “No way! Not Abe. No!” Not even if she did punch him in the gut would Abe ever physically hurt her. Although, five minutes ago she hadn’t thought he was capable of lying to her, of embezzling, of serving time, of being engaged to a woman who had stolen millions and disappeared. No. Abe could never hurt her. He’d been wrongly accused, right? Her head hurt as her mind spun a hundred different directions.