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Page 24 of Second Chance Fate (Hope Falls: Brewed Awakenings #5)

“Mornin’, young man!” Ralph Henley dipped his head in a nod as he strolled toward Caleb, pushing his satchel delivery cart, the wheels clunking along the wooden sidewalk.

Ralph had been delivering mail to Hope Falls’ residents for fifty-two years. At seventy-four, he showed no signs of slowing down or having any interest in retiring.

“Morning, how are Maribel and the twins doing?” The Henley twins, Robert and Richard, were a few years older than Caleb and identical. There was a trick to telling them apart, but he hadn’t seen them in over a decade, so he’d forgotten what it was.

At the mention of his wife and sons, Mr. Henley’s smile lit up his face, revealing a deep dimple in his right cheek covered in a salt and pepper five o’clock shadow.

Seeing the indentation triggered Caleb’s memory.

Both twins had deep dimples, like their dad, each on a different cheek, which made them mirror-image identical twins.

Mr. Henley set his cart up straight, pulled out a navy blue handkerchief from his back pocket, and swiped it across his forehead.

“Doin’ great. The boys are married with families of their own.

We don’t see them as much as we’d like, since they both settled on the East Coast, but we can’t complain because everybody is healthy and happy. ”

Caleb had only been half-listening to his response; his mind was stuck on the dimple. “Can I ask you something?”

“Sure thing.” He folded his handkerchief back up and returned it to his back pocket.

“The twins both have your dimple.”

“They sure do,” Mr. Henley responded in the affirmative, mistaking that for the question.

“Is that something that your father had, or, I mean, do dimples run in your family?”

Caleb noticed Owen’s dimples in both his cheeks and in his chin, just like he himself had. His dad didn’t have them, but his mom’s dad did.

“No, my father didn’t have them, but my mama did. And I remember Maribel saying she hoped the twins would when she was expecting. She said it’s a dominant trait, so there was a good chance. Why do you ask? You hopin’ to pass them along to your future little ones?”

“Somethin’ like that.” Caleb nodded and did his best to mask the thoughts that had kept him up the entire night as he smiled. “Tell Maribel I said hi.”

“Will do.”

Caleb’s head was spinning as he continued to make his way to Sue Ann’s, even more convinced that somehow, someway, Owen was his son.

They used protection. He may have been drunk, but he did remember that.

So how was it possible? He knew it sounded crazy, but so was him seeing Rebecca— who now had blonde hair and was going by the name Taylor—again.

He wasn’t sure he would have recognized her if she hadn’t touched her chest and neck.

When she did that, he remembered Rebecca doing the same thing; she’d told him that she got hives when she was nervous.

Seeing “Taylor” do it triggered the memory.

Once he recognized her as Rebecca, he couldn’t unsee it, like one of those Magic Eye pictures.

He couldn’t believe it took him so long to see it in the first place.

Once that piece of the puzzle clicked into place, the other mystery in his life was solved.

Caleb couldn’t figure out why he had the strangest sense of déjà vu when he met Owen.

He recognized him but had never seen him before.

It drove him crazy. Then, last night after his encounter with Owen and Rebecca, he went over to feed the cats and water his parents’ plants, and the mystery was solved.

His mom’s bird of paradise just happened to be in front of the wall where Caleb’s Little League World Series photo hung.

He was eleven when it was taken. Owen looked so familiar because he was the spitting image of Caleb at the same age.

He felt like an idiot for not realizing it sooner, but in fairness to him, he wasn’t in the habit of looking at photos of himself.

When he came face-to-face with the photo, he dropped the watering can.

Unfortunately, his reflexes weren’t as quick as they’d been when Rebecca, or Taylor, dropped her keys.

The tin hit the tile floor with a loud crash, and water splashed out of the top, making quite the mess, not to mention the noise which Captain and Tennille did not appreciate.

Both cats shot under the couch so fast they left a trail of blur in their wake, like in the cartoons, and they stayed there.

Even popping open Fancy Feast was not enough to lure them out of their cave.

Before leaving his parents’ house, Caleb looked through several other photo albums. Each photo served as evidence in the case his mind was building that Owen was his.

But if that was the truth, why the hell was this the first he was hearing about it?

Why had it taken her so long to tell him?

Not that she had even told him yet. Why had she been in town for eight months and not said a word to him?

“Caleb?”

Hearing his name, Caleb lifted his head and saw Audrey standing in front of him with concern brimming in her eyes. A wrinkle appeared on her forehead. “Are you okay?

“Yeah.” He blinked. “Why?”

“I’ve been calling your name since you were in front of Two Scoops.” She pointed behind him.

He glanced over his shoulder, even though he knew the ice cream shop was four businesses back.

“Sorry, I was just…zoned out.”

“Oh, okay.”

He could see that she was still worried about him, but she wasn’t going to pry, which he appreciated.

In Hope Falls, that was rare. Audrey was the sweetest person he’d ever met.

He couldn’t be happier for Josh that he’d finally admitted his feelings for Audrey after years of insisting they were “just friends.” If Caleb would have imagined the perfect woman for his best friend, he wouldn’t even have come close to how perfect Audrey was for him.

“Actually. I’m glad I ran into you.” The worry was replaced with excitement. “I wanted to tell you I think I might know the person you were talking about at Arthur’s party.”

She did.

“ If I’m right, her name is Taylor.”

It was. Sort of .

“She’s working at Brewed part-time, and you come in so often, I’m sure you’ll run into her.”

“Right, yeah, Viv did mention something about that.” Clearly, Viv had not disclosed to her sister that she’d already told him about the new hire, but he didn’t want to make it seem like he had anything to hide. He didn’t. At least he didn’t think he did.

He wasn’t exactly sure what was going on. Thankfully, he’d be finding out very soon. In about fifteen minutes. He’d left the office early to get to Sue Ann’s because he just couldn’t sit still, and now he was glad he had. Even with these interruptions, he wouldn’t be late.

His Apple Watch vibrated with a message, and his stomach clenched with nerves as he looked down at his wrist. When he saw it was another message from Kimberly, he exhaled a sigh of relief.

His first thought was that it was Rebec—no, Taylor was cancelling.

Which was ridiculous because she didn’t even have his number.

And if she did, it wasn’t as if he didn’t know how to get ahold of her. He knew where she worked and lived.

Which reminded him, he wanted to find out if Lauren knew what was going on. Caleb wasn’t particularly close to his cousin, but they had a good relationship. He hoped that if she knew something this big, if it was what he thought it was, she would tell him.

“Everything okay?” Audrey asked.

“Yeah, it’s just…Claudia Benson’s niece.” She was responding to the reply he’d sent her on Sunday night, just saying to let him know if he changed his mind.

He exhaled as his arm dropped down to his side once more and turned his attention back to Audrey.

The concern was back in her eyes as she tilted her head to the side. “Do you ever get tired of it?”

“Tired of what?”

“People trying to set you up all the time. It seems like it would be…exhausting.”

It was. Sometimes.

“I heard you met Frankie.”

Caleb’s mind went blank. Usually, he was great with names and faces. He counted himself lucky, considering those were great tools to have in his toolbox in his profession. His mind was flipping through a mental Rolodex and coming up with nothing about who Audrey was referring to.

“Mrs. Costas’ granddaughter.”

“Oh, right. Yes, I did.”

“She stopped in for some coffee this morning and mentioned her grandma made up some story about her dishwasher needing fixing to lure you over to her house less than two hours after she got to town.”

“She did,” he confirmed.

“And last week the thing with Barbara-Jean Meyers and her granddaughter.”

“What thing?” Caleb had no clue what Audrey was talking about.

“Oh, sorry, I figured Josh would have told you.”

“Told me what?”

“Barbara-Jean let out the air in her granddaughter Missy’s rear tires after choir practice so she could play the role of damsel in distress and you could be her knight in shining armor coming to her rescue to save her or at least give her a ride home.”

“This is the first I’m hearing about it.” Caleb didn’t notice any vehicles in the parking lot after choir practice last week.

“I know. That’s because Josh unintentionally foiled their plans.

He happened to be driving by, saw the tires, knew it was Missy’s car, and fixed them for her so she didn’t come out of choir practice to two flats.

He was trying to do a good deed. He left a note on her car, letting her know what he’d done and telling her to be careful where she parked because someone had tampered with her car.

Josh forgot about it until he heard Petey had been at JT’s running his mouth, saying Barbara-Jean was making his life miserable at home because Josh screwed everything up trying to be a hero and that if Josh wasn’t Angelo’s kid, he would introduce him to Rocky and Apollo. ”

“Rocky and Apollo?” he repeated.

Audrey made fists, then lifted them up one at a time. “Rocky and Apollo are his left and right hooks.”

“Of course they are.” Caleb’s tone was laced with sarcasm.

Audrey’s phone rang, and she pulled it out of her purse. When she saw the screen, the smile that spread on her face told him exactly who was calling.

“Tell Josh I owe him one.” Caleb stepped around Audrey, who crossed the street as she answered the phone.

Caleb was only a few steps past her when he heard her say, “How can you miss me? You saw me two hours ago.”

Josh was surprising Caleb in the best possible way. He’d never pegged his friend as being a secret romantic, but Audrey really brought out that side in him.

Caleb made it to Sue Ann’s without any other interruptions.

He stepped beneath the black and white striped awning that covered the entrance, and as he reached for the door, he noticed what he thought was a tremble in his hand.

He held it out flat, his fingers splayed, and sure enough it was.

Whether it was nerves or adrenaline, he wasn’t sure.

One thing he knew it wasn’t from was caffeine.

Even though he hadn’t slept at all last night, he hadn’t touched his coffee maker this morning. He didn’t need to.

He took just one moment to recognize the significance of what was about to happen.

He had a gut feeling he was walking into Sue Ann’s with one version of his life, and he was going to be walking out with another.

After taking a deep breath, he pulled the glass door open and stepped inside.

He was hit with the heady mixture of freshly brewed coffee, sweet syrup, caramelizing onions, and something fried.

A classic diner soundtrack—plates clinking, silverware scraping, low hum of morning conversation—wrapped him in instant nostalgia, even as a pang of regret settled in his chest for choosing this place.

The dining room was near capacity, with only a few scattered tables that weren’t occupied. He knew it was his own paranoia, but it felt like every eye turned his way. He’d grown up with this place being like a second home, but right now he felt exposed, vulnerable.

Caleb suggested meeting at the café for two reasons: one, because it had amazing food and a cozy atmosphere, and two, because it was a public area.

His first instinct had been to invite Taylor to his home because he knew his life was under a microscope in this town.

Now, he wished he would have. He’d also made the suggestion before he realized who she was and that this wouldn’t be just a get-to-know-you cup of coffee.

“Little early for a pickup,” Sue Ann observed as she approached Caleb with a full pot of coffee in one hand and three plates balancing on the other. “I’m not sure Jack’s prepped for lunch yet.”

At least once a week, Caleb ordered lunch to go from the café. He always ordered the same thing: a pulled pork sandwich, fries, and a side of potato salad. He couldn’t even think about eating right now.

“No, I’m actually meeting someone.”

“Oh, well.” Sue Ann appeared slightly surprised: he didn’t blame her. He couldn’t remember another time he’d ever eaten at the café during the day on a weekday. Dining in was reserved for weeknights and weekends. “Go on and grab yourself a table. I’ll bring you some coffee.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

Caleb weaved his way through the tables, saying hi to people on his way to a small bistro-style two-top tucked away in the corner. It wasn’t secluded by any stretch of the imagination, but it afforded the most privacy they would get in a busy diner.

He sat down, selecting the seat that faced the door so he’d be able to get Rebec—no, Taylor’s attention when she walked in. He checked his watch; it was nine fifty. He had ten minutes. Six hundred seconds until his life was going to change.