Page 81 of Summer of Love (Costas Sisters 2)
Amazing how fast a man got used to things that were once foreign to him. Only now those things were nothing more than spectacular memories. He spoke to Sam every couple of days, but not once had Zoe answered the telephone when he’d called. When asked, Sam always said Zoe wasn’t home. He doubted the kid would lie since she seemed to want Ryan and Zoe together as much as Ryan himself.
In his free time, he’d done a lot of soul-searching about his sister, her life and his uncle’s role in both her running away and the way she’d died. Though Ryan had come closer to accepting and comprehending, he hadn’t yet reached the point of complete forgiveness, so he hadn’t returned Russ’s calls. Since Ryan had always had his uncle as a sounding board, a mentor and a friend, now he had no one. And he felt the loss.
He hadn’t been in touch with his family since Sam had left, but he was ready to deal with them, which was a good thing since his secretary informed him he was “expected” at the house for dinner this evening. Well, it wasn’t like he had anything better to do, Ryan thought.
It had been so easy to admit to Zoe that neither one of them had many friends or much of a social life. It was more difficult to acknowledge to himself how empty that now made him feel. He shook his head and laughed at how pathetic his life was and had been for a long time. Something he could see clearly now, faced with her absence.
She’d given him purpose and laughter, and he longed for warmth and intimacy to fill the void she’d left behind. A void he hadn’t before known existed.
The question was, could he ever get her back?
Ryan arrived at his parents’ home at 6:00 p.m. sharp. Instead of the help greeting him at the door, his mother welcomed him. “Hello, Ryan.” She kissed him on the cheek.
“Mother.” He glanced over her shoulder to see his father pouring drinks in the study. “This informality is interesting. What’s going on?” he asked.
His father, who until now had avoided Ryan and any discussion of Sam’s entry in their lives, stepped forward, bar glass in hand. “I can answer that. Your mother has spent the last couple of nights explaining our mistakes and convincing me we can do better with Sam than we did with your sister.”
Ryan raised an eyebrow. “And you agreed so easily?”
His father glanced down, and when Ryan returned his gaze, he took in the graying hair and stooped shoulders he hadn’t noticed before. “I lost a daughter, Ryan. Just because I never show the pain doesn’t mean I don’t—and didn’t—feel it.”
Ryan’s heartbeat tripled as he heard the words nobody in this house had ever expressed while he was growing up. He couldn’t believe how emotional they made him feel now.
His palms sweated, and his relief nearly overwhelmed him. “I’m so glad to hear you say that.” He forced the words from his tight throat.
His father’s gaze never broke from Ryan’s. “It’s a start, son. It’s a start.”
They were a long way from normal, but thanks to a young girl named Sam, they were taking small steps.
“So this do-it-yourself attitude is a part of that?” Ryan swept his arm around the room, encompassing the lack of servants and more casual atmosphere. His father, Ryan realized, wasn’t wearing a suit, but a collared shirt with the top two buttons opened.
The other man nodded. “Apparently, we need to lose our snobbery. Your mother’s words.” A slight smile touched Mark Baldwin’s lips.
Ryan stopped short of calling it a grin. “And you listened to her? Will wonders never cease.” As much as Ryan appreciated the changes in his family home, he couldn’t hide his sarcasm.
“Give us a chance,” his father said. “You might be surprised.” He extended the drink he’d poured, and Ryan accepted the peace offering.
“To…change,” Ryan said in return, coming up with the most apropos word he could find under the circumstances.
“To change,” his father echoed.
“Is Uncle Russ coming for dinner?” Ryan asked.
His mother shook her head. “He had to work late. He said to send his regrets.”
Ryan nodded, relieved he wouldn’t have to face him just yet. He wanted time with his father to figure out what Mark Baldwin knew and fill him in on what he didn’t. He hoped that together they’d come up with a way to handle the past—and minimize any future damage to the company or to the family. Soon though he’d have to pay his uncle a visit and begin to tie up those loose ends.
“I was sorry to hear Samantha and Zoe went home,” his mother said, interrupting his thoughts.
Her words took him by surprise. “Does that apply to both Zoe and Sam? Or is the truth that you were glad to see Zoe go?”
