“I think you ought to do it. You hired her as the office manager. It might look better if you bring it up.” He sank down into the chair opposite the desk, leaning his chin on his hands.
“I guess I could. Wouldn’t it be a bit too obvious though? I mean, wouldn’t she start asking too many questions?” Liam bit his bottom lip and tapped his fingers on the desk. “It might be better if you bring it up in a more casual situation. You know, not race into it now, but maybe over a coffee or something.”
“Damn it. Why did she have to be the only one to apply for the job? This is the last thing we need to face.”
Liam stood up and started to pace his office. “Maybe we should have come clean already. I doubt it would really hurt us now. People know what we’re like and they trust us.”
Drew snorted. “Seriously? You think anyone would trust us if they found out the truth? You’re dreaming if you don’t think we’ll suffer because of that. We can’t let her deliver babies here, midwife or not. I won’t hear of it.”
He stormed out of the office and slammed the door behind him. By the time he got back to his own office, his breathing escalated and he had to try to remain calm to prevent a panic attack. Bradley had shown him how to avoid them when he was a child. Drew put that into practice now and when he heard the knock on his door, he managed to answer it without sounding strained.
“Come in.”
“Sorry to bother you, Drew. I wonder if you’ve had a chance to call your friend about talking to the children? I think it’s best to nip this in the bud before it becomes a bigger issue.”
“I was actually going to call him shortly. I see you gave Sally her check-up. How is she today?” He smiled and kept his tone light, determined not to lose it with April. None of this was her fault.
“She’s great. Blood pressure is fine, baby’s heartbeat strong. Head is engaged so she could go in the next ten days or so.”
“Great. I’ll give her husband a call. He wanted to take her to the mainland to stay at her mother’s to wait for the birth.”
“She told me she was packed and ready to go so I guess she has it under control.” She stood up. “I won’t hold you up, but if you could let me know, that’d be great. I’m keen to see the children move forward and I think this is the logical step.”
Drew smiled. “I agree. I’ll let you know.”
She swept out of the office and he breathed a sigh of relief. That was easier than he’d thought it would be. Thank goodness Sally had listened to him.
Chapter 18
“Why do we have to talk to him?” Leo kicked his foot against the table, making his glass of water slosh perilously close to his homework.
“Careful, honey. It’d be a shame to ruin all that hard work.” April moved the glass and gazed at her son. “Let’s not make a big deal of it, okay? Drew thought it would be good for you to have someone to talk things over with and I happen to agree.”
He glanced up at her. “Why can’t I talk to Drew?”
“You can, but it’s his opinion that Bradley would be good for you.” She ruffled his hair. “I’m trying to do what’s best for you two. Can you at least give it a go, for me?”
“We will, won’t we Leo?” Tilly nudged her brother. “It can’t hurt.”
Thank goodness for her wise girl. “No, it can’t and who knows, Leo, maybe you’ll enjoy it. You can talk to him about anything you know. Doesn’t have to be about what happened.”
“Can I tell him about Gram and Pop?”
So that was his biggest worry? “Sure you can.”
He shrugged his shoulders. “Okay.”
“Thank you. I’m going to take you both up there after you finish your homework. Bradley thought it would be nice to be outside so we’ll meet at the coffee shop near his office and I’ll wait while you go for a walk on the beach with him.”
“We don’t have to lay on a stuffy couch and tell him about our dreams?” The spark in Tilly’s eyes made April smile.
“No, honey. They don’t do that anymore and Drew told me that Bradley wants to see you in more comfortable surrounding and since you like the beach so much, that’s where we decided you’ll go.”
An hour later, homework all completed April walked the children down toward the beach where the psychologist had suggested they meet. She carried a book so she could sit and read at the café overlooking the water while the children talked about their worries with Bradley. It wasn’t hard to find him. He was the only person sitting and looking as though he was waiting for someone and as Drew had told her, he would more than likely have a scruffy terrier with him.
“Bradley, nice to meet you. I’m April Williams and this is Tilly and Leo.”
Leo crouched down and held his hand out to the dog.
“Nice to meet you all. And this is Rocket. Rocket, meet Leo and Tilly.” Bradley gazed down over the beach. “I love this harbor, don’t you? Always something to see, boats coming in and out, spewing out tourists to our lovely island, filling the business coffers with much needed funds. I have to admit, I do like it when they go home and we have the island to ourselves.”
“It’s a gorgeous place to live. I didn’t realize how much I missed it when I went away to college. So nice
