Lilac Lane (Chesapeake Shores #14)(46)

“I am so, so sorry for that. And I’m even sorrier that it’s complicating all the emotions that come along with finding your biological father. Is there anything at all I can do to make it easier? I told you before that I’ll go with you to Chesapeake Shores if that will help. You don’t have to meet him the first time on your own. I can even stay in the background. He doesn’t even have to know I’m there or who I am. I’ll just be there if you need me.”

A part of her wanted to lean on him, but she knew this was a decision she had to make herself and something she needed to do by herself and in her own time. “I appreciate your willingness to go with me, but I need to do it on my own, when I’m ready. I’ll be able to handle it when the time is right.”

“Well, just remember that I’m here and that I love you and you will always be my daughter in every way that matters.”

She wiped away more tears at his words. That was Ash, strong and solid, even when she knew his heart must be aching. His world had changed, too. She needed to remember that.

“I love you,” she whispered.

After a startled beat, he replied, “Love you more,” just as he always had.

Their relationship might have had a huge setback, but some things would never change. She took comfort in knowing that.

*

The rhythm of Kiera’s days was becoming familiar and comfortable. Several mornings a week, she worked in Bryan’s garden before the sun got too hot. He usually joined her at some point, either bringing her a cup of tea or a bottle of cold water. They’d even gone back to Panini Bistro a couple of times, thankfully with no chance encounters with Mick or any other O’Brien.

While O’Briens had been in and out of the pub more frequently than usual, their gazes speculative, Kiera had done her best to ignore them and taken even greater care to stay clear of Bryan during their visits. She would give them no fodder for their wild imaginings.

Her daughter, however, had been oddly absent for a week now. Kiera couldn’t help thinking that Moira had somehow figured out that Kiera knew of her role in the cottage renovations and was giving her mother a wide berth until her temper cooled.

Since it was a matter that needed to be settled between them, Kiera decided it was time to pay a visit to Moira’s home on Beach Lane. For one thing, she missed her granddaughter.

When she knocked on the door, she noted that Moira’s car was still in the driveway, and she could hear the sound of Kate’s giggles drifting through the open windows. It was, she thought, the sweetest sound she’d ever heard.

“Come in. It’s open,” Moira called out when Kiera knocked again.

She found her daughter in the kitchen on her knees, cleaning up a splattering of oatmeal that had reached the four corners of the room.

“Did our Kate not like her breakfast?” Kiera inquired, as the little girl in question held out her arms to her. Kiera took a damp cloth to her face and hands before picking her up.

“Your granddaughter picked this morning to throw a fine tantrum,” Moira said. She gave Kate a sour look. “And now, for you of course, she’s all smiles.”

Kiera laughed. “That’s the way it sometimes works. Any idea what set her off?”

“Her beloved father left for work, abandoning her, or so she seemed to assume. Apparently I make a poor substitute.”

“Ah, I lived through that a time or two. Of course, it wasn’t that your father had left for the day, since he’d never been around, but simply that I was not enough for you.”

“Was there a logic to it?” Moira inquired plaintively. “Something that I can do to avoid such a scene?”

“Not that I was ever able to determine. It did always seem to happen when I was in a rush to be somewhere. You were particularly fond of mashing the oatmeal into your hair, then screaming like a banshee when I had to wash it out.”

Moira sighed as she wiped up the last of the oatmeal from the floor. “Then it seems this little apple didn’t fall far from the tree.” Her gaze lifted to Kiera’s. “Mum, how did you do it with three of us and no help at all?”

“There were plenty of days when I didn’t cope all that well,” Kiera confessed. “I just prayed you wouldn’t notice. With three of you, if you’d figured out my weaknesses, I wouldn’t have stood a chance.”

“But you survived,” Moira said, a note of what sounded like awe, or perhaps hope, in her voice.

“I survived. You will, too. And you do have help, more than you could possibly need, if you’d simply ask for it.”

“Pure stubbornness,” Moira admitted. “She’s a wee little girl. I should be able to manage this.”

“There’s a wide path between should and can. You need to learn when to cross to the other side and hold out a hand to your husband or me or anyone else in this town who’d be happy to have your back. Now, sit down, hold your daughter and I’ll make us both a cup of tea.”

Moira took Kate from her, then chuckled. “You’re more like Nell than you probably realize. You think a cup of tea is the solution to every problem.”

“It’s usually a good start,” Kiera told her.

“So what brings you by this morning? Did you have some instinct that I was at my wit’s end?”

“Not at all, but it’s been a few days since we’ve crossed paths. I was wondering if there was a reason for that.”