My father widened his eyes. “They’re so much older than you are.”
Wow. I hadn’t seen that coming. There was a lot about Talon that he could object to, but I hadn’t even considered the age difference. If that bothered him, everything else about Talon was sure to give him nightmares.
“Actually, I had only met two of her brothers, Jonah and Ryan. I’m dating the middle brother, Talon. Remember? He was overseas while Marj and I were in college.”
“And how old is he, Jade?”
I fidgeted, looking away from my father’s gaze. “He’s thirty-five.”
“You’re twenty-five.”
“Yes, I know, Dad. I’ve done the math.”
“That’s a big difference.”
“You were six years older than Mom.”
He sighed, sitting down next to her. “True. And you see how that worked out.”
“Mom was eighteen when she had me. She was just too young. She wanted a career. There’s a big difference between an eighteen-year-old girl and a twenty-five-year-old woman.”
My dad smiled. He was still so handsome. His eyes were dark midnight blue, so different from the light blue that I got from my mother. But his hair? It was the same as mine, only with a few streaks of gray at the temples. Golden brown and thick. He was about six feet tall, only slightly taller than my mother.
“Yes, and you’ve got a better head on your shoulders than she ever did. That’s for sure. But don’t you think this is a little soon after the whole Colin thing?”
The whole Colin thing. What a mess that had turned into. “You know what, Dad? I’m so sorry you lost all that money on the wedding, and if it’s the last thing I do, I’ll make sure you’re paid back every single penny.”
“Don’t worry about that. It wasn’t your fault.”
“I know that. But I don’t think I was ever really in love with Colin. It was more of a habit with us after a while. I think things happened the way they needed to happen. I just wish I had been the one to realize it first.”
“Well, if you’re sure it was the right thing.”
“I am. And that’s because I’ve met someone amazing.”
He sighed. “All right.”
“Look, if you’re worried about Talon, why don’t you come out to the waiting area and meet him? He’s probably back by now.”
“I’ll meet him later, sweetie. I want to sit with Brooke for a while. You take a break. Get yourself something to eat or drink.”
The look on my father’s face was one I’d never seen before—sadness, worry…love. He needed to be here right now, holding my mother’s hand.
“Okay. If you need me, just text. I’m not leaving the hospital, at least not until tomorrow night. I’ll have to go back to Snow Creek to go to work on Monday.”
“I’m making this an open-ended stay,” my father said. “We have some projects in the works, but I trust my men to take care of them. They know the situation.”
I smiled. “It will be nice to have you here for a while.” Then I clamped my hand over my mouth. “Not that I think it’ll take a while for her to recover. I didn’t mean—”
“Jade, it’s okay. I know what we’re dealing with here. I want to be here with you and Brooke.”
I nodded. “Text me if you need me.” I left the ICU and headed back to the waiting area. Snuggling up to Talon, feeling his warmth—that was what the doctor had ordered for me, what I needed. My father might need to hold my mother’s hand. I needed Talon.
But he wasn’t in the waiting area.
Chapter Six
Talon