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A reprieve, at least for a few minutes. Annie turned on the light beside her on a table. “How long are you in town?”
Lars answered before Maryanne could. “Two days. I’ve got a meeting in New York on Friday, so we’ll fly out early in the morning.”
Maryanne twisted in her seat and motioned for Jon to come closer. “Jon, is your dad here too? I’d love to see him while we’re in town.”
Jon picked up the chair and brought it around to face the sofa. “He’s staying at the Blue Bonnet.”
“That’s where we’re staying too,” Maryanne said. “We’ll be able to catch up.”
“We’ve been remodeling the old cabin,” Jon said. “It’s nearly done.”
“Are you going to sell it?” Lars asked.
Jon’s gaze darted to Annie, and she recognized the question on his face. He didn’t know how much to reveal. Maybe blurting out the truth while Kylie was out of the room would be the better option.
She opened her mouth, but Kylie’s door slammed, and she pranced down the hall toward them. The sundress fit her well and emphasized the tan she’d already acquired. She spun around for them to see. “I never want to take it off!”
Maryanne tugged a few folds on the shoulder. “It’s perfect, just like you. We’re going to be here a couple of days, and I thought we might go shopping in Houghton tomorrow if your mommy says it’s okay.”
“That’s fine,” Annie said.
Lars rose. “We should probably get to the Blue Bonnet and check in.”
“Grandpa Daniel is staying there,” Kylie said.
“You call Jon’s father Grandpa?” Maryanne’s voice held a touch of frost.
“Well, he’s my grandpa too.” Kylie’s face fell and uncertainty crept into her blue eyes. “You know, since Jon is my father.”
Lars and Maryanne gasped a collective sound of dismay. Maryanne’s hazel eyes went round as she stared at her granddaughter, then swiveled her gaze to Annie. “You’ve remarried without telling us?”
“Lars, Maryanne, we need to have a little talk,” Jon said. “Kylie, it’s time for your bath. You can take your seashell into the tub with you.”
Kylie’s mutinous expression smoothed when he mentioned the shell. She hugged her grandparents and dashed back down the hall.
Annie stood and laced her fingers with Jon’s. “This isn’t an easy thing to tell you. We’ve recently discovered Jon is Kylie’s father.” She moistened her dry lips. “I had no idea until Kylie was diagnosed with celiac disease.”
Lars and Maryanne glanced at each other, and Maryanne shook her head as if to clear it. “I don’t understand.”
“I married Nate a month after Jon and I broke up. I didn’t know I was pregnant and never suspected Kylie wasn’t Nate’s biological child. But Nate will always be her daddy, and I’ll make sure she never forgets him. And you know how she loves you. That will never change.”
The silence stretched out as the older couple absorbed the news. Annie held her breath, praying they’d understand, but when Maryanne’s lips tightened, Annie knew they wouldn’t be that lucky.
Maryanne stood and took her husband’s hand. “I always wondered about your real feelings. You never loved Nate. Not really. Jon was always there between you.”
Annie’s chest felt like it had been kicked by a horse. How did she even counter that statement?
***
Jon felt the tension rolling off Annie in frantic waves, and he pressed as much comfort into her hand as he could. Nate’s parents stared at them both with matching expressions of disbelief, anger, and grief.
Jon could only imagine how they felt in this moment. “Please don’t say anything you’ll regret. Annie and I are doing the best we can right now. You have to know I loved Nate like a brother. I would never want Kylie to forget him. From everything I have heard, he was an amazing father.”
Lars had been sagging where he stood, but he drew himself up to his full height of six feet. “Like you would know, Jon. You cut him off when he married Annie.”
“I did, and I was wrong. Very wrong.” There was no real excuse for his behavior, so Jon didn’t try to dredge up one. “Nate was one of the best people I’ve ever met. I miss him every day.”
Maryanne shot him a glare of contempt. “Yet you let him think Kylie was his child when she is yours.”
