Island Secrets Ch. 05 - Finale

By the following year Sharon was able to move her mother to a better neighbourhood and as a result spent a part of that summer with her. As Patricia grew she looked more and more like her father, having only her mother's fine bone structure. The older she got the more questions she asked. It did not go unnoticed that she saw her father, Maxwell, only during the summer and her uncle, Matthew, for the rest of the year. He had by then graduated from medical school and was working at the University Hospital of the West Indies.

For her thirteenth birthday she asked her uncle to take her out for ice-cream. The short trip to and from Devon House had life changing repercussions. Everyone mistook them for father and daughter. When they told the last person to comment on their resemblance that they were just uncle and niece Patricia turned to him with her usual bluntness.

"You know you could be though, right uncle Matt?" she licked at her cone and met his eyes directly.

"Could be what sweetie?"

"You could be my dad."

"But you already have a dad, Pat."

"I know." They had continued to enjoy their treats in silence before Patricia spoke again.

"Uncle Matt, how old are you?"

"I'll be thirty seven this year."

"Hmmm... Mummy is going to be thirty-four."

"I know."

"Uncle Matt, when are you going to tell mummy you love her and just marry her already? You know she just likes my daddy but she loves you right?"

Matthew had choked on his cone then. He looked at his niece bearing the most innocent smile and licking her cone. Without a word he had taken her home.

Later that night she had a similar conversation with her mother. By the following year she was her mother's maid of honour while her father was his brother's best man, as her uncle became her step-father and her father became her step-uncle. Thereafter, Patricia always got some strange looks whenever she introduced her family. That had been a scant eight years ago.

The two women beckoned to the gentlemen to join them in a group hug. Sharon smiled through her tears as she was dwarfed by her husband and brother-in-law. She closed her eyes and breathed deeply. Who would have thought that her life would turn out like this? From a poor ghetto girl from Montego Bay to a vice principal. She had her career, she had her family, and even though it had taken her forthright daughter's bluntness for her to see what had been in front of her all along, she had her love. She found Matthew's hand and gave it a squeeze. His grey eyes met hers and he smiled. Yes, she had found her love.

Fin

Thank you all for reading my first attempt on this site. In going through this series I have learnt quite a bit. Patricia's story will be coming up soon as the second in the series. Her story is the one that actually inspires the series but I felt the need to write a back story for her mother. I do not think I will use the novella approach however as I do struggle with making the chapters lengthy enough to be appealing. Again I thank you and do look out for more from me. Islandchica