might lie ahead. She knew what she might face in the future with Amber’s condition and, as always, it was upsetting just to think about it.
‘But the important thing is our granddaughter is healthy and that makes me happy.’
‘Amber is healthy now,’ Jade confirmed, then paused for a moment to gather her thoughts and not become emotional. She was tired from the flight and she tried not the think about the potentially life-threatening condition that Amber could face if her functioning kidney were to fail. ‘She’s monitored closely and I suppose that’s why it took so long for us to get here. I wanted to make sure she was well enough to fly and not compromise or exacerbate her condition.’
‘So she got the all-clear to be here from her paediatric nephrologist in LA?’ Arthur asked as he indicated and turned into their street.
‘Yes, Dr Mulligan said it would be fine but he gave me the details for the renal unit at the Eastern Memorial Hospital should there be any issues.’
‘That’s my old stomping ground. I only retired last year,’ Arthur responded with a touch of melancholy colouring his voice.
‘Yes, I remember that from one of your emails, so it’s comforting that you know the hospital well,’ she returned. ‘But let’s hope we won’t need to visit there as she had an examination with Dr Mulligan only two days before we left and he said that she is progressing well and may travel through life with no other issues. That’s the best-case scenario, but if we aren’t that fortunate, I hope treatment is many years away and she is old enough to understand it. Although she will need genetic counselling when, and if, she wants children of her own one day.’
‘Goodness, children of her own. That’s such a very long time away. Let’s not rush the poor child.’ Maureen turned around and once again looked proudly at her only grandchild. Her happiness was contagious and lifted Jade’s spirits again.
‘So there’s no need to think she’ll be anything other than fine and she can look forward to spending four lovely weeks with us,’ Arthur retorted, purposely lifting the tone of his voice.
‘And her Uncle Mitchell,’ Maureen added, happiness evident in her voice.
Uncle Mitchell. Jade was taken aback yet again at hearing his name. Although she was far from curious about the elusive Mitchell, apparently she was finally going to meet him and so was Amber. The seemingly irresponsible brother with wanderlust. Ruby and David had eloped so there had never been a wedding to allow the families to meet. Although it wouldn’t have been a huge gathering as there had not been much of a family on Ruby’s side. There had only been Jade and Ruby.
Jade suspected that was why David had suggested eloping. The idea of David’s family filling one side of the church and their side empty but for their friends would have made the day bitter-sweet and that was why she assumed he’d arranged an impromptu sunset wedding in Maui. He had been a considerate and devoted man. And from what she had heard completely at odds with his brother.
Mitchell hadn’t travelled over for the funeral but Jade had been dealing with her own insurmountable sadness so she hadn’t been too aware of anyone else and their presence or lack thereof then. It had been a sad time that she wanted to both forget and remember. Remember because it had been her last connection to the sister she’d loved completely, and forget because she hadn’t thought she would survive the sense of loss that had threatened her sanity during those weeks and months that had followed the accident.
But apart from his lack of interest in his brother’s funeral, Jade knew little about Mitchell. Over the years postcards and photographs from far-away places had arrived, somewhat battered, and the very occasional email when Mitchell had been somewhere with an internet connection. Jade had seen them pinned to the corkboard in her sister’s kitchen when she’d visited. It had been difficult to see what he looked like behind the wraparound sunglasses he’d worn in all the shots. But scruffy and rough around the edges was the lasting impression. His hair was long and wild, almost in dreadlocks, and so, too, was his beard. David, on the other hand, had been clean cut and well mannered. And Mitchell appeared to have a new girlfriend in each photo.
For some reason, David’s face would light up when he’d looked at the photographs and the reverence he’d felt for his brother had been clear. He would say proudly that Mitchell was the most selfless person in the world and the best brother, but neither Ruby nor Jade had been able to see any evidence of it.
The brothers had had a bond that had stretched across the continents and oceans that had separated them, and Ruby would often say that she never understood what was so admirable about his carefree, and from the content of the photographs, playboy lifestyle. The bungee jumping, abseiling and mountain climbing all pointed to an adrenalin-driven way of life. He was a nomad and spent a great deal of time in countries on the African continent. Nothing like the life that David had chosen. Ruby and David had been so perfectly suited and Jade had been happy for her sister.
Jade was not like her sister, though. She had never found the man perfectly suited to her. Although she wasn’t actively searching, either. Her mantra drove her to live a full life and not rush to settle down. She had dated a few men, including an up-and-coming musician who had left town to make it on the East Coast, then a pro-football player while she’d been at college and a bull rider during her first nursing placement. Jade had liked the idea that she’d been with a man involved in what was called the most dangerous eight seconds in sport but the fascination had quickly faded and Jade had lost interest, just like she had with the others. There had been something missing. They’d had fun times but there had been no real connection. She hadn’t been looking for the one but even if she had been she hadn’t found him.
Ruby had not liked any of Jade’s boyfriends. She’d thought her taste had been deteriorating, not improving, and hadn’t hidden her aversion to what had appeared to be Jade’s less-than-desirable type. She’d worried that the way her sister had dressed might have had something to do with the men she’d attracted and she oftentimes would suggest a more demure style, like her own, but Jade had loved her shorts and T-shirts. Ruby had complained that the men Jade had liked had been too wild and a man who couldn’t be tamed would never be for keeps. Jade hadn’t been looking for for ever, like her sister; she’d been happy to just enjoy a life without ties. She’d lived for the moment. A serious relationship had held little or no appeal.
She’d just been too busy enjoying life and having fun because life was short.
Looking back now, Jade reluctantly admitted to herself that Mitchell’s ongoing carefree life was not too far from her former life. Her life before she’d become Amber’s guardian. A life that she had almost forgotten. She had been skydiving more than once and had loved it. The rush that had engulfed her mind and her body as she’d been freefalling towards the ground just before the chute had opened had been thrilling. Her heart had raced, and she’d felt alive and exhilarated, but now her feet would be firmly placed on the ground. Now she wouldn’t even contemplate a roller-coaster ride at Six Flags, her once favourite theme park and the destination of her former regular weekend trek with friends.
Now there was nothing in the world more important than taking care of her niece and making sure they were both safe at all times. The old free spirited Jade Grant was now very tame and very conservative in every possible way. Her once long blonde hair was now a short pixie cut, her clothes were more in keeping with someone at least ten years older and her make-up nonexistent save for some tinted sunscreen and lip gloss. She was doing her best in every way to be exactly the person Amber needed and that Ruby and David would have wanted to be her daughter’s guardian. The old Jade had been packed away. She wanted Amber to feel safe and the best way she knew how to do that was to be more like Ruby. Sensible was now her middle name.
‘Here we are,’ Arthur announced as he pulled the SUV into the driveway of the luxurious three-storey home. The architecture was modern, with a large glass balcony on both upper floors overlooking the beach.
Jade lowered her glasses. The home was palatial and the view as she stepped out of the car and looked around was spectacular.
‘It’s beautiful.