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“Ah, yes. You found out when you went through the mail that Dad didn’t deliver. Gladys,” Nessa added, and no further explanation was needed. “He didn’t open the cards I sent to him.” Her smile went south again. “Since he never responded, I guessed as much.”
Emmy groaned and wanted to throttle Waylon. It was bad enough that he’d withheld the mail, period, but he’d compounded that bad by not even responding to his own daughter.
Or maybe he hadn’t known Nessa was his child.
“Waylon knew about you?” Emmy came out and asked.
Nessa’s nod was quick. “He came to visit my mom and me two or three times a year.” She stopped again. “And here’s where I should go back to the beginning. Well, the beginning as I know it anyway. My mom, Miranda, and Dad met as kids when he visited his grandparents in San Antonio.”
“His grandparents,” Calen repeated. “That was his mom’s folks.”
Nessa nodded. “Apparently, Dad’s father sent him there most summers, and Mom said he hated it almost as much as he hated being home. That he also resented his own mom for abandoning him, and her folks put all the blame for that on Dad’s father.”
“I recall Waylon mentioning his grandparents,” Calen said, “but I didn’t know he’d had any contact with them. I never met them because they died shortly after I was born.” He paused. “So, Waylon met your mother when they were kids and they . . . kept in touch?”
Another nod from Nessa. “They dated on and off through high school, but it was hard for them to visit after my mom started college in Austin. According to my mom, they drifted apart but ran into each other twenty-five years ago.” Now, it was Nessa who paused. “Yes, while he was still married to your mother.”
The silence settled in for a few uncomfortable moments.
“They had an affair,” Calen concluded.
“No. Again, according to my mom, it was a one-time deal. Your mother had gotten the news that she wasn’t going to make it, that the cancer had spread, and Dad didn’t take that well. He showed up at Mom’s apartment, and one thing led to another . . .”
Well, crap. Emmy immediately looked at Calen to see how he was handling this. His jaw was set, and it was possible he was doing a whole lot of silent cursing.
“I’m so sorry,” Nessa went on. “This is one of the reasons I never contacted you. I figured it would bring back horrible memories just to see me, to know that I even exist.” She started to get up. “I’ll be going.”
“No, stay,” Calen said, and he reached out to take her hand, urging her to remain seated. “My mother’s death was a hard blow, but I don’t connect you to that.” He dragged in a long breath. “But I’m sorry Waylon didn’t do better by you. What reason did he give your mom for not marrying her after he was a widower?”
Nessa lifted her shoulder. “My mom has never said. She got married two years ago and moved to Florida, so I’m hoping one day she’ll spill all. For now, I’ll just accept what I have. And I have so very much,” she added, pressing her hand to her stomach again. “I’ve done a family tree for the baby. Of course, it’s all just names and dates, but I’m hoping to get pictures for her.”
So, a daughter. Calen would be getting a niece.
“I can maybe help with that,” Emmy offered. “There are still some boxes with old photos in the attic of the house I bought from Waylon.”
“Oh, that’d be wonderful. If it’s okay with you?” Nessa asked, directing her question to Calen.
“It’s okay,” he assured her. “When are you due?”
Nessa beamed again. “In about three weeks. Of course, it’ll be bittersweet because her dad won’t be there for her delivery, but I’m focusing on the sweet. I might have lost my wonderful husband, David, but I’ll always have a part of him with our baby girl.”
Mercy, Nessa had really been through the wringer. A wringer that would have squeezed the joy out of most. Apparently not her though.
“I’m sorry about your husband,” Calen murmured.
“Yes, that was soul-crushing.” Tears filled her eyes, causing Calen to groan.
“I’m sorry I brought it up,” he quickly added.
Nessa waved off his apology and blinked back tears. “I nearly called you a dozen times over the past six months since I lost him. My mother was a good shoulder to cry on, but sometimes I just thought I’d like to talk to you. To both of you,” she added. “I’d look at the pictures of you two and knew you were going through some tough times, and I thought maybe we could have all helped each other.”
Yes, tough times, but Emmy thought Calen’s and her ordeal with the cheaters felt like a tiny drop in the bucket compared to Nessa’s pain.
“I wish you had called. I mean that,” Calen assured her when Nessa’s head whipped up, and her eyes widened.
Nessa smiled again and glanced at them. “See, just looking at the two of you gives me hope. You survived a terrible ordeal, and you both lost your moms when you were so young. Yet you’re obviously happy. I swear, you were both practically glowing when you answered the door.”
Emmy thought maybe her glowing moved on to a blush. Because her pink face was a result of kissing, not because they wereobviously happy. Then again, those kisseshadimproved her mood and made her feel a lot more hopeful than she’d been in months. Of course, a lot of that hope was tied to her searing attraction for Calen, but, hey, hope was hope.
