Page 24 of The Cottage on Plum Island
“Liam!” Betty raised her brows as she looked at her nephew. “Please don’t be rude to your father.”
“We don’t have a father!” Jennifer and Liam said in unison.
Betty was about to say something to them when Andrew Gains stopped her. “It’s okay, Betty. I deserved that.”
“Is this why you wanted us home so urgently?” Jennifer’s words were back and tumbling through her lips before she could stop them. “Becausehesuddenly showed up thirty-nine years too late?”
“Jennifer!” Betty hissed. “That’s enough.”
“I’m out of here,” Jennifer said, holding up her hands. “I just remembered I have to be anywhere else but here right now.”
She turned to leave.
“I’m coming with you to wherever it is we need to be beside here,” Liam said, following Jennifer to the bedroom door.
Betty’s voice rang sternly through the room, stopping them as they were about to exit through the door.
“You twowillcome back here right now and listen to what yourfatherhas to say,“ Betty ordered. “I did not raise the two of you to be rude and turn your back on someone who needs your help.” She glanced at Andrew. “No matter who they are!” Her eyes narrowed further.
Jennifer and Liam stood at the door, staring at their aunt before looking at each other and nodding as a silent agreement passed between them.
“Fine,” Liam became their spokesperson, and they returned to the room. “You have ten minutes, and then we have a thing.”
“What thing?” Betty looked at them suspiciously.
“We just told you,” Jennifer reminded her aunt. “An anywhere but here withhim,thing.”
“Look, I know I don’t deserve to even ask for your help,” Andrew told them.
Jennifer looked at him more closely and saw the dark emotion in his eyes. He looked tired, drawn, and haunted by sadness. Jennifer almost felt sorry for him as he was obviously going through a hard time.
“No, you don’t,” Liam agreed with him.
“Maybe you two should take a seat?” Betty suggested.
“No, we’re good,” Liam refused. “Can we move this along?”
Andrew took a breath. “I remarried seventeen years ago.” While she tried to remain aloof and emotionless, his words still felt like a dagger to Jennifer’s heart.
“Congratulations!” Liam said sarcastically. “So what?” His brow furrowed, and he shrugged. “Did you come here to ask us to give you our blessing?”
“At least he’s only seventeen years late this time,” Jennifer commented, she and Liam exchangingglances.
“Thank you for sharing that,” Liam told him. “But I think I speak for Jennifer and me when I saywe don’t care who or when you got married.”
“Yeah, we actually thought you were dead,” Jennifer said nastily. She wasn’t a vindictive person, but she couldn’t stop the anger mingled with all the hurt he’d caused her from fueling her tongue with acidic barbs.
“Jennifer!” Betty looked at her in disbelief. “What an awful thing to say. Apologize.”
“No, Betty, she doesn’t have to apologize,” Andrew said. “How would Jennifer and Liam have known whether I was alive or dead after disappearing without a trace from their lives.” He looked at Jennifer and Liam. “I didn’t come here for your blessings or to disrupt your lives, although I would like to say how incredibly proud I am of both of you.”
“Don’t give them openings like that to throw barbs at you, Andrew,” Betty warned him. “They both had a big shock seeing you again. Your words won’t mean anything now.”
“Aunt Betty’s right,” Jennifer said before Liam could. “We really don’t care what you think of us. If you didn’t come here to rub your seventeen-year-old marriage in our faces, what did you come here for?”
Andrew took his wallet from his pocket and pulled out a few small photographs the size of a credit card. He slipped three back into his wallet and extended the third toward Jennifer and Liam, who took it. It was a photo of a dark-haired teenage girl with eyes the same color and shape as Jennifer’s. The teenager bore a striking resemblance to Jennifer.
“Is she your granddaughter?” Jennifer asked.
