Baked Alaska by Josi S. Kilpack Page B

would let him know, without any doubt, that Sadie would support him in his search for his birth parents. She’d been wrong about that. How many other failures had she made along her path of motherhood? Was it because he’d grown up without a father? Was Sadie too smothering? Did she encourage too much independence?
    They sat in silence for several seconds, then Maggie stood. She didn’t have a purse or anything and seemed unsure what to do with her hands. Finally she clasped them in front of her. “Well, it was nice to meet you, even this way. And I am sorry for bursting into a private conversation like I did earlier; my parents raised me with better manners than that.”
    “No apology needed. And I appreciate you coming to say good-bye. Thank you.”
    “You’re welcome.” She glanced toward the stairs and then back at Sadie. The wind shifted and blew her long ponytail over her shoulder. She had black hair, but with lighter highlights that softened the color. “You’re not what I expected, but it looks like both Shawn and I got lucky with our adopted families.”
    Not what she expected? Why would Maggie have any expectations of Sadie?
    Suddenly Sadie wasn’t as eager to let her leave. Had someone given her a poor impression of Sadie? “Had you ever met Shawn before this morning?”
    Maggie tucked her hands in her pockets. “I didn’t even know he was on the ship until yesterday, and I didn’t know he was with his family until this morning—though in hindsight I should have figured out your connection to him. I wasn’t thinking clearly.”
    Sadie straightened slightly, her curiosity piqued. “You didn’t know he was on the ship?”
    Maggie shook her head. “Lorraina said she was going to surprise me with it. I’d wondered why she’d insisted on us taking this cruise.”
    Sadie thought back to the conversation she’d interrupted between Shawn and Lorraina that first day. Shawn had seemed angry, and Sadie hadn’t thought to ask why. “Did Shawn know you guys would be here?”
    Maggie shrugged. “When I realized Lorraina hadn’t told me what to expect, I suspected she hadn’t let Shawn in on it either, but I’m really not sure.”
    “I see,” Sadie said, then lapsed into silence, lost in her thoughts.
    “Anyway, I better get going,” Maggie said again.
    Sadie stood and walked with Maggie to the stairs, not remembering until she was a few feet away that Shawn, Breanna, and Pete would be at the bottom waiting for her. She stopped, not sure she wanted to face them, even though she knew she had to. They had a shore excursion planned to pan for gold at 2:30, and though it was the last thing she wanted to do, maybe being with a group of other tourists pretending like they were real prospectors was just what they needed. Or maybe Shawn wanted to go to the hospital with Maggie. Either way, this conversation had reminded her that she didn’t want to hold on to her hurt to the detriment of her most valued relationships.
    Maggie realized Sadie had stopped walking and turned to face her again. “Well, I hope you enjoy the rest of your cruise. Sample some of the chocolate buffet on Thursday for me.”
    Sadie smiled. “I’m not sure how much of this trip will be salvaged, but I appreciate you coming and talking to me. It’s easier to understand other people’s stories sometimes, and you’ve helped me better know how to make sense of Shawn’s perspective.”
    Maggie’s smile fell a little at the mention of Shawn’s name. “It’s none of my business,” she said, lowering her voice, “but I don’t think Shawn has been as . . . fulfilled by his relationship with Lorraina as I was, so maybe this isn’t as difficult for him.”
    As an adoptive parent, Sadie had read about birth-family relationships. She knew natural sibling relationships were almost as anticipated as reuniting with birth parents—but Maggie didn’t seem excited about connecting with Shawn, and Shawn hadn’t seemed excited to meet