Excerpt of A Texas Family Reunion by Judy Christenberry

Will Greenfield was enjoying the quiet solitude of the office one afternoon in February. The winds were blowing outside and the temperature hovered just below freezing. The weak winter sun struggled to make a difference, but it wasn't succeeding.

When he heard the outer door of Greenfield and Associates open, he looked up to see if his partners, Jim and Carrie Barlow, were returning. She'd had a doctor's appointment this morning, and Jim had gone with her. But the man who'd opened the door wasn't anyone he'd met before.

"Hello," Will said. He stood and walked around his desk and into the outer office. "I'm Will Greenfield. How can I help you?"

The man looked familiar, although Will was certain they had never met before.

"I'm not a potential client, Mr. Greenfield," the man said. "I'm here to see what kind of operation you run."

Will stared at the man probably twenty-five years his junior. "And why would you be interested in that if you're not a potential client?"

"My cousin is going to be working for you," he said tersely.

Will knew immediately to whom he was referring. "You're Alexandra Buford's cousin?"

"Yes. My name is David Buford."

"Does Alexandra have doubts about coming to work here?" Will asked.

"No, but I wanted to be sure you were legitimate."

"I see," Will said slowly. He had recently decided to hire a new agent when Carrie had become pregnant. Carrie wouldn't quit work completely, but she'd have to slow down a little.

"What kind of clients do you handle?"

"We do mostly insurance work. Occasionally we search for people or handle cases the police have given up on."

The man crossed his arms over his chest, and again Will was struck with a feeling of familiarity.

"Do you do any divorce cases, things like that?"

"Normally, no. Why? Do you have something against divorce cases?"

"They seem rather unsavory to me."

"What do you do for a living, Mr. Buford?" Will asked.

"I own a software company, Buford Works."

"And Alexandra didn't want to work for you?"

"No. She liked working in law enforcement, but she was tired of working the crazy hours. She doesn't have much seniority, so it would be a while before she could work days."

"So she said," Will said, watching the man.

"Is this a one-man office, just you and Alexandra?"

"No, I have two partners who aren't in today."

"Will she be the only woman?" David Buford asked sharply.

"No. One of my partners is female."

"Oh, good."

"Yes," Will agreed, still watching him closely.

"I won't take up any more of your time, then. Oh, I'd appreciate it if you wouldn't tell Alex I was here. She doesn't —" He broke off as the door behind him opened.

"David!" Alexandra Buford exclaimed, obviously surprised. "What are you doing here?"

"I just wanted to see where you'd be working, Alex. You know, check out the working conditions, the parking, that kind of thing," her cousin said.

Alexandra turned to her new boss. "Did he say anything to you to make you think I didn't want to work for you, Will? Because I can assure you I do want this job."

Will smiled as he noted the flash of anger in her brown eyes. "Don't worry, Alexandra. I didn't think you'd changed your mind."

"Good! So you can go now, David, now that you've checked out the parking at my new job."

"If you haven't started work yet," he said, "why don't I take you to lunch?"

"No, I don't have time. I want to set up my desk so I'll be ready to start," the young woman protested.

"You might as well accept his offer, Alexandra," Will said. "Your desk hasn't arrived yet. They called and told us it would be a couple of hours before it comes." He smiled at David Buford.

"Then why don't we eat at a restaurant near here so you can get back quickly," Buford suggested to his cousin.

"I guess so," the young woman said grudgingly.

"I apologize for interrupting your work, Mr. Greenfield," David Buford said, reaching out to shake Will's hand.

"No problem. I'm glad to have met you. Stop by anytime."

Once they'd left, Will sat back down at his desk and tried to return to work, but something about the man — or was it his name? — continued to puzzle him.

Will kept musing, searching his memory. Was the name Buford in any of the cases they were working on? It was funny that Alexandra's name hadn't struck him as familiar when he'd interviewed her. So why did it when it was attached to her cousin?

He was just getting up to search through a few files when the office door opened again and his partners, Jim and Carrie Barlow, entered the office.

Will hurried around his desk to greet them. He hugged Carrie and shook Jim's hand, asking, "What did the doctor say?"

"He said I'm fine, and there's no reason I should sit at home on a pillow all day," Carrie said, rolling her eyes at her husband.

"I'm glad to hear it. I want you to train Alexandra so she'll be ready to take over when you're on maternity leave."

"It shouldn't take long," Carrie said. "After all, she's a police officer, or was."

"That's true," Will agreed.

Jim frowned. "I thought she was coming in this morning to get set up?"

"The desk was delayed, so she went out to lunch with her cousin."

Jim nodded. "Any messages?"

"Yes, that lady you phoned in Longview called back. She left another number where she could be reached during the day."

"Terrific. I'm hoping to get the name of the people who adopted David from her. She used to be a neighbor of my family's." Jim retrieved the message from his desk. "If you'll excuse me," he muttered, and dialed the number.

"He can't wait to find David," Carrie murmured to Will. "Did anything else happen while we were gone?"

"Well, Alexandra's cousin appeared. He wanted to see what kind of a company she was going to work for."

"That's sweet. I'm glad she has family who look out for her."

"I don't think she really needs to be looked out for, Carrie. She was a police officer."

"I know, Will. I just think it's nice. I was worried because she said she was an only child."

"Well, now you don't have to worry," Will said, and gave Carrie a quick hug. "I have to get back to work now." He disappeared into his office.

Carrie smiled and slid into the chair behind her desk. She turned on the computer and began to input the files she'd been working on. She'd become so involved in her work she didn't realize her husband had gotten off the phone until he spoke to her. "Yes, dear?"

"I said, that's strange."

"What?"

"The family who adopted David has the same last name as Alexandra."

"Really? But Buford isn't that unusual a name, is it?" Carrie asked.

"No, I suppose not. Maybe it's just one of those crazy coincidences."

"So does the family still live in Longview?"

"No. The lady isn't sure where they moved. She said they left Longview about three years after my parents' deaths."

"Alexandra's from here, isn't she?"

"Plano, she said," Jim muttered, naming a northern suburb of Dallas.

"What are you doing?"

"I just thought I'd look in the phone directory to see if there were any David Bufords listed in the area." He picked up the phone again and dialed a number, then asked the person who answered if a family named Bu-ford had moved from Longview ten or twelve years ago.

When he hung up, Carrie asked, "Well?"

"Nope."

"Do you have more numbers?"

"Yeah. Are you willing to help make the calls?" He sent her a teasing look.

"You know I am, sweetheart, but I won't interfere if you want to make them all yourself."

"No, it doesn't have to be me who finds him, as long as we find him." He wrote down some numbers and brought them over to her desk.

After receiving a kiss from her husband, Carrie, too, began to dial the numbers he'd given her and to ask questions. Neither of them was having much luck when Will came out of his office again.

"What are you doing?" Will asked.

Jim explained what he'd learned.

"Buford is David's name now?" Will asked. Then he slapped his forehead with his hand. "I just met him!"

Both his partners stared at him. "Who?" Jim asked.

"Your brother. It's got to be him. I thought he looked like someone I know. It was you!"

"Was his name Buford?" Carrie asked.

"Yeah. He introduced himself as Alexandra's cousin, David Buford."

"Where did he go?" Jim demanded, excitement in his voice.

"He took Alexandra out to lunch. They should be back soon, but I don't know if he'll come up with her. She didn't seem to appreciate his overprotectiveness."

Carrie grinned. "I know how she feels."

Jim scowled. "I don't overprotect you."

"Not by yourself. You and Will work together to protect me."

"Come on, sweetheart, you know we're only trying to make sure you're safe," Jim said.

She ignored him. "Did he really look like Jim?"

"Yes, he did. He isn't quite as tall, but he's still over six feet. His hair is dark, like all the Barlows, but he has blue eyes."

"My dad had blue eyes. Mom had brown," Jim said. Just then Alexandra entered the office.

"Where's your cousin?" Will asked.

"I sent him back to work. I'm really so embarrassed that he came here checking up on my workplace."

Jim stepped forward. "Alexandra, was your cousin adopted?"