It had been easier to tell him about how Warren had left her—although she was too embarrassed to repeat all the horrible things her ex had said. Like how she was no longer someone he was proud to be seen with. That her stump disgusted him, and she wouldn’t be an asset to their relationship anymore. Only afterwards did she find out he’d actually been cheating on her from before the accident, and had planned to leave her anyway. The fact that he’d use the loss of her hand as an excuse just showed what a waste of skin he was.
So it had been better to talk to Kiah about her determined fight to ensure Warren didn’t take advantage of the situation and con her out of more than his share.
Oh, and he’d tried. His underhanded double-dealing had completely opened her eyes to facets of his character she’d ignored all the years they were together. Warren had become, in her and Kiah’s old parlance, a snake oil guy. It was totally in keeping with some of the things he had boasted of doing in his law practice, but like a fool, Mina had never thought he’d turn on her that way. Especially since he was the one who’d wanted to end the marriage.
Thankfully, his cruelty had spurred her out of the depression that had settled over her after she’d lost her hand, even if only temporarily. She’d hired a lawyer known in the Toronto legal circles as the Rottweiler, and the one female attorney Warren had admitted he hated going up against in family court. Jalissa Chang had made sure Mina got everything she was due, and a bit more, too.
Mina had been angry—mostly at herself—and that anger had sustained her. While she had known for a long time things weren’t going well between her and Warren, she’d ignored the problems, putting them down to how busy they both were. In truth, now that everything had come out, and in light of the way he’d treated her, she wondered if she could ever trust her judgment of others again.
They’d been together since they were sixteen. How could she not have realized a long time ago how truly selfish and immoral he was? She’d also let him steer her away from motherhood by saying he wasn’t ready, or didn’t want a pregnancy to derail her career. He’d couched it in terms of delaying it, but now she saw it as a denial, and that was something she was having a hard time getting over. She’s always wanted children, but at her age, single, unemployed, and with only one hand, that particular dream seemed unattainable.
As did most of the plans she’d once had.
During her darkest times, she’d known Warren was right to leave her, as useless as she’d become, but she couldn’t condone his meanness. So she’d concentrated on the divorce and everything that went into getting the separation agreement finalized. It had taken almost a full year, by which time she only had a month or so before the divorce, too, was done.
That was when everything truly fell apart.
She was always at her worst when she had nothing to do. Nothing to plan for or look forward to.
“Well,” she said aloud as she rinsed her hair. “Now you have breakfast with your best friend to look forward to, so no feeling sorry for yourself today.”
By the time she came out of the bedroom, all squeaky clean and dressed in something other than shapeless sweats, she felt better than she had in ages. Even noticing that Kiah had cleaned up the place brought only a small pang of guilt.
Something about being around this man always made her life better, and she was going to enjoy it for the short time he’d be in town.
“Come on, lazybones,” he said, putting two plates laden with bacon, eggs, toast and plantain on the dining table. “I’m starving.”
“I can’t believe you’d call me that, Mr. I’ll-Sleep-’til-Noon-If-I-Want-To.”
“Ha,” he said as he pulled out her chair. “Those days are long gone, now that I have Charm to take care of.” The face he pulled was a mixture of fond amusement and a grimace. “I miss those days sometimes.”
Glad of a conversational topic that didn’t involve her arm or her divorce, Mina asked, “How is Charm doing? And Miss Pearl?”
“Charm is growing like a weed. It’s hard to fathom that she’s almost twelve already, and Granny is doing well, considering her age and the health problems she’s had.”
Kiah’s grandmother had had a stroke just after he’d qualified as a general surgeon, and he’d been his niece’s guardian for five years, ever since his sister Karlene’s untimely and tragic death. Miss Pearl’s ill health had initially drawn him back to St. Eustace, and although the stroke had been minor and Miss Pearl had fully recovered, he’d stayed. While Mina understood the appeal of home and family, she often silently lamented the fact he’d never come back to Canada.
She’d missed him so.
“Twelve, already?” Her mind boggled at the thought. Mina had been at the hospital when the little girl was born. It really didn’t seem that long ago. “That’s crazy.”
Tucking into his food, Kiah just nodded, but she was all too aware of his gaze on her, at least until she picked up her fork and started to eat. Then he relaxed and concentrated on his plate, rather than her.
While they ate, he kept the conversation light, telling her some more about Charm—her dance lessons and determination to be a singer when she grew up—and his cousin’s wedding in Calgary the weekend just
