“At least they paid for your college.”
She filled the pot and poured it into the coffeemaker. “Didn’t your parents?”
“Yes, but not everyone is as lucky.”
Will was more than lucky. He’d been blessed to be born into a family like the Addisons. Not a messed-up family like hers. “You can say that again.”
He measured out the dark grounds and dumped them inside the filter. “What do you mean?”
“I shouldn’t complain.” Guilt raced through her. Her family might not be perfect, but they loved her. Still, the Addison family made her long for things she hadn't wanted since she was a child. “My family could have been worse.”
“Now you really have to explain more.”
Kelsey replaced the pot. “Your family isLeave it to BeaverorFather Knows Bestcome to life. I wish they could adopt me.”
As Will turned on the coffeemaker, he laughed. The rich sound was as smooth as warm caramel sauce. “Sorry, two sisters are more than enough. Your brother would be a different story. I always wanted a younger brother.”
That was funny. Kelsey chuckled. “Cade doesn’t even like to claim any relation to the Armstrongs. He would never cut it as an Addison. Your family is so normal, he’d say you’re abnormal.”
“We’re not that different from other families,” Will said.
She rolled her eyes. “Your family is perfect.”
“No one is perfect, especially my family.”
“Your parents are still together.”
“True, but they’ve had their ups and downs.”
“I don’t believe it.” As she grabbed the sugar container, the scent of freshly brewing coffee filled the air. “What about the Addisons’ claim to one love in a lifetime?”
“Even true love hits a bump every now and then.” Will removed two mugs from the cabinet and placed them on the counter. “My parents didn’t always get along. I remember one time their yelling woke me up. My sisters, too. We stood at the top of the stairs, listening to the screaming and the shouting. Tears streamed down Faith’s cheeks. She stood between Hope and me, holding on to our hands.”
Similar memories washed over Kelsey. The fear that she was watching her world fall apart, of having everything she’d come to count on torn away. Her stomach knotted, and bile rose in her throat. “You just described a common occurrence in my house. Cade and I would wake up to the yelling and the screaming. We’d sit together in his closet until we heard the doors slam, and it would be over. For a little while at least.”
“The doors never slammed at our house. But that didn’t make it any better. Especially that time. My mom broke down crying. I’d never heard her sob like that. She was so exhausted raising me and my sisters, running the Starr B and B, and helping to renovate the inn. But my father couldn’t understand why she couldn’t give him the attention he wanted. Mom said she didn’t have any energy left for him by the end of the day. My father claimed she just didn’t love him anymore.”
Kelsey knew how much that must have hurt Will and his sisters to hear. Her parents once claimed they’d never loved each other to begin with. Pain gripped her heart, and she slouched against the counter. “What happened?”
“Faith ran down the stairs, begging them not to get a divorce. She always had a flair for the dramatic, even when she was little.” Will poured the steaming coffee into the mugs and handed Kelsey one. “My parents were mortified when they realized we had witnessed everything. They had the three of us sit with them in the living room for a long talk about what we’d heard. They apologized and told us not to worry about a divorce and explained how they would work through their problems.”
Kelsey had heard that repeatedly from Mom and Dad. Until it became white noise to her and Cade. She added a teaspoon of sugar to her coffee and stirred. “Easier said than done.”
“They did exactly what they said they would do.”
She held the spoon in midair. “How?”
“My dad took over some of the B and B work, hired a project manager for the inn remodel, and brought home a pizza every Friday night, so my mom didn’t have to cook.” Coffee in hand, Will leaned against the counter. “They scheduled a weekly date night and would never cancel unless blood, a fever, or a trip to the hospital was involved.”
“That’s…amazing. It’s hard to believe they worked it out.” A stab of envy pierced her heart. “If that were my parents, my father would have gone out and found the attention he wanted elsewhere. Who am I kidding?” Kelsey stared into her coffee. “That’s what he did. My mother, too. I just wish…”
“What?”
“That my parents could have been more like yours and thought about how their actions affected us.” Her hand trembled as she held on to her mug. “They didn’t tell us they were getting a divorce. My mom said to pack a bag because we were going on a trip. She stashed us away with a distant Armstrong cousin so my father couldn’t find us. She didn’t even let us say goodbye to him. My dad was frantic, and my mother loved every minute of it. Things went downhill from there.” Kelsey gripped her mug with both hands so she wouldn’t drop it. “My parents couldn’t work through anything, not even when it came to me and my brother.”
“We aren’t destined to follow in our parents’ footsteps.”
“I suppose not, but we can learn from their mistakes.” The heat from the mug warmed Kelsey’s hands and took away the chill that had taken hold of her. “I’ve analyzed and overanalyzed what happened to my parents and their subsequent spouses. There’s no chance of ever getting it right. I’m certain of that.”
