“What do you mean?”
“Have you met her daughters yet?”
He hadn’t, although Julia spoke of Hillary and Marie frequently. It was clear she was close to them and treasured their relationship.
“Don’t tell me you forgot what those girls did to Mom?”
Heath had a vague recollection of some altercation between the two families. All he recalled was his sons’ outrage when Julia’s daughters had openly confronted Lee at Lake Sammamish.
“Refresh my memory,” he said, leaning back and crossing his arms over his chest. Their meals had been delivered, though now his appetite was gone.
Michael leaned forward with narrowed eyes. “The oldest one verbally attacked Mom.”
“In public,” Adam added.
“We were there,” Michael said, his voice rising to the point that he attracted the attention of diners at nearby tables.
“Mom was mortified. Both her daughters said some horrible things.”
“Thank goodness we were with Mom,” Michael said. “No way were we going to let anyone talk to our mother like that.”
His children had been raised to respect Lee. It didn’t surprise him that the boys had come to her defense.
“We had to defend her,” Adam said, “and soon we were all shouting.”
“Unfortunately, it got loud and angry. But we weren’t the ones who started it.”
Heath had the urge to bury his head in his hands. “Did the police get involved?”
“No, Edward did.”
That couldn’t have gone well. Heath could imagine how difficult it was for Edward to be pitted against his own daughters, defending Lee and the boys.
“Edward stepped between us and told Adam and me that he would handle the situation,” Michael explained. “He did his best to quiet down his daughters; however, they were having none of it. They were angry and belligerent.”
“They continued to call Mom names and said some unforgivable things to their father,” Adam went on, his voice rising.
“These aren’t people you want to associate with, Dad. It’s best to avoid Julia and her daughters. The thought of you getting mixed up with them is bound to cause trouble for us as a family.”
Heath had heard enough. “That was years ago, and during a difficult and stressful time for everyone. I’m sure Julia’s daughters are as eager to put that unpleasant incident behind them as you are. Let the past stay where it is. Dragging it into the future will solve nothing.”
His sons stared back at him as if he were speaking a foreign language.
“Dad, Adam and I want you to seriously reconsider this relationship. Of all the women in the world, why did you have to fall for Julia? She’s bad news.”
Heath didn’t see it that way and said as much. “Situations change,” he insisted. “People change.”
“Not Julia’s daughters,” Michael said emphatically.
“We told Mom you were dating Edward’s ex-wife, and she was understandably upset.”
He raised his hand, stopping them from saying anything further. His ex-wife’s feelings toward whom he dated was none of his concern.
“Not my problem.”
“Maybe not,” Adam readily agreed. “But you need to know what Mom told us she did recently.”
Leaning back, his meal practically untouched, Heath waited for what was sure to be even more negativity.
“I didn’t realize until we spoke to Mom what Julia had done to Edward,” Michael said.
Heath admired how Julia had moved on following the divorce. He found it hard to believe she’d given her ex more than a cursory thought. “All right. Tell me what horrible thing Julia has done now. I’m all ears. However, before you give me a list of her sins, let me assure you I’m going to have a hard time believing she has a malicious bone in her body.”
Adam arched his brows as if to say his father had been brainwashed.
“Do you realize that Julia has kept her daughters out of Edward’s life? Mom said he was nearly in tears the other night after she called to rub it in that Hillary is engaged. She had to tell him, because her daughter wants nothing to do with her own father.”
Ah, so that was it. “Julia told me about that call,” he said, relief filling him. “The reason she phoned was so Ed wouldn’t be blindsided, should someone else mention the engagement.”
“Julia has kept her daughters out of their father’s life.”
“They’re adults,” he countered. “If Hillary and Marie want a relationship with their dad, it’s up to them.”