Page 31 of A Heart to Find
“So that was crazy news about the engagement, right?” Small talk wasn’t his secret weapon, but he was floundering and needed to do something to recover the budding emotional intimacy so it could bloom. “Guess there’s something to this matchmaking thing.”
“It is pretty crazy. But I guess it’s what we all hoped for when we signed up.” Her cheeks reddened, and she picked at her blanket. “Sort of an updated version of an arranged marriage.”
“Not sure I like it when it’s put that way,” he teased.
“My grandparents met that way. Their marriage was arranged between the families, and it worked beautifully. Maybe not arranged, exactly, but definitely introduced and encouraged. They were in love until the day they died. In each other’s arms.”
“That really is incredible.” He swallowed hard. “Sorry to hear about their passing. I guess I knew it was a possibility after ten years, but to me they seem frozen in time.”
“Thank you. I like thinking about them still being alive in someone’s memory. As if they can exist on multiple planes…”
He nodded thoughtfully. “I hadn’t thought of it like that, but I like that idea, too.”
More silence, but this time not awkward. He enjoyed watching the nostalgia for her grandparents dancing across her face. The beautiful tilt of her chin as she gazed toward the flickering fire had him wishing he could lift her in his arms and proclaim his undying love for her. Dying in her arms at a ripe old age sounded exactly like the kind of adventure he wanted to sign up for.
“I always think of them as the perfect couple—certainly more functional than anything I grew up seeing,” he said. “What do you think made their marriage work so well?”
“I’ve asked myself that question over and over. I think it was a few things. Shared goals, though not always shared interests. Open communication. Respect. And above all else, honesty. They never lied to each other. Not even to protect the other’s feelings.”
Jared shifted uncomfortably in his seat. Honesty.
Was it his imagination, or was she looking at him as if she could see everything he hid?
He needed to tell her about Hailey. And Elizabeth.
Why hadn’t he already?
He told himself it just hadn’t come up, but that didn’t usually stop him from talking about his daughter.
He knew the news would upset Keira. He had told her he didn’t want a family, so the news would leave her feeling betrayed. True, a lot of time had passed, but being thrust together like this had, in some ways, brought them right back to their younger, more immature years. Like a strange time warp where everything was different and yet so much was the same.
He had gone into this thing knowing he’d need to find someone who would accept his daughter fully into their lives and hearts, and he had planned to tell his match about her as soon as he knew the match was successful, but not too soon so as to entice a woman who had a thing for single dads or who hoped for an instant family. No, he had to know the relationship was right and could last before bringing Hailey into it, even verbally.
But he had never expected to be matched with someone he knew he didn’t want to spend another day apart from. Someone who would be hurt to know he had started a family after telling her he never wanted one, even though that’s all she ever wanted.
He was in deep, and the only way to keep from hurting her more with the news was to tell her now.
“Speaking of honesty, Keira…”
Her face blanched. Her attention pierced him in the gut.
“I meant to tell you this sooner, but it’s been so crazy here that I haven’t really known how.”
“Okay…” Her voice trailed off at the end of the word. Suspicion raised her eyebrows.
“It’s nothing bad, I promise. Something really, really great, actually. Well, great to me. I hope you’ll agree.”
A wild string of knocking on the door interrupted his confession. A smile spread across Keira’s face at the party-like sounds coming from her friends at the door.
“Would you mind letting them in, please? By the time I get to the door, they’ll think I’ve died.”
The color returned to her cheeks, and Jared couldn’t deny the fact that he was caught between annoyance at the interruption and relief that he wouldn’t have to potentially break her heart so soon.
But maybe he was underestimating her? Maybe she’d be thrilled at the prospect of loving his daughter. Maybe she’d see it as a sign that he had indeed grown up and matured the way she had wanted him to.
Megan brushed past him as soon as he opened the door, zeroing in on Keira and her propped-up leg. Matt stopped to pat Jared on the back and offer sympathy at the fright they must have experienced.
Standing back quietly watching Keira grow more and more animated as she chatted with Megan, Jared allowed the faint spark of hope to flutter in his chest.
