Total pages in book: 79
Estimated words: 74698 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 373(@200wpm)___ 299(@250wpm)___ 249(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 74698 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 373(@200wpm)___ 299(@250wpm)___ 249(@300wpm)
Trey smiles, looking pleased. “That makes me very happy, Holland.”
Somehow, the tension inside me has eased, and I do have curiosities of my own. I lean back in the creaky office chair, place my hands on the armrests. “Your mom and dad looked good. They doing okay?”
“They’re great. Fully retired and traveling, spending a few months each year over in Ireland with Mom’s family. Ethan’s running everything now.”
“And Wade, Kat and Abby?”
“Abby’s a vet practicing in Pittsburgh, but Wade and Kat work on the farm with me. We’re mostly doing all the training and lessons, but we’ve had to step in to help Ethan now that his daughter, Sylvie, came to live with him.”
“Daughter? He was married?”
Trey tips his head back and laughs. “Oh man… you have missed out on so much since you left. Let’s just say Ethan had a drunken one-night stand with Alaine Mardraggon that produced the cutest little girl.”
“Alaine Mardraggon!” My jaw drops, because I know the history as well as anyone.
Trey nods, his face turning somber. “She got pregnant and didn’t tell Ethan. We didn’t find out about Sylvie until a few months ago when Alaine died of cancer.”
“Oh,” I murmur, a million questions racing through my mind. Alaine was a few years older than us but I knew her, just as I knew her brother Gabe.
“It’s been an adjustment, but Sylvie has settled in and Ethan’s dating a really wonderful woman named Marcie.”
Ethan dating. What do you know?
That sparks another question. “And what’s up with Kat and Gabe?”
“There’s so much to catch you up on. I think you should come eat dinner with the family tonight.”
Warning bells go off in my head. It was so painful to leave eleven years ago and while most of that pain had to do with this man, it was heartrending to leave behind the Blackburn family. A part of me died and I’m not sure I can walk back into that environment. There’s no doubt they’d welcome me with open arms, but what’s the point? I’m returning to Zurich, and I can’t afford to let my heart get entwined with this family again.
“I really can’t,” I say, turning back to the desk and shuffling papers. “I’ve got so much to do—”
I’m distracted by Trey pulling his phone out of his jeans—which fit him very, very well. He taps the screen and holds the phone to his ear before saying, “Hi, Mom. Yeah… I’m at Lyle’s store and I’m going to fix everything for Holland.” He pauses, listens to his mom and then nods. “Yeah… I already invited her, but she declined. I think you need to talk to her.”
I wave my hands frantically in a silent plea that I do not want to talk to Fi. He ignores me and says, “Here she is.”
Thrusting the phone at me, he grins. I glare at him, and we engage in a staring war before I growl in frustration.
Snatching the phone from Trey, I put it to my ear. “Hi, Fi. I really appreciate the invitation to dinner but—”
Her Irish brogue rolls right over me. “Don’t even think of saying no, child. You’ve been away for eleven years, and not a peep out of you. Now, be a good lass and accept the invite and give this old woman something to look forward to tonight.”
I snort and roll my eyes. “You’re not old and you’re so manipulative.”
She doesn’t outright laugh but I can hear her amusement. “That’s a yes, then?”
“It’s a yes,” I murmur in resignation.
I hand the phone back to Trey who tells his mother he loves her and then slides it into his pocket with a smug look. He throws a thumb over his shoulder. “I’ll head out and grab what I need to fix up this store. I’ll be back.”
“Fine.” I wave my hand as I look to the mess that is my dad’s business life sprawled before me. “But I’m busy, so stay out of my hair when you get back.”
“Yes, ma’am,” he drawls and then he’s gone.
When I hear the door close, I sigh and once again lean into my chair. I really should have declined their invitation but part of me yearns for that connection. I’ve never found anything quite like it in my life since, and it awakens all those feelings I had when I was younger, of feeling like I was genuinely loved and cared for by the Blackburns.
The smell of Miranda’s pot roast filled the house, mingling with the buttery aroma of freshly baked rolls. The kitchen was a warm, welcoming space, the heart of the Blackburn household. They never ate in the formal dining room, instead preferring to crowd around the kitchen nook table so we were jammed in elbow to elbow. I felt a sense of belonging here that I never felt with my parents and while that caused some guilt, it was always banished when I was immersed in this family.