shook her head, and then changed her mind abruptly, ‘Actually, a small Baileys might be nice.’
Within seconds it was being offered to her by the steward on a tray. Once they were alone again, she could feel Tiarnan looking at her.
She turned to face him, and finally he said, ‘I’ve decided to go to Martinique now with Rosie not only because of the school closing but also because we both need a break, and our house there is her favourite place in the world. It always has been. It’s where she gets all the maternal love and affection I can’t give her.’
Or her mother, evidently, Kate thought to herself. But she said nothing. Tiarnan was looking into his glass, swirling the liquid. Outside the window beside him the sky was a clear blue, strewn with white ribbons of clouds.
He looked at her and smiled a small smile. ‘Mama Lucille and Papa Joe are like grandparents to Rosie. They’ve been the caretakers of my house since before I owned it, and they have five children and dozens of grandkids—all around Rosie’s age. When we go there Rosie can disappear for days and I know she’s fine. She turns into something almost feral with all her adopted family … I’m hoping that perhaps—’
He stopped, and the word adopted struck her. Kate asked quietly, ‘What did she mean about you not being her real dad?’
He looked at her, and something intensely bleak crossed his face for a second before it was gone, making Kate think she’d imagined it.
‘I’m not.’
Kate shook her head, frowning. ‘But you are. I mean—’
He shook his head and downed his drink. His jaw clenched. ‘No, I’m not. I believed I was until a couple of years ago. And I’d probably have never found out if Rosie hadn’t got ill and had to have some blood tests done.’
He glanced at Kate. ‘It was nothing serious, but we found out that her blood type didn’t match mine. That isn’t unusual in itself, but other tests were done and, to cut a long story short, I found out that Rosie is not my biological daughter.’
Kate just shook her head, frowning. ‘But if you’re not, then—’
‘Who is?’ He laughed sharply. ‘Take your pick. It could be any one of the three or four men that Stella slept with around the time we split up.’
‘Oh, Tiarnan, I’m sorry.’
His mouth was a grim line. ‘The others weren’t as wealthy or well set-up as me, so when Stella found out she was pregnant she decided to make me the father. A gamble that paid off. She had all the evidence, doctor’s notes, and the dates seemed to match up. And I, who’d never wanted to find myself in that predicament, suddenly discovered a hitherto unknown paternal instinct, a sense of moral responsibility to do the right thing, so I proposed to Stella.’
Kate felt as if a stake were being driven into her heart. She tried to keep her face as bland as possible, not to allow that pain to surface—the pain she’d felt as a vulnerable eighteen-year-old who’d dreamed for a second that perhaps Tiarnan Quinn might fall for her in the space of one kiss.
‘Stella married me and milked that paternal instinct for all it was worth. And then as soon as Rosie was born she was off—back to her current lover. We divorced soon after, she got a nice settlement—and the rest, as they say, is history.’
Kate knew that was an understatement. Stella Rios had made a small fortune out of Tiarnan. It had been all over the news at the time. Her head pounded with questions: Had he loved her, though, despite that reluctance to settle down? Was that why he’d married her, apart from wanting to do the right thing? Had she broken his heart?
Kate’s throat felt dry. ‘When did you find out about the other men?’
Tiarnan closed his eyes for a moment and rubbed a hand over his face. ‘When I confronted Stella with the fact that Rosie wasn’t mine.’ He looked at Kate again. ‘I officially adopted Rosie as soon as I discovered the truth. Luckily Stella had signed complete custody over to me on our divorce. There was no way I was going to allow her any opportunity to use Rosie as some kind of pawn in an effort to get more money. Which was exactly what she did as soon as she realised that I knew. But thankfully by then Rosie was mine, and Stella knows well that taking on a small child would disrupt her hedonistic lifestyle, so she’s never contested.’
Kate could see that, despite finding out Rosie wasn’t his daughter, in every sense she obviously meant as much to him, if not more, than if she had been biologically his. It made her feel an ache inside. This wasn’t the Tiarnan she was used to—calculating and ruthless and a little intimidating. This Tiarnan was far more human.
‘I only allow Rosie to see Stella because she wishes it. Invariably she returns upset every time, but no matter what happens she always wants to go back.’ Tiarnan shook his head incredulously, clearly not understanding the apparently masochistic instinct of his ten-year-old daughter. ‘Over a year ago I went to Buenos Aires to pick Rosie up from a visit. She overheard Stella and I arguing … she heard every word … unfortunately it was all about the adoption. At first Rosie refused to come home with me, but when Stella told her in no uncertain terms that she wasn’t welcome to stay with her any longer, she had no choice …’
Horror coursed through Kate that a mother could be so cruel. She put a hand to her mouth. ‘Oh that poor, poor child.’
Tiarnan looked grim. ‘And yet Rosie still goes back. Still wants to see Stella even though she’s been so unutterably cruel.’
Kate shook her head. She could feel Rosie’s pain acutely. In some ways it was similar to what she’d endured with her own mother for years.
Tiarnan looked bleak again. ‘I haven’t even told Sorcha yet because I don’t want to rake up her own painful memories.’
Kate knew what Tiarnan was referring to. When Sorcha and Tiarnan’s father had died, Sorcha had found out that she’d actually been born to the mistress of her father—his secretary. She’d died in childbirth, and Tiarnan’s Spanish mother had taken Sorcha in as her own. But they’d never really got on, and finding out the truth had sent Sorcha into dark turmoil which could have resulted in a tragedy but thankfully hadn’t. Unfortunately Sorcha and Tiarnan’s mother had had an even more estranged relationship ever since.
Tiarnan’s voice cut through Kate’s memories. ‘Rosie is punishing me for this …’
Kate looked at him and answered instinctively. ‘Because she can. She knows deep down that you love her, so she’s lashing out at you when she really wants to lash out at her mother, for rejecting her. She just wants her mother to love her … that’s all.’
Tiarnan’s mouth thinned. ‘I hope you’re right. I could cope with anything if I knew that for sure. It’s been a tough year.’
Looking into Kate’s eyes, Tiarnan had a sudden sense of being out of control. He’d only ever revealed the truth of his marriage to one or two people, and that had been out of pure necessity. His own sister didn’t even know about Rosie. And yet here he was, blithely spilling his secrets to a woman whose presence in his life was solely down to the desire he felt for her.
As if to drive away his disturbing thoughts, and an unwelcome feeling of vulnerability, he reached over and with effortless strength pulled Kate from her seat.
She landed
