“Good. I'm glad you got to meet each other,” Eamon said.
Rachel pressed her lips together. “Eamon, have you had a chance to think about taking Fiona for a few weeks? I really want to go on this trip.”
“I haven't talked to Katherine about it yet.”
“Seriously, Eamon? I asked you more than two weeks ago. James and I haven't been able to get away on our own at all. Now that you have a bit of a break, it's time for you to spend time with your daughter.” Rachel's voice was about as irritated as a person's could be.
Eamon turned to me. “I hate to put you on the spot, and you don't have to answer right now, but would it be alright if Fiona stayed with us at your place for a few weeks while Rachel goes to Mexico?” He'd said he didn't want to put me on the spot, but he looked at me like his whole life was riding on this moment.
“You really don't have to answer right now,” Rachel interjected. “He should have asked you earlier.”
Eamon looked away, seeming annoyed. Fiona was leaning back, practically threatening to break his arm. How could I ever say no to that sweet face? There was no way I could.
“Of course Fiona can stay with us. As long as you like.”
Fiona bounced up and down and squealed. “Yay!”
Now I was truly happy I'd agreed, albeit also a bit surprised. I was not the person who dealt well with spur-of-the-minute, seat-of-my-pants decisions. “Amy left her bed, so Fiona can have her own room. We have plenty of space.” I couldn't ignore the way I'd said “we”. It had just come out. Like I was totally comfortable with so much change. Maybe this was the perfect time for it. I was already on a bit of a roll.
Rachel and I were both cold, so the four of us walked to the coffee shop on the corner and wedged ourselves around a small bistro table, Fiona sipping hot cocoa, Eamon and I going for coffee, and Rachel opting for tea.
“What does your husband do?” I asked Rachel, desperate to make small talk. Eamon had told me so little.
“He's an art dealer. Owns a gallery in Philadelphia. I work there, too, when I'm not home-schooling Fiona.”
I was a bit surprised they'd opted to home-school Fiona. “What will she do for school when she comes to stay with us?”
“She can Skype with her tutor. Otherwise, you've got Thanksgiving in there. She doesn’t need to be studying every day.”
Thanksgiving. I hadn't even considered that. My first big holiday with Eamon and his daughter would be there, too. Talk about a giant leap into domesticity for me. “Sounds good.”
“I’m hoping I can drop her off the Monday before Thanksgiving, if that works.”
Eamon looked to me for an answer. “Of course. Any day is fine.”
Rachel smiled. “Grand. Thanks.”
We said our goodbyes out on the street, Fiona and Eamon taking the longest to part.
“I love you, Fi. You know that, don't you?”
She brushed her hair off her face. “Of course, Daddy. I love you, too.”
I was fairly certain my heart was about to explode.
Eamon and I walked back to my apartment, only talking about little things like what to have for dinner. The minute we walked through the door, clothes started to come off. Sex was this thing we were driven to pursue with each other, any chance we had, especially if we'd gone several hours without it.
As we settled in under the covers, I had to ask Eamon about his marriage again. I had to know what went wrong.
“Why do you want to know, exactly?”
“It's just, I looked at the three of you together in the park and I was trying to piece it all together. Rachel seems like a great mom and she's clearly smart and beautiful. I'm wondering why it didn't work.”
He sighed and sat up in bed, scooting back and leaning against the headboard. I followed and clicked on the bedside lamp. “Rachel and I care about each other, and we love each other as people, but we were never in love. We were never desperate to be together. We got married because I went and got her pregnant and her parents are as Catholic as they come. Her mam was dying and Rachel couldn't stand to upset her, but there was no hiding her belly. We had to do it.”
I listened, taking in the details and fitting them in with the parts I already knew. When Eamon had gotten married all those years ago, the news had thrown me for such a loop. The fact that I'd found out while I was standing in line at CVS to buy tampons and toothpaste only made it worse. Sharing someone you love with the world was incredibly hard. Sharing someone you loved and lost is impossible.
The headline on the wedding issue had made it difficult to ignore.Irish Rocker Eamon MacWard Ties the Knot.Inside was a spread of beautiful professional pictures. Eamon looking so dashing in a gray coat and tails, holding hands with a truly stunning Rachel. They were smiling. Their hands were intertwined. At the time, it was a dagger to my heart.
