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Abruptly he stopped and looked around. He was doing it again, making decisions for everyone. He’d done it to Grace without a thought. Slowly he reconsidered what he’d been about to do. He didn’t need to take charge of Lisa’s problems. He wasn’t responsible for her. He needed to provide for his daughter.
“Lisa, in all of this, I’ve not considered what it must be like for you—losing your friend and now having to give up a child you love as if she were your own.”
“I am going to be so lonesome for her, but she belongs here with you. That’s what Deidre wanted. I have to confess that I was pretty concerned when you wanted to bring her here so soon after her mom’s passing, but she is settling in well.”
Awkwardly, he patted her shoulder in an attempt to stem the flood of tears. “You do whatever is best for you. We will manage. But maybe you could come back to see us.”
“I’d like that,” she said, taking a tissue from her pocket. “I’d like that a lot.”
“Talking to Emma isn’t going to be easy. Should we try for this evening?”
Lisa frowned. “I don’t think so. She’s usually so tired at the end of her day, which makes her really fussy. It might be better to talk tomorrow morning. She’s going to be upset enough. No point in adding to it by timing it badly.” Lisa sniffed and looked at him apologetically.
“Okay. Let’s plan on after breakfast tomorrow. I’ll call and let them know I won’t be in the office tomorrow. I feel pretty sure that she’ll need reassurance from both of us.”
Lisa met his gaze. “Aidan, you’re a good dad and a good person.” She picked up her purse. “If there’s anything I can do to make things right between you and your wife, I’d be willing to do it. It was pretty clear that first day I met her that she was hurt and shocked by what she’d learned. I feel guilty about the way I brought up the photo of you because it hurt her, something I didn’t mean to do.”
“You were pretty upset yourself, Lisa. We all made mistakes in those first few days.”
With a sad heart, he watched Lisa and Emma go down the driveway. He felt empty and alone. He had so much to consider. First, he had to talk to Emma about Lisa leaving. Then he had to find someone to take over the house and care for Emma while he was at work.
Whomever he found would have to be able to start as soon as possible, but it wouldn’t be the same as having Lisa, who clearly loved his little girl. He began to realize how much he had counted on Lisa to be here with Emma while he convinced Grace to move back home.
He waited until Lisa’s car had turned onto the next street before he turned to the job at hand. He called his office, asking his assistant to see if she could help in the search for a new nanny, then put a call in to the two kindergartens to move the appointments up so that he and Lisa could go together.
He was concerned about how tomorrow would go, how upset Emma would be to learn Lisa was leaving. The chaos underscored his need to have Grace here. Especially while he talked to Emma.
Grace would know what to say, how to handle this. Emma liked Grace. She was so strong. So capable of seeing what was possible, what would work best for Emma.
He’d been sitting staring at his computer screen, trying to deal with the paperwork spread out around him. All he wanted to do was see Grace, a futile wish, given that she hadn’t returned any of his calls. If there was a bright spot to his day, it was that the parcel meant he had an excuse to call her again.
He was still thinking of Grace when the phone rang. With trepidation, he answered, “Hi. What’s up, Lucas?”
“You are, you silly bastard,” Lucas said. “Like I promised a week ago, I’m coming over to your house. Put the coffee on,” he ordered.
