“Is there anything else you need before we go?” Avery asked.
“I don’t think so. Em and I can trailer the horses. You guys were a godsend today. Thank you so much. And tell Lisa thank you too.”
“Will do,” Cooper said. “We should probably go see if Mom needs help with anything.”
“After the funnel cakes.”
Cooper rolled his eyes at Avery.
The group said goodbye and turned toward junk-food alley.
“Gavin,” Jeff called. “Hold up a minute.”
Gavin approached the table and stopped across from Jeff, a safe distance from Charlotte. Wouldn’t want to get too close to the enemy.
Jeff regarded Gavin with a frown and gave a deep sigh. Then he fished something out of his pocket, set it on the table, and waited expectantly.
Charlotte frowned at the two pennies. “I don’t understand.”
Gavin glanced her direction, his expression a little too smug for her liking. “You should pick them up.”
Jeff scowled at his son. “Oh, trust me, this one’s for both of you.”
His jaw flexing, Gavin held eye contact with Jeff. Finally his expression turned somewhat sheepish, and he scooped one of the pennies off the table.
“What’s this about?” Charlotte asked.
“Dad doesn’t give unsolicited advice to us kids,” Gavin muttered. “When he has something he’s just bursting to say, he sets out his two cents. If you want to hear it, you pick them up.”
Her gaze toggled between the men. She peered down at the remaining penny. Oh, why not? If nothing else, she was curious.
“Good move,” Gavin said.
Jeff faced off with his son. “We’ll start with you, son. I know you’re hurting and your mother is hurting. But you’re putting all the blame for this on Charlotte. It’s not her fault your dad had an affair with her mom. It’s not her fault she was born or that she wasn’t told who her birth father was. And once she did find him—correct me if I’m wrong, Charlotte—you tried to get to know Gavin and Cooper, wanted to feel things outbefore you stormed into the family with an announcement that may or may not have been welcomed.” He waited for Charlotte’s confirmation.
Her heart quivered in her chest. “Yes.”
“Things get a little out of hand with that, sweetheart?”
She breathed a shaky laugh, eyes tearing, and nodded.
He set his hand on Gavin’s shoulder. “Charlotte didn’t mean you any harm. She didn’t mean to hurt your mom. In fact, I think she was trying her best to avoid that. She was in a bad spot and she made a judgment call.”
Jeff’s gaze slid to Charlotte. “As for you... I understand Craig is sober now, and you’ve been getting to know him the past few months?”
She nodded, unable to speak past the boulder in her throat.
“That’s a wonderful thing for you. I’m glad it seems to be working out. But you should understand that while Craig has a fresh start with you, that’s not the case for Gavin and Cooper. They have a long and painful history with Craig. He let his sons down for many years, and because of that, there’s a world of hurt and distrust there. That’s not going away overnight.”
She peered at Gavin and caught a glimpse of vulnerability in those blue eyes. Caught a glimpse of the little boy who’d waited for his dad to come home. The child who was embarrassed by his father’s drunken antics. Who ached for his abandoned mother. “No, sir.”
“My sons know I’m a huge fan of forgiveness. Just as God forgives us, He expects us to forgive others. But Gavin and Cooper have to resolve their own feelings about their father and the past at their own pace. They may never choose to have a relationship with Craig. And that’s their decision.”
She nodded again, glancing at Gavin. He was staring at her. His face had softened.
“That doesn’t mean they can’t have a relationship with you.” He turned his attention to Gavin. “I can’t tell you how to feel or what to do. But as far as your mom and I are concerned, Charlotte is your sister—and that makes her family.”
A tear spilled over. She swiped it away.
