Entwined - SF5 by Susan X Meagher

daughter. She glanced up at him with a childlike smile and eagerly proceeded to add at least two tablespoons of sugar onto the bread. "You eat your ‘goody’ while I get you something more substantial," he instructed, giving her a little head rub.
    "Goody?" Jamie asked, privately thinking that the dish didn’t look very good at all.
    "It’s the breakfast of Irish children, or at least it was in the bad old days," Martin said somewhat somberly. "When you couldn’t afford a rasher of bacon or a dozen eggs, this was a handy substitute."
    "Mama made this for me when I was sick," a small voice volunteered.
    Jamie turned and saw the most adorable wide-open blue eyes that she had ever seen, gazing at her with all of the maturity of a five-year-old. It was all she could do not to wrestle the fragile woman onto her lap and spoon feed her, but she sensed that Ryan’s mood could go either way, so she just smiled and squeezed her hand as she continued to eat.
    Ten minutes later, Martin returned and placed a bowl of oatmeal in front of his daughter. It had been smoothed out flat, and he had used a long slice of banana to make a mouth, two slices for eyes, a strawberry for a nose and a mass of blueberries for a curly hairdo.
    Ryan looked up at him and gave him her first full smile of the day. He leaned over and gave her a long hug, which she gratefully accepted. He asked softly, "Is my baby feeling sick today?"
    She merely nodded with her lip stuck out again.
    "My poor little Siobhán," he soothed as he rubbed her shoulders. Soon she began to relax completely into the massage, her head bobbing up and down weakly. After a while, he smoothed her hair back and leaned over again. "Is that better, Precious One?" She gave him yet another smile and nodded her head. "You let me take care of you today, okay?"
    "Okay," she said happily as she began to eat her oatmeal. As the contents of the bowl disappeared, so did her grumpy mood, and by the time the bowl was clean she was her normal, happy self, much to Jamie’s amazement.
    After she had eaten a second bowl of oatmeal and a bagel, she went downstairs to take a shower while Jamie stayed at the table and chatted with Martin and Conor. When Ryan was out of earshot she looked at them and asked, "This happens every month?"
    "You get used to it," Conor said blithely. "I’m just glad we only had one girl in the family."
    Martin shot him a look as he explained. "Siobhán was just a tiny thing when her mother first fell ill. From that time on, most of the energies of the house had to revolve around Fionnuala. I’m afraid my little one lost out on a lot of the pampering that a young child needs to feel special. It doesn’t happen very often, but when she wakes up in a very grumpy mood, my advice is to treat her like she’s about three years old. That’s a winner every time," he said proudly.
    Jamie got up and stood behind his chair. She wrapped her arms around his neck and gave him a firm hug, "I swear you are the best father on earth."
    "Ha! I only wish that were so." He shook his head, remembering all of the mistakes he had made with his children. "It was all trial and error, Jamie, and I made far more than my share of errors. Especially with Siobhán." He grew pensive, gazing into his coffee mug for a few moments. "Coming from a family of brothers and having only boys didn’t prepare me very well for my little one," he admitted. "I know I let her down a number of times…but I tried to learn from my mistakes. I don’t know how it happened, but she certainly has grown into a fine young woman."
    "Hey, how about the rest of us?" Conor demanded. "Aren’t we fine young men?"
    Martin gave him an appraising glance, unable to hide his impish smile. "You have your moments, lad. But your sister has a leg up on all of you for bringing this one into the family." Getting to his feet, he stood behind Jamie and gave her a kiss on the head. "You’re a gift to us all," he stated, giving her a little