Chapter 22
Chapter Twenty-Two
“ I ’m so happy you’re all here.” Amy drew Lucas and Sylvie in for a hug and lingered.
Over their shoulders, she saw Sylvie’s husband, Stan, wrestling with a duffel bag. He offered her a wave, then paused to help Lucas’s wife, Susan, with the large cooler. Smiling and laughing, the two of them walked up the front porch and joined in on the large hug.
Moments later, another car pulled up next to the Wilson family manor, with Lucas and Susan’s daughter, Judy, stumbling out of the back, mid-laugh. She turned to her cousins, June and Beth, and the three of them linked arms and walked up, grinning from ear to ear. Amy’s heart swelled with gratitude, joy, and pride over seeing her grandchildren. She couldn’t believe they were finally there, or that she was getting to share her new life with them.
Amy knew the Wilsons were going to love them.
And she already imagined them coming to many more family gatherings like this, making her happiness complete. Her mouth hurt from smiling so much, but she didn’t stop or look away as she stood in the doorway and waited for them.
As soon as they reached her, all three of them pulled her in for a separate hug, and she didn’t want to let them go.
Ever.
It felt strange to get so worked up about a hug she’d gotten millions of times before, but over the past few weeks, Amy had been feeling an overwhelming mixture of joy, gratitude, and regret over everything that had unfolded. With the divorce papers stuffed in a purse thrown on a couch somewhere in the Wilson manor, Amy felt hopeful.
And better than she had in a long, long time.
Her smile made her mouth hurt as she ushered everyone into the house, pausing to introduce them to Grandpa Frank, who sat in an armchair by the couch, reading the paper. He gave them all a bright smile and waved to Grandma Jen, who was coming out of the kitchen, carrying a tray of cookies and a pitcher of iced tea. Without pausing to let Amy finish, she pulled June, Judy, and Beth in for a long hug and gave each of them bright smiles when she pulled away.
Everyone was talking over each other as Kelly’s sisters, Heather, Ashley, and Rebecca, came in from outside with windswept hair and wearing identical happy smiles. After another round of introductions, Amy stepped outside with her children and grandchildren in tow. Frankie, Kelly’s brother and Lily’s uncle, stood over the grill, enthusiastically fanning the flames of the fire.
He tilted his bottle of beer in their direction and made a sweeping hand gesture. “We’re so happy to have you all here. Welcome to Wilson Manor.”
“Let me introduce you to everyone else,” Amy added in a cheerful voice. “Come on. There’s so many people for all of you to meet.”
When Ashley’s husband, Jude, rounded the corner with his son, Jeff, the two of them were carrying a large cooler. Immediately, Lucas went over to help them, and three men grunted and huffed as they set it down on the grass beneath Frankie’s feet. He clapped them all on the back and rummaged around, taking out a few more pieces of marinated lobster, chicken, and steak. After setting them out, Amy ducked inside with Sylvie and her grandchildren. The kitchen was absolute chaos, with Angie, Rebecca’s eldest daughter and the chef at Herring Cove Inn, taking charge and giving out instructions while her white hat hung low over her brow.
Angie’s siblings, Rob and Terry, were in the dining room, setting out plates and cutlery.
They called out to Lucas and Sylvie and their kids on the way past, all of them exchanging pleasantries and a quick smile. Frankie’s wife, Paula, rounded the corner with her two kids, Jonathan and Suzie, each of them carrying a box of desserts. Hastily, Amy stepped forward to help, and they all scrambled to clear a foldable table in the back to set everything else out.
“As you can see, it gets pretty hectic around here,” Amy added without missing a beat. “There’s room here for all of you to stay, and I’ve already checked if it’s okay with Grandpa and Grandma Wilson.”
Someone called out, and Amy twisted to see Heather’s husband, Ed, sticking his head in from outside, a thin sheen of sweat on top of his forehead. He had a colorful apron on and a pair of tongs in his hands, and his son, Luke, who was an exact replica of him, brushed past him, carrying a large, heavy-looking pot. With a grunt, he set it down on the dining room table, earning a disapproving look from his sister, Tammy, who narrowly avoided being mowed over on the way.
“Mom, we need to talk to you.” Sylvie placed a hand on her arm, bringing Amy to a halt in the middle of the empty living room. “It’s really important.”
Amy patted Sylvie’s hand. “Can it wait till I finish showing you around?”
Lucas and Sylvie exchanged a pointed glance before Sylvie withdrew her hand and nodded.
Laughter rose and fell as Amy wandered through the house, giving her children and grandchildren the grand tour of the bottom floor, with its hardwood floors, open-floor kitchen, and a few empty rooms, including Grandma and Grandpa Wilson’s. She stopped at the foot of the winding staircase and gestured to the glittering chandelier overhead, casting tiny particles of light on the floors. Then, a pair of footsteps appeared, and Lily came down the stairs, carrying a set of towels and tablecloths with Ben in tow, carrying a large box.
Both of them paused to greet Lucas and Sylvie with warm and welcoming smiles.
Lily handed a flustered-looking Ruby, Emily’s niece, the towels before pulling her nieces in for a large hug. Jokingly, the three of them complained before they were introduced to Charlotte and Savannah, who were stepping in through the front door, smiling from ear to ear. Ashley’s son, Jeff, followed in their wake, carrying more and more bags of food. His wife, Tay, and their children, Jason and Maria, came in carrying boxes of board games.
Casseroles of food were leaving the kitchen when Ian and Sophia came in. Ian’s wife, Lucy, was sandwiched between their kids, Dana, Kelli, and Dean, and all of them immediately set to work helping. Amy steered her children out of the way and nearly collided with Sophia’s husband, Darren, who was carrying plastic bags full of drinks. He gave her a distracted smile on the way past while his kids, Zac and Zoe, followed close behind.
Grinning from ear to ear, Amy led Lucas and Sylvie to a quiet corner of the living room, where no one else was sitting. As soon as they sat down, Ashley’s grandson, Charlie, threw something across the room, and it crashed into a vase, sending shards of glass in every direction. Terry’s children, Lara and Glen Jr., who wore identical guilty expressions, immediately pointed at one another and talked over each other.
“We wanted to tell you that we talked to Dad,” Lucas said, raising his voice to be heard over the commotion. “Well, it was more like a yelling match, but that wasn’t the intention.”
Some of Amy’s earlier good mood dissipated. “Does this have anything to do with the private detective he accused me of hiring?”
Sylvie pursed her lips. “I was afraid he was going to find out about that. A friend of mine did me a favor, but I’ve already asked him to drop it.”
Amy folded her hands in her lap and glanced between the two of them. “What did you and your father talk about?”
She wasn’t surprised Sylvie couldn’t let go, but she was surprised Lucas was going along with her.
He was usually the calm, collected, and rational one.
Amy had clearly underestimated the impact of the divorce on her quiet and reserved son.
“We confronted him,” Lucas revealed with a quick look around the room. His eyes were quiet and serious when he looked back at her. “We told him that we knew he wasn’t a good lawyer, that there were all sorts of shady dealings, and we asked him to stop.”
Amy’s stomach clenched. “What did he say?”
Sylvie snorted and shook her head. “He denied everything, of course, and he tried to make it seem like you planted the evidence or something. Even though we did tell him that you had nothing to do with this and that you actually told us not to pursue this.”
Amy sighed. “He didn’t believe you, did he?”
“We told him he has to change,” Lucas replied with a lift of his chin. “And until he does, we’re not sure we want anything to do with him.”
Oh, no. This is exactly what I was trying to avoid.
And she had no idea what to say now that the day she dreaded was here.
All of the distance and all of the issues between them existed because of her refusal to vilify their father.
Now that they had drawn their own conclusions, Amy had no idea what she was supposed to do next.
Was she meant to keep defending him?
Amy blinked, her mind racing with one scenario after the next. “Isn’t that a little extreme? He’s still your father, after all. I don’t want you to make any rash decisions.”
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Tammy’s husband, James, and Luke’s wife, Denise, cleaning up the shards of glass. Luke’s kids, Josh and Emma, stood nearby, their arms folded over their chests. Tammy’s kids, Abby and Tania, rounded the corner, carrying a small bin and garbage bag. Another murmur of conversation rose as the front door clicked open, revealing Jonathan’s kids, Jaxon and Reese, who were covered in sweat and dirt and cuts and scrapes.
With a frown, their parents descended upon them.
Amy spotted Tara and Emily duck in behind them, arms looped together. Tara went into the kitchen and started carrying out more trays of food while Emily wove in and out of the crowd, her eyes wide and searching. She stopped when she saw Amy and gave her a small wave. Amy tried to smile back, but her features felt stiff and awkward.
She didn’t know what she was meant to tell her children.
On the one hand, she was glad the secrets between them were growing smaller, but on the other hand, she didn’t want any of her personal drama spilling over into their lives.
She’d done her best to ensure it wouldn’t, but it all seemed like it was in vain.
“We need to do this, Mom,” Sylvie said before squaring her shoulders. “We appreciate you trying to protect us from this, but we’re not children anymore.”
“And we hope you can accept whatever we decide to do,” Lucas added, his voice catching toward the end. “We know none of this has been easy for you, and we’re sorry we made it worse.”
Amy stood and covered the distance between them.
Crushing both of her children to her, a surge of relief coursed through Amy, loosening some of the knots in her stomach. “Neither of you have anything to be sorry about. I love you both so much, and I’m sorry you’re finding out all of this about your father.”
Lucas and Sylvie hugged her back, only pulling away when Lily called out to them.
After exchanging another look, they released their mother and pulled Lily aside. Amy stood and wandered over to Emily, a heavy feeling settling in the center of her chest. Emily handed her a glass of red merlot as soon as she reached her. Amy took a few large sips and sagged against the nearest wall, her mind still racing to process everything.
“You look like you need something stronger.”
Amy gave Emily a grimace. “Lucas and Sylvie confronted their father, and now they’re insisting that he needs to change, or they won’t continue to have a relationship with him.”
Emily’s eyes widened as she dropped her gaze and let out a low whistle. “That’s a lot to unpack. What are you going to do? Are you going to stop them?”
Amy took another sip of her drink, the rich liquid trickling down her throat and settling in the center of her stomach. “I don’t know if I can. It’s their decision, anyway. I just hope they don’t end up making it too quickly.”
With a sigh, she glanced over at her children and saw them huddled in a corner, with Lily hunched in on herself and a glazed look in her eyes. Amy wanted to go over to them, but she knew it wasn’t the right time. The three of them had a lot to talk about, and all she could do was stand on the sidelines and hope they survived the war.
Regardless of how it looked, Amy was going to support all three of her children, no matter what life or her soon-to-be ex-husband threw at them.