“Chaotic but good.” Grant stopped at an intersection and turned right. “We’re getting into a rhythm. Everybody pitches in.”

“You all seem happy and busy.”

“The kids don’t leave me much time for reflection. Faith won’t remember any of this, but I worry about Carson. His parents were murdered. Something like that is bound to leave a scar.”

“You’re doing great with him.”

“He’d like it if you visited more.”

“I’ll try,” Hannah said.

“Where are you going next?”

“London.” She hoped. Sort of.

“Don’t be a stranger, Hannah,” Grant said. “I never understood how important family is to my sanity. Dad had Mom. That’s how he got through his days after the injury. After she was gone, he just couldn’t hold it together anymore. She was his lifeline. Today, you gave him his memory of the happiness he had with her, even if it was just for a little while. That’s priceless.”

Hannah nodded. It hadn’t been priceless. It had cost her. But Grant was right. She needed to put her own expectations and needs aside.

“You’ll visit him while I’m away?”

“Yes.” How would she get through that by herself?

“I know you spent most of your life trying to please him, but that’s in the past. You can’t hold on to it. Let it go. You’ll feel better.”

“He wasn’t interested in having a daughter.” There. She’d said it. It sounded pathetic and selfish coming out of her mouth. The man was paralyzed and dying, and she couldn’t let go of her childhood daddy issues. Sad. Just sad.

“He didn’t mean to slight you. He just didn’t know what to do with a girl. He grew up with four brothers and went to military boarding school. He honestly thought you’d be happier doing girl stuff with Mom. He was always so surprised when you wanted to go camping or hunting with us.”

“If I didn’t do all the wilderness excursions, I wouldn’t have spent any time with him at all.” Even with tagging along, she’d always felt like an afterthought. And on that note, time to change the subject. “What time is your flight tomorrow?”

Grant’s glance told her he wasn’t finished with the conversation, but he’d let her off for now. “Disgustingly early.”

“Need any help getting the kids packed?”

“No. We’re about done. Carson is so excited, I doubt he’ll sleep at all, and Faith is up half the night anyway.” Grant steered the truck through a bend. “If you need anything, Brody will be around. He might stop in.”

“Why?”

Her brother lifted a big shoulder in a faux shrug. He wasn’t fooling her.

“I don’t need a babysitter.”

“Didn’t say you did.”

“Are you trying to fix me up with the cop?”