“I see,” he whispered, standing over the two of them, kissing the top of his wife’s head. “She’s perfect.”
“No, she’s not,” Mia said, glancing up at him.
“Huh? What are you talking about?”
“She has no name. We’re going to settle this right now. It’s not going to drop from the sky, you know, like a sign. Here, you hold her. Maybe it will inspire you.”
“Me?”
“Well, yes, you. It was your plan to hold your daughter, wasn’t it?”
He didn’t reply, carefully scooping the sleeping baby into his arms, cautiously sitting in a rocking chair. “It’s . . . it’s new territory for me. I’m just a little nervous, I guess.” His voice dropped to a whisper, lost in what he saw. “She’s so small. I can’t believe how tiny . . .”
“Ha! You can have the next one. Then we’ll talk about small.” She laughed, picking up a well-worn baby name book. “Okay, well you’ve crossed out, excuse me, blackened out every name that begins with an R. We won’t even go there. I, um, I wonder if she’s heard?” Since moving back to Maryland and taking on the hospital’s massive project to go green, she’d run into Roxanne on occasion. But it would take time before their relationship was repaired, if ever.
“I’m sure it’s made it through the grapevine by now. You know the newspaper was downstairs earlier, a reporter. They want to come up and take a picture. With the success of Good Sam going green, and a dozen more hospitals on board, the idea of its designer having her baby here sparked quite an interest. Dr. Logan said it’s up to us, but of course they’d love the PR.”
“Maybe tomorrow,” Mia said, not overly interested in cashing in on her professional success. “I like being the three of us for right now. Her name,” she persisted, flipping through the book. “Let’s see, you’ve also eliminated any name or the close proximity to any name of girls you dated, picked up, or played in a sandbox with. I hate to say it, Flynn, but that’s a lot of names.”
Mia looked over. He wasn’t even listening, but was mesmerized, looking down at that tiny face. Wisps of dark hair framed a perfectly round head. Maybe the baby had her nose, but the skin, it looked just like Flynn’s and the delicate long lashes, a perfect match. Mia watched in content silence until a nurse wandered in.
“Excuse me, Mrs. McDermott, I have some paperwork for you. I’ll just leave it here.” She placed it on the tray table, admiring Flynn and the baby before leaving. “Now, if that just doesn’t give you faith.”
In unison their heads rose up from looking at the baby, and they glanced at one another. Flynn stood, holding his daughter with all the gentleness two hands could manage, and placed her in a nearby bassinet. “I thought you said it wouldn’t drop from the sky.”
“Well, that’s just the thing about a sign. You never know when one will turn up.” She glanced at the papers the nurse brought in. “Oh, I’ve been waiting for this. This is for you.” Mia spun the paper around to face him, holding out a pen. “Let’s see, you put her name here,” she said, pointing. Flynn took the pen and carefully wrote, Faith Georgia McDermott. “And then, here.” Mia looked up at him, tears in her eyes. “The father’s name goes right here.” When he finished, she ran her fingers over the name. Peyton Flynn McDermott. “She couldn’t be a luckier little girl to have your name on that birth certificate.”
Flynn sat on the edge of the bed, pulling his wife close. “It was a long and broken road, Mia. But I can’t imagine it leading me anywhere except back to you.”
READERS GUIDE
READERS GUIDE FOR Beautiful Disaster
READERS GUIDE
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
1. Does Mia’s wealthy background contribute to her sense of identity? Do you think it has any kind of sway over some of the life choices she makes? What motivates her?
2. How does Mia’s father’s spirit and legacy animate Mia’s life? What pressure does it exert on her, and how do you think he would feel about her life choices—in regard to both her career path and her men?
3. What is Mia’s first impression of Flynn? What does Flynn see in Mia? How are these assumptions challenged? Why do you think they are drawn to each other?
4. Why do you think Mia stays after witnessing Flynn’s mental collapse at the motel? How does this choice mark a turning point in her life? How might things have been different if she’d left?
5. Does knowing early on about the murders influence your experience of the story—or of Flynn? Did you suspect he was guilty? What clues are offered by Roxanne’s research? Were you surprised by the outcome?
6. Do you think Roxanne’s protest over Mia’s relationship with Flynn was justified? Have you ever had to dissuade a friend from getting involved in a seemingly unhealthy relationship? How might you have reacted in Roxanne’s place?
7. Why do you think the author chose to set the story half in the present and half in the past? What effect did this have on your experience of the story?
8. How has Flynn’s complex past shaped him? Were you surprised to learn of his military service as a commanding officer? What aftereffects still linger for him? What did the loss of Alena do to him?
9. What influence do Michael and Roxanne have over the course of Mia’s life and her decision making? Do you think the control they have over her is healthy? Were any of their actions—hiding the letter, the “sweetheart deal” with Hough—out of line?
10. Do you think Mia ultimately made the right choice between Michael and Flynn? What does each man offer her—especially security- and passionwise?
11. By the end of the novel, how do you feel about Flynn as a character? Were you surprised by all the dramatic revelations in his background—his underlying altruistic nature beneath the gruff, intimidating exterior? Does Mia bring out the best in him?
Beautiful Disaster Page 35
