“It is definitely yours, but it’s too big for you to hold. How about if we set it out here on the porch.”
But Daisy was having none of that. She kept trying to grab the large pumpkin until Katie laughingly took it from Seth, assuring Daisy they would take it inside and put it in a well-deserved place of honor.
* * *
A while later, the five of them sat around a large antique oak table in the dining room. Rill was at one end of the table, the Daisy-kin at the other. They’d all done some serious justice to the smoked chicken that Rill had cooked in his outdoor pit cooker, homemade macaroni and cheese, salad and baked apples. Without her sunglasses on, Gia felt very exposed in her Jessie disguise. Especially when she had to rein in her stare from sticking on Seth, who was sitting across the table from her, looking very appealing in the glowing, soft lighting of the dining room.
“That was really good,” Gia said in her boy voice, thinking that was probably high praise coming from Jessie.
“Thanks,” Katie replied.
“More,” Daisy insisted from the chair next to Gia, where she sat in a booster seat. Without thinking, Gia sat forward and filled a spoon with macaroni and cheese and plopped it on Daisy’s plate. The little girl gave her a dimpled smile before she dug in with her spoon.
“How did you know what she wanted more of?” Katie asked, laughing.
Gia shrugged. “It was her favorite. Mine too.”
“You must have little brothers or sisters at home,” Rill said. She and Seth—mostly Seth—had provided their cover story and brought it off without a hitch. Seth had already given Katie a brief overview on the phone, so it wasn’t as if they weren’t prepared. Apparently Rill and Katie had heard about her supposed father, Jake Hightower, both from Joy and Seth. They didn’
t seem to find the idea that Jake had fathered a child and not known of his existence all that surprising.
“No. I was an only child,” Gia said.
“It’s a shame that Joy and Everett are in Mexico,” Katie said, sipping her remaining chardonnay. “Even though I know both of them have been working nonstop and deserved a vacation, Joy will be sorry she didn’t get to meet you right away. If you were to handpick a sister, you couldn’t pick a better one than Joy,” Katie told Gia. “Trust me, I know.”
Seth nodded soberly. “Too true,” Rill murmured. Rill set down his water goblet and leaned forward. “I hope you don’t mind me asking, Jessie. I don’t want to pry. But how’d you figure out Jake Hightower was your dad?”
Jessie hesitated for a split second. Rill must have sensed it because he rushed to explain.
“I’m only asking because . . . well, I never knew my biological father either. Or his identity. I’ve been doing my own search for him, using both government agencies and a private investigator,” Rill said. “I’m assuming my dad was Irish, although I’m not sure if that’s even true. It makes things a bit more complicated. I was just wondering about your search. I’ve never talked to anyone in person who’s gone through something similar.”
“Oh,” Gia said, relief sweeping through her. She had thought Rill’s sudden intensity related to suspicions about their cover story. She glanced at Seth furtively. He raised his eyebrows slightly, and she immediately knew he was asking if she wanted him to take over. “No . . . I didn’t have to do any searches like that. I mean . . . I did,” Gia stuttered. “But only after I found out my biological dad’s name. I did computer searches for him. That’s how I found out he still had family members living in Isleta Pueblo. His relatives told me about him living in Europe, and also about Uncle Seth. Since I’m from southern California, it was a lot easier to contact Seth than my dad. After we met, we decided to come here to get to know each other. I’m starting college in a few months, so it was now or never.” Gia noticed Rill’s pinched brows and realized she hadn’t really answered his question. “Oh, sorry—my mom told me his name when I turned eighteen.”
“Ah, well, that explains it,” Rill said, seeming to deflate a little. Gia noticed Katie’s worried glance at her husband. “When you don’t have a name, you’re sort of screwed.”
“Rill’s mother absolutely refuses to breathe a word about his father’s identity. So Rill decided a couple months ago to start seeing what he could find out on his own,” Katie explained quietly.
“And no luck so far?” Seth asked.
“I keep running into dead end after dead end,” Rill said, shrugging broad shoulders.
“You have your birth date and place of birth?” Gia asked, her heart going out to him. Something told her this was a very old, haunting question for Rill Pierce. Katie must have seen that look, too, because she reached over and covered Rill’s hand with hers. He glanced at her and gave her a small special smile before he took her proffered hand in his, squeezing it.
“I have a birth certificate. My mother said the father was unknown,” Rill said heavily, brushing the back of Katie’s hand with his fingertips.
“Didn’t you tell me once that you had two uncles still living in Ireland? Your mother’s brothers?” Seth asked. “They can’t provide you with any leads?”
“Just speculations. Besides, Ray and William are currently on sabbatical.”
“In jail, in other words,” Katie told them under her breath.
* * *
Gia decided there was a little of herself in Jessie. He was also an only child; he might have a weakness for children too. Besides, he was still close to boyhood, wasn’t he? This rationalization gave her an excuse to volunteer to watch over Daisy in the living room while the others cleaned up in the kitchen. While they were playing blocks together, Daisy got up and unceremoniously dropped a book in Gia’s lap.
“Read?” she asked hopefully.
“Okay,” Gia said gamely, standing and sitting on the couch. She beckoned Daisy, lifted the little girl into her lap and began to read.