“A month?” Meg couldn’t hide her surprise. “We thought you were working.”
“I was. Working on convincing Fiona to let me try. Working on convincing Stella to give me a chance.” Tyler’s laugh was hollow. “Not sure I succeeded on either front.”
“But she’s here,” Anna pointed out.
“Summer trial. That’s what we agreed. See if Stella and I can...” He gestured helplessly. “I don’t even know. Bond? Connect? Stop being strangers who share DNA?”
“And if it doesn’t work?” Anna asked.
“Then she goes back to Sydney and we continue the twice-a-year thing until Stella’s eighteen and can decide for herself.”
“That’s awful,” Meg said.
“That’s reality.” Tyler’s voice was flat. “I’m a stranger to her, Meg. She doesn’t want to be here. Doesn’t want to know us. She’s sixteen and angry and her mother shipped her off because the new family matters more than—“ He stopped, jaw clenching.
“You matter to her,” Meg said firmly.
“Do I? Because from where I’m sitting, I’m just theguy who used to be fun when she was little. Who taught her to surf and bought her ice cream and then disappeared for six months at a time.”
“Tyler—”
“She’s right there,” he continued, voice dropping. “My daughter is sleeping fifty feet away and I don’t know what music she listens to anymore. Don’t know her friends’ names. Don’t know if she still eats mint chocolate chip in a cup.”
“So find out,” Anna said simply.
“How? She won’t talk to me. Looks at me like I’m something she stepped in.” Tyler’s laugh was humorless. “Can’t blame her. I would too.”
“She’s scared,” Meg said. “You’re both scared.”
“I’m terrified,” Tyler admitted. “What if I screw this up? What if she goes back to Sydney and I never get another chance?”
“Then you don’t screw it up,” Anna said firmly. “Tyler, you’ve got three months. That’s more consecutive time than you’ve had since she was little. Use it.”
“I don’t even know where to start.”
“Breakfast might be good,” Meg suggested. “Actual food. Not whatever disaster you were planning to attempt.”
“I can cook,” Tyler protested weakly.
“You can burn things. That’s different.” Meg stood, pulling eggs from the fridge. “I’ll help with breakfast when she wakes up.”
Tyler was quiet for a moment, then: “I need to tell Margo.”
“Yes,” Anna said. “You do.”
“Today. This morning. Before this goes any further.” Tyler stood abruptly. “She gets to the Shack by seven to prep. If I go now?—”
“Tyler, it’s not even six?—”
“I need to shower. Change. Inject coffee into my veins. I can’t have this conversation looking like...” He gestured at himself. “She deserves better than me showing up like I slept on a couch.”
“You did sleep on a couch,” Meg pointed out.
“She doesn’t need the visual reminder.” Tyler was already moving. “Meg, can you?—”
“I’ll stay here,” Meg assured him. “Go. Tell her everything you just told us.”
“What if Stella wakes up?”
