Patrick's Promise (Cloverleaf #3) Read Free

isn’t the only one that’s guilty of being involved,” Michael replied. Patrick internally rolled his eyes at his attorney brother-in-law; he always had to act like he was in a courtroom. Michael continued, “Rachel had her part, and honestly so did your mother. So cut Maggie some slack, okay?” His tone turned authoritative as he stared at Patrick.
    He was about to respond when he heard the distant sound of Rachel calling out to them.
    “Must be time to eat,” said Liam as he removed himself a little too quickly from his chair. Daniel hopped up eagerly and followed Liam toward the cabin. He, by far, had the best appetite of all the O’Brien men. Patrick knew that neither of his brothers liked confrontation; they were laid back and easy going, and they always had been.
    Patrick and Michael remained seated, an awkward silence hovering between them as both waited for the other to make the first move.
    “Look, I’m in sort of an impossible position here. She’s my wife, but she’s your sister. Can’t you guys just make up and move on?” Michael asked as he turned again to face Patrick.
    “You know what I hate?” Patrick paused for a brief moment, as Michael looked curiously back at him. “I hate knowing that I’m in the right, and everyone wants to me to be the one to apologize and pretend that it didn’t matter what Maggie did. That I should look the other way when people get in my business and do something behind my back.”
    “No one is asking you to do that. We are just asking for you guys to get over this thing and to act normal again.” Michael frowned slightly.
    Patrick shook his head as he heard footsteps approaching behind them. Turning around and sheltering his eyes from the blinding rays of the sun, he saw Maggie and Rachel moving in cautiously.
    “Hey, guys, the food is ready. We were headed down to get the kids,” Rachel announced with a wide smile. Maggie stood next to her, noticeably quiet. Patrick could feel Maggie’s eyes on him, until she leaned down to her husband and gave him a kiss on his cheek.
    Avoiding any kind of eye contact, Patrick got up from his seat without a word and started toward the shore. He couldn’t explain why he felt so utterly uncomfortable around Maggie. It wasn’t as though this was the first time the two of them had ever fought, and it certainly wouldn’t be the last. Maybe the invasion of privacy and the fact that everyone was siding with her was what had him feeling all angry and irritated. Did they not realize that of course he wanted things to go back to normal, and that he didn’t want to feel like he had to distance himself from his only sister? Working with her had only complicated matters more, because when he avoided her there, she would run off and tell their mother or anyone else who would listen, making him appear to be the bad guy.
    Why couldn’t she have just left well enough alone? But deep down Patrick knew that all was not well; he was coping, but things were not good. Why did life have to go and mess up all of his plans, especially his and Beth’s? Thoughts tumbled inside Patrick’s mind as he neared the edge of the water. His two precious boys were covered in mud, which was thickly caked on their skin and in their hair, making them look like feral, wild creatures. They had wide smiles, and their eyes emitted a happy glow as they noticed him approach.
    “Daddy, wanna build a sand castle?” Connor asked sweetly as he reached for Patrick’s hand.
    Finn was crouched down, his chubby hands working the soft mixture of soil and mud, his fluorescent green life jacket bobbing with each movement. “Yeah, Daddy, you should play with us.”
    How could he deny his boys? Before Patrick realized it, he was down in the dirt, his shorts wet from the slapping waves that pelted against the shore. The sun was warm on his back. He was half tempted to rid himself of the polo shirt he was wearing, and the water tempted him to go in further. It was barely