“I’m impressed.”
“Any woman can do the things I do. Most choose not to, for their own reasons.”
“Most women don’t choose construction for a living either.” He winked.
She was glad he remembered all the things they’d talked about, no matter which parallel life she’d been in. Hoping he wouldn’t mind since he brought up the subject of parents, she wanted to know more about his absentee father. “You told me a little bit about your mother. What about your dad?”
Aidan gulped down the rest of his juice and wiped his mouth on a napkin. “I never knew him. I’m not sure my mom had any idea which boyfriend he was, to tell you the truth.” He shot Sam a dark look. She did a good job of disguising her surprise at his bluntness, and his face relaxed again.
“Everyone makes mistakes,” he continued. “Some more than others, I guess. My mother was a looker, as they say. As an adult, I’ve thought back and can see that she was insecure and craved the love she probably never received as a child. She couldn’t help how she was and that the boys all liked her. I never harbored any ill will toward her. She was a good mother to me.” He gazed into space for a moment. “Besides, there were a lot of fathers who were MIA here at Pavee Cove in those days. Some were gone by choice. Some were absent because their work kept them away a majority of the time. Jason’s father was gone more than he was home before he was killed.”
“I didn’t know. Claire never mentioned her husband. What kind of work did the men do? Fishing?”
His eyes delved into hers. “No. They mostly painted houses, repaired roofs, and did odd jobs. They were called travelers because they moved around looking for work.”
She hearkened back to what Daniel had told her about the Irishmen who had sailed with Eamon McBride and their ancestors. Daniel had suggested they were not the most honest people. She’d heard a little about modern-day travelers, who were rumored to be con artists, but she hadn’t thought about their connection to Aidan and the people who’d established this area, until now. She wondered if Aidan’s father had been a con man.
“Pavee Coast got its name from the Irish who settled here, I’m told.”
His face lit up. “That’s right. They called themselves Pavees. Thus, the name Pavee Cove.”
She swallowed the last bite of her cinnamon donut and changed the subject. “Aidan, how did you get that scar on your hand?” Her gaze landed on the crease between his thumb and pointer finger.
“This? I was being a stupid kid when it happened.”
“Tell me.”
“Well, I was spending the night with Jay. We were supposed to camp out in his yard that night, but a big storm blew in, so we had to set up our tent in the house.”
She held her breath and hoped to hear the same tale Jason had told. So far, it jived.
“Anyway, we obviously couldn’t roast wieners over the fire like we’d planned, but we found a can of beans in the cupboard. Like a dummy, I tried to open the can with my pocketknife and the knife sliced right through my hand. Had to get a few stitches. Stupid, right?”
It was difficult for her to answer with her heart lodged in her throat. Finally, two stories matched and made sense.
She was about to ask him more about his and Jason’s childhood adventures when he said, “I guess the spyglass didn’t work last night, huh?”
CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR
She’d hoped he’d forgotten about that. After all, he apparently didn’t remember a life with a wife and son. “I guess not,” she replied. “I’m sorry. Can you tell me now why you wanted to look through it?”
Their gazes fused. “All right. I did promise.”
She dropped her chin in her hand and gave him all her attention.
“When I was a boy here in Pavee Cove, I knew a little girl. Her name was Remy.”
Samantha froze.
“Jason, Remy, and I used to play together on the beach. We were the best of friends, even though Jay and I were nine and she was six. She was a special little girl, and one day she just disappeared. No one ever told me what happened to her. I don’t know if she was kidnapped or died or moved away. I never saw her mother after that day either, so I thought they must have moved. But if that had been the case, I didn’t understand why Remy hadn’t said goodbye. Or why my own mom didn’t tell me they’d left. All the adults whispered for a while, but nobody talked about what had happened. My mom decided to take me away from here not long after. I never learned anything more about Remy. It was as if she’d vanished off the face of the earth. But her disappearance has haunted me all my life.”
Taking his hand, Sam’s heart broke for the pain that was still evident in his eyes and in his voice. “I can see how something like that would affect a person.”
“Anyway, like I said, I was only nine, but I loved Remy. All these years, I’ve wondered where she is and what happened to her. I hope she’s had a good life. When you figured out the power the spyglass held, it got me to thinking. Maybe I could be transported into Remy’s world, wherever she was, and see how her life had turned out. It was worth a try, but seems it was a bust.”
If only Aidan knew the magic had worked. And not only had he found Remy, but he’d been married to her and they’d conceived a child. She nibbled her bottom lip. It had been selfish of her to purposefully try to wreck Aidan’s life with the person he’d probably been destined to be with. But there was no going back and changing things now. What was done was done.
“I guess I’ll never know what happened to her,” Aidan said, inhaling deeply. “But it’s time I moved on. I’ve spent too many years obsessing over that girl. I can’t change the past. All I can hope for is that she’s been well cared for and is happy now, wherever she is.”
A knot formed in Samantha’s throat, keeping her from speaking.
Aidan leaned forward and palmed her cheek. “I want you to know I am moving on. I’ve become so close to you, which is something that’s never happened to me with a woman, especially in this short amount of time. At first I genuinely wanted to help you with your troubles, because I could see you were so confused and in pain. But there’s so much more to our relationship now. I enjoy being with you. I like talking to you and spending time together. We have such a deep connection it’s almost scary. There’s no doubt about our strong physical attraction, but there’s also an unexplainable emotional and spiritual bond. Do you feel it, too?”
She nodded again and blinked to keep joyous tears from spilling out of her eyes.
He smiled and gently kissed her eyelids, her nose, and finally her lips. “What I’m trying to say is that I’ve fallen in love with you, Samantha. It’s fast, but it’s real.”
A soft moan escaped through her mouth. “I love you, too, Aidan.” Climbing onto his lap, she ran her fingers through his hair and their kiss deepened.
When the kiss broke, she teased, “I suppose now is as good a time to tell you, I am a morning person.” When he grinned, she slid off his lap, grabbed his hand, and led him upstairs to the bedroom.
* * * *
As they lay entangled in each other’s arms, bodies moist and tingling in the afterglow of lovemaking, Samantha’s thoughts traveled back to what Aidan had said about him, Remy, and Jason as children. Obviously they were the three kids she’d seen in the trees that day. What a nice thought to know she’d been looking at Aidan as a boy.
She remembered how little Remy had made a dash across the grass straight for him, and he’d grasped her hand like he’d never let go. Then the three kids had formed a line like little soldiers playing the game Red Rover. And she’d been the person they’d wanted to keep out.
All of a sudden, her heart jumped like it had been shocked with electricity. Remy’s face flashed in front of her. For the first time since she’d been seeing the girl, her features came into focus like the sun moving from behind a cloud. Her tiny hand stuck in Murphy’s candy jar… the blonde ponytail waving like a flag as she ran from the store… the brilliant blue eyes gazing back
at her from the painting hanging on Aidan’s bedroom wall.
It hit her like a bolt of lightning. Remy was, and had always been the little girl! The painting hanging on Aidan’s bedroom wall was of her at six-years old. But it was also the painting of Sam at six years old. Impossible as it seemed, Sam had looked into her own eyes when she stared at the painting. Swallowing past the tightness in her throat, her head began to spin out of control.
Easing out of Aidan’s arms, she touched the gold cross that lay on her chest. The movement woke Aidan. “Where are ya going, Love?”
“Nowhere,” she answered. She scooted up against the headboard.
Aidan rubbed his knuckles over his eyes and propped himself up on his elbows. “What’s wrong? Your face has gone white. Looks like you’ve seen a ghost.” He sat against the headboard, and his gaze moved to her hand on the necklace.
“Aidan, have you ever seen this necklace before?”
His brow furrowed as he thought. Then he gingerly lifted it off her chest. “This diamond in the center. I believe I have seen it. It was a long time ago, but I don’t recall where. Why? Where did you get it?”
How she could tell him the truth when she wasn’t one hundred percent sure of how to explain it?
“You know, I think I remember where I’ve seen a similar necklace,” he said, interrupting her wildly scattered thoughts.
“Where?”
“On Remy’s mother.” Snapping his fingers, he said, “Yes. I’m sure of it. She wore a necklace just like this one.” Confusion clouded his eyes. “Where did you get this one?” he repeated.
Ignoring the question for the second time, Sam impatiently asked, “Did your mother know Remy’s mom? Were they friends?”
“Not friends, as in they had daily tea together. But they knew each other. Everyone in Pavee Cove knew each other. My mom was a bit older than hers, I think.”
“Claire Murphy told me you were like a second son to her. Was Remy like a daughter to her?”
Aidan’s brows stitched together. “I suppose so. The women of Pavee Cove looked out for each other’s children. Why all the questions? I don’t understand what you’re getting at.”
She clamped her hand on his arm. “Did you know Remy’s father?”
“No. I can remember her telling us her dada was in the sky.”
“Dead?”
“No. She swore he lived in the clouds. She would point to the sky and tell us he lived far away in another world. Of course, she was only six. Little children have good imaginations.”
CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE
With her heart nearly beating out of her chest, Samantha said, “What was Claire’s maiden name? Do you know?”
Aidan was totally dumbfounded. His gaze wildly searched her face.
“I assume Murphy is Claire’s married name,” Sam said. “What is her maiden name?” she said, louder.
“I have no idea. What’s going on? You have a crazed look in your eyes.”
“The pieces of the puzzle are finally coming together!” she exclaimed. She slumped into her pillow and placed a hand over her chest to still her erratic breathing.
“Tell me,” he said.
“We have to get dressed and go see Claire Murphy. Right now.” Hopping out of the bed, she grabbed the shorts and top she’d had on earlier and drew them onto her body. Aidan did the same with his jeans and t-shirt.
“Why are we going to see Claire?”
“We’ll both find out soon.” They scrambled down the staircase and she slammed the door behind them, and they jogged past her car to his truck.
Aidan found a parking space in front of the market. Sam didn’t wait for him to come around to open her door. They bolted out of the truck simultaneously and burst into the market side-by-side. After a lady with two children exited, Aidan turned the sign hanging on the door to Closed and flipped the old fashioned lock. Samantha strode to the back of the store with him hot on her heels. Jason stood at the counter.
“Where’s your mom?” Sam asked, getting straight to business.
“Hi, Sam. Hi, Aidan.” Jason lifted a hand and waved.
“Mornin’, buddy,” Aidan greeted.
“I’m sorry,” Sam said. “I’ve forgotten my manners again. Good morning, Jason.” She impatiently tapped her fingernails on the counter. “Is Claire here?”
“Someone call my name?” Claire appeared from a back room with her usual smile on her face and a box of Minute Rice in her hand. Her smile faded when she saw the two of them standing there.
“Is there anyone else in the market right now?” Aidan inquired.
“No. What’s going on with you two?”
“We have to talk,” Sam said, approaching Claire and taking her gently by the elbow. “Aidan has locked the door and put the closed sign up.”
Claire’s mouth gaped. “It must be awfully important for you to bust in here like a SWAT team and shut down my business.”
“It is,” Aidan said.
“What’s happening, Mom?” Jason’s eyes widened.
“Nothing to worry about,” she answered, patting his hand. She set the Minute Rice on the counter and said, “Follow me.” She led them into the back storage room. “Okay. Now, what’s this all about?”
Samantha started by slipping the cross necklace out from under the neckline of her tank top. “Do you recognize this?”
Claire’s face went deathly pale.
At her reaction, Sam’s pulse accelerated. “Who did this necklace belong to?”
“I…I don’t know. I…I’ve never seen it before,” Claire stuttered.
Sam slammed her hand against the doorframe, causing all of them to jump. “Yes, you have. I don’t mean to be rude, but I’m done playing games. You know a lot more than you’re pretending to know, and I’m not leaving here until I get the answers to some questions. The first one is who did this necklace belong to?”
Claire acted visibly shaken and was obviously searching her mind for a way to avoid the inevitable. Coming up with nothing, she sighed and said, “It belonged to my sister.”
Sam felt like she’d been punched in the stomach. “Where is your sister now?”
Claire’s eyes dropped to the ground. “She’s not in Pavee Cove, if that’s what you’re wondering.”
“Then where is she?” Sam’s voice came out as a bark and harsher than she intended.
“Not here,” Claire repeated.
“Is she dead?”
“I didn’t say that.”
Sam reached for calm. “I know my real mother wore this necklace. I’ve seen it—and her—in dreams. I called her Mama. I never called Bev Landers Mama.”
Claire met Sam’s gaze and tears pricked her eyes.
“Please help me,” Samantha said quietly. “I’ve grown up with the feeling of not belonging. I’ve had trust issues and a fear of abandonment ever since I can remember. I want to know why. My entire life has led up to this moment. Somehow, the spyglass I discovered in the lighthouse is connected to me. It’s shown me other lives I’ve apparently lived, or could have lived, or have been living simultaneously. I don’t understand how it works. I only know that Bev Landers was not my real mother. Are you going to tell me different?”
Aidan found her hand and squeezed.
“Please tell me the truth, Claire. I deserve to know. And who better to explain it to me than you, my aunt? Because you are my aunt, aren’t you?”
Claire’s shoulders sagged, like she carried the weight of the world on them. Finally, she nodded. “Yes, dear, I am. And you’re right. I’ve held onto this secret far too long. Please sit down, all of you.”
The four of them sat on folding chairs. As Claire began her story, Sam shoved her hands under her thighs to keep them from shaking.
“Our people, the O’Neills, were travelers, like so many others here at Pavee Cove. The country folk, or non-travelers, considered us all con men and women. Common thieves. Maybe we were. But when it’s all a person knows, it’s all a person knows. We e
ach had our job to do within the family and within the clan. My sister’s, and mine, was to shoplift.”
Samantha and Aidan shared a subtle glance.
“From the time we were five or six, we learned how to steal. We were real good at our trade by the time we were teenagers, too. In fact, we were experts. Like I said, it was the only life we knew. Life went along fine until the day my sister met a young man. His name was Morgan Garrett. He wasn’t Irish and he wasn’t a traveler. They were both sixteen and they fell desperately in love. They wanted to get married but his family forbade it. His parents had heard about our family business. My sister promised to quit the life, but that didn’t matter to them. The family up and left Pavee Cove in the middle of the night just to get their son away from her. She never saw him or heard from Morgan again. She found out she was pregnant not long after. Samantha, you were born when she was seventeen. She raised you on her own for six years, and she was a good mother.”
Claire stopped to let this news sink in. And sink, it did. After thirty-two years, Sam finally knew the name of her father. She mulled it over in her mind. Morgan Garrett. It was a strong name. “What happened when I was six years old?” she asked, feeling her stomach churn.
“Are you prepared to hear the whole truth?” Claire asked.
“Yes. More than prepared. I’ve been waiting all my life.”
“All right. You were with my sister in one of the village shops one day. She’d been trying to change her ways for a while, but it’s difficult for a tiger to alter its stripes after a lifetime of habit. I don’t remember what she shoplifted that day, but the owner of the store caught her. It was the first time she’d ever been caught. She grabbed your hand and the two of you fled out the door. As bad luck would have it, a couple of policemen were standing outside on the corner. They took off after your mother and you on foot and followed you to the lighthouse.”
Sam’s eyes enlarged. “The lighthouse? I knew I’d been there before. I felt it the day I arrived. And I had a vision of being pulled up the winding staircase.”
The Spyglass Portal: A Lighthouse Novel Page 20
