Under the Boardwalk (Costas Sisters 1)

Quinn rolled his shoulders. If Ari didn’t want to remain and hear what Elena wanted to discuss, she probably already knew what it was. “Why do I get the feeling that everyone in here knows what Elena wants to discuss except me?” he asked, looking at Ari.

She shot him a guilty look. “I don’t know for sure, but I have a hunch. Let’s go,” she said, holding a hand out to Sam, who left the room grumbling.

“What’s going on?” he asked Elena.

She placed a folder on the counter. “I’ve been doing some research. I contacted the Division of Youth and Family Services about becoming a foster parent for Sam.”

Shock rippled through him. Whatever he’d been expecting, it wasn’t this. “That’s a huge responsibility.”

Elena nodded. “I raised two girls. Of course I know that.”

He lowered himself into one of the kitchen chairs. “And how does your husband feel about this?” Quinn asked, all the while sorting through the idea in his mind.

There was no doubt Sam needed a home and every possibility Elena and Nicholas could provide one. A good one. One that would make Sam happy. Quinn had thought he was out of options, a group home being the only solution. Now Ari’s family was offering him hope and he had to admit he was optimistic. Cautiously optimistic.

Elena joined him at the table. “Nicholas is fine with the idea. He’s a good man, and when he heard about Sam’s situation, of course he agreed she should come live with us.”

He pinched the bridge of his nose. “It’s noble, Elena, but you can’t . . .” How could he say this delicately? he wondered. “You can’t adopt Sam just to help fill the void left by Zoe’s absence.”

Elena whacked him on the shoulder. “Bite your tongue at such a suggestion. First off, Zoe’s coming back. And secondly, both my girls are adults. They live their own lives, and Sam coming here would have nothing to do with that,” she assured Quinn.

“What did Family Services say?” he asked next.

“They went into a lengthy explanation about the requirements, the classes, home inspections, and time it takes to approve a family.” Elena waved a hand, dismissing the process as unimportant. “But Sam doesn’t have that kind of time. She can’t go on living in an environment where she knows she isn’t wanted. It’s not healthy and it’s bad for her self-esteem. Besides, she can stay here.”

“Can I, Quinn, please?” Sam came bouncing back into the room.

“I tried to restrain her.” Ari followed after her, a concerned expression on her face. “But Sam insisted on being here when Mom told you her idea,” Ari said to Quinn, neither expressing support for her mother’s decision to take Sam in, nor protesting it.

And given her family history and problems with her relatives, Quinn couldn’t figure out which side she came down on. Right now he only wanted to smooth the worry lines and promise her everything would be okay. How could he when he wasn’t sure what was bothering her?

He only knew what upset him and he turned to Elena. “So Sam knows about your plan?” Quinn asked.

Elena’s nod confirmed his fear. Nothing about the foster care system was easy or guaranteed, and he hated to have the kid’s hopes raised once more only to endure disappointment later. It was one thing for his heart to beat faster in his chest and for him to feel the potential excitement of a solution he once thought impossible. It wasn’t okay for Sam to be led on a journey of false hope.

“Isn’t it cool?” Sam asked. “And Elena’s willing to look into adoption,” she said, awe in her voice. “Somebody wants me!”

Oh shit. This thing had gone too far in a short time. “I have some connections,” he said, trying to take back some control. “Let me see if I can speed up the reference and home check.” His being a cop who vouched for the Costas family would go a long way toward helping with references.

Neither Zoe nor Ariana had mentioned anyone in the family having a criminal record, but the department ran thorough checks, including fingerprinting, and that was just the beginning of potential problems and snags.

“Hey, Quinn.” Sam poked him in the shoulder. “Me and Ari and Zoe can be sisters! Did you see pictures of Zoe? She looks just like Ari. How awesome is that?”

It was frigging fantastic, Quinn thought. If he could make it happen. Until then, everyone had to keep their wits about them.

“When she comes home, my Zoe will love you,” Elena assured the young girl.

He glanced at Ari. She leaned against the counter and remained silent, looking as torn as he was. But the one thing that stood out as if he could read her mind was her guilt over her knowledge about her sister. Now that she knew Quinn was a cop and she could believe his claim that her twin was alive, keeping the truth from her mother was eating away at her. Quinn understood.