“Kristine is still my friend, even though her brother and I are no longer together. She will always be Lydia’s aunt and her parents will always be my child’s grandparents. Troy and I divorced but there’s no reason I can’t still maintain a good relationship with his family.”
“I suppose that’s true. You make it sound easy but I’m guessing there’s more to it than that.”
His insight surprised her more than it probably should. “To be honest, I was hoping I could participate from behind the scenes. You know. Sit in the back of the church during the ceremony, duck out of the reception early, skip the wedding rehearsal. That kind of thing. But now Kristine has asked Lydia to be her flower girl.”
“So much for staying behind the scenes.”
“Exactly. I wish I could pull Lydia out of the wedding party but she’s so excited about it. I can’t be that cruel, to her or to Kristine.”
“That’s a tough situation.”
Her whole life felt like one tough situation after another.
She shrugged. “We’ll be fine. It’s only one day. A few hours, really. I can survive a few hours of discomfort for the sake of people I care about.”
At least she hoped she could.
Chapter Four
RYAN WASN’T AT ALL SURE WHAT TO THINK ABOUT HOLLYMoore. She was lovely, yes, as pretty as sunlight dancing on the waves of his favorite San Diego beach. And she obviously made one hell of a good chili.
She was also clearly too nice for her own good.
If he had been in her shoes, he probably would have told the former sister-in-law to take a hike, instead of stepping up to help with the wedding decorationsandallowing her daughter to be included in the wedding party.
The point was moot, though, since he never planned to marry, which meant he would never find himself with a sister-in-law, former or otherwise.
“I understand you were in some kind of accident yourself,” Holly said with a sideways look. “Kim said you messed up your knee. Kim and Audrey flew out to help you right after it happened this summer, right?”
Tension stiffened his shoulders, hardened his jaw. Why did everyone want to talk about the hard landing? First his father, now this woman he had only met a few hours ago.
Yes, he had messed up his knee and ended up with a nasty infection that complicated the situation. He was lucky, though. The other pilot, a rookie who had been at the controls at the time, had sustained much worse injuries and would likely never fly again.
“They came out and stayed for a week, even though I told Kim over and over it wasn’t necessary.”
He hadn’t even told his family about the accident but somehow Kim had found out anyway. She had dropped everything to come out to California and help him.
His sister had always had his back, watching out for him at every new school they moved to, hanging out with him and playing video games in that invariably awkward phase right after a military move when they had not yet established any friendships.
He owed her more than he could ever repay, which was the main reason he was here in this small Idaho town for the holidays.
“Siblings can be a pain,” Holly went on. “You met my twin sister today. We also have two older brothers who never listen to anything I say. Technically I’m the baby since Hannah was born first. She never lets me forget it, either.”
He couldn’t imagine a big family, filled with noise and chaos. Even before his mother died, his and Kim’s childhood home had never been chaotic. His father wouldn’t have allowed it.
“Do they all live close?”
“Yes. Hannah works as a music therapist in town and my two brothers own a security company together.”
“It must be nice having everyone nearby during the holidays,” he said, even though it sounded far too complicated for him.
He went out of his way to avoid being with his family during Christmas. Beyond the constant tension between him and his father, the memories of losing their mother only a few days before Christmas were still too painful, despite the two decades that had passed.
“I do love it. Most of the time, anyway. They’ve all been amazing since the divorce to help me with Lydia. I really couldn’t have done the single-mom thing without them all.”
She washed the final dish and set it in the rack. “I have to tell you what a lifesaver Audrey has been, too. I’ve been so happy to have her help with Lydia after school and on the occasional Saturday. Lyd loves her. As you can probably tell, she’swonderful with her. They have a great time together. I hope you don’t mind letting her continue through the holidays.”
What was he supposed to say to that? To him, Audrey was still the little girl in braids who used to love going with him to the beach at whatever naval base he currently called home. He had fond memories of walking with her in the sand, looking for sea glass and agates. It still astounded him that she was now a teenager, old enough to be trusted with the responsibility of caring for a child with special needs.
