“Have you ever had contact with Rob since he’d left us?” Bree asked.
Joan shook her head, but something in the way her eyes widened told Bree she was lying.
“Mom, now is the time to tell us everything. It’s okay,” Bree urged.
Joan took the glass of wine that Bree had poured and brought it to her lips. She took her time before answering.
“He contacted me once in a while for the first two years after he’d left. I told him we didn’t need him.”
“Mom!” Cait gasped and shook her head in disbelief. Bree’s lip trembled. She was about to burst out in tears. All this time, she thought he’d just left them. Unbelievable.
“And all these years I thought my Dad didn’t want me,” Cait said. “That he never loved me because he never looked back.”
“Cait, he loved you. He loved all of you… but he loved himself more. And I couldn’t let him hurt you like he’ hurt me. I needed to protect you from him.”
Bree placed a hand on her abdomen. She wondered if she would have done the same. Joan had been convinced she’d done it to protect her daughters. She was so glad she wouldn’t have to worry about any of that with Dec being the father of their twins.
“Protect us from our own father?” Gwenn said, crumpling a napkin.
“You’ll see what I mean If you’ll ever meet him again. You’ll see that I was right for what I did when you were kids.”
“I was eighteen and needed my father! I totally lost it that summer he left, and I slept with four guys in one week!” Cait yelled as she slammed her palm on the tabletop, making a small vase jump on impact.
Bree jumped in her seat. She felt for her oldest sister. She had seen their parents at their worst during all of their fights and break-ups. And when Cait said she’d needed her father, Bree realized how much she’d missed him growing up. Her chest tightened.
“Sounds like one hell of a summer, sis,” Gwenn tried to joke.
“I lost my virginity to Robert Jackson,” Cait said. “The guy that in the same night took two other girls upstairs. All because I wanted to prove to myself that someone liked me!”
Gwenn had the decency to look down. “Sorry. I didn’t know.”
“We all carry our hurt differently,” Cait said. “This has affected every one of us on some level. It’s not right you made those decisions for us, Mom. We—I—needed a father figure…”
“I can’t change the past, sweetheart. I know my decisions caused so much pain. But I still think I saved you girls from much more heartbreak in the end.”
“Declan told me that our cousin Jessie wants to meet us,” Bree said.
“Jessie?” Cait instantly straightened her stance.
Declan walked in with a tray filled with chocolate muffins, vanilla ice cream, whipped cream and chocolate chip cookies.
“Finally, something to eat,” Gwenn said.
“Yes! I couldn’t even finish my entrée,” Fianna said, throwing a look at her mother.
The sisters took back their spots around the table while Declan served them their dessert.
“Thanks, Dec. You’re the best,” Gwenn said.
“No problem. I’m glad to give you your fix,” he said. He smiled at Bree and she mouthed ‘thank you’ to him. He winked back.
“Dec, did Jessie tell you she wanted to meet us?” Cait asked, mindlessly making circles with her spoon in her ice cream bowl.
“How do you know this Jessie person?” Joan asked.
“We met her today on the job that went wrong. I can’t tell you about anything of it. Just leave it at that.” Cait said, dismissing her mother. “And? Did she?”
Declan laid down his spoon and wiped his mouth with his napkin. He nodded. “She said she wanted to help you. That’s she’s grateful for what you’ve done today.”