“I’m sorryabout that, honey.” He stroked her hair. “I think this calls forsome ice-cream, huh?”
Sarah didn’tsmile but she nodded.
“Why don’t yougo and wash your face and get changed, and we’ll go and find thebiggest, bestest ice-cream we can, okay?”
Her lipsquirked and she went into the bathroom.
Lachlan ranghis mother.
“Ma?Everything’s okay, but do you think you could stay with Sarahtonight while I’m at work? She’s had kind of a rough day.”
“I can comenow. Give me ten minutes.”
“We’re goingout for ice-cream. I’ve got two hours before I have to be at workbut could you come around six?”
“Of course,dear. Don’t you worry about a thing. Sarah and I will have a girl’snight and gossip and watch movies.”
“Thanks, Ma.You’re the best.”
When Sarah cameout of the bathroom, wearing a pair of denim shorts and a t-shirt,Lachlan grabbed the keys. They drove until they found an ice-creamshop down at the beach, and then afterwards, walked along the sandand watched the seagulls.
He didn’t havethe answers, as much as he wished he did. With each passing year,he was learning that he couldn’t fight all of Sarah’s battles orsolve all of her problems. It was perhaps the bitterest pill he hadto swallow.
“This wasgreat, Dad.” Sarah gave him a smile and the tension in his bodydissolved. “I needed it.”
“I’m glad,honey.”
In the car onthe way home, he glanced across at his unusually quiet daughter.“What are you doing to do tomorrow?”
Sarah shrugged.“I’m just going to be the same as I was today. If Miranda doesn’twant to be friends, there’s nothing I can do about it. But I’m notgoing to mean, like her, just to be able to sit with them. I’drather sit by myself.”
Pride swelledin Lachlan’s heart. “You’ll make other friends, honey. I know it’snot easy.” He reached over to squeeze her hands. “It hurts now, I’mnot saying it doesn’t, but it won’t last forever. You’ll make newfriends and they’ll be so nice and you’ll have so much fun thatMiranda will be begging to sit with you.”
Sarah’s smilewas like a rainbow.
Now, Lachlan’sgaze drifted over to Sarah and her group of girlfriends—no Mirandain sight—and he smiled.
Now, here theywere—just the two of them—and his baby was getting married.
When Sarah hadstarted dating Gene two years ago, Lachlan bit his tongue. Gene,the American on a student exchange program to Australia who seemedso much more mature than the boys in Sarah’s school, was onLachlan’s radar from the first moment he’d seen him. But he wasactually a nice guy. He had better manners than any boy Lachlan hadmet—please and thank you, and yes, sir. As much as Lachlan hadwanted to find fault with the guy, Gene treated Sarah like aprincess.
When theyannounced their engagement a few months after graduation, Lachlannearly fainted. He’d wanted to warn Sarah against getting tooserious too early—he wanted more for her than to be a single parentat twenty-one, like he’d been—but he’d raised his daughter to knowher own mind and heart, and now he had to take a step back andtrust that he’d done the best he could. It was easier said thandone. For the last eighteen years, Sarah had been his priority.Every single decision he’d made had been for her. Now he had to getused to living—and being—alone. He’d never lived alone before. He’dgone straight from his parents’ house to their garage, convertedinto a tiny unit for his new family.
Sarah was hisheart, his soul, his universe.
How on earthwas he going to let her go?
Moistureblurred his vision and Lachlan blinked it away.
“Where have youbeen?” Sarah asked.
He barked out alaugh. He couldn’t help it. “Ah, honey, you wouldn’t believe it.”He relayed his story, fudging over his fear of being arrested in aforeign country.
Sarah’s eyeswidened in horror. “Dad! She thought you were robbing her?Is she a fruit cake? Why would someone think that? I mean, it wasso obviously a mix up.”
“Thanks to her,I now have one of the most extravagant rooms in all of Vegas. Justthink of the story I’ll get to tell my grandkids one day.”
“I can’tbelieve it. What if you’d been arrested?” Sarah’s eyes bugged inher head.
“It’s okay,honey,” Lachlan assured his daughter, not wanting to cause her anyworry before her big day. “You know what the best part is?”
“What’sthat?”
“The hotel ispaying for everything.”
“Oh my God,Dad! Everything? Even the wedding?”
“Yep.” Thesatisfaction should have been sweeter. Lachlan had been workingextra jobs for years to put a little something away for his onlychild. First it was money for university. Then, when Sarah hadlanded a full scholarship, he’d turned the nest egg into herwedding fund. Now that the hotel was meeting those costs, he couldgive the money to her as a deposit for her first home.
Sarah’s browneyes—replicas of his—stared at him in shock. “The entirewedding?”
“Spend up big,honey. Let’s live it up like we’ve never done before.”
“I can’tbelieve it. It was just a mix-up. It seems such an extreme lengthto go to, don’t you think?”
Lachlan reachedinto his pocket and withdrew a printout of the hotel account he’dobtained because he couldn’t quite believe it himself. He handed itto Sarah and took a sip of whiskey as she read it.
“Wow! Theyreally are!”
“Guess thismakes up for all those years we spent our Christmases at theShallow Waters Caravan Park, huh?”
Sarah tiltedher head and studied him. “I loved those summers at the caravanpark, Dad. They were some of my fondest memories. When Gene and Ihave kids, we’re going to have the same adventures with them.”
Lachlanswallowed as the pain in his chest tightened.
“Dad, thisplace is amazing and I’m thrilled we’re here.” Sarah glancedaround. “But it doesn’t mean that I’m not grateful for all thethings you gave me when I was growing up. I know how hard it wasfor you after Mum left. You tried to protect me from it, but I knowhow much you sacrificed for me. If I could ever give my kids halfof what you’ve given to me, I’ll count myself blessed.”
“Ah, honey.”Lachlan wrapped his arm around Sarah’s shoulders and drew herclose, planting a kiss on her forehead. “I wish I could have givenyou the world.”
She wrapped herarms around his waist and squeezed.
