AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I don’t want to leave her hanging. She needs me.
Then again… all this compromising I’ve been doing isn’t serving either of us.
She seems more miserable and needy than ever, and I’m far from happy,
It’s time to make a change.
A big one.
When Alexis heads out so she can pick up Melody at preschool, I polish off my coffee and gather my coat and purse.
My dad’s office is only a few blocks away. I can stop there and talk with him before seeing my mother. I don’t know how trying to escape our old patterns will feel, but it’s time to find out.
Chapter 25
Hazel
“So, I heard your Rotary Club meeting went well.” My mother opens the door wider and ushers me in.
Behind her, a fire dances in the hearth. It heats the room, and my hands instantly tingle as the warmth reaches them.
Cold air swirls around us until she closes the door.
“Sit, sit,” she says. “I was just looking at recipes for our cookie baking this Saturday. I was so set on trying those macaroons, but I just don’t know if I’m up for all that. They’re very complicated. I’m thinking about lemon cream puffs. Now, when we go to the market on Saturday, remind me to look at the hams. I want a nice big one to have leftovers for that split pea and ham soup. Oh, and that reminds me, we’d better stop at Bed, Bath, and Beyond and look at their crockpots.”
“Mom, about this weekend…” I plop down on the couch.
This won’t be easy, but I have to do it.
It’s time.
Besides, I already bought my plane ticket while I was waiting for my dad to finish up an appointment.
I didn’t even buy insurance from the airline.
I figured that way; I wouldn’t back down.
“I can’t bring you out on your errands,” I say, shifting to face her as she sits. “And I have to cancel on the evening of baking.”
She reaches for a cooking magazine off the coffee table and starts leafing through it. “If this weekend doesn’t work, we could postpone until Monday afternoon. That might be better because Steve will be behind the counter at the deli. I’ve been talking to him about what the two of you might do if you ever manage to go out in town. A movie or a stroll in the park would be nice.”
“Mom, Monday doesn’t work, either. Actually, I talked to Dad. He’s going to skip that conference in Concord so he can spend the weekend with you.”
She purses her lips. “Oh, no, no. That won’t do. He looks forward to his conferences.”
“Sure, but he goes to too many. And maybe an outing would be good for you two.”
My mother is not the only one in this family who can meddle. My parents have been drifting apart since all of us girls moved out of the house.
When I look at my mom right now, it feels like I’m seeing her—really seeing her—for the first time in years.
She’s a person just like me, with fears and doubts and insecurities. Here, sitting on the couch with me, she’s bathed in flickering light from the fireplace and the peach light from the lamp beside the sofa. I can see the worry lines getting stronger between her pinched brows.
I smile and place my hand on her knee. “You guys could do something fun for a change.”
“Fun?” She meets my eye.
“Do something new that you haven’t done in a while, you know? There’s a show at the aquarium or that new birdwatching walk at the town gardens. What about that new pizza place over on Ashcroft?”
