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“You mean you’re not going to march in there and say, ‘Hey, Dad, I just wanted you to know you have a granddaughter’?”
He laughed, mostly in relief that she was able to dredge up some humor tonight.
She lifted a brow. “You laugh, but it might come out that way. How else do you bring up something like this except abruptly? You can broach the subject, but I’ll be hiding my face in the corner.”
He stopped and turned her to face him. “Don’t you ever be ashamed, Annie. We’ve got a beautiful daughter. In spite of how things started, you’ve done a great job raising her. She’s smart and loving. We’ll get through the sticky parts.”
She came in closer for an embrace. “There’s a good reason I was never able to forget you.”
He nestled his face into her neck. Things would get better once everything was out in the open.
***
Annie’s pulse roared in her ears as she walked into the Blue Bonnet Bed-and-Breakfast with Jon. An apple-scented candle flickered on the fireplace mantel, and the sweet scent of it calmed her jitters. Daniel Dunstan had always been someoneshe admired. She valued his opinion of her, and tonight they were about to trash it.
Would he ever look at her the same way? Her knees shook, and she blinked at the moisture in her eyes.
Daniel sat at the game table playing chess with Martha. The two seemed cozy and content with one another’s company. The lakeshore breeze wafted through the screens in the open windows and brought with it the hum of distant cars in the village.
Jon’s dad waved his son over to join him. “Martha is whupping me. I need an opponent I can beat.”
Jon chuckled. “Nice, Dad, ragging on your only son.”
“Someone has to keep you in line.”
Martha rose and glanced at the clock on the mantel. “Anyone need a drink or a snack before I go?” She stepped to the fireplace and blew out the candle.
“We’re fine,” Annie said. “I know my way around your kitchen. If anyone needs something, I can handle it.” She moved to an armchair on one side of the fireplace.
“You certainly do. Good night.” Her heels clicked on the shining wood floors as she left them and went up the stairs.
She must have realized a visit this late meant some kind of news they wanted to discuss with Daniel alone. Annie wanted to tell Bree before anyone else in town heard the news, but that would have to wait until Annie figured out what to say. Tonight would be a start on getting the words out, but she wished she could stop this train in the station until she was ready.
She was so not ready.
Daniel sat back and folded his arms across his chest. “You kids are out late.”
“We had a close call tonight.” Jon told him about the car.“Things like that make you stop and think about the future. Which means we need to talk to you about something.”
“Thank the good Lord you survived. That’s a dangerous stretch of road when you don’t have control.” Daniel glanced at Annie. “You’re here to tell me you’re getting married?”
Heat washed up Annie’s face, and she stared down at her hands clasped in her lap. She couldn’t force a word out, so it was up to Jon to navigate this minefield.
Jon glanced over at Annie. “Not yet, but I hope it’s coming. It’s not easy to tell you this, Dad.” He paused and rubbed his head. “This was news to all of us, even Annie, and it all started when the doctor discovered Kylie had celiac disease. The disease has a hereditary link.”
Daniel nodded. “Your aunt Jo had it.”
“There was no celiac disease in Nate’s family, and Annie began to wonder if he was really Kylie’s father. She had a paternity test run, and there was no chance Nate was Kylie’s father. That only left me.”
Confusion clouded Daniel’s green eyes. “But you can’t have children.”
Annie had known that comment was coming. It had been Jon’s objection, too, and she didn’t know how to explain that part away.
“Something must have healed in my body. Kylie is my daughter and your granddaughter.”
“You have DNA to prove it?”
Jon reared back in his chair. “I saw the test that said Nate wasn’t her father. Kylie has to be mine.”
