Was that why she went to New York? Had she gone there in pursuit of him?
“Did she love him?”
Her mother had told her she loved him, but they couldn’t be together. Why?
“Your mother was very much in love with your father. She had never shown much interest in boys before she went away to University. And even then, she studied hard and was working toward finishing, when she met your father. She would call me and tell me that he was the most interesting man she’d ever met. But because he was one of her professors, they were keeping their relationship quiet. No one could know.”
“And then?” Aisling’s voice dropped.
“Then, one day, she came home from University. Said she was moving to New York. That she was pregnant. That she just knew he would leave his wife, and they would marry. She didn’t say his name. Nothing. Noreen—well. She didn’t take it well. Especially when she learned he was already committed to someone else.”
Aisling blinked, her mind racing. “He was married.”
Bríd nodded slowly. “Your grandmother called it a sin. They fought like I’ve never seen two people fight. And then Maeve was gone.”
A sharp ache bloomed in Aisling’s chest. Her father had an affair with her mother while he was married to another woman. “She never came back.”
“No,” Bríd said. “And your grandmother… she was never the same. She lit a candle every year on your birthday. But she never forgave herself. Or your mother. Your grandmother was very religious. Very Catholic, and your mother had committed a grave sin.”
“What a waste,” Aisling said. “My grandmother and mother obviously loved each other. And yet, pride kept them apart.”
Sitting there with Bríd, Aisling suddenly understood why the two women had never spoken again. But what a shame. They loved one another, and yet their damn Irish stubborn pride had kept them from forgiving and making up.
And because of their headstrong willfulness, Aisling had never met her grandmother.
“I tried to call Maeve. To write. But I never had an address. And Noreen wouldn’t speak of her. It was like she disappeared. Oh, how I missed my friend. Still do.”
Aisling reached across the table and squeezed Bríd’s hand. “She was lucky to have you.”
Bríd’s eyes shimmered, but she smiled. “And now I have you. Full circle, eh?”
Aisling sat back, heart full and heavy. “I want to find him. My father.”
“You never saw your father?” Bríd asked, her voice filled with shock.
“No, he was never in our lives.”
Bríd’s brow furrowed. “Are you sure?”
“I don’t know what I’ll do if I find him. But I need to know. I need to see his face. Ask why. Ask… everything. Did he know he destroyed my mother’s relationship with her mother?”
“Your mother followed him to New York against Noreen’s wishes. He was an American. Do you think he stayed here or did they break up?”
Why had her mother been so secretive about all of this? Why had she never told her the truth?
“If I can find out from the University which visiting professors they had that summer…” Her voice trailed off.
“You’ll have a name,” Bríd finished.
Aisling nodded. “It’s a start.”
Bríd looked at her for a long moment. “Your grandmother wanted to meet you. She said so. Near the end, she talked about flying to New York. If her health had held out, I think she would have.”
Aisling blinked against the sting in her eyes. “She should’ve called. Written.”
“She was afraid you’d hate her. She feared that your mother made you detest her.”
“Mother never even mentioned her.”
