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“Kiera, I’ve been worried sick. And heartbroken. Why didn’t you let me know where you were today? I …”
“I did. I left you a note.”
“I didn’t see a note. Only an empty bed and an empty apartment.”
Setting the glass carefully on the nightstand she looked at his sad face. Softly she asked, “You thought I left again?”
Tears gathered in her eyes, and she swallowed several times to keep a sob from escaping.
She turned to the nightstand, found the piece of folded paper she’d tucked under the lamp to keep it from being brushed away and held it out to him. “I left you a note,” she whispered.
She watched his shaking fingers unfold the sheet and read her words to him. He closed his eyes and let out a sigh. “I didn’t see this.”
She couldn’t hold it in any longer, the tears came, and the crying flooded out of her. “I’m … sorry.” Irritated, she swiped at the tears. “You told me you hadn’t been sleeping very well.” She swallowed to catch her breath. “I couldn’t wake you this morning; you looked so peaceful, and you were finally sleeping.”
He reached forward and pulled her to him. Their awkward position didn’t make it easy, so he twisted them, so he was lying back on the bed, and she tucked tightly to his body, both of his arms wrapped around her.
She listened to his ragged breathing and his pounding heart. She closed her eyes. Would she ever stop hurting him? It was never her intention.
When enough time had passed that they both had calmed, she leaned up and looked into his eyes. “I’m so sorry,amore mio. I never, never meant for you to think I’d left you.”
Touching her lips to his, she then laid her head on his shoulder. He wrapped her up tighter in his arms and swallowed. “I’m sorry I jumped to conclusions.” He cleared his throat and continued, “And for the record, I love the wayamore miosounds coming from you.”
“Good.”
After a few moments, he sat them up and twisted to face her. “Now, can you tell me what happened today?”
She nodded, picked up her glass of water and finished drinking it down. She proceeded to tell him about her day.
25
“So now you know everything.” He watched Leesa process his story about he and Kiera and hoped beyond hope that she’d be willing to meet Kiera and get to know her.
“All these years, Mom hated the name Kiera. And when you two would argue, she’d mention her name, but I always thought she was jealous of someone you were seeing or something. I could never figure it out because you never said anything.”
“It was painful. And your mom brought it up enough.” His jaw clenched and released. “For the record, I never cheated on your mother.”
She nodded. “Have you told Matt?”
He cleared his throat. “Yes. Yesterday we had lunch, and I told him. He’s already met her, under different circumstances though. She came to the office to talk to me, and he was there.”
She smiled. “What did he say?”
“Leesa, he’s a guy, and he basically said, ‘Okay.'”
She giggled. “I can hear it.”
“I want to bring her to your wedding, Leesa. I know your mother is going to have a hard time with it, but I want you to be comfortable with Kiera there. I’d like you and Matt to come to my house and meet her this weekend.”
She took in a breath to say something, but he held his hand up. “Wait. Before you say you have too much going on, hear this. We are all busy. And, I don’t ask you for much, but I’m asking for this. Your mom is remarried, and I’ve never once treated Harold with disrespect. I know it’s a bit different here, but she’ll need to adjust.”
He picked up his iced tea and took a drink. “I’ve said what I needed to say.”
She smiled and looked him in the eye. His daughter had always been level-headed and smart. She was also polished in a way that many women at the age of 23 were not. She was a kindergarten teacher and excelled in her job. He had every faith that she would meet him in the middle with this.
“I’ll talk to Chris and see if he can make Saturday evening. Will that work for you?”
“That will be perfect.”
