Page 153 of Forever Flames: Padraig & Stevie
“Not here.” I brush a strand of hair behind her ear. “We’re going to go out for a bit. You and me and Padraig. We’ll explain then.”
Padraig drives, his knuckles white around the wheel. I sit in the passenger seat beside him, every nerve on fire, fighting the urge to reach for his hand when I’m not sure he’d take it. Isla sits in the back blasting something through her earphones, like a shield. The unease in her eyes says everything.
Neither of us speak until we pull up to his townhouse. It’s early so the street is quiet. We decided to come here so there’s no risk of someone recognizing him in a public place. The subject matter is too risky.
Isla eyes the townhouse like it’s a test she hasn’t studied for. “Why here?”
“Because we need privacy.” Padraig cuts the engine and turns, finally meeting her eyes. “This isn’t something we can talk about anywhere else.”
She looks between us, searching, her brows knitting. “You’re scaring me.”
“We’re not trying to.” I twist in my seat to face her fully. “There’s something you need to hear from us together. It’s important.”
We get out and Padraig unlocks the door to let us inside. Isla lingers in the entryway, backpack slung off her shoulder, waiting.
He gestures toward the couch. “Sit.”
She doesn’t move right away. She studies him. The same way I do when I’m trying to figure out what’s up. She finally plows through the door and lowers herself onto the cushion. Arms crossed tight, phone clutched like a lifeline.
I sit beside her, Padraig across, so she has us both in her sightline. My heart drums so hard it’s all I hear.
Steadying myself, I curl my fingers against my knee. “There’s more to the story of me and Padraig than you know. You’re old enough now to hear it and you deserve the truth.”
Isla’s chin tips up, cautious, but she doesn’t look away.
Padraig leans forward. “The first time I saw your mom was when she moved in next door. We were seven. Even then I felt something I couldn’t explain. She was my person before I had the words for it.” His throat catches. “By the time we were your age, we already knew it was more than friendship. We were each other’s firsts in every way. First love. First sexual experiences. We went to college together. Lived together. Your mom was the center of my world. Our bond was unbreakable, or so we thought.”
Isla’s mouth drops open with shock.
“For years we built our lives around each other.” Padraig’s eyes shadow over. “Until adulthood pulled us apart. I had the band, your mom moved away to New York to pursue her career. Neither of us knew how to close the distance without losing ourselves.”
I exhale, taking over the story. “I met Cooper at work. We were in the same friend group. When Padraig and I broke up he’d already broken up with his girlfriend and we became good friends. It turned into more when I ended it with Padraig for good. He and I started dating and I got pregnant with you right away. We got married at the courthouse before I started showing and created an amazing life with you, your sister, and brother until…”
“He died.” Isla crosses her arms, fingers absently tracing over the scars from the accident.
Her words cut through me, sharp.
“Yes. He died. It broke all of us.”
Padraig shifts and braces his elbows on his knees, hands locked tight. “Isla, yesterday, when you came home from school and told us about the incomplete. Something happened for both your mum and me. We looked at each other and it clicked.”
Her eyes narrow, arms crossed. “What clicked?”
“Um…” I swallow hard. “It made me consider something I’d never even thought about, but, it’s possible—” my voice wavers “—Padraig might be your biological father.”
Isla’s mouth drops in horror. “What?”
“Isla.” Padraig keeps his eyes steady on her. “From the time I came back into your mom’s life, I’ve always thought of you as mine.Always. Yesterday it all shifted. It felt like the truth has been sitting there, waiting for us to face it.”
“Wait.” Isla blinks, color rising in her cheeks. “So you’re saying my dad might not actually be my dad?”
I reach for her hand. “No, he’ll always be your dad. He loved you with everything in him. This discussion isn’t about taking him away. It’s including you in a situation we find ourselves in and making sure you are part of deciding how we move forward. Whether you want to get a blood test to find out for sure. This is a lot of information. Shocking information and I can’t promise your mother and me know what we’re doing, but we didn’t want to take further steps until we brought you into the decision making.”
She turns to me, her eyes sharp, wet and furious. “How could you not know? How…gross!”
The words slice straight through me. “Ididn’tknow. Cooper loved you from the second I told him I was pregnant but I wouldhave never let Padraig be cut out of your life if I ever suspected he was your biological father.”
“Bullshit.” Her fists ball at her sides. “What kind of person are you?”
