Chapter 22
“What did I miss?” Maddie asked when the babies ended her nap with hungry cries.
Mac had helped her change them and was watching over her as she fed them. Breastfeeding twins was a feat, and Maddie excelled at the balancing act. “Well, Jeff Lawry asked me for a job because he wants to stay on the island this year.”
“Is that right? Any particular reason?”
“As you well know, it’s because of Kelsey.”
“That’s so sweet. I hope you hired him.”
“I did, but I worry that he’s giving up a much better job in Tampa to work with me.”
“Some things are more important than money, and besides, he’s got plenty of time to make money. They’re so cute together. I hope they can make it work.”
“I guess we’ll see.”
“How are you feeling?” she asked.
“Like I’m going to survive this nightmare, but just barely.”
Maddie snorted out a laugh. “Oh, the drama.”
“I’m glad I can only have one vasectomy in a lifetime. One was more than enough.”
“And yet, I had six children. Hmmm…”
“You win. Hands down, no contest.”
“I’m glad you realize that. Where are my other children?”
“Watching a movie while having ice cream for dessert. Thomas is in charge of making sure Mac doesn’t get it all over the sofa.”
“Let me know how that goes.”
“Are you hungry?”
“Starving.”
“I’ll bring you dinner in bed.”
“That’s okay. These girls are done. We can come downstairs.”
Mac took Emma from her and gave her a hand up as she balanced Evie. “How’s your soreness?”
“A little better than it was, but still got a way to go.”
He put an arm around her and, mindful of the babies, leaned in to kiss her. “In case I forget to tell you, you’re the undisputed hero of this story.”
“Oh, I already knew that, but thank you for confirming it.”
Mac laughed as he escorted her downstairs, hoping his young friend Jeff might one day have what he did with Maddie.
Jace met his son’s earnest gaze and tried to find the words he needed to explain himself to the child. “Before I tell you how I knew your mom, I want you both to know that I love you so much and want nothing but the best for you.”
The boys looked at each other and then at him, their gazes expectant, so he took a deep breath and forced himself to say the words. “I knew your mother because I was married to her. I’m your father.”
Kyle let out a sound that defied description before he jumped up and ran out the front door.
When Jace started to get up, Seamus stopped him. “I’ll go.”
Jackson continued to stare at Jace without blinking. “Where have you been?”
“I was in prison.”
Jackson blinked, his eyes going wide with shock. “Why?”
“I got involved in some bad stuff and was there when someone else robbed a store with a gun. I got caught and was sent to jail.” He didn’t think the child needed to hear he’d also lost an uncle in that robbery.
“Why did you do that?”
“Because I was hooked on drugs then and needed money for more. I made the biggest mistake of my life. I lost your mom and you boys, which absolutely broke my heart.”
“Are you… Are you going to take us away from here?”
“No, I’m not. Seamus and Carolina are your family now, and this is where you belong.”
“Why did you lie when we first met you?”
“We thought it was too soon after you lost your mom to tell you the truth about me. We were going to wait until you were a little older.”
Jackson looked at Carolina. “Can I go outside now?”
“Sure.”
Without looking at Jace again, he got up and went out the door.
Jace dropped his head into his hands, gutted by the exchange with his son.
“I know it might seem awful right now, but it won’t always be,” Carolina said. “This is new information that they need time to process. We just need to be patient with them.”
“What if they don’t want to see me again after this?”
“I don’t think that’ll happen.”
“What if it does?”
“My son, Joe, was very young when we lost his father in an accident.”
Surprised by the change in direction, Jace said, “I’m sorry.”
“Thank you. It was a very difficult time for both of us. We had a lot of bad days and a few good days, but over time, the good days started to outnumber the bad as we both recovered from our loss. This isn’t the same thing, but they’re around the age Joe was then.
It’ll take time for them to process and decide how they want to go forward from here. ”
“What am I supposed to do in the meantime?”
“Keep showing up for them and prove to them that you’re someone they can count on.”
“I love them so much.”
“Tell them that every chance you get. Kids can never have too many people who love them.”
He recalled Ned saying the same thing. “Thank you for this and all you’ve done for my family.”
“We love them very much, too. It’s a pleasure to have them in our lives.”
Seamus came in a minute later, carrying Kyle, who’d obviously been crying.
Jace held his breath as he waited to hear what his son might have to say.
Seamus sat at the table with Kyle on his lap.
“I’m mad that you weren’t there,” Kyle said, his lip quivering. “Mommy was sick.”
“I know, buddy.” Jace’s eyes filling with tears. “I’m very sorry I wasn’t there when you guys needed me. I would’ve given anything to be there. I loved your mom very much, and I love you and your brother, too. I always have.”
“Why didn’t you come when she was sick?”
“I was still in prison.”
The child’s light blond brows furrowed with confusion. “Do we hafta live with you now?”
“No, you’re going to stay here with Seamus and Carolina, who also love you very much. I promise I’m not going to mess up your lives. I just want to be a friend to you and Jackson, if you’ll have me.”
“What do you think, Kyle?” Seamus asked. “Would you like to be friends with Jace?”
After an impossibly long pause, Kyle gave a slight nod that greatly bolstered Jace’s spirits.
“Thank you,” he said. “I’d love to be your friend and Jackson’s, too.”
“I don’t want you to be my friend!” Jackson said, sobbing in the doorway. “We needed you, and you weren’t there!”
Jace got up and went to him, kneeling before the child.
“I know I wasn’t, and I’ll be sorry about that for the rest of my life.
I’ll do whatever it takes to try to make it up to you in any way that I can.
It’s a lot for guys your age to understand, that people can make terrible mistakes that cost them everything.
That’s what happened to me, and the worst part of it was that I hurt you guys and your mom.
She didn’t deserve that. She was a wonderful person and a great mom. ”
Jackson’s chin quivered the same way Kyle’s had.
Jace reached out a hand to him. “Man to man. I’m very, very sorry, Jackson.” He held his breath, waiting to see what the child would do.
When Jackson took hold of his hand and let Jace fold him into a hug, he went weak with relief. “I love you and Kyle very much, and I always will. If you ever need anything, anything at all, you can come to me, even if Seamus and Carolina will be your parents.”
“You can never have too many people who love you,” Carolina said.
“Aye,” Seamus said, sounding emotional, “that’s very true.”
Kyle came over to where Jace was holding Jackson.
Jace extended his arm to include Kyle and hugged his sons for the first time since they were babies. “I missed you guys so much when I was away. I thought about you all the time and wished I could be with you. And I’m so, so sorry you lost your mom.”
He held the two boys for a full minute before they started to squirm. When he released them, they burst out the door with Burpy hot on their heels.
“Was that it?” Jace asked Seamus and Carolina. “Was that the worst of it?”
“It’s hard to say for certain,” Carolina said. “They’re apt to have more questions and feelings about it all, but you handled it as well as could be expected.”
“I agree, mate,” Seamus said. “Well done.”
Again, he was strangely honored to have Seamus call him that, knowing the other man well enough by then to know he didn’t give away such things. “Thank you both for everything. I’ll never have the words…”
“It’s the honor of our lifetime to help raise your sons,” Seamus said gruffly.
As Jeff drove Kelsey to her apartment in a building the McCarthys owned near the marina, his mind raced with things he needed to do now that he’d landed an off-season job.
First, he needed to tell the company in Tampa that he wasn’t going to accept their offer after all, and then he needed to get out of the lease he’d recently signed there.
“Is everything all right?” she asked.
Jeff realized he hadn’t said a word since they left Mac’s house. “I think so.”
“What does that mean?”
“It’s what I want to talk to you about.”
“You’re making me nervous.”
He reached over to put his hand on top of hers. “Nothing to be nervous about. It’s good news, or at least I hope you’ll think so.” A few minutes later, he parked the car outside her place and followed her inside.
Her apartment was one big room that had walls around a bathroom, but everything else, including a bed that was always neatly made, was out in the open.
Kelsey put down the bag she took to work and turned to him, hands on hips. “Tell me what’s going on.”
“I asked Mr. McCarthy for a job with his construction company, and he hired me.”
“Wait. What? You have a job in Tampa.”
“That I’m going to quit.”
“Before you even start?”
“Before I even start.”
“Why are you doing this?”
He took a step closer to her, smiling as he took in the gorgeous face that was made more so by her confused expression. “You really have to ask that?”
“Jeff… You can’t blow up your whole life because of me.”
“Who says?”
“I say! That’s crazy.”
“What would be crazy, at least from my point of view, would be going back to Florida when you’re here for at least the next year.”
“But what about your job? You said it was a great opportunity.”
“It is, but my priorities have changed.”
She shook her head. “Your mother won’t be happy with either of us if you do this.”
“I already told her, and she’s fine with it. She wants us all to be as happy as she is with Charlie.” He took a step to close the remaining space between them and put his hands on her shoulders. “Once she gets to know you better, she’ll totally understand why I wanted to stay here with you.”
“You have a college degree that you worked hard for.”
“My college degree will still be there when I’m ready to use it. For now, this is what I want. You are what I want.”
Kelsey leaned her head on his chest.
“Are you glad I’m staying?”
She nodded. “I was dreading you leaving.”
“Now you don’t have to dread anything.”
“What does this mean for us?”
With his finger under her chin, he tipped her face up so he could see her eyes. “It means we’re going to make a go of this, if you want to, that is.”
“I want to.”
Smiling, he said, “Thank goodness, because I’m about to blow up my whole life to be with you.”
“You’re really sure about this?”
He kissed her. “I’m positive.”
Cindy hadn’t heard from Jace all day and had begun to seriously worry by late afternoon with no sign of him at home before he was due at work. She debated whether to text him and decided against it. Whatever was going on with him, if he wanted her to know, he’d tell her.
She hated this feeling of uncertainty that had crept in as the hours had passed without a word from him after the night they’d spent together. The feeling was all too familiar, but it was worse this time because she’d hoped for better from him.
She’d no sooner had that thought than she felt guilty for judging him before she knew what had happened. Whatever it was, it had something to do with his boys, and they needed to be his top priority.
As she sat on the sofa, she tried to focus on the journal she’d kept from the time she was a young child. For the first time in a while, she had something interesting to write about. Whatever it took to keep her from racing over to the Beachcomber to see if he’d shown up for work. And if he hadn’t?
This was exactly why she didn’t date much anymore. She hated wondering where he was, what he was thinking, if something was wrong, if he’d changed his mind about her after the night they spent together.
It was so exhausting.
The tug-of-war over whether she should go to the Beachcomber had her paralyzed with indecision, to the point that she couldn’t write a thing, which was rare for her. She texted her brother John. Are you going to the bar tonight?
He replied right away. I’m there now. You coming?
Can I ask you something without you making ANYTHING of it?
Um, sure…
Is Jace there?
He’s not. They said he called out sick.
What the hell was going on?
He’s not at home? John asked.
No, he said something came up hours ago, and I haven’t heard from him since.
And now you’re spinning, am I right?
A little. It’s weird for him to go off the grid for hours.
And you know him well enough to be able to say that’s weird?
I hate when you make too much sense. I’m going to stand down now, and I’ll see him when I see him.
Sorry to ask the obvious, but did you text him?
No…
Maybe you oughta?
I hate this.
I know. But he’s a good dude. Don’t automatically think the worst.
I’m preprogrammed to do that.
I know, but maybe don’t this time.
What about you? Is Niall there tonight?
Yeah, he’s playing.
Any progress?
Going to dinner sometime in the next few days.
Oh fun! Keep me posted?
I will.
I’m so crazy proud of you for telling the family. Do you feel better?
It’s a relief that people know. Just got to tell the grandparents. That’s kinda scary.
Nah, they love you no matter what. It won’t be any big deal.
Thanks for encouraging me to come out. It helped.
Love u.
U 2.