The Daughter He Never Knew

by Linda Barrett

  “Oh.”

  “So I sent her some red roses this morning.”

  “Oh-h-h.” Matt’s voice rose in interest, and he gave Jason a thumbs-up.

  Jason grinned and jogged to the street to collect Casey. The odds were stacked against him, and from what he’d heard, Lila’s boyfriend was a nice enough guy. But was “nice” good enough? He had doubts. Big doubts. In the end, he might fall flat on his face in his pursuit, but it was gratifying to know his brother was in his corner.

  “GOOD MORNING, JANE,” said Lila to the office manager at Quinn Real Estate and Property Management. “Had to drop Katie at my mother’s, so I’m a little late. Any new appointments? Any cancellations?” She spoke over her shoulder as she walked quickly to her office across the hallway from Jane’s desk. She liked to be right where the action was, and that meant near the front door. “Is my granddad here yet?”

  “No, no and yes.”

  Lila turned and grinned at the woman who’d taken to her first office job at the age of forty as though born to it. And that had been less than two years ago. Now Lila and Bart wouldn’t know how to survive without her.

  “You had a delivery, and Mr. Quinn was here when it arrived. He is now in a very good mood.”

  Lila yawned. “I’d also be in one if I’d gotten more sleep.”

  “I’m going to keep my mouth buttoned up here,” said Jane. “Oh, good,” she added as the phone began to ring. “Saved by the bell.”

  Lila crossed the threshold of her office, then froze for a moment when she saw the stunning vase of roses on her desk. Gorgeous red roses. Adam was such a generous man. She rubbed the ring on her finger. He seemed serious about setting a wedding date. She couldn’t think of a reason for the flowers, however, except as a surprise. Surprises were usually out of character for Adam, but maybe…

  She walked closer, stroked the velvety petals and bent her head to inhale their fragrance. Heady, sweet. Feminine. “Hmm…” she almost purred as she inhaled again and brushed her cheek against the velvet.

  Nine roses. Hmm… An odd number for flowers. The number nagged at her. Nine. The number had significance for only one person. And it wasn’t Adam.

  Her hand trembled as she reached for the card.

  “You’re as beautiful as ever—inside and out. And as my friend, Luis, would say, ‘Mi casa es su casa.’” It was signed “J.”

  My house is your house. Once upon a time, it would have been. But now, “‘It’s too late, and much too dark,’” she murmured. New chapters had begun.

  “It’s never too late if you love him.”

  Startled, Lila pivoted and looked at her granddad, his blue eyes filled with interest, question and hope. It was all there, along with the love he’d always shown her.

  A wry laugh preceded her words. “Love,” said Lila, “doesn’t seem to be enough.” She looked Bart straight in the eye. “I want a man I can trust. Jason Parker is not that man.”

  “You’re wrong, lass. Give him a chance.”

  A chance? She’d given him years. “Is that your famous gut instinct talking? Or is it your own heart, Granddad? You’re Sam Parker’s best friend, and you want a happy ending for him and everybody else, too. Well, I can’t help you with that script. Not this time. I don’t believe in fairy tales.” She held up her hand. “I’m happy wearing Adam Fielding’s ring.”

  “No, you’re not,” he replied without missing a beat. “You’re lying to yourself. And that’s not like you, lass.”

  Did he think he was a mind reader among all his other talents? Well, she’d had enough of people telling her what to think, how to feel, what to do. “I’m trying not to be rude, Granddad, but it really isn’t your business!”

  The silence in the room pulsed against her ears. The expression on Bart’s face…shock, anger, disappointment. Mostly shock.

  “You’re wrong again!” he retorted. “My family is my business! Every last one of you down to my little Katie. The boys at college—they’re mine! Your mom and dad—they’re mine, too.” His voice rose. “The Quinns and the Sullivans and the Cavellis, too. They’re all in here…in here.” He banged on his chest as he spoke. “My family is everything.”

  Now it was Lila who was in shock. “Granddad. Stop!”

  He waved his hand at her and pulled himself up straighter than a soldier at attention. “Nothing’s wrong with me, lass, that a little common sense wouldn’t cure—some common sense on your part.”

  “I am being sensible!”

  “Real love doesn’t have to make sense. What it must have is passion!” He pointed to her and then to himself. “Just look at us.”

  He left her then, left her mind in a whirl, and actually went whistling down the hall. Lila recognized the happy Irish folk tune. She stared after him through her open door. Then looked at the roses on her desk. “What in the world just happened here?”

  WITH CASEY CHATTERING NONSTOP, Jason arrived at the middle school thirty minutes before the game. His mind, however, was not really on baseball. It was on Lila. He hoped she’d be at the game with Katie, and he wondered how she’d liked the roses.

  He drove to the lot behind the school.

  “Look. Coach is here already!”

  “Hang on, slugger, until I’m parked.” Jason heard the clicking of Casey’s seat belt as the kid unstrapped himself. And as soon as he shut the motor, he heard the back door open.

  “You know what, Uncle Jason?”

  Jason turned his head. “What, Case?”

  “I’m so glad you’re here! It’s fun!” Slam went the door, and Jason watched his younger nephew scamper to the dugout.

  “I’m glad, too, Casey,” he murmured, getting out of the car.

  He stood on the rise overlooking the field and inhaled the crisp spring air. Today the sun held the promise of warmth as it shone in a clear blue sky. The baseball diamond gleamed a bright green, grass trimmed close to the baselines. And young voices chirped like birds. Jason could sense the excitement.

  He’d missed this. This small-town memory now come to life. Wasn’t it only a minute ago that he and Jared had raced around the bases, their mom and dad cheering in the bleachers?

  He took a step toward the field and heard another door slam. A deep voice. And a high-pitched one. Turning slightly, he saw Lila’s boyfriend with his daughter in tow. Jason nodded in greeting, and the child’s eyes lit up.

  “Oh, good. Is Katie here already?”

  “I brought Casey today, but I’m sure Katie’ll be here any minute.” Sweet little girl. Chocolate-brown eyes tilted at the ends and a dark head of curls. They’d seen each other at the practice during the week. “Does Katie’s friend have a name?”

  “I’m Sara,” she replied with dignity as she turned to the man next to her. “And this is my dad.”

  “Adam Fielding.” Sara’s father stepped forward, his hand extended.

  They were of a height, but Fielding was more slenderly built. He had straight brown hair, the kind that always falls on the forehead. Jason watched him brush it back. His brown eyes, tinged with yellow, were now taking inventory of Jason.

  “Jason Parker.” Jason clasped the man’s hand. “Katie’s father. Matt’s brother.”

  Adam Fielding nodded. “Can’t mistake that resemblance.”

  “I guess not,” replied Jason with a quick grin. “But you should have seen my other brother.” His smile deserted him as a pang shot from his heart. Why, for God’s sake, had he mentioned Jared to a virtual stranger?

  But Adam just stood quietly. “It doesn’t get easier when you’ve really loved someone, does it?” he replied. “No matter what people say.” Grief-filled eyes stared at Jason. Eyes reflecting so much pain that Jason lost his breath.

  And then Fielding blinked. An easy smile appeared and he nodded at the kids. “Let’s go watch baseball.”

  “Good idea,” said Jason. But he turned back toward the parking lot. “I wonder where Katie…”

  “Dad-dy!” And there she was
flying toward him, her glove dropping on the ground, her blond hair blowing behind her as she ran. “Dad-dy. You came.” Her arms were raised, and he scooped her up and twirled her around, the same way he’d done the first time on the field when she’d thought he was Matt. No mistaken identity today.

  “Hi, Adam,” she said from her perch in Jason’s arms. “My first daddy came back.” She wiggled to the ground.

  “I see that,” replied Sara’s dad. “You’re a lucky girl.”

  “Yup. Where’s my glove? I’m gonna be late and that’s no good.”

  “Your glove’s right here where you dropped it.” A new voice. Female.

  Jason studied the older version of Lila walking toward them. Maggie Sullivan. He remembered her well. A very attractive woman who’d managed to remain so. Lila could thank her mom for passing on some good genes. Maggie handed the fielder’s glove to Katie. “Have fun, honey.”

  “Thanks. Bye.” And the child was off to the dugout.

  “Morning, Mrs. Sullivan,” said Adam. “Staying for the game?”

  “Hi, Adam. Sara feeling better today, I hope?” She bestowed a warm smile on the man, turning to ward him so that her back faced Jason.

  “She says she does, so I let her play. It’s hard to know what to do sometimes.”

  She nodded. “Yes, indeed. And being a single parent makes it even harder. But…you won’t be single for long. Soon you and Lila will handle things together. And I couldn’t be happier.”

  Jason realized that he was meant to hear every word Maggie spoke. He rested back on his heels, his curiosity tingling, wondering what her next line would be. Wondering if the woman would acknowledge his presence at all.

  “If you could bring Katie back to Lila’s office after the game,” Maggie continued to Adam, “I can watch her play for a while now and still have enough time to prepare the Lobster Pot for later.”

  Time to intervene. “Katie will come with me.” A quiet statement. Jason waited until Lila’s mother finally turned around. “Hello, Maggie,” he greeted in the same quiet tone. “You’re looking well.”

  She ignored his remark. Instead, she looked from him to Adam and back. “Have you two met?”

  “We have,” replied Jason. “And the earth continues to spin on its axis.”

  Adam waved. “And that’s my cue to mosey on down to the bleachers. See you around.”

  “Tactful guy,” said Jason.

  “That’s only one of his many fine qualities.” Lila’s mother delivered her comment like a lecture, her lips pursed.

  Jason burst into laughter. “So sorry, Maggie,” he said to the affronted woman. “But with every sentence, you sound like you’re reading from a script. A bad one at that. You want to tell me to go to hell, so why don’t you just do it and sound more like yourself?”

  The woman’s eyes flashed, the mouth narrowed. He’d been around Lila’s house plenty of times in the old days and remembered Maggie’s mercurial temper. Tom Sullivan had called her his fire-cracker…at least, he used to. And Jason couldn’t think of a reason he’d stop. Maggie Sullivan hadn’t changed a bit.

  “Not hell, Jason. California would be fine.” She spun to stand in front of him, tilted back to look him in the eye. “Just get out of Pilgrim Cove. Visit your family for a day or two, and go back where you came from.” She sounded desperate.

  “What are you afraid of, Maggie?”

  “You ask that! Haven’t you caused enough problems? Too many nights crying herself to sleep? Raising a child. And now, when her life is good…the best it’s ever been…with a good man…You show up. My daughter deserves the best, and Adam Fielding is perfect for her. If you’re any kind of man, Jason Parker, then leave her and Katie alone. Get out of town.”

  Jason saw her whole body shake. She’d poured a hundred percent of her feelings into her speech, and the effort had cost her. But she was wrong. Adam Fielding was not perfect for Lila. The man wasn’t perfect for any woman yet. Jason had seen the pain in his eyes. He was still grieving for his wife.

  “Would you like to sit down?” He nodded at the bleachers and at the parking lot, giving her a choice. He’d deal with her words later.

  “Not likely. No cozy chats with you.”

  Seemed that “later” would have to be now. “I’m back to stay, Maggie.”

  HE’D PUT UP A GOOD FRONT for Maggie, but her words lingered as he watched the game. Was he being selfish? Maybe he should rethink his decision. Maybe holiday visits or monthly visits were all he deserved. If Maggie was right and Lila was happy…

  Then he remembered the kiss. The kiss he and Lila had shared at Sea View House. Could Lila respond like that but still love someone else? He didn’t think so.

  Of course she’d been a single parent for so long now, responsible and hardworking. Maybe she needed more than physical attraction and a long held love. What the hell did he know about relationships anyway?

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  “WE HAD LUNCH with Uncle Matt and Grandpa Sam at the store. And then Brian went with his friends, and Casey and I went with Daddy to Sea View House.”

  Katie’s voice was muffled by the force of the shower. Just as well as far as Lila was concerned. The child had been chattering nonstop since Jason had dropped her off at the house. Daddy this, and Daddy that. Her only topic of conversation. “A regular Johnny one-note,” Lila mumbled.

  The water stopped. “Huh?” said Katie.

  “Never mind. Let’s get you dried off and your hair combed.”

  “Quick, Mom. I gotta get ready for the poker game.”

  Lila rolled her eyes. “I hope you don’t bother Papa Bart and his friends. You stay out of their way, don’t you?”

  “M-o-o-m! I hafta stay at the table with them ’cause I’m Papa Bart’s helper. But not for telling him about everybody’s cards—I only did that once—but for passing out the food. And beer.” She stopped wiggling, and looked at Lila. “Beer tastes terrible…but they like it. How come?”

  “I have no clue, puss.” She leaned closer to her daughter and whispered, “I don’t like it, either.”

  Katie giggled and wrapped her arms around Lila’s waist. “Oh, I love you, Mommy.”

  Lila nuzzled her daughter’s neck, inhaled her sweet fragrance. “And I love you forever and ever and ever.”

  “And I love you forever and Daddy forever, too.”

  Katie smiled up at Lila. And Lila knew then that Jason was going to be a part of the rest of their lives. She’d have to work something out with him, just as Adam had suggested. Not the worst thing in the world. Adam had said that, too. Lots of families had scheduled visits, and her family would soon be one of them.

  She glanced at her watch. “Come on, Katie. Let’s do your hair and then you can scram. I’ve got to get ready. Adam will be here soon.”

  “Cool. Then my two dads will be here. My first and my second.”

  Lila dropped the brush. “What did you say? Two dads?”

  Katie nodded. “Yeah. Daddy’s playing cards, too. With Grandpa Sam and Papa Bart and…you know…the ROMEOs.”

  Lila did know. She recalled that the men had moved their regular game to this evening. Their Friday night tradition had been in place for as many years as Lila could remember. Bart always joined the family for dinner at the restaurant, then went to his card game. And tonight, Saturday, Jason was joining them. Nothing she could do about it. In fact, she’d have to get used to Jason popping up around town and around her—their—daughter.

  She stood under the hot shower imagining her discussion with Jason over scheduled visits. She hoped he would be cooperative. Finally, she dried herself off and chose a silk turquoise sweater paired with black slacks and black wedge sandals. Her hair fell past her shoulders, and hoop-style turquoise-and-silver earrings completed the ensemble. At least she looked well put together on the outside. She dabbed on some pink lipstick and ventured into the front of the house, just as Jason walked through the door.

  Her heart ricocheted in every di
rection as she watched Jason and Sam greet her grandfather. Once again she saw that the lanky boy had grown into a broad-shouldered, solidly muscled man, now exuding self-confidence in conversation with Bart. He filled out his sea-green sport shirt in a way that made her want to slowly slide the buttons through their openings—one at a time—and let her fingers walk across bare skin.

  She forced herself to move. Break the spell. She’d have to stop behaving like a teenager every time she saw him. The present would have to erase the past, erase her memories of the younger Jason. Those memories didn’t hold true anymore.

  She stepped forward and Jason turned around…then froze when he saw her. She paused. Couldn’t breathe. Wondered if crowded rooms really could disappear. She saw only him.

  “My God,” he whispered. “You’re more beautiful than in my dreams.”

  His thousand and one dreams.

  The doorbell rang, jerking her from the dream state. “Adam’s here, Mommy.”

  Lila pasted a smile on her face and walked to the first man she’d felt comfortable with since Jason had left Pilgrim Cove. She tilted her head back for a kiss and looped her arm through his. “I’m ready.”

  “You sure? It always took Eileen three tries before we actually left the house.” His teasing grin took any hint of criticism from his words, but Lila was surprised. He rarely mentioned Sara’s mother. Maybe this was a good sign that he was more and more comfortable in their relationship.

  “Lila’s a very organized person,” said Jason coming forward to shake the other man’s hand. “If she says she’s ready, she’s ready. How’re you doing, Adam? Is Sara knocked out from the game?”

  She was more than ready to leave.

  “Dozing off when I left her with the sitter.”

  Lila felt herself scowl. What did Jason think he was doing? Befriending the competition? She didn’t know how his mind worked anymore. Perhaps he was simply insuring that Katie and Sara remained good friends regardless of their parents. Now, that idea she could appreciate.