La Espina
by
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DIXIE Stupid. Stupid. Stupid. I must be a sex maniac. Flight from my father and his pawing hands was not the finale I believed it would be. This is the fourth guy I’ve gone to bed with since I came to work at the resort. And I’ve only been here five weeks. There was a time when my life was innocent and unwounded. But it was such a short time and so long ago. This is definitely different though. The first moment our eyes locked, there was an instant electricity. Good looking and personality all over the place. Hey, I’ve never felt so tingly before. He finds me sensuous and ravishing. He can’t keep his hands off of me. It’s the same for me. We just can’t seem to get enough of each other. Neither of us is concentrating on our daily responsibilities. I know this will go nowhere. He’ll leave next week when his training is over. He has a family somewhere. But I can always look back and remember being wanted and desired by my first love. I can remember his laughing blue eyes, the private jokes, the fun and freedom we feel together. Nothing can blot this from my mind. Tonight he’s rented a convertible and the moon is full. A romantic dinner, a drive in the great Rocky Mountains and lovemaking in the scent of the pines. I’ll remember it forever. JOANNA The front door was open. That way she could glance down the hall and through the outer door into the dusky darkness as she pulled the last few things from the clothes dryer. The shuttle to Denver International Airport should arrive in fifteen minutes. She had an 8:00 flight and needed three hours lead-time. Her flight landed in Phoenix and then there would be a short hop on a twelve-seater to Tucson. Jo shook her head and smiled at herself. In this work she should know all the tricks about packing and traveling. Roll, instead of fold to avoid creases, take mix and match color coordinates, all wrinkle free and washable, take only a few basics. She could handle all but the "few". Inevitably she took too many clothes and ended up wearing one-fourth of what she packed. Did she need long skirts, short skirts, long pants, mid calf or shorts, dressy or ultra-casual? She wasn’t sure so she took it all. This is Thursday. I’ll need changes for Friday through Monday. Oh heck. She tucked in the extra white blouse in addition to the ones in vivid green, blue, fuchsia and peach. She liked color, none of that basic black, stuff. That was more Janene’s style. He’s early.
The headlights cast a cool, blue glow in the hall. The camera! She was talking to herself more and more since she returned from Wyoming. OK, tickets, keys, clutch purse, apple and cheese and juice for breakfast on the way. All were stuffed into her shoulder bag. Grabbing her luggage she lunged out the front door. The shuttle was nearly full and Jo made herself comfortable beside a bobbing head with earphones. Good. There would be no need for conversation. October was promising a colorful fall. The nights were cooling fast, recent rains kept things from being tinder dry and the days displayed the typical Colorado sun against a brilliant blue sky. Jo peeked around the bobbing head. Crimson, orange and pink striated with various tints of blue and turquoise stretched across the horizon. She watched them grow more intense, then fade to pastels, stretch further until the edges were a dusty purple, while an orangy melon lifted and lifted until it was no longer orange. It struck her that the colors shifted so gradually, yet so quickly, that she could see it happen, yet she couldn’t. The orange suddenly was pink and the turquoise, a baby blue. Life. Just the same. It transforms before your eyes and you don’t know it until it’s happened. She was thrilled that Lauren was meeting her in Tucson. Lauren, the career girl, too busy for a man, was hooked. Greg was the brother of one of Lauren’s assistants in the new movie she was working on. He was working his way up in the movie business as a producer. So far, his name came up toward the end of the credits, but this was his fourth movie and each one came with more money and responsibility. "You’re going to Green Valley? That’s near Tucson. Greg and I are going to Tucson next weekend to meet his parents." It was last week’s phone call to Lauren. "Hey this sounds serious. When are you flying him home to meet your parents and your friends in Colorado?" What a surprise. Things transpired right before your eyes. It was settled. Yes, they would get together Saturday night. No, she did not want a blind date. Jo was happy to meet and talk to Greg, but mostly it would be catch-up for Lauren and her. Darlene was scheduled for daytime Saturday, which would give them even more to talk about. She was killing several birds with one stone on this trip. Monday was business. International Travel had a new branch there and Joanna was helping with some of the training relating to the latest type of travel packages that she had been working on. The apple and cheese hit the spot, but the juice left her thirsty for more. It would have to do until they arrived at DIA. She had been on the run the last several weeks and it felt good to relax and let her mind go. What would it be like tomorrow when she met Dixie’s mother, Darlene? Her imagination gave her no clues.
CHAPTER 8
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About the Book
The fact that she was adopted was never a secret to Joanna Johansen, but it was not something that she talked about with her three long-time school friends, Amy, Lauren and Janene. There came a moment, however, when Joanna was willing to answer their questions and show them the contents of her birth box left by that long ago mother. Indignant when the question about finding her birthmother was raised, Joanna refused to consider the possibility. Yet as young teens her friends made a pact to be a part of that search if and when Joanna changed her mind. In her early thirties Joanna feels the sharpness of loss when Allison, the mother who raised her, is killed. Adding to Joanna's emptiness is the tenuous relationship with her father who years ago chose to marry a younger woman and take on the responsibilities of her children. Not without guilt she determines that she needs to know about her beginnings. Joanna launches a journey that takes her to Mexico, following clues toward the discovery of this unknown mother. Honoring the pact of their childhood, each of her friends play a role in the search and with Joanna they experience fragments of the richness of this country – its contrasts, its powerful history and remarkably romantic setting. They watch as Joanna finds unexpected romance, questions her future and muddles her life direction. The reader catches glimpses of Dixie, a birthmother, whose childhood pain left a permanent spine in her heart. Hers has been a life of fleeing from deep turmoil. La Espina is a story of friendship, loyalty, love, searching and healing.
About the Author
Carol Alford, a Colorado native, grew up on the family farm enjoying tilling the rich soil, caring for animals and learning teamwork with her parents and three brothers. Coins were sparse, but it was a childhood of riches for the soul and for wondrous experiences. Carol's many years as a 4-H member brought opportunities for learning new skills, for working with all age groups, for earning recognition and for traveling, which inspired her to become a teacher. She proudly spent most of her thirty years teaching in the high school where she was graduated, but her greatest delight was raising two active children. Today she continues to substitute in the local schools, but her most cherished joys include sharing time and making memories with her parents and the seven children and twelve grandchildren that she and her husband share. In addition, she enjoys traveling the United States, Canada and Mexico with her husband in their motorhome. Other pursuits include painting, singing in her church choir and writing. This is Carol Alford's first novel.