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On impulse, he put his plate down beside him and took her hand in his. When he moved his thumb over her palm, her eyes widened.
“Darcy,” he began, “I was surprised by the question but not offended. The answer is no, I don’t want to find my father, but my sister does. We don’t agree on that subject.” He glanced at their clasped hands. He’d meant only to reassure her, but since she wasn’t letting go, he wasn’t about to either. “As for your movie question, there are too many to list. I’ll bore you to tears.”
She opened and closed her mouth.
“You look puzzled.” He lifted his eyebrows, awaiting her response, but she remained silent. “Go ahead and say whatever is on your mind, Darcy. I promise it’s okay.”
“Why do you and your sister disagree about your dad?” Her voice was soft, and her question was hesitant.
He raked his free hand through his hair. “Shauna wants to find him and demand to know why he abandoned our mom and us. I don’t want to know, and I don’t want to see him. It doesn’t matter why he left us. He did, and his excuses won’t mean anything to me. The past is the past, and he can’t do anything to fix that now.”
Darcy nodded. “I didn’t mean to upset you.”
“I’m not upset.” He managed a half-grin and let go of her hand. “I’m just stating facts.” He settled on the bench. “Now I have a question for you. Why are you so curious about my dad?”
She placed her plate of food on the bench beside her and then moved her finger along the hem of her shirt. “I’m adopted, and I want to find my biological mother. At least, I think I do.”
“Oh.” He hadn’t expected that response, but it explained her interest. His lungs squeezed with compassion for her as he took in her serious expression.
“I hope to have a family someday, and I want to know about my family history. I also have other questions for her.” She worried her lower lip. “Do you think that’s bad?”
“Why would I think that’s bad?”
“It’s complicated. My parents adopted me in their forties. They had tried fertility treatments for years to have a child. Nothing worked. So when they adopted me, they were elated. All they ever wanted was a baby.”
Darcy peered out over the pond again. “I adore my parents. I couldn’t have asked for a better set if I had picked them myself. They’re the most loving, giving, thoughtful, generous, amazing people on the planet.” She rubbed her hands together and faced him again. “But I’ve always felt like I didn’t fit in with them. I don’t look like them, and I’m not smart like them. I mean, they graduated at the top of their classes in dental school, but I barely passed high school biology.”
Her posture stiffened. “There’s always been this hole in my heart that I can’t explain. Does that make me sound unappreciative?”
“No, Darcy. I can’t begin to comprehend how you feel, but from what I do know about you, you’re not unappreciative.”
“I have questions they can’t answer,” she said. “I want to know what my biological mother looks like. I know she was young when she had me—younger than eighteen. Do I look like her? Do I sound like her? Did she want to keep me? Did she have a choice? Do I have any siblings? Does she think about me? Does she worry about me?”
He nodded, encouraging her to continue.
“Someone told me about an organization that can help me find her. It’s a nonprofit. I’ve thought so much about it, but I haven’t even looked at the website yet.”
“Sounds like you’re afraid.”
“Yeah. I think I am.” Her lower lip trembled. “I don’t want to hurt my parents.” She sniffed, and the tears glistening in her eyes nearly tore him apart. “But I also want to know where I came from. I feel so torn.” She shielded her face with her hands. “I don’t know why I’m unloading all of this on you. You’re the only person I’ve told about this. I haven’t even told Haven.”
Carter was so honored that he couldn’t speak for a moment. Somehow, he had earned her trust. Perhaps Darcy liked him as much as he liked her. “Maybe you should talk to your parents about this. They sound like terrific people, so I’m sure they’d understand.” He wanted to reach out and touch her again, but he held back.
Her hands dropped onto her lap. “I don’t know if they will. They told me about my adoption when I was twelve years old, but we’ve never discussed looking for my biological mother. I only recently realized that yearning to know who I am is causing this emptiness deep inside of me.” She shook her head. “I just feel like something is missing, and I can’t explain it otherwise.” Her eyes seemed to search his face. “You don’t feel that way about your dad?”
He blew out a deep breath as he considered how much to share with her. Clearly, she was baring her soul to him. She deserved the same honesty she was giving him. “No, I don’t. He threw away our family. He didn’t want us, and I don’t want him.”
“I’m sorry he hurt you so deeply.”
Carter was astounded by how compassionate and understanding Darcy was. She was such a stark contrast to Gabrielle, who only cared about herself.
But what shocked him even more was the connection he felt to Darcy. In an odd way, it felt like a deeper connection than any he had ever felt with anyone in his life. It was as if she was already a kindred spirit. He couldn’t quite fathom the thought.
Then her beautiful smile returned. “Enough about family stuff. Let’s talk about something fun. Now about those movies. You could never bore me to tears talking about them.”
He laughed, glad for the change of subject. “My sister and I were raised by movie buffs.”
“Tell me more.” She pivoted toward him, folding her legs under her cutoff jean shorts.
