Page 107 of Ten Beach Road

“I can go live in L.A. and see him when he feels like it. Tonja’s moving back into their house. She told him it was okay.” Kyra’s mouth twisted in a bitter smile. Tears shimmered in her eyes. “That’s the open kind of relationship they have.” She sniffed. “You were right, Mom. You were right the whole time.”

“No, honey, I just . . .” Maddie’s voice trailed off. “It’s just . . . mothers never want to see their children hurt or even disappointed.” She reached out to tuck a stray lock of hair behind Kyra’s ear. “I love you and I want the best for you. I hope you know that whatever you choose, I’ll . . . we’ll . . . always love you and stand by you.”

Maddie felt her own eyes well with tears.

“He actually thought I’d jump in that stupid car and go with him,” Kyra said. She looked at Maddie, her eyes too old now for her face. “What’s really scary is that if I hadn’t been watching you all summer, I might have.”

“What do you mean?” Maddie asked.

“I’ve watched you deal with all the shit that’s been happening. You took charge when you had to and you didn’t give up on Dad; you just kept going, doing what had to be done. I didn’t realize how strong you are.”

The words settled over her. She hadn’t thought in those terms, she’d just been plowing ahead trying to hang on. But Kyra’s recognition was like a balm to her soul; one she hadn’t realized she needed.

“Me, neither,” Maddie said. “You don’t really know what you’re made of until things fall apart.”

“Well, I want to be strong like you,” Kyra said. “And I don’t think you would have settled for being somebody’s piece of ass on the side.” Her gaze dropped before she looked back into Maddie’s eyes. “I think I deserve better than that. And so does my baby.”

She pulled out a business card from her pocket and handed it to Maddie. “He gave me his attorney’s card and told me there’d be some kind of settlement for the baby. Only I have to sign something that says I’ll never name him as the baby’s father or give interviews or anything.”

“Well, at lest he didn’t try to shirk his financial responsibilities,” Maddie said.

“No. Apparently this isn’t the first time this has happened.” Kyra’s laugh was hollow. “Kind of ironic isn’t it, that Tonja’s trying to adopt all these third-world babies, while Daniel’s just sort of running around creating his own?”

“Yeah.” Maddie put her arm around Kyra and drew her into a hug. “Let’s go get your video camera and get some shots of Bella Flora. I can’t believe how fabulous she’s looking; I know Avery’s not going to want to admit it, but Deirdre’s kitchen is going to be completely to die for.”

---