“I understand. Believe me. I’ve been a little crazy myself since Janey told me that yesterday. It’s funny because if you told me a couple of years ago that I’d be raising young children again at my age, I would’ve laughed. But now those boys are everything to me.”
“Those boys are damned lucky to have you, Caro. We all are.”
“Same to you, my love. Are you going to be able to function today?”
“I believe so,” he said with a laugh. “He was nice about it all. Apologized for not giving me a heads-up he was coming out. I keep wanting to dislike him, but I find that difficult.”
“I suppose it’s better for everyone if we keep it cordial with him.”
“Right you are, as usual. Well, I’d better get to the office. I’m on the ten o’clock boat, and I’ve got some paperwork waiting for me before that.”
“Thanks for taking such good care of our family, Seamus. We love you.”
“Love you, too, sweet Caro. With everything I am.”
Chapter 18
Cooper was awake early, his mind racing with thoughts about Gigi. If he had to guess, he’d seen the last of her after last night. He didn’t need to be a rocket scientist to figure out that her showing him the door ten seconds after her second orgasm wasn’t a good sign of things to come. No pun intended.
He had to do something, because he’d meant it when he told her he really liked her. At first, he’d been dazzled by her, as anyone would be. But the more he’d gotten to know her, the more he’d liked who she was under the shiny Hollywood veneer. While replaying every minute they’d spent together, he kept coming back to one obvious idea: Evelyn. She’d known Gigi since she was a kid and was a surrogate grandmother to her. If anyone could give him insight into what made Gigi tick, Evelyn probably could.
However, it felt sort of underhanded to seek intel from someone close to her. The only reason he’d do it was because he felt like they might have something special if he could only figure out the secret handshake. Maybe Evelyn would refuse to see him or talk to him about Gigi, but he figured he had nothing to lose by trying.
After taking a shower, he got dressed in an NYU T-shirt and shorts and tiptoed out of his bedroom. Things were quiet in the house, which meant Jared, Lizzie and the baby were getting some much-needed sleep. He left Jared a note to let him know he’d borrowed the car for a quick errand and would be back shortly.
With Jordan and Gigi shooting the final episodes this week and next, Cooper wasn’t surprised to see that her car was already gone. As he started the Porsche, he prayed this outing in Jared’s car would go better than the last one.
Cooper drove into town and picked up muffins and coffee at the bakery before heading to Eastward Look, hoping Evelyn could be charmed by baked goods. At Jordan’s party, he’d talked to Evelyn about her gardens at the house, which were her pride and joy. She’d told him to come by some time to see them, so she wouldn’t be surprised to see him.
As he drove into the long driveway at Eastward Look, he hoped he wasn’t making a huge mistake with this mission. He’d feel things out with Evelyn before he said anything about Gigi.
Evelyn came to the door as he brought the car to a stop in the driveway. Her face lit up with a welcoming smile when she saw him. “This is a nice surprise.”
“I was hoping I could get a tour of your legendary gardens, and I come bearing gifts.”
“I love gifts—and gardens. Come in. I just made some coffee. Can I interest you in a cup?”
“I brought my own along with some fresh-baked muffins.”
“How lovely.”
Cooper took a seat at one of the barstools at the island and took the muffins out of the bag. “This kitchen is gorgeous.”
“Oh, those look yummy,” Evelyn said, cutting the coffee cake muffin in half while Cooper chose the chocolate chip. “My granddaughter Nikki and her fiancé, Riley, did it along with some help from his brother, Finn.”
“They did a great job.”
“They sure did. They’re slowly bringing this old house back to life, and I couldn’t be happier about it.”
“Have you lived here long?”
“I’ve summered here for more than thirty years.”
“It’s a great spot to spend a summer.”
“I couldn’t agree more. The girls loved it so much when they were younger, and I’m thrilled to see them falling in love with the island as adults, too. Although I think they’re more in love with Riley and Mason than they are with the island.”
“The island has its selling points, too.”
“It does. Is your brother enjoying living here year-round?”
“He loves it.”
“I heard about what happened with the baby. How’re they doing?”
“It’s a minute-to-minute thing.” He glanced at her. “Can you keep a secret?”
“I’m known as the vault to my granddaughters, who get annoyed when I won’t tell them things they feel they have a right to know.”
Cooper smiled because how could he not? She was awesome. “Jared and Lizzie have been trying to have a baby for quite some time. Their most recent round of IVF failed shortly before this happened.”
“Oh dear. That makes them the worst possible people to be left with a newborn.”
“Or the best. I suppose it depends on your perspective. But we’re concerned about Lizzie getting attached. And Jared, too. It’s kind of a mess.”
“Sounds like it. What can be done?”
“Jared has an investigator looking for the mother on the mainland, and the police are involved, too.”
“I don’t know whether to hope they find her or that they don’t.”
“Same. It’d be cool if they could somehow keep the baby, but I bet that would be complicated, too.”
“They’d have to find the mother to make that happen. Probably the father, too. I’ll say a little prayer for your brother and his wife to ask for guidance for them in this situation.”
“I’m sure they’d appreciate that. They need all the help they can get.”
“It’s interesting, isn’t it, how people would look at someone like your brother and assume he doesn’t have a problem in the world.”
“Everyone has problems, even billionaires.”
“That’s the truth.” Evelyn gave him a saucy side-eye. “So did you really come by to see my gardens?”
Cooper laughed. “Among other things. I wanted to talk to you about Gigi, but only if you’re willing. I don’t want to put you in an awkward position.”
“Gigi is very dear to me. She’s my third granddaughter, and I love her very much.”
“She’s becoming very dear to me, too.”
“Is she?” Evelyn seemed intrigued. “I do so love to hear that. Our Gigi needs someone in her corner.”
“She would tell you she doesn’t need anyone in her corner, or anywhere else, for that matter.”
“Yes, she would say that. But it’s only because she’s been on her own for such a long time. You know that, right?”