It Must Be Your Love (The Sullivans #11)(66)

Chapter Twenty-eight

“I’m really glad you brought Ford home to spend some time with us tonight,” Mia’s mother said to her as they walked into the kitchen to heat up the apple pie Claudia had made for dessert. “I like him very much, honey. He seems like a good man.”

Mia loved that her mother didn’t refer to Ford’s talent or his fame. She hadn’t said something like, “Considering how rich and successful he is, he’s a nice man.” Instead, Claudia was looking only at the man he was at his core, and at the way he treated her daughter. There were very few people for whom Ford’s career and bank account wouldn’t matter, but Mia’s mother was one of them.

“Thanks for being so nice to him tonight, Mom. Especially given what a tough crowd Dad and the boys were at first. Ford has never had much of a family, and I think it means a lot to him to be here with all of us tonight.”

“He’s the first man you’ve ever brought home. Even if that didn’t tell me how special he is to you, I would have known from watching the two of you together at the wedding.”

Mia stopped halfway to reaching for a stack of clean forks. “You could tell there was something between us last weekend?”

“You’ve always looked at the men you’ve dated playfully, flirtatiously. They can’t take their eyes off you, but you’ve never had a problem looking away. Ford is the only man I’ve ever seen you with where you couldn’t stop staring right back at him, too. But it’s not just his good looks that draws you to him, is it?”

“No. Although when a guy looks like he does, it’s hard to remember why I should even try to resist him.”

“What do you think will make you happier, honey? Finding a way to keep resisting how you feel about him?” Her mother’s eyes were warm with understanding. “Or giving in to what you feel whenever he’s near?”

It was both a blessing and a curse that her mother seemed to have emotional X-ray vision with her children. On the one hand, it meant she was always there for them, even before they accepted that they needed her support. On the other, it made hiding from the truth downright impossible.

Which, Mia suddenly realized, was why she hadn’t brought Ford home five years ago. Not just because she didn’t want to give up even a few precious hours in his arms, but because even though she’d been head over heels for him, she must have known that neither of them was ready yet to truly love each other. Her father and brothers would have been just as protective as they had been tonight...but her mother would have seen all the rest.

Still, Mia’s mother had never tried to push her one way or another, whether in love or career. Claudia simply supported all her children in whatever direction they chose to go. Even if that direction sometimes ended up being a mistake.

“When he came back into my life a week ago, I thought I knew exactly who he was. But he keeps surprising me in really good ways. I’m happy with him, Mom, so much happier than I can ever remember being. But—” She broke off, not knowing how to put what she was feeling into words. “Why is it that the happier I feel when I’m with him, the more and more scared I get about losing myself in that happiness?”

“I was just as frightened with your father,” her mother said as she stroked Mia’s hair. “I was afraid to let myself love him all the way just in case something went wrong and tore us apart. The truth is, honey, things go wrong all the time, but they go right, too. Finally, I realized that there was no one I’d rather share all those right and wrong times with.”

Claudia’s arms had come around her, and Mia was glad to let herself be held. “I don’t know why I didn’t talk to you about this before now. I should have told you what happened between us five years ago, but I worked so hard to keep it from everyone.”

“If you ask me, it’s perfectly natural that when we feel so much, when our entire world begins to revolve around someone else, that’s when we turn the most into ourselves. We’re sure that no one else can possibly understand what it’s like to love so deeply, aren’t we?”

Over the past few days, Mia had been coming closer and closer to accepting that what she was feeling for Ford was real. And that it could last.

Tonight, she decided, she would finally tell him everything that was in her heart. And she wouldn’t let herself be afraid anymore of the rights and the wrongs, the good and the bad, as long as she had her best friend beside her.

“He needs a family.” Mia’s heart broke all over again when she thought about the man and woman she’d met the day before who were too stupid to know what an amazing son they had in Ford. “He hasn’t been as lucky as I am to have all of you. I so want that for him.” She reached for her mother, needing her to know how much she appreciated the support, the encouragement, and the unconditional love that Claudia had given her since the day she was born. “I love you, Mom.”

“I love you, too, honey. And while Ford might not have had a great family to grow up with, he is still a very lucky man.”

“You mean because of his success?”

“No.” Her mother’s eyes were soft with emotion for her youngest. “Because he has not only your friendship, but your love, too. All that’s left is to give him your trust.”

Yes, Mia thought as her mother’s words rang true. Watching him with her family felt like putting the final puzzle piece into place. One that had been an obvious fit all along, but had eluded her until tonight.