Patrick's Destiny by Sherryl Woods

He’d had no idea just how much he’d missed having family in his life until the prospect of having it again was dangled in front of him. Could he make himself reach out for it? Could he risk another hurt, another betrayal?
    He honestly didn’t know. And he had no idea at all how long it would take him to figure it out.
     
    Alice usually spent Saturday mornings cleaning the little cottage she’d fixed up when she’d returned to Widow’s Cove. She’d used the money she’d inherited from her parents to turn their home into her own. She’d once vowed never to set foot in it again and she hadn’t, not until after they were gone. She had held on to all the anger right up until the second the policeman on the phone had told her about the accident. Then, in a heartbeat, she couldn’t seem to recall why they had foughtor why she had let it matter for so many years. Clinging to hurt had been cold comfort while she’d been all alone in Boston.
    She sighed at the memory and tried to motivate herself to get busy with her chores. It didn’t take all that long to run a vacuum through the four tiny rooms or to dust the few antiques she’d acquired since moving back. Still, it gave structure to her weekend, the two free days that always stretched out endlessly with way too many hours to think about the past.
    She could hardly wait for warm weather to settle in for good so she could work in the garden she’d planned. She wanted spiky pink hollyhocks and bright day lilies to line the white picket fence of the seaside cottage. On the tiny patch of land in back she planned an herb garden. Her newly renovated home in Widow’s Cove was going to be nothing at all like the dreary home in which she’d grown up. Her mother’s taste had run to heavy drapes, plain white walls and sparse landscaping. Alice’s walls were a cheery yellow, the woodwork white and white sheers billowed at her windows and let in lots of light and incredible shades of blue in the views of sky and sea.
    Normally a thorough housecleaning, followed by an afternoon poring through gardening books, would have occupied her on a day like this, but today she was far too restless to sit still or even to clean. All she could think about was the amazing scene on Patrick’s boat the night before, when his three brothers had shown up out of the blue.
    As she’d followed him up to the deck and listened to their exchange, she’d been stunned, but Patrick’s shock had been almost palpable. The fact that he’d turned to her and all but pleaded for her to stay had touched hermore than she wanted to admit. It had been a long time since anyone other than her students had needed her for anything. There was something about a usually strong man turning vulnerable that could twist her inside out, too. She’d fallen just a little bit in love with Patrick Devaney at that moment.
    As soon as she finished tidying up in the kitchen after her breakfast, she automatically reached into the closet for her cleaning supplies, only to put them right back. The curiosity was killing her. She had to know how last night had turned out. Patrick had been given the chance she’d always dreamed about, a chance at a reconciliation with his family. Had he taken advantage of it?
    She wasn’t quite brave enough to risk another visit to Patrick’s boat, but there was someone who’d have the answers she was after. Because yesterday’s balmy breezes were a thing of the past, and a cold front had turned the air wintry once more, she pulled on her sheepskin-lined jacket and headed for Jess’s.
    “I was wondering when you’d turn up,” Molly called out cheerfully when Alice stepped inside the dimly lit room. The window facing the street let in precious little light even on a sunny morning like this one.
    “I’m not that predictable,” Alice replied with a hint of indignation as she approached the bar.
    “You are to someone who’s known you since grade school,” Molly said, then chided,