she’s…I don’t know. Maybe she doesn’t think I deserve to walk her down the aisle.”
“Snap out of it, Keefe, and stop feeling sorry for yourself. Yes, Mia was a little girl and had a hard life. So did you. She had you, Keefe. Who did you have? You’ve got to stop beating yourself up. This thing with your sister could be fixed so easily. I’ll bet if I talked to her…”
“No.”
A shudder of revulsion ripped through Keefe at the thought of Ashleigh questioning Mia. If she didn’t already feel betrayed, she surely would after talking with Ashleigh. “This is between my sister and me, Ashleigh. No offense but I don’t want you talking to her.”
He watched as Ashleigh wrestled with her own feelings of betrayal. He couldn’t help it. He would protect Mia at all costs. Still, he didn’t want to hurt Ashleigh. “I’m sorry, baby,” he whispered to her. “I told you it was hard for me to talk about.”
“I understand,” Ashleigh said, still sounding a bit miffed, especially when she continued.
“I’m sorry that your sister and you were put into foster care, but that happens. Besides, you got out and you’re both okay.”
“It’s what Mia went through while she was in foster care. She was just a little girl. They wouldn’t allow us to be together and at first they wouldn’t even let me call her or check on her. That is, until she landed in the hospital.”
Keefe shuddered, then shook his head to dispel the image of his baby sister when he’d first seen her in the hospital, her eyes wide and frightened, her arms thinner than they’d ever been—the look of total terror on her face.
He could still remember how he’d stood there for an eternity staring at his baby sister before rushing forward to hug her. She’d pushed him away, her look piercing his heart. She didn’t know who he was.
Keefe had looked into her eyes, but Mia wasn’t there. Fear had raced through him and he’d grabbed her shoulders. “ Mia, look at me, it’s Keefe .” He’d had to shake her several times to make her focus. When she concentrated on his face and finally recognized him, she’d screamed his name. Then she’d held on to him for dear life. ‘ He hurt me, Kee. Save me!’ It was her words, ‘ He hurt me ,’ that had haunted Keefe every day of his life since. It was those words that he’d shoved away and not examined, fearing what they meant. It was what made him so determined that no one would ever hurt Mia again.
He closed his eyes, hugging Ashleigh close. Ashleigh couldn’t possibly identify with what had happened to Mia. He thought about dropping the matter but found he wanted her to know, so that she could at least try to understand. “She was in bad shape,” Keefe finished.
“Keefe.”
“The only person I could think to call was Jerry. I pleaded with him to get us out of foster care. I promised him that he wouldn’t have to be responsible for either of us. His girlfriend didn’t want him to, but he’d never known me to cry. He agreed to help us, to pretend that he was taking care of us, that he was our foster father. He rented us an apartment in his building and gave me the money that was left over from the check the state sent to help us out. And I worked. I worked my ass off.”
“And it paid off. Look at both of you, all that you’ve accomplished. Your sister’s not yet twenty-four and she’s working on her Ph.D. I’d say you’ve done wonderful job.” Ashleigh smiled her acknowledgement.
“That’s now. A lot happened before we got here. You weren’t there, Ashleigh. You don’t know the nightmares Mia had when we were finally back together. She blamed herself for everything, for our mother being what she was and for our being thrown into foster care.”
Ashleigh looked at him with a question in her eyes. He knew what she wanted to ask, the same thing he’d wondered about many times. He had asked the social workers the question, the people at the home where Mia had lived,
“Snap out of it, Keefe, and stop feeling sorry for yourself. Yes, Mia was a little girl and had a hard life. So did you. She had you, Keefe. Who did you have? You’ve got to stop beating yourself up. This thing with your sister could be fixed so easily. I’ll bet if I talked to her…”
“No.”
A shudder of revulsion ripped through Keefe at the thought of Ashleigh questioning Mia. If she didn’t already feel betrayed, she surely would after talking with Ashleigh. “This is between my sister and me, Ashleigh. No offense but I don’t want you talking to her.”
He watched as Ashleigh wrestled with her own feelings of betrayal. He couldn’t help it. He would protect Mia at all costs. Still, he didn’t want to hurt Ashleigh. “I’m sorry, baby,” he whispered to her. “I told you it was hard for me to talk about.”
“I understand,” Ashleigh said, still sounding a bit miffed, especially when she continued.
“I’m sorry that your sister and you were put into foster care, but that happens. Besides, you got out and you’re both okay.”
“It’s what Mia went through while she was in foster care. She was just a little girl. They wouldn’t allow us to be together and at first they wouldn’t even let me call her or check on her. That is, until she landed in the hospital.”
Keefe shuddered, then shook his head to dispel the image of his baby sister when he’d first seen her in the hospital, her eyes wide and frightened, her arms thinner than they’d ever been—the look of total terror on her face.
He could still remember how he’d stood there for an eternity staring at his baby sister before rushing forward to hug her. She’d pushed him away, her look piercing his heart. She didn’t know who he was.
Keefe had looked into her eyes, but Mia wasn’t there. Fear had raced through him and he’d grabbed her shoulders. “ Mia, look at me, it’s Keefe .” He’d had to shake her several times to make her focus. When she concentrated on his face and finally recognized him, she’d screamed his name. Then she’d held on to him for dear life. ‘ He hurt me, Kee. Save me!’ It was her words, ‘ He hurt me ,’ that had haunted Keefe every day of his life since. It was those words that he’d shoved away and not examined, fearing what they meant. It was what made him so determined that no one would ever hurt Mia again.
He closed his eyes, hugging Ashleigh close. Ashleigh couldn’t possibly identify with what had happened to Mia. He thought about dropping the matter but found he wanted her to know, so that she could at least try to understand. “She was in bad shape,” Keefe finished.
“Keefe.”
“The only person I could think to call was Jerry. I pleaded with him to get us out of foster care. I promised him that he wouldn’t have to be responsible for either of us. His girlfriend didn’t want him to, but he’d never known me to cry. He agreed to help us, to pretend that he was taking care of us, that he was our foster father. He rented us an apartment in his building and gave me the money that was left over from the check the state sent to help us out. And I worked. I worked my ass off.”
“And it paid off. Look at both of you, all that you’ve accomplished. Your sister’s not yet twenty-four and she’s working on her Ph.D. I’d say you’ve done wonderful job.” Ashleigh smiled her acknowledgement.
“That’s now. A lot happened before we got here. You weren’t there, Ashleigh. You don’t know the nightmares Mia had when we were finally back together. She blamed herself for everything, for our mother being what she was and for our being thrown into foster care.”
Ashleigh looked at him with a question in her eyes. He knew what she wanted to ask, the same thing he’d wondered about many times. He had asked the social workers the question, the people at the home where Mia had lived,
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