Faith looked at her son. When had she lost her little boy and gained such a strong young man? She might not be accepted by her family anymore, but at least she knew who they were. She knew them enough to understand why they had made the decisions they had, even if she didn’t agree with them. Didn’t Matt deserve the same thing?
She sighed heavily. She had to do this. No matter how much she wanted to protect him, she had to face the fact that he was growing up and old enough to understand the situation. And damn it, he had a right to meet his father.
Matt was right. She wouldn’t lose him by allowing him to meet Nathan. But if she forbid it, it might drive a wedge between them. At least this way, she could ensure she was right there with him.
“I suppose I can.” What she didn’t know was how she was going to make it happen. She’d have to take time off work; he’d miss school. Their car might not survive another trip down to Georgia and back; it was about a thousand miles each way, give or take, and she was already at the point where she offered up a silent prayer of thanks when it brought her safely home from work every day.
Lost in those thoughts, it was a while before she realized the Callaghans had it all figured out.
“Sean says he can fly you guys down Friday night,” Shane said, tucking his mobile back into his pocket, “and have you back by Sunday night.”
“What?” Sean could fly a plane? He had a plane?
“It’s only a two hour flight,” Kieran explained. “We’ll have all day Saturday and most of the day Sunday.”
“What?” Kieran was going, too?
Kieran offered her a patient smile and turned to Shane. “Want to come along?”
“I’ve always wanted to go down South,” Lacie said with her usual gentle optimism. “See the big plantation mansions, maybe get some fresh peaches and Vidalia onions.”
“Looks like that’s a yes,” Shane grinned, kissing Lacie’s cheek. “Besides, if it’s alright with Faith, I could act as her legal counsel.” He looked expectantly at Faith; she barely heard him over the loud buzzing in her ears.
“Faith?”
She blinked, and Kieran laced his fingers with hers. “Of course it is. Right, Faith?” She looked at him blankly. “You’ll let Shane handle the legal stuff, right?”
She blinked. He took that as a yes.
“Awesome. We’ll meet you at the private airport Friday?”
“Yeah. Sean said to be there around six.”
“Done.”
“NO!” someone yelled, and Faith realized it was her. Everyone’s eyes turned to her, surprised.
Kieran’s face was a mask of concern. “Faith, what - ”
“No,” she said, shaking her head and taking a step backward. “No to all of it.”
“But Faith - ”
“No. No more hand-outs. No more charity.” She looked at Kieran, trying to summon the courage to say what she had to say. “No more anything.”
The silence was deafening as the meaning of Faith’s words sunk in. “What are you saying, Faith?” Kieran asked.
“You know what I’m saying,” she said, forcing the words out, praying she could hold back the bile in her throat at what she was doing. “We can’t be your little cause anymore, Kieran.”
The words tasted like acid in her mouth; the hurt in his eyes nearly had her on her knees. But this was for the best. She had to do it. For him as much as for her.
“You don’t mean that.” He whispered the words. “You can’t mean that.”
“I’m not who you think I am, Kieran. I can’t be what you need. Stop wasting your time and find the one who can.”
Matt stepped forward, his face just as stricken as everyone else’s. “Mom, no. Don’t do this... ”
“Go to your room, Matt.”
“But Mom - ”
“I said go to your room! I am still your mother, and you will do as I say!”
Matt’s eyes widened for a moment before he turned around and ran up the steps two at a time. Faith’s hand came up over her mouth. She’d never once yelled at him like that before. A slight movement reminded her that she was not alone. Kieran was moving toward her slowly, as if she was a frightened animal. She put her hand up to stop him.
“Please. Just go.”
She couldn’t look at him anymore. Couldn’t bear to see the look in his eyes and know that she had been the one to put it there. Sometimes doing the right thing was painful. That’s how you knew it was the right thing. The wrong things, the bad things, they were always easy.
She walked past all of them into the kitchen, closing the door behind her. She heard the murmur of soft voices – Kieran’s and Shane’s and Lacie’s. Then it was quiet again until she heard the sound of gravel as two vehicles made their way out of her driveway.
Chapter Sixteen
Matt didn’t speak to her for several days. That was okay. She didn’t know what to say to him anyway. Her heart felt as if it had been shredded; but that was nothing new. There was enough precedent for her to know that she would survive it, no matter how much it felt otherwise.