Page 67 of Twenty Years Later

"All right. Now, you're kind of freaking me out," Alex prodded.

"Oh, I'm sorry. It's nothingthatbad really."

"Not that bad, huh? What is it then, Jayda?" he asked, his eyes creased with concern.

"Well, I'm just wondering, you know, if... well, if Fiona ever shows up, what would you do?"

He let out a breath.

"Is that something you've thought about really?" I asked.

"I actually have." I waited for him to continue. "And first off, I can promise you that Fiona and I are completely done."

Well, that was good at least.

"And as far as Gabby goes, I know there's always the possibility that Fiona will change her mind. And I'm not sure how you feel about this, but I've thought about it a lot. And if she wants some kind of relationship someday with Gabby, I think I'd try to support that somehow and work something out for Gabby's sake."

I nodded. "I get that." And I really did.

"You do?"

"Yeah, of course. Gabby's going to have lots of questions someday I'm sure."

He sighed. "I know. I never thought I'd be in this complicated of a position."

I held his hand tighter, trying to offer some kind of support like he had given me. "Well, for what it's worth, I think you're doing the right thing."

His eyes looked into mine. "Thanks. I appreciate that. It hasn't been easy. And I just feel like Gabby's missing out."

My heart squeezed at that thought. "But she hasyou, Alex."

"But I want more for her."Those incredible eyes of his filled up.

"Of course. I think every parent wants that."

Alex opened his mouth like he was going to say something then stopped himself.

"When was the last time you spoke to her?" I asked.

"Fiona?" He took a breath. "It's been a while. I guess since the divorce was finalized. And that was just to go over details."

"Was it a complicated divorce?"

"No. It was rather amicable, and it was fast. She didn't want anything. No spousal support. I bought out her part of the house. She just wanted to get back to LA as quickly as possible where her family is. She even signed over her parental rights."

That surprised me that she'd already taken that step. "She did?"

"Yep. But that's only the beginning. It would have to go through court for anything to be official."

I nodded, not sure how to feel. The way Alex talked, he didn't seem very emotional over it all... well, except about Gabby. But certainly not about Fiona. And I didn't know what to think. Maybe it was as straightforward as it all seemed. Maybe he really was over her.

But ithadbeen somewhat recent. Plus, she was the mother of his child. Even though it had been four-plus years since Blake had died, I knew I would never get "over" him. He wouldalwaysbe a part of me.

Maybe death and divorce were different beasts. I didn't know really. I had only experienced the one, so I had no clue about the other. I had friends who were divorced, and they'd handled it in various ways, some moving on quickly, and others still grieving.

"Mama!"

The gate upstairs rattled, and I jumped up, afraid that Audrey would awaken Gabby. And then the fun would really start.

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