Bringing Emma Home. Stella MacLean

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СКАЧАТЬ of her company back five years ago, I thought I knew her. At least a little bit. I never pictured her as someone who would hide such important information from anyone, let alone me.”

      “What do you mean by that?” Grace asked, feeling uneasy.

      He glanced over at her. “I mean that she seemed so upright, so honest and caring. I’m surprised, that’s all.”

      “How can you call her upright and honest? She went to bed with another woman’s husband. How can you defend that behavior?”

      “Sorry that didn’t come out the way I intended. I meant in relation to her work.”

      His supportive words for this woman were disconcerting. She searched for something to focus on as her stomach rose into her throat. “Did you make a reservation for us for tonight?”

      “No. I didn’t think of it. But we can do that easily when we get there.”

      Aidan drove carefully through the city streets toward the highway leading out of town toward Spartanburg. “Grace, I have been so busy building up my company, making plans for us, for when we have a family, that I didn’t take in what it would really mean to have a child in our lives. But now that this little girl needs us, it’s as if we’re being given a chance to have what we always dreamed of. I want to be there for her.”

      A part of her didn’t really care how he felt, but she tried to sound interested if only to keep the conversation going. “You have a lot to think about if you’re going to give her a good home, so much planning needs to be done.”

      He squeezed her hand. “Thank you.”

      He sighed and smiled at her, making her heart do a funny flip-flop in her chest. She wanted to go home, to pretend none of this was happening, to go back to the way things had been before that first phone call from Larry Knowles.

      “It’s just that there is so much to think about—”

      He squeezed her hand a little tighter. “Stop worrying. We’ll figure it all out together. We’ll see how Emma is doing when we get to the house. The nanny will be there and probably a couple of Deidre’s closest friends.”

      “Do you know where Deidre lives... I mean, lived?” Grace asked, wondering how he would have known if he hadn’t seen her since the end of the affair over five years ago. “She might have moved since you were last here.”

      He gripped the wheel, his eyes skirting hers. “Mr. Knowles told me she lived in the same house as when I knew her.”

      Reality crashed down on Grace, billowing around her like an unwanted mist. Memories of those lonely nights when she’d waited for Aidan to come home, to make love to her, praying that this time there would be a baby for them. Believing his absence meant he was building a future for their family.

      She had awoken this morning hoping it was all a terrible dream, not real. Just before the pain rushed her, reminding her of the loss of trust, the ache of knowing her husband had slept with another woman.

      She believed in marriage, had been raised in a home where vows of any kind were taken seriously, and none more than the marriage vow. She wanted to take him back and put her whole heart into forgetting the past. They had married right out of college and had had their share of disagreements like any couple, but never something like this.

      Her hurt, her soul-deep wounds prevented her from forgetting anything. And she doubted they would allow her to forgive.

      There were so many questions and so few answers. Why had Deidre chosen not to tell Aidan about Emma when she was alive? Wouldn’t she have wanted her daughter to be close to her dad and his family? Why had she left everything to Aidan on the condition that he accept Emma into his life and become her dad?

      Grace couldn’t imagine any woman who would have behaved that way. She certainly wouldn’t have. She would have insisted that the child’s father share in the responsibility for caring for and raising it. She would want her daughter to have all the love and support possible, regardless of how she felt about the father. So how could Deidre not be in touch with Aidan and still expect him to step in as parent?

      None of this made any sense...

      “Grace, honey, time to wake up,” Aidan said softly.

      “What?” she asked, suddenly awake. After not sleeping for days, the smooth motion of the car had lulled her to sleep. Sitting up straight, she glanced out the window at the quiet boulevard basking in the midmorning sun. “Should I put Deidre’s address into the GPS?”

      “No. We’re only a few minutes away from her house.”

      It was humiliating to realize that her husband had been to Deidre’s home. Had they made love in her bedroom? Grace’s stomach sank, pressing into her backbone. Of course they had. They wouldn’t have needed to hide out in a hotel room to carry on their affair when Deidre’s home was available and waiting.

      Grace closed her eyes, trying to resist the image of her husband and Deidre making love in the home she was about to enter. A sharp ache close to her heart made her grit her teeth. She couldn’t wait to get away from the place. The ache of betrayal reminded her of what had gone on without her knowing. “We...we need a reservation for tonight.”

      “I’ll look after that once we’ve seen Emma. I’m worried about how she’ll react to us appearing in her life right now...” He turned right onto a tree-lined street, weaving through the many twists and turns of a roadway designed to slow traffic around homes whose gabled entrances, brick exteriors and long, elegant windows spoke of wealth and prestige.

      Grace shrank into the seat, suddenly wishing she hadn’t come with Aidan. She didn’t want to see this house, this place where her husband had made love to another woman—a woman he hadn’t admitted having a fling with until circumstances forced him to do so. The car slowed as Aidan pulled into a driveway surrounded by a hedge that protected the house from the street, the massive gardens sweeping toward the entrance, flashing bright red and yellow flowers of all sizes and shapes. Following the curve of the driveway, they stopped in front of a massive dark wood door.

      “We’re here,” Aidan said, turning off the engine. “Are you okay?” he asked, turning to her his eyes filled with concern. “I realize that this isn’t easy for you,” he murmured, taking her hand in his and kissing her fingers. “If you’d rather, I can go in first, if it would make it easier for you...”

      Her heart hammered against her rib cage. Could she go in there? Could she face a little girl who was about to be part of their life? If they stayed married, of course.

      She glanced around, hoping to see other vehicles along the circular drive. There weren’t any. It had been several weeks since Deidre’s passing, and yet Grace had expected to see evidence that people were still coming to check on a little girl who had lost her mommy. Where were all this woman’s friends? Or didn’t she have any?

      The tragic way Deidre had died should have meant that her friends were taking turns caring for her daughter. She took a deep breath. “I’m not sure I can do this. Go into the house where you slept with another woman. It’s not fair.”

      “It’s all right if you can’t. You’ve come this far with me, more than I expected or deserved.”

      At least he acknowledged her perspective. No, she couldn’t go inside. Yet...she СКАЧАТЬ