Page 59 of The Forsaken
“I hear knitting is gaining popularity among the male population,” Quinn quipped.
“I was thinking of joining a gym, actually. I’ll need energy to run after a little one.”
“You certainly will,” Quinn agreed. “Have you told Sylvia?”
“Not yet. I haven’t thought of a way to break it to her gently.”
“Just be truthful with her. Nothing hurts more than someone trying to deceive you and playing you for a fool. Sylvia is a big girl; she’ll understand.”
“Do you really think so?” Rhys asked, looking hopeful.
“Like you said, you want different things. Sylvia’s already had her children, more children than either of us knew, and you are just starting out.”
“I hope it’s a girl,” Rhys said. His eyes were glowing with excitement and Quinn felt a wave of affection for him. “But a boy would be grand too. My mum will be thrilled.” Rhys glanced at his watch. “We’d better finish up. I have a meeting at two. This has been lovely, Quinn.” He paid the bill and got up to leave. “Keep me in the loop, will you?”
“About?”
“About your search for your sister. I’ll help in any way I can. Do you have any leads?”
“I have the name of the social worker.”
“That’s a start.”
“It is.”
Quinn said goodbye to Rhys and turned for home. She’d had her doubts before the conversation with Rhys, but now she was sure. She had to call Seth. He had a right to know that he had another daughter out there somewhere, and he had to hear it from Quinn.
THIRTY-FIVE
Quinn propped up her cheeks with her fists and stared down at the mobile phone lying on the kitchen table. It looked harmless enough, but at the moment it was an object of acute anxiety. It’d been easy enough to decide that she must call Seth, but somehow the act didn’t follow naturally. She’d spoken to Seth only twice since leaving New Orleans, and although they’d had a fairly easy relationship while she was there, now that there was an ocean between them it was hard to recapture that feeling, especially after what had happened.
Quinn genuinely wanted to hear his voice and share the news with him, but for some reason her hand just wouldn’t move toward the phone, no matter how many times she willed her hand to lower and pick up the object. She supposed it was because she couldn’t not ask about Brett. That would be like avoiding a two-thousand-pound elephant in the room. Thinking of Brett still hurt, and probably always would. She’d opened up to him and let him in, believing he’d felt the same about her. She’d misjudged her brother just as she’d misjudged Luke. They had both taken her completely by surprise when they’d betrayed her.
Quinn sighed and pushed the phone away. She simply couldn’t do this today. When she thought back to her time in New Orleans, her breath caught in her throat and a great big lump welled up in her chest. Not only had she nearly died, but she’d had several confrontations with Luke, who’d come all the way from Massachusetts to see her and try to win her back. Luke could be like a dog with a bone when he genuinely wanted something, and what he wanted was to go back to the life he’d left behind. With his American girlfriend gone and his teaching commitments about to end, he’d longed to return to the life he’d taken for granted. And now he was really coming back, all set to teach the autumn semester at the institute while he waited for his next grant to come through. Quinn and Gabe had had a blazing row about it just the other day, and although Quinn had fought tooth and nail to make her point, she knew Gabe was right.
“You can’t possibly take him back,” Quinn had fumed. “It’s not fair.”
“Quinn, be reasonable. I have no grounds to refuse his request. Luke, for all his personal shortcomings, was a good employee—a fine lecturer and an experienced archeologist. As head of the department, I can’t allow my personal feelings to get in the way of good judgment.”
“This is not my idea of good judgment. He can get a job elsewhere.”
“Archeologists are not exactly in high demand. Or haven’t you noticed? I’ve had two job offers in the past two months, both of them offering a pittance. I’d make a better living driving a bus or fixing leaky sinks.”
“He can stay in the States,” Quinn said with a pout.
“I can’t prevent him from coming back, Quinny,” Gabe replied softly.
“No, you can’t,” she conceded. “Monica must be doing cartwheels of joy, especially since her marriage appears to be on the rocks.”
“I’m not intimately familiar with the state of Monica’s marriage, but yes, she’s happy that Luke is coming back.”
Quinn rolled her eyes at Gabe. “You know all.”
“Do I?” he asked sheepishly.
“You only pretend not to listen to gossip, but every good administrator knows that it’s a valuable source of information and knowing what’s going on under one’s nose can only be beneficial if you don’t want to get caught with your pants around your ankles.”
Gabe cringed. “A charming image. Yes, I hear things, whether I want to or not.”
