It's Better This Way(17)

Silently, Julia wondered how much of an effort Laura had made to connect with their daughters. She quickly put an end to that line of unproductive thought. Once Laura’s sons and her daughters had gotten into a nasty verbal exchange, Laura had basically ignored Eddie’s family.

    “I know you’ve tried, and I’m genuinely sorry, Eddie.”

He sighed again with frustration and regret. “Guess I shouldn’t complain, I can be just as strong-willed.”

Julia grinned in full agreement. She didn’t know how long it had been since his last attempt to connect with his daughters. Neither had mentioned their father in several months, which told her he hadn’t made any effort for quite some time.

“When’s the wedding?” Eddie asked.

This was the point where their conversation was sure to get sticky. “She’s hoping sometime in November, before the holidays. As soon as she sets the date, I’ll let you know.”

“I wish Hillary would tell me herself.”

Julia felt the same.

“Will she let me help with the costs? I’d like to do that. That might build a bridge between us.”

The offer was generous, in light of the fact Hillary had barely spoken to her father in the last six years. “I don’t know. You’ll have to ask her. My guess is that she and Blake will want to cover the expenses themselves. I offered to pay for the photographer and the cake.”

“Hard to believe Hillary is close to thirty.”

The years flew by far too quickly.

“She waited long enough, didn’t she? Any particular reason she held off as long as she did?”

No way Julia would admit she feared the divorce had destroyed her daughter’s view of love and marriage.

    “Again, that’s a question for Hillary to answer.”

“Would you tell her that I’d like to help with the cost of the wedding?”

“Eddie, I can’t. You should tell her that yourself.”

He waited a couple seconds, mulling it over, and then said, “She’d probably reject the offer anyway.”

“You won’t know unless you ask,” she gently reminded him.

“She ignores my calls.”

“Then text or email.” She didn’t know why she should be the one advising him. He knew how to connect with his daughters. She shouldn’t be the one pushing him. If it was up to her, she’d stay out of this messy situation entirely. Even being put in the position of telling him about Hillary’s engagement was more than she was comfortable with.

“Do you remember when she was little, how she loved to play bride?” Eddie asked. “You sewed her a veil, and she moved the chairs around in the dining room to make an aisle. What was she, six or seven at the time? She insisted I needed to walk her down the aisle.”

“I remember.”

“Marie was her maid of honor.” His mind seemed to drift back to the days when their girls were small and filled with imagination and wonder. After attending the wedding of Eddie’s cousin, they’d returned home wanting to be brides themselves. Julia had constructed a small veil for Hillary, and she’d worn a pair of Julia’s high heels and carried a bouquet of yellow dandelions.

That seemed a lifetime ago now. Her daughters had once dreamed of happily ever after, never suspecting that one day that dream would shatter when reality set in and their parents divorced. At the time of the divorce, both girls were adults. She’d assumed they were mature enough not to be affected by the disillusionment of the marriage. Even after the clash with Laura’s sons, Julia had hoped the girls would accept their father’s decision to remarry and move on. It stunned her even now how personally they had taken his choice.

    “I want to be the one to escort my daughter down the aisle.”

Oh dear, Julia had hoped to avoid this. It wasn’t up to her to report what Hillary had said.

“It’s what I always expected,” she agreed, perhaps a bit overly emphatically.

Her voice must have given away some hint of discouragement, because Eddie picked up on it right away.

“What aren’t you telling me?” he demanded.

“If you do or don’t escort Hillary is between the two of you,” she said, as gently as she could. “I have nothing to do with this, and I don’t plan to get in the middle, either.”

“She knows as well as you that’s my right as her father.”

Julia agreed. Hillary had made it plain she had no intention of letting her dad know her plans. Hearing the pain in Eddie’s voice made her heart ache for him. Even though they were no longer married, and he’d betrayed her, she continued to have feelings for Eddie. She always would.

“This is a matter you need to discuss with Hillary. Please, Eddie, all I ask is that you leave me out of it,” Julia said. “Don’t use me as a go-between.”

“Come on, Julia. Hillary isn’t talking to me.”

“Then try again,” she advised. No way was she stepping into this cesspool of hurt and anger.

“It’s Laura, isn’t it?”

    “Eddie, did you not hear me? I refuse to get in the middle of this. I was uncomfortable even telling you about the engagement. I would have left it, only I knew if you heard the news and didn’t know, you’d be hurt.”