Tessa's Gift

Then again, she knew she couldn’t rely on Rufus alone. In the past two years, she’d shut too many other humans out. It was easy to love animals because they didn’t wound like humans did. But over the last few months, Tessa had realized how isolated she’d become, how she’d begun to justify shutting people out of her life. She didn’t want to become that person. She didn’t want to turn into someone like Noah Brennan. She shuddered at the memory of their day together, and his bitter words.

Do you know what hope is? It’s a disease.

It made her curious. What had happened to Noah Brennan to make him so jaded?

In any case, she was glad she’d decided to bring Rufus along. Zoe and Molly loved having a dog to play with during these family gatherings. And while Tessa would never admit it aloud, she sort of liked ruffling Paige’s feathers with the dog. Paige had always been kind of stuck-up. Tessa loved her, but sometimes she wished Paige wasn’t quite such a snob. She hoped Rufus would loosen Paige up a little bit.

It didn’t look promising, though. Paige kept a good distance from the dog at all times.

The door opened, and her mother stood on the threshold.

“Tessa, darling, come in.” Her mother leaned forward to place a kiss on her youngest daughter’s cheek as Rufus tried to slip inside. He only got past the doorway before his leash came up short, pulling Tessa past her mother and inside with him.

“Oh, you’ve brought Rufus!” Her mother bent down to politely pat his ears, and Rufus grunted a greeting.

She knew her mother found her choice of canine companion odd, but at least she didn’t criticize him like Paige did.

“Everyone else is in the dining room. We were just waiting for you before we started.”

“Sorry if I’m late. I had to swing home and pick up Rufus after work.”

“Oh, that’s no trouble, darling. You know we keep ourselves entertained. How was your day?”

Tessa recognized the hesitation in her mother’s tone. Her family was relieved that she had left her job at the animal shelter for something more distinguished. But they were still baffled because she hadn’t told them the real reason behind her radical decisions from the year before. They’d given up asking since she’d stubbornly refused to share any details. But she knew they worried about her. They were all hopeful this new job was the light at the end of the proverbial tunnel. She didn’t quite see it that way. Her life, her hopes for the future, would never be what they once were. But she, too, was hopeful for some kind of new beginning.

“Do you think we should lock Rufus on the patio while we eat?” her mother suggested. But the question came too late. Molly and Zoe had caught sight of him and were emitting girlish squeals of delight as they descended on him.

Rufus woofed and wagged his tail at the attention. Tessa had to smile as the girls knelt down to scratch his ears. He flopped onto the floor and rolled onto his back, inviting them to scratch his belly.

The rest of the family greeted her, but she couldn’t help noticing how Paige eyed Rufus’s presence with pursed lips.

“Tessa, we weren’t aware you’d be bringing the dog.”

Tessa shrugged. “He was home alone all day. I didn’t feel it was fair to leave him while I came over here.”

“Well, perhaps he’s not the right pet for you, then. After all, with this new job, you’re bound to be working some late hours. How is it going?”

“Slow down, Paige.” Their father, Allan, held up a hand. “Give her a chance to sit down first.”

Tessa was relieved for the intervention. She unclipped Rufus’s leash as the girls continued to pet him, pausing to offer them both a kiss on the head.

“Zoe,” Paige chastised, “that’s enough playing with the dog.”

Zoe reluctantly stood. She sneezed and wiped the back of her hand across her nose.

“Now go wash your hands. No wonder you can’t get rid of that cold with all the germs you pick up.”

“I’ll go with her,” Tessa offered. “I should clean up anyway.” She took her niece’s hand, unconcerned about the germs, and led the way to the bathroom. They took turns at the sink as Tessa asked questions about her day. Zoe sneezed again as they finished up.

Tessa’s medical training kicked into gear, and she felt her niece’s forehead. “Let me check your lymph nodes, munchkin.” She felt around Zoe’s neck, noting her lymph nodes were slightly enlarged. “You’ve had this cold on and off for a few weeks now, haven’t you?”

Zoe shrugged. “Mom says I need to wash my hands more.”

“Well, that certainly can’t hurt,” Tessa agreed. “Has your mom or dad taken you to the doctor?”

Zoe nodded. “They gave me annie botics.”

“Antibiotics?”

“Yeah. Annie biotics.”

Tessa smiled. “Okay, then. I hope you start feeling better soon, kiddo.”

She took her niece’s hand again as they made their way back to the dining room. Dinner proceeded as it usually did. She, Harper and Connor talked about mutual friends in town, along with how the restaurant was doing. Her mom chimed into their conversation occasionally while Paige and her husband, Weston, discussed current events and business with their dad.

Molly and Tessa’s mom chatted about school and summer plans, but Tessa couldn’t help noticing that Zoe remained relatively quiet, only poking at her food instead of eating it. No one else seemed to pick up on Zoe’s strange mood, but then again, Tessa had always had a special bond where Zoe was concerned.

At one point during the meal, she was able to stretch her leg under the table and knock Zoe’s foot with her own. The six-year-old looked up, startled, and met Tessa’s gaze. Tessa winked, and Zoe grinned. She experienced some relief at the sight. Zoe had lost one of her baby teeth a month ago, and there was still a small hole where her adult tooth hadn’t quite filled in yet.

Tessa leaned back as she finished the last bite of her dinner, feeling full and a little sleepy after the long day. Rufus had loyally curled up next to her chair, and she reached down to pat him as a reward for his quiet behavior during the meal. As she straightened, Connor stood and cleared his throat.

Around the table, everyone’s attention shifted to him.

“I made something special for dessert since today, Grace turns three months old.”

Tessa felt a tug in her chest. Her eyes fell to Harper, who was cradling her infant daughter in her arms. A stab of jealousy struck her directly in the stomach, decimating any desire for dessert, no matter what delicious dish Connor had cooked up.

“And I just wanted to take this opportunity to say how thankful I am to be part of this family. As you know, my mom died when I was still a lad, and my father’s been gone for several years now...” Connor trailed off, his Irish accent more pronounced as his voice filled with emotion. Harper used her free hand to reach out and grab Connor’s.

“Aye, well.” He sniffed. “I am a very blessed man.” He looked down at Harper with a smile that was achingly sweet. “I have a loving, supportive wife. And I never thought I could be so lucky as to have two gorgeous daughters.” He winked at Molly before his eyes came to rest on Grace, who slept like an angel in her mother’s arms.

“So before I bring out dessert, I just wanted to offer up an Irish blessing.” He reached for his glass and raised it. The rest of the family followed suit, except for Zoe, who yawned and leaned against Tessa’s side.

“May your troubles be less,” Connor said, “and your blessings be more, and nothing but happiness come through your door.”

The rest of the family voiced their agreement with these words and drank to little Grace and all the blessings of family.

And while Tessa sipped from her water glass right along with them, she couldn’t help feeling removed from her family’s joy. Because how could she share in their happiness when the one thing she’d always wanted—a biological child of her own—could never be hers?

* * *

NOAH SCANNED THE common area of the assisted care facility for his father-in-law. He found him by the window, staring out at the courtyard. Noah felt a moment of hope that his father-in-law was aware of the beauty of the day. But as he approached, his wishful thinking dissipated. There was no awareness in the other man’s eyes. Only a blank, unseeing stare.

“Hey, John,” he greeted, dropping a hand onto the other man’s shoulder and squeezing by way of greeting. “How are you today?”

John said nothing. Not that Noah had expected him to. The stroke had rendered him catatonic.

“It’s a beautiful day,” Noah said. “Why don’t we go outside?”