“Perhaps.” Val didn’t like the woman. She seemed entitled and snotty.
“I wouldn’t have chosen this as my honeymoon.” The woman shrugged.
“I look forward to having my husband to myself.” Val chuckled and lifted her wine glass.
“He works hard, spends time away? All men seem to do this at times.” The woman was a talker, wasn’t she?
Val nodded, smiling sadly. “He works very hard.” Taking care of Mrs. Henshaw had been a labor of love for Smith, and no one would tell her differently. She’d seen how he’d been with her when she’d visited. She’d always been interested in him. He was the type of man she naturally gravitated toward and watching him care for the old woman sealed the deal for her. She’d had a soft spot for the man for as long as she’d known him. That spot had become fertile, and her fondness for him had grown. Smoke hadn’t been oblivious to what she was doing, but then again, Smoke saw more than most people knew. He used that sense of humor to mask how observant he really was.
“Dear?”
Val blinked and looked across the aisle at the other woman. “I beg your pardon; I was lost in thought.” Val smiled sweetly.
The woman smiled knowingly. “Of course. I said my name is Nadia.”
“Valerie.” She extended her hand and shook the other woman’s.
“An American name?”
“I believe it’s British. My mother enjoyed literature and named me after a character in a story she enjoyed.” Val pushed the question off with a laugh.
“Mrs. Young.” The railcar steward came up to their conversation area.
Val and Nadia turned at the same time.
“Yes?” Nadia spoke, smiling at the server.
Val’s eyes popped wide. Thank God no one was looking at her, or she hadn’t answered first.
“We’re getting more lemons from the kitchen car. Your cocktail will be ready shortly.”
“Thank you.” Nadia nodded and turned back to Val.
“I learned to love a vodka martini with a lemon twist while living in America.” She shrugged. “Not many good things come out of America, but I’ll make an exception for a lemon martini.” The woman laughed, and so did Val, although her heart was racing like a thoroughbred stallion. There was no way the woman was Smith’s mother. Dear God, she needed to excuse herself and find Smith. What if he ran into his father?
15
Smith built a map of the train in his mind. They’d agreed to meet in the dining room for dinner, so he didn’t expect to see Val barreling toward him as he opened the game car’s door. She pushed him backward and closed the door behind him. “Turn around. Go back to the room. Hurry.”
He could sense the urgency in her tone even if the earbud weren’t in place. He opened the door for her and shut it behind himself. “What’s wrong?”
“I think I just met your freaking mother!” She threw her hands up in the air. Smith tried to make sense of what she said, but it was impossible. “I’m not going insane. Stop looking at me like that!” Val paced as far as the little room would allow her. “Holy hell. It can’t be.”
“Wait, Val. Why do you think this woman you were talking to is my mother?”
“Her name is Nadia Young. She lived in America, and she loves martinis, but the waiter had to send someone to the kitchen car to get—”
“Lemons,” he finished for her.
She dropped her hands from her hips. “They’re going all the way to Beijing. You can stay here. I can do the rest. You could have motion sickness or something.” She started pacing again. He put his hand on her shoulder and turned her. “It has been over twenty years since they’ve seen me. I am physically three times the size I was when I left. My nose has been broken four times, and my jaw once. Life has changed me. They won’t recognize me.”
“A mother will always recognize her children.” Val shook her head. “God, what are we going to do? I have to hit the damn target. We can’t bail off the train at the next town.” She twisted out from under his hand, walked the two steps to the other side of the car, and returned. “You’ll have to stay in here.”
Smith shook his head. “No. They won’t recognize me. I was … much different.”
“How so?”
“I was an insecure, shy young man. I wouldn’t meet people’s eyes. I was terrified of my own shadow. Life on the streets strengthened me and taught me to fight for what’s mine. I’m not that child who desperately wanted to be anywhere but in that home.”