The Daddy Secret

And then, here he was—alive and well, successful in his own right and threatening to stir up all the old memories, all the things she’d tried so hard to forget.

“You mentioned your grandfather was in the hospital,” he said. “How’s he doing?”

“He’s doing better now. He had quadruple bypass surgery a couple weeks ago, but he has some other health issues, including diabetes, that have complicated things and slowed his recovery process.”

“I take it he knows about the adoption.”

“Yes, he does.” Like Rick, her grandfather hadn’t been in favor of an open adoption. So, for that reason, he and Lucas hadn’t met before.

He understood why she was adopting Lucas now and approved of the decision. But she hadn’t had time to set up an official meeting. She planned to do that soon, though.

That, too, was going to be a little awkward. She wasn’t sure how many of his friends knew that she’d had a child out of wedlock and had given it up for adoption, so she and her grandfather would have some explaining to do. She couldn’t foresee any problems, though. People in the church were understanding and forgiving. At least, they were supposed to be.

She thought it would help if she could tell her grandfather that Rick had turned his life around, that he’d become a respected member of the community—that is, if Grandpa didn’t already know that.

Being able to share that information would certainly help her by lessening some of the tension that was sure to crop up when she had to bring up the topic of her past mistake and her grandfather’s subsequent embarrassment. After all, he’d been a minister, and he’d expected her to set an example with the other teenagers in the congregation.