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But Polly didn’t need him and maybe Summer didn’t need a pseudo father figure.
Then again, maybe she did? Weren’t father-daughter relationships supposed to be important?
Several nights after the barbecue Seth was still sifting through these vexing thoughts, out on the deck, downing a couple of beers.
Of course, he told himself, yet again, that the mere fact that he’d been present at Summer’s birth did not give him any special ownership rights. But Polly’s little daughter would always own a huge chunk of Seth’s heart.
Just the same, Polly clearly had her reasons for keeping a distance between them. Not that she’d ever explained those reasons in any convincing way.
And now, thinking this over, yet again, Seth was hit by fresh resolve. Even more than his need to see Summer, he needed to see Polly. He needed to have another conversation with her. A proper, serious conversation. Face to face. In the flesh.
During the time she’d been here in Wirralong, there’d been too many important vibes they’d never acknowledged. Instead, they’d tiptoed around, wary of upsetting each other. Too much had been left unsaid.
Determined now, Seth reached for his phone. He would call Polly, leave a voice mail, if necessary, but he’d ask her to call him back, they needed to talk.
He might even suggest it was kind of urgent.
As he tapped his phone, he quickly checked his emails first, out of habit, and jumping out at him was a new message from Polly.
To: Seth Ramsay
From: Polly Martin
Subject: You’ll never believe this
Hi Seth,
I can hardly believe this news myself. I’ve just had the most amazing job offer. I had to write and tell you straightaway, because it’s too big to keep to myself.
The only problem—and big things nearly always come with some kind of problem attached, don’t they?—is that the job is in California. Yeah, in Silicon Valley.
I mean, that’s pretty exciting (great pay, great opportunities and they’d even help me organise a green card) and the decision would hardly be a problem for most people. It’s not even a huge problem for me, really, except that I’ve set myself up nicely here in this apartment and the lease lasts till next April. And my business here is humming along quite nicely, too, and if I took this job I’d have to organise a passport for Summer and find out about day care and everything in America.
Lots of things to think about, but I don’t have to make a decision immediately. I wouldn’t have to head over there until late Feb or early March next year.
Sorry, Seth. This email is the equivalent of me thinking out loud. It’s not me asking you for advice, or expecting you to step in and try to help in any way.
And I haven’t even asked how you are, or how you’re enjoying your new deck. I bet it’s gorgeous. Can you send me a photo?
Anyway, best get back to work.
Polly x
PS Celia’s suggesting I get pink stripes in my hair. What do you reckon?
Chapter Twelve
Polly felt weirdlydeflated after she sent off the email to Seth. It was almost as if pressing the send button had pricked the bubble of excitement that had been building inside her ever since she’d received the job offer.
Her downbeat mood didn’t really make sense, though. She knew Seth would be happy for her. He’d seen her at rock bottom, so he would totally understand what a huge achievement this new job was.
Crikey, it was massive for her to have come so far in such a short time, while taking care of a small baby as well. While she didn’t need Seth’s tick of approval, she would feel better once she’d received his reply, which was bound to be enthusiastic and supportive.
She waited half an hour or so, before she took her phone with her to the bathroom while she had a shower. It was possibly a record-breaking shower in terms of speed, she was in such a hurry to be out and checking her phone again.
Her damp thumbprint wouldn’t work to unlock, so she had to key in her code and she was so impatient she missed a digit and had to do it again.
A quick flick to her emails showed there was nothing from Seth.
