“Then why didn’t you?” Carrie asked, just as their orders were delivered. “It would have made sense.”
“I agree,” Hillary said nonchalantly, as if discussing some mundane subject, like an ice-cream sale at the local Fred Meyer store. “Then he ruined it all by inserting how eager Laura would be to help me with the menu for the wedding reception, if we held it at the country club.”
Groaning inwardly, Julia bowed her head. Once again, Eddie had blown it. Her ex-husband apparently had not learned the painful lesson that demanding the girls accept his new wife was not a good game plan. It astonished her that Eddie could be this oblivious.
“Well, that was just plain stupid,” Carrie said, digging into her crab cakes with creamy lemon sauce.
“Tell Mom what you said,” Marie urged.
Hillary shook her head. “Mom doesn’t like to hear me swear. I do believe Dad got the message, though.”
“I’m sure—” Julia started, but was cut off.
“Mom, Dad is the one who insisted he didn’t want to be a part of our lives unless we welcomed Laura with open arms. I can’t ever see myself doing that, not after everything she said and did to you.”
“Oh honey, I’ve forgiven her. You need to do the same.”
“I can’t. Not after how she treated you. Dad wasn’t any better, the way he lied and misled you when he was involved in an affair all along. I can’t respect a man with no honor and integrity. It’s worse when that man is my own father.”
“All this happened a long time ago,” Julia gently reminded her girls. “And remember, it was said in the heat of the moment. He never meant to completely sever his relationship with you.”
“Oh yes he did,” Hillary countered. “An entire year passed before he even tried to talk to me.”
Julia recognized how difficult it was for both Eddie and the girls to let go of their pride. They shared more in common than any of them were willing to admit. “Your father gave you both time and distance to let emotions cool,” she offered, hoping Hillary and Marie would take her words to heart.
“Uncle Eddie phoned me a couple times to ask me how you were both doing,” Carrie added. Her niece tended to be a peacemaker. Julia appreciated her efforts.
Over the last month since Carrie had started her new job, Julia had seen a change in her niece. She’d quickly grown into the position, and was well liked by the residents. She had a cheerful disposition, and a generous heart when it came to offering the residents assistance. One of the condo board members had thanked Julia for recommending Carrie. She’d also learned that her niece had developed a friendship with Eric Hudson, often spending time with him on the rooftop in the cool of the evenings. Maybe there was more to do with the change in her niece than just her position as concierge. And that made Julia happy. When she questioned Carrie about Eric, her niece had claimed there was far more to him than met the eye. She didn’t elaborate, which left Julia curious as to the budding relationship. On the outside they appeared to be polar opposites. However, to her way of thinking, their personalities might perfectly balance each other. Eric needed someone like Carrie to draw him out of his shell.
“I’d be willing to give a relationship with Dad a try,” Marie said, abruptly taking Julia’s thoughts off her niece, “but he still refuses to see us unless we include Laura. That’s the issue.”
“I doubt we’ll hear from him again,” Hillary said. “I made my wishes known. It’s up to him what he decides.”
“Dad insisted he should be part of the wedding, seeing that he’s Hillary’s father,” Marie added.
“And I told him it’s my wedding and I’m the one writing out the guest list. I made sure he understood Laura’s name isn’t on it and won’t be. Dad has a choice. He’s welcome to be part of the wedding, only Laura can’t attend with him.”
Julia started to speak. Hillary stopped her by holding up her hand.
“Don’t say it, Mom. Nothing you can add is going to change my mind. Dad’s the one who drew the line in the sand, and he’s going to need to be the one to step over it first.”
The way Julia saw it, Eddie had stepped over it by being the one to reach out to his daughters. She couldn’t understand why he couldn’t start with something easy, like taking Hillary and Marie to coffee and talking. It wasn’t like Laura was attached to his hip or should be. If Hillary’s heart didn’t change, she feared that one day, her daughter would grow to regret not letting her father back into her life.