Talking things over with Payton helped to ease my mind. Maybe I was jumping the gun but all I wanted was what was best for Will and the family.
“I guess that does make a lot of sense. I was starting to get myself all worked up without really thinking it through. Besides, we have so many happy things to focus on. Like your wedding shower coming up.”
“I know. Can you believe it’s that time already?”
“I can. Time waits for no one, my dear.”
We continued baking and cooking up a storm and managed to finish just in time before everyone started walking through the door.
“Will, sweetheart, it’s time to wake up.” Begging Will to get up and get moving was a part time job in itself.
“Just a little while longer.”
“Darlin, you should get up and go splash some water on your face. Everyone is here to celebrate your birthday.”
“Birthday? What birthday?”
“Your 75th birthday, dear. Now come on, chop chop.”
“Alright, alright.”
I helped Will out of his chair and straightened up a bit. The kids really didn’t care much about appearances anyway. What mattered most is soaking up every ounce of time together.
“Gram, Grandpa!” My grand-daughter Maggie ran over and squeezed me tight. Her brother Aidan followed behind her.
“Ohh, my sweet grand-babies, give Gram a kiss.”
Will gave the kids a pat and continued to shuffle his way to the bathroom. They knew their grandpa loved them and were very understanding.
“Hi, Mom.” Abby and her husband Wyatt came over to give me hugs. They teased about missing all the extra attention from me since John William was born.
“Oh now, don’t be silly. I have enough love to go around for everybody. Besides, these days I barely get away to see John William. Rebecca usually has to bring him over here to the house. Speaking of which, look who’s here.”
“Hi everybody!” Ethan waved as he held John William in his little carrier.
“Where’s the man of the hour? I thought surely he’d be ready to party,” Rebecca said.
“Your father is in the bathroom. He should be out in a minute.”
Just then Will made his way back into the room to sit in his favorite chair.
“There he is. Happy seventy-fifth, Dad!” Rebecca came over and gave her dad a kiss. He nodded his head and went along with all the attention.
Payton was the first to scoop up baby John. She played with him and made him giggle and spit bubbles. Cole, Emmie, and Alice arrived just in time to watch him spit up all over Payton’s blouse.
“That’s okay little one. Come here. Let Gram clean you up.”
“Gee, thanks, Mom. No, I don’t need any help with my blouse, I’m fine.” Payton teased.
“Oh, you’ll be alright. You know where the wash cloths are kept.”
It had been so long since we had a tiny little baby in the family, which made it very hard not to spoil John William.
“Payton, all jokes aside, I didn’t realize you were so good with babies. After seeing you in action it kind of makes me think about having a little one of our own,” Cole said.
Emmie was over the moon about the idea. “That would be so cool! Then I could finally be a big sister. I could feed the baby, give the baby a bath, and even read bedtime stories at night.”
“I might be biased but I think Payton would make a wonderful mother. In a lot of ways Payton and Abby were a second mother to Rebecca when we were busy at the Inn,” I said.
Rebecca agreed. “Oh, Payton you’re a natural. Anytime you want to practice just come on over and hang out with John William. We could always use some extra help. Isn’t that right, babe?”
“The more hands, the better!” Ethan added while tossing a few peanuts in his mouth.
“You two are funny. What are you going to do when you have two or three kids running around the house?” I was assuming they would want more kids but Rebecca was always unpredictable growing up. That really hasn’t changed in her adult years.
“Mom, don’t get too excited about the idea of me having three kids. Pushing out the first one was almost too much to bear.”
“Don’t say that. Giving birth may have been difficult but having this precious baby boy in our lives was well worth it.”
“I don’t disagree but for now we’re all here to celebrate dad. And, I don’t know about you guys but I’m hungry!”
“Way to change the subject, Becks!” Payton tugged on her ponytail.
We all made ourselves comfortable and spread out between the dining room and the living room to eat and talk. Alice kept me company in the kitchen as we prepared the second round of plates for dessert.
“So, Alice, is there a reason why you didn’t bring Stanley with you? I was hoping we would get to meet him.”
“I didn’t know I could bring a plus one. Don’t worry. You’ll meet him soon enough. I’m bringing him to the wedding.”
“Really! I can’t wait to meet him. I’m assuming things went very well after we last spoke?”
“They did. We had a chance to talk and I gained a lot of insight about his feelings and past experiences. It was a good conversation. I guess I can officially say that he’s more than just a friend.”
Cole walked into the kitchen just in time to hear her confession.
“Who’s more than just a friend?” he asked.
“Well, Son, I was going to wait and talk about this later on but I guess now is just as good of a time as any. Stanley and I are seeing each other.”
“You mean the old guy that comes over for tea every week?”
“Cole! The old guy has a name. Do you have to be so rude about it?”
“I’m not trying to be rude. I just thought he was an old friend. You’re the one that made light of it when we talked about this a while back. How was I supposed to know?”
“I’m not saying you had to know anything but you don’t have to make him sound like an old prune. And, to clear things up, we were friends. Now, we’re more than friends.”
“Okayyyy, well, I guess I would know these things and have a chance to actually meet the guy if you lived closer.”
“Cole, I only live forty minutes away and I don’t plan on moving any time soon. If you guys want to move closer to me you’re more than welcome.”
“Now, now you two. I’ve never known the Millers to be at odds. Cole, take it from me when I say that even us more mature adults deserve to be happy and to have a love life,” I said.
Alice nodded her head in agreement. I didn’t want to discourage Cole but it was true. Everybody deserved to be happy and find love if that’s what they really wanted.
“Don’t you want to see your mother happy?”
“Of course I do, but I don’t ever want to see anybody take advantage of her, that’s all.”
He turned toward Alice to speak.
“Mom, if Stanley makes you happy, then I’m happy. Just text me his address in case he messes up and I need to come looking for him.”
We all laughed at the thought. Cole was a good man and had nothing but the best in mind for his mother, Emmie, and Payton as his future wife.
Abby lit the candles on Will’s cake.
“Alright, everybody. Now that we’ve settled on Stanley being an accepted friend of the family, why don’t we all go in the living room and sing happy birthday to dad,” she said.
One by one we piled into the living room and gathered around Will. Abby protected the small flames and led us all in the traditional birthday song.
“Okay, Dad, on the count of three blow out the candles. One… two… three…”
Will blew out the candles and we all showered him with all the love and attention that he could handle. He didn’t say much but I believe that even Will’s spirit was uplifted by being surrounded by family.
Later that evening we brewed a pot of coffee and hung out in the kitchen.
“Payton, didn’t you mention some
thing about running into Susan earlier?” I asked.
“Oh, yeah, I almost forgot. She came into the store earlier this week.”
“Really? What did she want?” Abby perked up.
“She actually came in to show support to the business and apologize for what she did last summer.” Payton’s voice dwindled.
“Apologize to who? You? Payton, you can’t be serious! She must be confused. It was my marriage that she almost tried to sabotage.”
“Abby, hold on a second. Let me explain before you get all bent out of shape.”
“Okay, go on, I’m listening.”
“She said that she owes us all an apology, Abby. Not just you. You were impacted the most by what she said but she ruined the day for all of us. She said she has every intention of reaching out to you as well.”
“Nonsense. If she was so sorry, why are we just now having this conversation almost a year later? Give me a break! You can go back and tell her that I’m a grown woman with kids and I don’t have time to play her foolish games.”
“Wow, I don’t know who this Susan is but she doesn’t sound like anybody I’d want to be friends with,” Alice said.
“Thank you, Alice,” Abby said.
“Ladies, you may not agree but here’s the way I see it. Was Susan wrong for repeating false rumors? Yes! There’s no question about it. But, you’ve known her long enough to know she wouldn’t personally do anything to hurt you. It’s water under the bridge now. Let’s forget about it and move on.” I stopped to give my attention to my grandkids as they came running toward me.
“Gram, can Emmie, Aidan, and I have some ice cream and another piece of cake?” Maggie said.
“More ice cream and cake? My my, I didn’t know little girls and boys had so much room in their tummies.”
“Oh, no, you two. If Emmie’s dad approves that’s fine, but you two little munchkins have had enough.” Abby wasn’t falling for it. She knew it would be a long night filled with tummy aches if I gave in to their request. They quickly disappeared from the kitchen.
“Mom, with regard to Susan, I love your ability to look for the silver lining in this situation, I really do. But, trust me when I tell you that what she said was intentional.”
Payton interjected.
“Abby, maybe at the time but I believe she’s sincere now. I haven’t finished telling you everything. It actually gets worse.”
I took a few sips of coffee and continued to listen.
“She admitted that she was the one having real marital problems with her husband. When we saw her last summer her husband had already moved out and they were on their way to getting a divorce.”
“So, because Susan was down on her luck she was going to try and drag Abby into it as well?” Rebecca said.
“Rebecca, she didn’t say that. She just admitted that she was wrong for repeating the rumor about Abby’s husband. But get this…when I asked her why they were getting a divorce, she told me there was infidelity involved. I felt so bad and commented that I felt sorry for her. She said she probably deserved it since she was the one who cheated.”
“Wait, what?”Abby put her coffee down.
Rebecca was even more stunned by the news. “Hold on. She not only laid up on that beach chair and tried to make Abby feel uncomfortable over false rumors about Wyatt, but the whole time she was creeping around behind her husband’s back?”
“Yup.”
“That low down and dirty little…” Rebecca murmured under her breath.
“Uhh, that will be all, Rebecca. Whatever she’s going through in her marriage is her business.” I tried to be the voice of reason.
Payton protested. “Mom, she shared all of this with me, not the other way around.”
“That’s fine, but we don’t have to judge. It actually explains why she feels the need to apologize to everyone. The poor thing has probably been carrying the guilt and weight of everything on her shoulders and can’t take it anymore.”
“Poor thing?” Abby waved her hand in disgust.
“I don’t get how she becomes the victim. Did I miss something here?”
“Abby, you didn’t miss anything! I know what it’s like to be in her shoes. And, I don’t think it’s fair for you to pass judgement, that’s all.”
As soon as the words slipped out of my mouth I immediately regretted getting involved in the conversation. I let my emotions get the best of me. The girls looked stunned and Alice looked like she was trying to bury her nose in her coffee mug.
“Don’t just stand there and stare. You heard me right. I know first hand what it’s like to carry the guilt and shame that comes along with stepping outside of a marriage. It’s nothing that I’m proud of. Your father and I always withheld this part of our marriage from you girls because we didn’t want you to be dragged into the hurt and pain associated with it. I can’t speak for Susan but I knew I was wrong for what I did. And, the last thing I needed was judgement from anybody. The guilt and shame was enough punishment in itself. We lived through that over thirty years ago but I remember the pain like it was yesterday. Back then, word spread around town so fast it made my head spin. I could live with the embarrassment but I couldn’t bear what I put your father through. Thankfully, he eventually came around to forgiving me. And, despite whatever you may be thinking of me now, if it wasn’t for your father’s forgiveness, we may not be the close knit family that we are today.”
“Wow. It seems like this town has had its fair share of…” Payton’s voice trailed off before completing the sentence.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean any harm, Mom. You know that we love you. There’s not one person in this room who’s perfect. Not one.”
“Thank you, Payton, but I’m not looking for empathy. I just hope we can be the kind of women that learn how to walk a mile in somebody else’s shoes before we cast judgement. What Susan said to Abby was hurtful but it’s not beyond repair. Do as you please, but I’d rather offer forgiveness and squash it. Someday you might actually need forgiveness in return.”
Payton rested her head on my shoulder. I’m sure the girls will never forget the day that I revealed my darkest secret. But, what I hope they gained from it was the importance of forgiveness. My mother used to tell us life was way too short to get caught up in the weeds.
Payton
“Natalie, please empty everything out of your pockets and place it on the counter.”
She jumped at the sound of my voice and dropped a few singles out of her hand.
“Payton, I was just… I was just checking the drawer count. I swear I…”
“It’s only an hour into your shift. We don’t check the count until the end of the day. Empty your pockets.”
“I can explain.”
“Natalie.”
A hundred dollar bill and a few twenties were in her front pockets. She even managed to stuff more money in her back pockets.
I walked over and collected the money and proceeded to count what was there.
“Is that all or do I need to ask you to empty your book bag as well?”
“That’s all. I swear I didn’t take anything else. I’ll empty out my bag for you right now. Whatever you do, please don’t fire me.”
Her eyes welled up with tears.
“I can explain, Payton.”
“I can’t think of one good reason why I shouldn’t fire you right here on the spot. I trusted you, Natalie.”
In between sniffles she began to explain.
“I know what I was doing was wrong but I really am a good kid. I promise I am.”
“That’s just it. You’re not a kid. You’re over eighteen years of age. I could report this to the police.”
“Please don’t. Please let me explain. Mom is really sick. She was recently laid off because she’s not able to perform her duties. It was contract work to begin with but within six months, as long as they liked her, the position would become full time. She’s trying so hard but the only income we have right now is her unempl
oyment and my paycheck from this job. This job is all I have.”
I relaxed on the counter and let out a deep breath.
“Why didn’t you just say something to me, Natalie? We could’ve sat down and brainstormed together. I was looking to increase your hours when you returned anyway. It may not solve all your problems but it could’ve helped.”
“I don’t know. I guess I just felt embarrassed to unload all of my personal problems here at work. It feels like everything is going wrong all at once.”
“Is there something else?” I asked.
“I had to drop out of school because we were getting behind in payments.”
“But, it’s your last semester. Can’t they work with you?”
“They already have been working with us. That’s one of the reasons why I applied for this job, so I could supplement and help out with my school bills. The money runs out pretty quickly when you don’t really have enough to begin with.”
“Which explains why you were trying to steal from the cash register.”
Natalie held her head down.
“Yes.”
“I’m not sure that one hundred and sixty-five dollars would’ve solved much, Natalie. I worked hard to get this place up and running. Maybe you view me as some wealthy woman who wouldn’t miss a few nickels and dimes but that’s not the case. I have to pay my monthly rent to the landlord to keep this store open. And, until I’m married I still live at home with my folks to save money.”
“I’m sorry, I didn’t know.”
“You shouldn’t have to know. You should just want to do the right thing, Natalie. Period.”
She nodded her head while stifling her cry. I felt like she was being sincere but she needed to know that stealing would not be tolerated.
“Look. I’m not going to sit here and pretend like I haven’t made some wrong choices in my past. We all have. I just can’t have you working here with me if I can’t trust you.”
A Pelican Beach Affair (Pelican Beach Book 3) Page 9
