Page 46 of Every Beat of My Heart

“It was nice, especially after their mother died. I think they were worried about me. But it’s time for them to move on and live their lives.”

“Jameson was talking about building a house on the farm.”

“We have the cottage, but I think he needs something bigger. Especially if he wants a family.”

“You think that’s what he wants?” I shouldn’t be talking to his father about this. I had no reason to be interested, but I was.

“Jameson has the biggest heart of all my kids. I can’t imagine him not having kids of his own.”

I felt like I was getting a glimpse into Jameson, one I desperately wanted.

“It worries me that he hasn’t brought home a serious girlfriend. I wonder if it’s the constant ribbing between the brothers. The other ones don’t care about it, but I think he worries about what his brothers think of him. I wish he wouldn’t. He should do his own thing.”

“He’s forging his own path and doing a spectacular job.” Why was I so protective of Jameson? We weren’t anything. Yet I felt like I should stand up for him in front of his father.

Al’s gaze settled on me. “I’m proud of all my kids. When Alison died, it was hard to see past it. How would we move on? How would I raise seven kids on my own? The one saving grace was that Fiona and Teddy were adults. They had their mother for eighteen, nineteen years, but the others? They’d feel the loss more. I hated that for them. Nothing can replace a mother.”

“I’m sure,” I murmured, my heart aching for the Calloway family. “That must have been difficult.”

“Alison was the heart of this family. I was sure I’d let everyone down.”

“You didn’t. Look how they’ve turned out.” I nodded toward Jameson, who threw the ball at Wes. Teddy tackled him, and they rolled around on the ground arguing about tackle versus flag football rules.

“I promise I raised them to be better than this.”

I laughed. “You can feel the love when you’re around them. I’d say you’ve done a remarkable job.”

Al grinned. “You have too.”

“You don’t even know me.”

“You’re raising that boy by yourself? Ain’t nothing more impressive than a single mother. I watched Daphne with Izzy. Even though she had us, it’s not the same as the father being involved in her life.”

“Oh, I was with Eric up until recently. He’s still around.”

“He couldn’t have been a good father, or you wouldn’t have left him.”

“He wasn’t present. He loves work and being busy. He doesn’t much care about coming home to have dinner with his family.” In that moment, I knew Jameson was nothing like Eric. If he had a family of his own, he’d be present and attentive.

“You’ll be okay.”

I felt relief course through my body. “I needed to hear that.”

“You will be. You’re a strong woman, and you know what you want.”

He fell silent for a few minutes, and I added, “You know there’s nothing going on between me and your son. We’re just friends.”

“Yeah?” he asked, never taking his eyes off the guys playing football. “Well, it’s good to have lots of friends in life.”

I smiled. “I think so too.”

Just then, Owen ran over to us, his hair hanging over his face. He pushed it back, sweat clinging to his forehead. “Jameson said we could go for a walk in the fields. Can we?”

“You should see our Christmas trees before they’re picked over,” Al said with pride.

“I’d love to.” The farm itself was beautiful. From the porch, I could see the rolling hills, the rows of trees, and even a small pond. I hadn’t felt so relaxed in forever. There was something peaceful about being here.

“We have to tag the trees this week. We can show Owen how we do that,” Jameson said as he dropped onto the top step of the porch.

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