“She didn’t want to be the one to tell you her mother was having an affair and about to leave you. I sympathize with that. I made the same decision. Believe me, it wasn’t easy, only in my case it was just my ethics and principles that suffered. For Izzy it was far more personal. She was embarrassed by her mother, mortified, shocked, angry—you name it, she felt it. Mostly she felt insecure. She believed she had no right to be living in your home.” Clare couldn’t remember hearing Jack swear before, but she heard it now.

“How do you know all this? I didn’t know she was talking to you, although obviously I’m glad she was talking to someone.”

“I only found out today. I’ve tried to talk to her a few times, but she shut me down. Said she was fine.”

“Fine.” There was frustration in his voice. “I hear that word a lot. I’m starting to think that what it really means is ‘not fine at all, but I don’t want to talk about it.’ So why today? How did you suddenly persuade her to start talking?”

“I didn’t. She came to me and said she wanted to talk about Becca. I suspect you have Flora to thank for that.”

“Flora?”

“Funny isn’t it, that the one person Izzy held at a distance was in the end the person who got through to her. I don’t know what she said to Izzy. I don’t know what they talked about. I do know that something she said persuaded Izzy to open up.”

Jack walked the length of the deck and back again. “Flora kept telling me I needed to talk to Izzy, but I thought I knew better. I thought the best way to handle it was to give her space. I assumed it was all part of adjusting. Being a teenager.”

“Don’t beat yourself up. It was an impossible situation. You had no way of knowing she already knew. You didn’t want to upset her by telling her something she didn’t need to know. She didn’t want to upset you by telling you something you didn’t need to know. I think the time for rethinking that is past, Jack. All you can do now is move forward. I think if you tell her the truth, and yes I probably do mean the whole truth, in the end it will be easier. If Izzy knew that Becca had left once before, but that you had kept her, been there for her, maybe she’d feel more secure.”

“She has a home with me forever if she wants it. She can live with me until she’s wrinkled and her teeth fall out.” There was no doubting his sincerity and Clare smiled and put her hand on his arm.