He grinned, hoping to lighten her dark mood. “Is it me you miss or the paperwork?” He shoved a stack in her direction. “I’d be more than happy to turn these over to you and go for a long walk with our Kate.”
She shook her head, though she did crack a smile. “Nice try, but paperwork was always your domain. I miss the people,” she said candidly. “I didn’t expect to, since there were days I thought they’d drive me mad changing their orders or complaining that something wasn’t just right.”
“If this is about the company, then, I don’t understand. You’re in here at some point every day. You still see everyone.”
“It’s not the same.” She sighed again, then lifted her troubled gaze to his. “You’re going to think I’ve lost it, but I think I’m a little jealous of my mum taking my place.”
He was beginning to get what she was saying, but he was far from understanding any of it. “But this was your idea, Moira. Having your mom here, not just for a visit, but working here.”
“I know. That’s what makes my feelings so ridiculous. Having her here was what I wanted. She and I are getting along better than we ever did back home. I think she’s feeling more at home here every day. You should see her now at Sally’s in the morning. In just a few short days, she’s become one of the O’Brien women. They all turn to her for an opinion and laugh at her stories from Ireland. She’s got them all wanting another family vacation over there, I think, so be prepared for that.”
Literal minefields had nothing on the dangers of trying to pick his way carefully through a conversation with his wife. “And you’re feeling left out? Replaced? What?”
“It’s the same as in here, as if I don’t know how I fit in anymore.” She covered her face, clearly embarrassed. “Next thing you know, I’ll be complaining she’s taken my place in our home, too.”
Luke bit back a desire to laugh. “I don’t think she’ll ever replace you with me, Moira,” he said, fighting to keep his tone serious.
Another hint of a smile touched her lips then vanished. “I’m not thinking that, you idiot. But she is making herself indispensable there, too. I’m surprised at how quickly that’s come about.”
Luke didn’t credit himself with a lot of insightfulness, particularly where his wife was concerned, but he thought maybe he knew what was going on. “Moira, did you by any chance see yourself as your mum’s savior when you suggested bringing her here?” He could tell by the flush in her cheeks that he was on the right track. “And has it turned out that, perhaps, she’s quite capable of saving herself? That she saw she was heading down an old path and was ready to step in a new direction?”
She regarded him with a narrowed gaze. “When did you get to be so smart and insightful?”
He couldn’t quite tell if she was impressed by that or if it was another of the day’s annoyances for her. “You’ve given me plenty of practice at sorting through the hints you toss about,” he told her. “I’m learning to put the puzzle pieces together.”
“Congratulations,” she said wryly. “So how do I fix my feelings, when even I can see that I should be happy that she’s adjusting and that things are going so well?”
“Maybe you should try congratulating yourself for assessing what she needed and simply getting her here. It wasn’t up to you to fix her sadness, but you insisted she come to a place where she could find her own path to healing.”
“I didn’t expect it to happen quite so fast,” she admitted. “It’s as if she’s forgotten all about Peter.”
There was a despondent, accusatory note in her voice that spoke volumes. “Do you feel as if she’s betraying him just because she’s choosing to live her life?” he asked.
She frowned at the suggestion. “No, of course not. It’s what I hoped for, isn’t it?”
“So you said at the time you invited her here, but perhaps you’re finding the reality a little more jarring.”
She fell silent. Luke waited her out. Moira was never quiet for long.
“Okay, yes,” she said eventually. “I saw the blush on her cheeks when she came out of the kitchen the other night after talking to Bryan. There’s something between those two. I think it’s disrespectful to Peter’s memory.”
“Ah, so that’s what this is really about,” Luke said, realizing they’d finally hit on the real source of her misery. She’d adored Peter and hoped her mother would have a future with him. Now she feared that Kiera wasn’t mourning him as he deserved. Even if her emotions were contradictory and all over the place, he had to accept they existed and try to console her.
“Moira, for starters, I don’t think you need to worry that your mother has forgotten Peter or her feelings for him,” Luke said quietly. “I’ve found her in tears more than once when I’ve come home late at night, and each time she’s said how much she misses him.”
Moira looked startled. “You’ve found my mother in tears and never told me?”
“I caught her in private moments. They weren’t mine to reveal,” he said. “As for Bryan, that’s another thing about which you’re worrying for no reason.”
“I know what I saw,” she said stubbornly.
Luke laughed. “And I’ve seen it, too, on Bryan’s side, but neither of them is prepared to do a single thing about it. Bryan, at least, is in denial that he has any feelings for your mother at all. He views her as a necessary nuisance, or so he claims. And your mother sees only that they’re battling wits over control of the kitchen, since he’s rejected every suggestion she’s dared to make since I encouraged her to speak up. I’m seriously tempted to make her his sous chef, just to watch the fireworks.”
“Don’t you dare!” Moira said, then paused and chuckled at last. “Though it might be fun to watch. Bryan’s always seemed a bit closed off and quiet. I like him a lot, but the truth is we know very little about him or his personal life outside of the pub. Seeing the two of them rile each other could be entertaining.”
“Well, it’s something to consider, once your mother’s status is clarified and we can officially put her on the payroll,” Luke said. “I think she’s struggling with how to handle things with her status unresolved. I hope Connor’s right that the paperwork will go through soon. She needs that to feel secure about speaking out.”
Suddenly Kate released her grip on his knee and hit the floor with a solid thud. Her cries filled the pub. Moira picked her up and cuddled her close.
“I suppose she tired of not getting any attention from either of us,” she said.
“Following in your footsteps, perhaps,” Luke teased. “Weren’t you staging your own cry for attention when you came in the door just now?”
“I suppose you’ll hold that over my head,” she grumbled.
Instead, Luke pulled his wife and daughter onto his lap. He tucked a finger under Moira’s chin and turned her face toward him, then kissed her soundly. “If you ever need reassurance about how important you are in my life, all you need to do is say so,” he told her solemnly. “You and Kate are my world.”
“More important than O’Brien’s?” she asked, a smile on her lips.
“More important than anything.” And that was something he needed no coaching to know was exactly the right thing to say.
* * *
Kiera had stood outside the door of the pub watching Moira, Luke and Kate for a moment and concluded this time together, just the three of them, was something they needed. She was in the middle of their lives a little more than she ought to be these days.
Since she wasn’t due at work for another hour and wasn’t needed to help with Kate, she headed for her