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He looked down, shame all over his face. “When your mom held Tim in her arms, that was when Fran told her I was the father. Your mother was so hurt and taken aback, she never could get over it.”
“Then why did she invite Saryn and her family over here? I wouldn’t think she would want to see Liliana.”
“She didn’t invite them. I did. I never was allowed to see Tim or have anything to do with him. Fran got a restraining order, said I was stalking her. I thought it best to just pretend Tim wasn’t my son. Even as he grew older, I didn’t attempt to reach out. Then I heard what a little prick he was, and I was glad I didn’t have any contact with him.”
That little bit of information felt like a brick in my stomach.
“When I saw Saryn at the hospital that night and saw how she looked at you, I figured you two were together. Then Ryan confirmed it. I told your mother I wanted to meet my granddaughter. She was free to come home or stay in Italy.”
“And she wanted to come home? Is she going to do something? Start something?”
He chuckled. “No. I think she regrets never being there for you kids. Maybe she’ll look at Liliana as a second chance. I mean, if you two are serious.”
I wasn’t about to share with my father about my relationship with Saryn.
“If she says or does anything,” I said, “we’ll leave, and we won’t be coming back. I care deeply for Saryn and Liliana.”
He raised a brow. “Do you love her?”
“Yes. I do.”
I waited for the lecture, the one where he said we hardly knew each other and we should take it slow. Instead, he smiled and drank down his second whiskey.
“Then don’t let her go.”
There was a knock on the door, and my mother poked her head in. “They’re here.”
I stood and walked over to my mother. She gave me a knowing look. “I spoke with Roger.”
I nodded and kissed her on the cheek. Then I whispered in her ear, “I’m sorry, Mom.”
She patted me on the back. “The past is the past. Let’s move on and start a new path, shall we?”
“Let’s.” I wasn’t sure how I was supposed to feel after my father’s declarations. The fact that he didn’t love my mother when they married. How he’d cheated on her. It put my father in a new light, and I wasn’t sure how I would deal with it.
Whisking away from me, my mother threw open the door. There was the woman I remembered, the one who loved to throw parties. Always the happiest hostess around. Except this time there was something different. She didn’t seem to be playing a part. When she saw Liliana, she bent down and smiled at her.
“Those blue eyes, my goodness. Aren’t you a pretty little thing.”
Liliana hugged Muke tightly. “Tank you!”
My mother wrapped Liliana up in a hug before standing and giving Saryn a hug and then Evie. Will and Ryan came in and shook my father’s hand. Then it was my father’s turn to see Liliana. He looked slightly taken aback. Clearly, he’d noticed that Liliana’s eyes were the same color blue as his. As mine. As Roger’s.
Lifting my gaze from my father, I met Saryn’s. She seemed at ease, and not the least bit worried. I was going to have to take lessons from her on how she did that.
“Liliana, I’m Nick Carter, but you can call me Pop if you want.”
Liliana smiled that brilliant smile of hers. She tilted her head as she giggled and repeated the word. “Pop.”
My father laughed.
Liliana took it all in and then said, “Pop, this is Muke!”
My father shook the small teddy bear’s paw and replied, “So very nice to meet you, Muke.”
The rest of the evening seemed like a dream. Dinner around my folks’ table, laughter, stories, and then hot chocolate and gifts. On the Christmases my mother was home, that was what we did on Christmas Eve. She made hot chocolate, we sat around the fire, and we each got to open one gift.
With Saryn sitting at my side, her hand laced in mine, everything seemed to be in place. I wasn’t used to things being in place in my life. Everything I touched seemed to falter somehow. Everything with the exception of Imaginations Unlimited.
But with Saryn, things simply felt right. As a matter of fact, everything seemed to be going perfectly, and that made me want to knock on wood. I felt at ease. I was less stressed than usual. I was happy, truly happy, for the first time in years. I knew it was because of Saryn and Liliana.
I glanced over to see Liliana sitting on the floor with my father, Roger, and Ryan. They were teaching her how to play a game. When I looked up and met Will’s eyes, he smiled, then gave me a nod. Evie and my mother were chatting about a charity function, and I heard my mother offering to help out. She even told my mother she’d love to go to the store and see how it all worked behind the scenes.
