Oh, we were all trained in self-defence. None of the men in our lives would allow for anything less, but I also knew that we could be overpowered just as easily. Not that I minded spending time with my baby. I didn’t. Bella had been mine and Dog’s surprise baby. We’d thought we were done after the boys. When Bella had come along, we realised she was the one that completed our family. She was doted on by everyone. And I have to admit I worried she would become a spoiled brat, but she hadn’t. She was a sweet baby, who turned into a sweet kid and then a stubborn teenager who was so clever, especially with numbers. I’m not sure where she got her brains from. Robert and I … while we weren’t stupid by any means, we were not in the same league as our daughter, who had an affinity for the stock market.
With a small pot of money from me, she learned, studied, and adjusted, tripling it in six months. She’d been thirteen at the time. She was now fifteen, and I knew more than one member of our family had her investing for them. I didn’t interfere with the business that she’d set up with Avy. They had plans. My baby was going to do big things. All I could hope was that she’d find someone who understood her. She wasn’t always the easiest to get to know, but when she loved you; she loved you forever.
Now my boys were a whole other kettle of fish. Liam and Milo were Irish twins. My lord, I’d thought I’d never sleep again when they’d been babies. I’d walked around in a perpetual haze of exhaustion. Thank the Lord for Kate in those early days. Robert had helped when he was home, but they weren’t home often until the boys were much older.
The number of times I’d cursed Robert in those days still amused us, but like everything, those years had flown by in the blink of an eye and then our boys were enlisting. The house had gone from noisy to eerily quiet in the space of weeks.
None of us liked it, especially Noni, Avy, and Bella. They’d missed having their brother’s home.
It had been especially hard when Milo’s team had been hit and he’d been one of the few survivors. My heart had nearly stopped when we’d got the news. And while my heart hurt for those families that lost loved ones, selfishly, I was glad that my son had made it home. Injured, but he’d been home.
He may have made it back to us but he hadn’t been the same fun-loving boy that left home. And then he did the unthinkable andbroke the one thing that may have made it all bearable. And in the process, he broke not only their hearts but also mine, Bella’s, and Robert’s.
Rea had been Milo’s from the day they met at fourteen. Now I know most would say that it wasn’t possible to know from that age that you’d met the person meant for you. And that may be true for some, but for Milo and Rea, we could all see from the start that they were meant for each other. We welcomed her into our family, and she became another daughter. But when he broke her heart, she did what any woman would do to protect herself from hurt and distanced herself from us.
I’d reached out to her parents and kept in touch, making sure she was okay until she wasn’t. I can’t lie; I may have hated my son a little when I found out what Rea had felt driven to do. But then he wasn’t much better. I knew he was taking unnecessary risks in the field, and I lived in a constant state of worry, wondering if we’d be getting news that he’d been killed.
I heeded Robert’s warning and kept silent, even though it was difficult not to interfere. For years I kept tabs on Rea, even after she got married. She’d always be one of mine, and I’d watch out for her just like I would one of my own.
Then she’d got divorced and a year or so later I’d found out about a position opening up at the hospital, I used my influence to get Rea hired on. It had taken time and some fine finagling, but she’d got the job.
Deep down, even after all the hurts they had endured, I knew that she and Milo belonged together. All I could hope was thatonce they saw each other again, they’d remember how good it could be. And I knew that with how small our village was, they’d eventually meet again. I sent up a brief prayer that the fates would align and I left it up to them. I’d done what I could.
I never envisioned how much all of our lives would change once the boys came home. Not that any of us were complaining; we loved the addition of every new family member added.
And the changes in Thor, Gunny, my Robert, and Shep once he finally came back to us. Well … let’s just say they were welcome. It was like we had the men from our twenties back again. Especially once Gunny added Bev and Thor added Maura.
Mine and Kate’s lives were better with those two joining our ranks, especially with our kids finding the ones that completed them just like I’d found Robert.
The message sound on my phone dings, and I smile when I see a message from my love.
Robert (My Love) Miss you. I’ll be home tonight. Love you x
Miss you too. Don’t sleep when you’re not with me. Love you x
Going into the kitchen of the café, I say to the staff, “We’re closing early. I’m going to lock up and put the sign on the door.”
They’re surprised but happy to leave early, as I knew they would be. Going to the front, I put the closed sign up and turn back to the café. My gaze stops on the table that I’d been standing at over thirty years ago when Robert first swooped into my life. My lips tilted up as the memory of our meeting rose.
“You okay, mum?” Bella asks, coming towards me.
“I’m good baby, just remembering the day I met your dad.”
Bella turns to me. “I’m glad it makes you smile.”
“It was one of the best days of my life, baby. Only surpassed by our wedding and the birth of you and your brothers. I hope one day you have a memory like it to keep you smiling when you’re old.”
“You’re not old mum, you’re only fifty-four years old,” Bella bumps her hip against mine then wraps an arm around my waist. “But I hope that I have a memory like that especially if it makes me smile like it has you.”
Squeezing her waist, I press my lips to her dark hair. “Come on love. Let’s go home. Your dad will be home soon.”
Half-hour later we’re back home and in the manor's kitchen, the one room that hasn’t changed much in all the years we’ve lived here other than to have upgrades on the appliances.
The same wooden table that Gunny and Thor had sat around all those years ago was still central to the room. It was the one itemof furniture I’d refused to let be replaced. There were too many memories and secrets told around that table for me ever to think of changing it. The next generation could change it when it was their time, but while the kitchen was mine, the table stayed.
Same as most evenings, the kitchen got busy as everyone came home. While there was no change with Shep, there were changes aplenty coming. Starting with the boys coming home.
While there were changes, the one thing that didn’t change was Robert and the feeling of safety and love that I felt as soon as he was in the room with me.
