Sherryl Woods - Harbour Lights

“I hear the French bistro around the corner is really good,” Kevin prompted. “How about that, instead? Please. Take pity on me and keep my family out of both our lives.”

“Sure,” she said, though not without some disappointment. “That makes sense. It’s close and I’ll be able to get back in here and do a few more things before I quit for the night.”

Kevin looked so genuinely relieved, she was glad she’d acquiesced.

To her surprise, Shanna found herself adding, “On one condition.”

“What?” he asked, instantly suspicious.

“You’ll tell me more about your family.”

“Why?” he asked, clearly bewildered by the request.

“I was an only child and have what I used to refer to as Little House on the Prairie syndrome. I idealize big families. I always imagine these amazing holiday gatherings, brothers and sisters pestering each other but being there for each other, no matter what. Is it like that with your family?”

“It is,” he said, then gave her a wry look, “though it’s not always the blessing you seem to be envisioning.”

“I want to hear about that, too,” she said eagerly, leading the way out of the shop and locking the door behind them.

“You’re going to be bored silly,” he warned her as they strolled down the block and turned onto the road that ran along the beach. There were several sidewalk cafés along the block, all of them busy. Across the street, couples and families strolled along the beach.

“You won’t bore me,” she said with certainty.

Even if his stories turned out to be dull, she had a feeling she’d find them fascinating, because of the insights they’d give her into who Kevin O’Brien really was. Or maybe who he had been before his life had been turned upside down by tragedy.

“I don’t like this,” Megan O’Brien declared to Mick. “I don’t like it one bit.”

During one of their now-nightly phone conversations, Mick had been filling her in on Kevin’s ongoing lack of motivation. She’d seen for herself how lost he was on her visits to Chesapeake Shores, but like everyone else she’d been making excuses for him. Clearly, though, it had gone on long enough. Everyone might grieve at their own pace, but sooner or later it was time to get on with life, especially with a child to consider.

“Have you tried to get through to him?” she asked Mick.

“Of course I have,” Mick said. “I tried to get him to go with me this morning, just to give him something to do. He turned me down flat, then stormed off. I haven’t seen him since.”

“Oh, Mick, you don’t think he’s drinking, do you?”

“Absolutely not,” Mick said at once. “I haven’t seen him have more than a beer or two in the evening since he moved home, and he hardly leaves the house, so I think I would know.”

“Well, something has to be done. He can’t go on like this,” she said.

“That seems to be the general consensus around here, but not one of us has been able to come up with a plan.”

“I’m coming down there,” Megan announced. “I’ll be there on Friday.”

“Not that I won’t be happy for any excuse to have you here,” Mick said, “but what is it you think you can accomplish that the rest of us haven’t?”

“I’m his mother. Surely I can think of some way to get through to him, even if having me around does nothing more than make him angry. At least that would demonstrate some kind of emotion.”

“Meggie, are you sure?” Mick asked worriedly. “He’s not been very receptive on your last visits.”

“Because I’ve been tiptoeing around like everyone else, trying to give him space. He’s mad at me. We all know that. I left and he took your side and he can hold a grudge with the best of the O’Briens. It’s time to put that in the past. Like it or not, I am his mother, and I will make him listen to me.”

Mick chuckled. “I’m impressed by your determination and I agree he should let go of the past, but this may not be the best time to get through to him,” he warned. “He already has a lot on his plate.”

“Since when did you give two figs about timing?”

Mick chuckled. “Never,” he conceded. “I just don’t want him trampling all over your feelings.”

“I can take it,” she assured him. “I deserve whatever he wants to dish out. And maybe if he’s venting all of his anger at me, he’ll release some of the pent-up emotions he has about Georgia. Where is he now?”

“I have no idea,” Mick admitted. “Like I said, he took off this morning in a huff, and Ma says she hasn’t seen him since.”

“What about Davy?” she asked incredulously. “He didn’t just go off and leave Nell to take care of him, did he?” Even as she asked, she saw the irony, since that was exactly what she’d done years ago, left Mick’s mother to raise her children. It had been unintentional, but that’s how it had turned out when her plans to bring them to be with her in New York had been ditched for a whole variety of reasons that she now knew were nothing more than flimsy excuses.

“No, he’s very reliable when it comes to his son. He knew Davy was with me. He called earlier to check on him, but when Ma told him Davy was already asleep, Kevin said he’d be home in a couple of hours.”

“Maybe he’s spending time with one of the girls,” she suggested. “Or Jake. They used to be good friends.”

“Maybe,” Mick said, though he sounded doubtful. “He’s not been in any mood to socialize, though. Jake’s stopped by more than once, suggested a guys’ night out, but Kevin’s refused. I suspect he’s off somewhere by himself, brooding.”

“For hours on end?” she asked, her concern growing. “He was always a social kid, not a loner. This really isn’t good, Mick. I’m worried.”

“You think I should go look for him? I could take a ride around town.”

“He’ll be furious if he thinks you’re checking up on him,” Megan said. “Then, again, it would put my mind at ease if I at least knew he wasn’t in real trouble.”

“Then I’ll go right now,” Mick said at once.

The immediate response surprised her. There’d been a time when Mick wouldn’t have wanted to involve himself in messy, emotional situations. He’d been focused almost entirely on his career. His family had taken a distant second place. It was the reason she’d finally left him.

All that was water long since under the bridge, she reminded herself. Lately Mick had been proving time and again that he’d changed his priorities, that he was putting his family first. More and more, Megan was reminded of the caring man she’d married. That he was as attentive to her as he’d been when they’d first been courting helped, as well.

“You’ll call me when you find him?” she asked him now. “No matter how late it is.”

“I’ll call,” he promised.

“In the meantime, I’ll make my flight arrangements for this weekend,” she said. “Even if he rejects me again, at least Kevin is going to know that I care enough to be there for him.”

“As long as you’re prepared for things not to go smoothly,” Mick said.

“No one ever said the path to reconciliation was destined to go smoothly,” she reminded him. “I still have a long way to go with each of our children.”

“As do I,” Mick conceded.

“The point is to keep trying. Now, go find our boy, Mick. Make sure he’s safe.”

“He’s not a boy,” Mick said.

“I don’t care how old he gets to be, when he’s hurting, he’s still my boy,” she said fiercely. “And I’m always going to want to make it better.”

She had to wonder, though, if this time that was going to be beyond her capabilities.