Forever A Father

“Are you available on Sunday?”

Wait, what? “Sunday?” Did he expect her to work weekends now, too? She would if it meant keeping her job.

He stepped inside her office but remained standing, a torn expression on his face.

“Yes, Sunday, it’s my grandfather’s birthday, and we’re having a big party. I thought you and Anna might like to come. It’s my way of trying to make up for being the boss from hell yesterday.”

“Truly?” He’d just veered into completely different territory from Ron, who never even thought about apologizing, or doing something nice to make up for his actions.

“Thought maybe you two could use a day out with fresh air and good food.”

The refreshing shift from “same old story” to “second verse, better than the first” buoyed her spirits.

“A party at The Drumcliffe?” She broke into a grin that came straight from her heart. Yeah, apparently she was that easy. “We’d love to come. Did I ever tell you I stayed at your hotel around six years ago, when Ron first brought me to visit?”

“You’re kidding.”

“I loved that place right from the start. That’s why I came back here to live when we divorced. Paso Robles is okay, but it’s too far inland. Plus I wanted to get away from him and his new lady.” A burst of excitement had her talking more than she probably should, another old, hopefully not annoying, habit. But she’d just been asked out by her boss for a family gathering, and in her mind, that was a big deal. “Something about the cliffs and the ocean reminded me of Sligo Bay, back home. But it’s much less rugged here. Anyway, I think your family owns a beautiful hotel.”

“Wow. Small world. Well, I’m glad you like it. So you’ll come, then?”

“Wouldn’t miss it.”

“Oh, another thing.” He’d turned to leave, a pleased smile on his face, but paused. “No gift, okay? The old guy has everything he could possibly ever need. Your company will be more than enough.” Daniel looked back, a new glint in those verdant green eyes. “I’ll pick you up at one.”

“You’re picking us up?”

“I invited you, didn’t I?”

Okay. Now what was she supposed to do with that? She fiddled with her hair, tucking one side behind her ear, a faint sense of happiness tingling in her chest. She wasn’t getting fired, and he’d invited her to a family gathering. Was this an apology date?

* * *

Sunday turned out to be a gorgeous sunny spring day at Sandpiper Beach, and Keela hadn’t been this excited about going somewhere in a long time. Anna was practically bouncing off the walls of the tiny and barely upgraded 1930s beach cottage.

“Yay, a birthday party.”

“Remember, this is a grown-up party, so it won’t be that much fun.”

“Will there be games?”

“I don’t think so, my love, but I’m sure there’ll be cake.”

“Yay! And ice cream?”

“What’s a birthday without ice cream?” Keela hoped there’d be ice cream, otherwise she’d have to take Anna to the parlor near their clinic for a cone afterward.

Her daughter rushed to the cramped living room to peer out the window. “I like Dr. Daniel!”

He’d been surprisingly kind to Anna last Wednesday, even though at first he’d acted uninterested and maybe even a little put out about it. But thanks to her daughter’s approval, and remembering that instant over lunch when something special seemed to click between them, Keela had taken a second look at her boss. The other day, he’d reminded her of Ron, but then he’d apologized and veered into new territory with the invitation. Maybe she liked Dr. Daniel, too?

Butterflies fought for territory in her stomach as she smoothed her hands over her hair and checked her makeup in the mirror of the tiny pink-tiled bathroom. Too much? Not enough? Oh, what did it matter? Daniel Delaney hardly knew she existed. Beyond being a good employee, that was. The invitation was his way to apologize for taking his usual moderately gruff self and upgrading to outright brusque. Sure, she’d noticed, and it didn’t make a lot of sense, especially after their fun lunch together. But once she’d realized he hadn’t planned to fire her, she was fine with whatever he needed to do. This wasn’t a date. The man always seemed to go out of his way to avoid looking at her, unless they had specific patient care to discuss. Yet Thursday over Chinese food he’d watched her with clear interest, nearly nonstop.

His deep brown hair was straight and thick, and she liked how he wore it swept off his forehead and neatly trimmed around his ears and neck. But what she liked the most was his Irish grin, wide and friendly, reminding her of being back home. She hadn’t noticed it before lunch on Thursday, since he rarely smiled like that at work.

He was medium height, maybe five-ten or -eleven, but far taller than her five foot three. She always had to look up to see his eyes. She took a quick inhalation. Oh, those eyes, moss-green and downright swoon-worthy... But wait, she didn’t do that anymore—think about guys. Or swoon. After the heartbreak she’d been through with Ron, and the divorce, no man was worth it. Besides, Daniel was her boss. Only a fool would risk her job by getting involved with the boss.

Anna had to come first these days. Nothing else mattered.

Keela’s phone rang, and when she saw it was her ex-husband, her earlier hopeful mood slumped. What would he be calling about? Ever since his girlfriend, Ingrid—the woman who’d brought about their divorce—had given birth to their son, it seemed Ron had lost interest in Anna.

Stiff upper lip. “Hey, Ron, what’s up?”

“Thought we’d pick Anna up and take her to lunch with us.”

“Oh, shoot, any other day would’ve been great, but we’ve got a birthday party to go to.” Why today? He frequently skipped his visitation days, like last Wednesday, and this wasn’t the usual weekend they’d agreed to, even though he’d never come to get her since the baby was born. Now, out of the blue—

“There’ll be other birthday parties,” he said. “It’s time she met her little brother.”

She could have done that on Wednesday, eejit. Keela had to think fast, since she knew how he always insisted on getting his way. “Oh, yes, I think she’d love to meet her little brother, Diesel.” The baby had to be nine or ten months by now. “But she’s been looking forward to this party so much. She’s dressed and ready to go. How about next Saturday or Sunday? She could sleep over, even—that is if you wanted her to.” Keela also knew not to push Anna on Ron, or he’d pull back even more. The fact that he’d seemed to have nearly forgotten their daughter since he’d had his son made Keela’s heart squeeze. “Would that be all right?”

Silence. “Ron, are you there?”

“We’ll see about next weekend. Okay, gotta go.”

Just like old times, she’d messed up and he’d gotten ticked off. He hung up before Keela could say goodbye, probably avoiding giving her a chance to mention he was late again with his child support payments—was that why he’d skipped out on Wednesday? But that didn’t matter nearly as much as his not even bothering to ask to speak to Anna. That was his routine. If he didn’t get his way, someone had to pay, and today it was her sweet and completely innocent daughter.

Keela had gotten bloody good at taking his crap, but Anna never deserved it. To hell with that stiff upper lip. Her chin quivered on her daughter’s behalf, and her eyes blinked several times. She took a quick inhale, hoping to recover. Anna couldn’t see her like this; it would upset her. Thankfully, she’d had the conversation in the bathroom, and her eager daughter was still keeping watch at the front window. What she didn’t know couldn’t hurt her.

“Mom! Dr. Daniel’s at the door!”

A surprising burst of excitement lit up Keela’s chest—Daniel was here—helping her forget about the call. She wiped at her eyes and did a quick once-around in front of the full-length mirror on the bathroom door, ensuring her tan pants didn’t make her backside look too big, and that her tank top with a matching camellia-pink sweater didn’t show too much on the topside. Were her earrings okay? Would it be too much if she slipped on a bracelet?

What was going on with her? It wasn’t like it was a date. It was the continuation of an apology, though this would be the first time she’d ever been with Daniel around his family. Would he be different? He was always so serious at work.

“Mommy, he’s knocking!”

Keela sucked in a breath. Come to your senses. She rushed to the door and, trying not to seem too eager, opened it and peeked around the corner. “Hiya.”

“Hey. You ready?”

Not for what she saw standing before her. Sure, she’d seen him in the medical clinic’s uniform of khaki cargo pants and white polo shirt five days a week, and he’d worn a suit the other day for his pitch session at the college. But today he wore straight-legged jeans with a pale green, collared, long-sleeved shirt and a skinny dark green tie, looking very trendy. The button-down shirt was narrow cut and hugged his torso, giving her the impression he possessed something along the line of washboard abs. She forced her gaze upward to his still-smiling face, seeing something different in his eyes, too. Apparently, while she’d been checking him out, he’d done the same, and now her palms tingled.

“I’d invite you in, but there’s not much to see.” The “cottage” was more like a bungalow, with tiny rooms, kitchen and bath, but it was their home.

“Not a problem. You’re looking great, by the way,” he said, seeming on the verge of saying more. But Anna launched herself from behind.

“Hi. Remember me?”