“It did. The article said after his father left, his mother couldn’t support the family, so she turned the children over to social services. But that’s about it.”

“That’s probably for the best. Seth is so private. I’m sure he’s glad there’s not a lot of information out there about his early years.”

“So...he was separated from his brothers, too?”

“Not in the beginning,” Aiyana said. “Seth’s first set of foster parents tried to take all three boys, but they returned Seth and his older brother, Brady, after just a few months.”

“Returned them!” Tia cried. “Why?”

“They said it was too hard to take on all three. They wanted only the youngest. But losing his mother and then his little brother hit Seth hard. He started to act out, which caused him to be rejected by his next family, too. And this second family kept Brady, his other brother.”

Tia swallowed hard. “So then he was on his own.”

“Yes.” Aiyana’s cup clinked as she put it on its saucer. “But I’m afraid that isn’t even the hardest part. Later, he learned that their mother changed her mind and rescued Derrick and Brady within two years of giving them up.”

Tia’s stomach dropped. “But she didn’t reclaim Seth? Why not?”

A pained expression deepened the lines in Aiyana’s face. “I have no idea. He was the middle child, the easiest to overlook. That’s all I can imagine, because he is such a wonderful person.”

“That must’ve crushed him.”

“It did,” Aiyana said. “It’s made him very leery of love. Now maybe you can understand why he’d hang on to Shiloh so tightly.”

Tia didn’t know what to say. She’d been so miserable she’d assumed he couldn’t possibly understand what she was going through, had assumed he’d had an easy life—until she read about his wife, anyway. And now she was learning this, which painted an even clearer picture.

“Would you like another cookie?” Aiyana held out the plate.

“One is enough. But thank you.” Tia thought of Seth trying to get her to improve her eating and start exercising and felt a wave of affection she did not want to feel—not in addition to the excitement that had overcome her when he was kissing her in the pool.

“I hope you don’t mind me confiding in you about Seth’s background,” Aiyana said. “I’ll be honest—I’m only doing it because I hope the two of you can become friends. I know you both need one.”

“He’s been good to me,” she said and took another drink of her cocoa before adding, “Can I ask you one thing?”

“Of course.”

“Does he have any contact with his mother?”

“No. Even if he could forgive her, I can’t see him associating with her.”

“She let him down too badly.”

“Exactly.”