Irish Meadows (25 page)

S
EATED
ON
ONE
OF
THE
uncomfortable chairs in the hospital waiting room, Brianna leaned her head against the wall behind her and stretched in an effort to relieve her aching back muscles. It seemed they'd waited an eternity to hear anything from the doctor. A middle-aged man with a stethoscope had finally come to tell them that her father had likely suffered an angina attack—a fairly serious one that had left him greatly weakened. The staff had been working diligently to make sure he stayed alive, and for now they had deemed him stable. They had allowed Mama to go into the room to see Daddy, even though he was still unconscious. The misery on Mama's face when she'd returned to the waiting room had brought Brianna to the brink of despair. How could this have happened to her strapping father who'd always seemed as strong as a lumberjack?

Brianna glanced over at her mother standing at the open doorway, staring down the long, silent hallway as though willing
the doctor or nurse to arrive with good news. Mama's back shifted with her huge sigh, and she turned to face them. Seated on the far side of the room, Gil looked up.

“Why don't they bring us another update? It's been hours.” Mama's voice quavered, exhaustion taking its toll.

Gil crossed the room and guided her to one of the chairs. “Can I get you anything? Coffee or water?”

“No, thank you, Gil. I couldn't drink another drop.”

Gil straightened and plunged his fingers through his already messy hair as he paced the area like a caged lion. Brianna could tell something weighed heavily on his mind, something more than just the waiting.

He came to sit beside her mother, head bent over his knees. “There's something I need to tell you.” He raised wretched eyes to Brianna as though asking her permission.

Brianna gave a small nod. She'd asked him not to mention the financial problems to her mother earlier in the night, but now that Daddy had stabilized, perhaps her mother had a right to know what had contributed to the crisis.

“What is it, Gilbert?” Mama's quiet dignity astounded Brianna.

“I think you should know why James was drinking at O'Malley's Pub all day.”

Her mother stiffened until her back became as straight as the painted lines running up the wall. She gave Gil a hard glance. “What do you know about it?”

Misery swamped his features. “I followed him there from the bank.”

Gil proceeded to tell her the same story he'd relayed to Brianna. Her mother's face grew paler as he went on, despite the fact that Gil downplayed the severity of their financial problems.

“I'm afraid I only made matters worse by losing my temper. I should never have left him there . . .” Gil's voice cracked.

Mama reached over to put a hand on his arm. “It's not your fault. You know how stubborn James can be.”

“I suppose you're right. He was in no mood to listen to reason.”

Mama patted his arm and sighed. “So Irish Meadows is in trouble. That explains a great deal about my husband's recent behavior.”

Brianna hated that her mother was now more distressed than before. She crossed to sit beside her and took her hand. “We'll be all right, Mama. As long as Daddy recovers, nothing else matters.”

Mama aimed a searing look at Gil. “This loan doesn't have anything to do with your sudden engagement to Aurora Hastings, does it?”

Gil pressed his mouth into a grim line. The telling way his gaze slid to the ground told Brianna a lot.

The color rose in Mama's cheeks, an indication of her rising temper. “Did James ask you to do this in order to get that loan? Because as sure as I'm living and breathing, I know it wasn't love at first sight.”

Brianna's breath caught in a low gasp, and Gil shot to his feet.

Mama rose as well, temper at full boil. “I want the truth, young man. There've been far too many secrets going on in this family, and it stops now.”

Gil exhaled loudly. “James asked me to court Aurora.”

Her mother moved closer. “And whose idea was the betrothal, which conveniently happened a few days before the loan decision?”

He raked a hand over his jaw, but then dropped his arm, shoulders slumping.

“It was all James's idea, wasn't it? He asked you to propose.”

Gil's blue eyes swam with despair. “Yes.”

Gil's admission, which pained her mother greatly, caused a tiny bubble of hope to rise in Brianna's chest. Could it be that Gil had lied to her and didn't have feelings for Aurora after all?

The hope quickly deflated. No matter how the engagement had come about, Brianna knew Gil was too honorable to ever go back on his commitment.

Her mother sank back onto the chair. “So help me, when that man recovers, I'm going to kill him.”

An hour later, when the doctor entered the stuffy waiting room, Gil rose from his cramped position on the uncomfortable wood chair, wincing against the pain in his stiffened leg muscles.

Mrs. O'Leary and Brianna rose, as well.

Gil prayed the news was good, though the bland expression on the man's face didn't give him high expectations.

“Mrs. O'Leary?” The paunchy doctor, a different man than earlier that morning, peered into the room.

Kathleen stepped forward. “Yes. How is my husband?”

The man gave a wry smile. “He's awake, and from the hard time he's giving the nurses, I'd wager he'll make a full recovery.”

Both women burst into tears simultaneously. Gil had used up his handkerchiefs long ago but moved to put his arm around Mrs. O'Leary's shoulders.

“I must warn you,” the doctor went on, “the recovery process will be arduous. Mr. O'Leary must stay in the hospital for several weeks, and when he does come home, he'll have to take it very easy for several months. Which means avoiding anything that will cause him stress, such as a job or difficult family situations.”

Mrs. O'Leary straightened. “I understand. Getting my hard-headed husband to understand might be a different story.” She
looked over at Brianna. “The whole family will have to pull together and make sure he does as he's told.”

“We'll do whatever we have to, Mama.”

She gave her daughter a quick nod and turned back to the doctor. “May I see my husband?”

“Only for a few minutes. He's still very weak. Remember to say nothing that might upset him.”

She nodded. “I'll hold my tongue . . . for today.”

Brianna hugged her mother. “Give Daddy our love.”

“I will.”

The moment Kathleen disappeared down the hall, Brianna seemed to crumble, as if she'd been holding herself together for her mother's sake. Tired of restraining himself, Gil moved quickly to fold her trembling frame into his arms. She leaned into him, her cheek resting against his chest. A sensation of rightness enveloped him. This was where Brianna belonged. In his arms, where he could provide strength when she needed him. At the same time, Gil fought to ignore the image of Aurora's trusting face, which kept surfacing along with an unbearable load of guilt.

He glanced down at Brianna, the dark smudges under her eyes giving him pause. The long hours of waiting had taken their toll on her, and though Gil longed to take her home, he knew she'd never allow it.

With a sigh, she pulled back from his embrace. “What are we going to do about Irish Meadows? If Daddy can't work for several months, we'll lose the business for sure.”

Gil set his jaw, a decision that had been swirling through his mind for several hours now taking concrete form. “I'll come back and handle things until he's ready to work again.”

Bree's startled eyes widened. “You'd do that? After all Daddy's put you through?”

“Like your mother said, the family has to pull together to get through this crisis. And I know the business almost as well as your father.”

“What about your job at the bank?” She twisted a crumpled handkerchief in her hands.

“I'll have to quit, but to be honest, it will be a relief. I don't think I'm cut out for the banking world.”

A slow smile spread over Brianna's face, lighting her eyes with more hope than he'd seen in a long time. “Thank you, Gil. That will be a huge relief for all of us.” She reached up to give him a fierce hug. “If anyone can save Irish Meadows, it's you.”

He tightened his arms around her, his chest swelling at her simple faith in him. A faith he'd taken for granted all these years but which buoyed his confidence like nothing else. The familiar feel of her unleashed a wave of longing through him. James's brush with death had made one thing perfectly clear to Gil. Life was too short to waste. From now on, he intended to make every precious moment count.

Brianna moved back until her face was mere inches from his. “I've missed you so much, Gil.” The naked yearning in her voice matched the need inside him, rekindling the intensity of his feelings for her.

“I've missed you, too,” he whispered. “More than you'll ever know.”

He longed to kiss her and knew she felt the same way, but propriety forced him to gently disengage. “As much as I hate it, I need to speak to Aurora first.”

“What do you mean?”

He met her uncertain gaze. “I should never have agreed to this engagement, and I intend to right the wrong as soon as I can. Once I'm . . . unattached, and once your father is stronger, I will speak to him again about us.” He brushed a finger down her cheek. “Living a lie these past weeks has taught me a valuable lesson. From now on I intend to live in truth as much as possible.”

She returned his smile with one of her own. Words of love hovered on his lips, but again he owed it to Aurora to break
off their relationship before declaring his feelings for another woman.

He'd have to be patient a little while longer.

On Friday morning, Brianna set down her travel bag in Irish Meadows' foyer and inhaled the unique scent of furniture polish mixed with the remnants of Daddy's cigars—the smells of home. The knots in her stomach relaxed for the first time in weeks. A bone-deep certainty told her this was where she belonged.

Aunt Fiona had taken her departure with stoic calm, yet Brianna sensed an underlying disappointment. She assured her aunt she would return in the fall for the start of her first semester at Barnard College, and prayed that by then her father would be much improved.

Footsteps descended the main staircase. Colleen came into view, a surprised expression crossing her face at the sight of Brianna. Colleen rushed forward to embrace her, an action that astonished Brianna. She returned the hug, grateful to be back with her family and happy to see the changes in Colleen were apparently real. All traces of her sister's former animosity had disappeared.

Colleen looked pointedly at Brianna's luggage. “You're moving back?”

“For now. Mama needs all the help she can get.”