Chapter 82 Mo
Mo
Mo settled into her favorite squishy chair in The Wallflower’s Crown. Lachlan set a steaming mug of peppermint tea down and sat across from her. As always, she was buoyed in the company of her friend.
“So, your mum is really dying?”
“Soon, apparently.”
“And are you going back?”
“I think so.”
“How long would you be gone?”
“No idea.”
They shared a bittersweet smile. So much time had passed in very little time at all.
“Right. And what do you need from me?”
Mo knew that Lachlan thought there was no hope with Deli, but Mo also knew he was wrong. Lachlan loved Deli the way Mo loved Beth.
Without end.
“I need you to look after her.”
Lachlan’s eyes widened. “She’s staying?”
Mo shook her head, watching the steam rise from her mug. “I don’t know.” She blew on her tea, mulling over the decision that had just become clear. “I’m going back with my mom. And my sister.”
Lachlan’s face creased with concern. “Are you sure?”
Lachlan was protective. But Mo’s choice wasn’t about Laurie and Rosemary.
Laurie had always been too much like their mother, and Mo, just like her father.
She’d thought of her McDonnell blood running strong as a good thing—evidence that she was not like the others.
It wasn’t until quite recently that Mo had wondered if, perhaps, she was a bit too like her father.
One sister left behind and bitter, one sister gone away and alone.
No, Mo wasn’t going because she’d been asked. She was going back because of the cycle she needed to end.
“I’m so proud of you, Lachlan.”
He made a face.
“You have chosen to be an extraordinary man. You didn’t just wake up one day and accept how the world had shaped you.
” She watched his beautiful eyes turn glassy.
“And you will never be your father.” He reached for her hand, and she took it gladly.
It was the great joy of her life—to have Deli and Lachlan rely on her for comfort, friendship, and laughter. “If Deli stays?”
“I will always take care of her.”
“I swear, Lachlan Scott, if you don’t let her care for you, too, I’ll sic Beans on you.”
Lachlan laughed through his tears. He stood and pulled her into a hug.
“I love you, Mo.”
“I love you, too, kid. And so does she.”
Mo felt Lachlan’s chest hitch softly. She rubbed his back as they stood, swaying lightly in the boy’s pub.
“You both deserve to be happy, Lachlan. Choose to be happy.” He nodded, wiping a tear from his cheek, and she smiled. How could she not? “Okay. Now. How about a round of Battleship?”