The Summer of New Beginnings: A Magnolia Grove Novel

by Bette Lee Crosby

  “Why?”

  “I’ll tell you why after you tell me why your skirt is inside out.”

  Tracy glanced down and laughed. “Oh, jeez. It’s a good thing you’re the one who saw it and not Mama.”

  “Do you have any idea what you’re doing?”

  “Oh, pleeease. It’s late, and I’m tired. Do I have to listen to you preach?”

  “It’s not preaching if you love somebody and don’t want to see them get hurt. Aunt Phoebe said no man is ever going to respect you if you don’t respect yourself.”

  Tracy put up a hand as if to stop Meghan. “Wait a minute, this is Dominic we’re talking about. Dominic doesn’t put a lot of stock in this respect stuff, but he’s crazy about me. If I asked him to do handstands in the middle of the street, he’d do it. That’s how wild he is about me.”

  “Well, then, why doesn’t he ask you to marry him?”

  “He’s not ready yet,” Tracy said. She stepped out of her skirt and tossed it over the back of the chair.

  “I just think you—”

  “Don’t bother. I already know what you think.”

  That was the end of the discussion. Once Tracy decided not to talk about something, neither hell nor high water could get it out of her.

  Lila was in the kitchen when Tracy came down the next morning. Her irritation with her daughter was obvious. Although she’d waved off Phoebe’s comment, the truth was it had struck home. Since the funeral, Tracy had gone from being mischievous and carefree to downright irresponsible. Worse yet, she’d taken up with a group of friends that her daddy would most certainly have disapproved of.

  Lila considered this her own fault. She was not a good disciplinarian, never had been. George was always the one to set rules and expect the girls to abide by them. If he said be home by eleven he meant eleven, not eleven fifteen. With Meghan it was never a problem. She was as precise as her daddy. If he said eleven, she was home by ten forty-five.

  Not Tracy. She missed curfew on a regular basis, and more than once, Lila covered for her. She reasoned Tracy was just young and having fun; she herself had been the same way. Of course, back then it simply meant stretching the rules for an extra half hour or so. Now it seemed as if Tracy had tossed the rule book out the window. She came and went as she pleased and made no apologies for doing so.

  “You missed dinner again last night,” Lila said sharply, “and Aunt Phoebe wasn’t too happy about it.”

  Tracy gave her no-answer shrug and plopped down at the table. “What’s for breakfast?”

  “Toast.” Lila set a plate with two slices of burned toast on the table.

  “That’s it? No eggs? No pancakes?”

  Lila handed Tracy a cup of coffee and sat across from her. “We have to talk.”

  Tracy rolled her eyes. “Meghan told you about the skirt, is that it?”

  “Meghan didn’t tell me anything. What about the skirt?”

  “It’s nothing.” Tracy stood and opened the refrigerator door. “I didn’t have dinner last night, and I’m starving. Isn’t there something more than toast?”

  “Oh, for heaven’s sake.” Lila sighed and stood. “Sit down, and I’ll fry you some eggs.”

  She pulled a carton of eggs from the fridge and set a skillet on the stove. As she cracked an egg and dropped it into the pan, she said, “I thought you were out with Dominic last night. Why didn’t you eat dinner?”

  Tracy gave another shrug, but there was a faint smile playing at the corners of her mouth.

  Lila noticed. Months earlier when George was the disciplinarian responsible for the girls, Lila might have seen that bit of a smile as simply mischievous. Now it seemed flat-out rebellious.

  “This skipping dinners and staying out until all hours of the night has got to stop,” she said. “From now on I expect you to be here every Tuesday night for dinner. No exceptions.”

  “You’re kidding!”

  Lila slid the eggs onto a plate and smacked it down on the table. “Do I look like I’m kidding?”

  Tracy broke off a piece of toast and dunked it into the center of the egg. “What brought this on?”

  Something about Tracy’s casual attitude infuriated Lila. She wasn’t a girlfriend or sister. Good grief, she was the girl’s mother and should be treated as such.

  “It’s your total disregard for the rules,” she snapped. “If your daddy were here, you wouldn’t dare stay out until all hours of the night!”

  “Mama, I’m not a child! Anyway, you said Daddy’s rules were too strict, remember?”

  Lila tried to maintain her composure, but inside she was seething. That was precisely what she’d said on graduation night when Tracy came home smelling of smoke and beer. Now her words were coming back to haunt her.

  “That was an exception,” she snapped. “It applied to that one instance, because it was a special night. It certainly wasn’t permission for you to start living your life that way.”

  Tracy scooped up the last bit of egg and shoveled it into her mouth.

  “Careful, Mama,” she said with a grin. “You’re starting to sound like Daddy.”

  Anger flushed Lila’s cheeks.

  “Good,” she said, “because starting today, I’m also going to be enforcing the rules the same as he did!”

  “Okay, whatever.”

  With that, Tracy scooted out the door.

  For the remainder of that week, Tracy came home at a fairly decent hour. She seldom made the eleven o’clock curfew, but she did come in before midnight. Accepting that this was at least a show of effort, Lila let it go by without a row. When the weekend rolled around, she told Tracy Saturday night could be an exception to the rule.

  “Good,” Tracy replied. “Dominic and I have a party to go to.”

  Lila smiled. Parties were good—great, actually. She herself loved parties. It would be nice if Meghan would get out and . . .

  Suddenly the thought hit her.

  “Why don’t you bring your sister along?” she suggested.

  “Bring Meghan?” Tracy stood there looking as if such a thought were ludicrous. “She’d never go. Dominic’s friends aren’t her kind of people.”

  “How can they not be her kind of people?”

  Tracy gave another of those no-answer shrugs. “They’re just not.”

  Before Lila had time to pursue the subject, Meghan entered the room, and the discussion came to a screeching halt. Tracy started thumbing through the messages on her phone, and Lila busied herself with watering the ivy on the windowsill.

  On Monday morning and again on Tuesday, Lila reminded Tracy of the dinner with Phoebe.

  “I’m expecting you to be here,” she said.

  “You told me ten times already, and I said I would.” Tracy gulped down the last of her coffee. “Okay if I bring Dominic?”

  Believing this to be a turning over of the new leaf she was hoping for, Lila smiled.

  “Well, of course it is. Phoebe has never met him, and it would be a good opportunity for her to—”

  “Oh, crap. If Aunt Phoebe’s going to start giving Dominic the third degree, I’m not inviting him.”

  “She won’t,” Lila replied. “I’ll speak to her ahead of time.” Still thinking about the weekend party issue, she added, “Meghan, why don’t you invite someone, too? We could have a lovely dinner party. We haven’t done that in ages.”

  “Okay. I’ll ask if Amanda’s available.”

  Amanda was Meghan’s best friend, and it was easy to see why. They were both a bit reserved. Shy, you might say, but not painfully so. At the start of their freshman year at Magnolia Grove High, they sat beside one another in English Lit and formed a friendship that was almost unbreakable.

  Almost, but not quite. Now that Amanda was dating Jeff Atkinson, she had little time for anything else. Couples got together with other couples, not single friends. She and Meghan still saw each other for an occasional lunch or trip to the mall, but now it was mostly text messages and phone calls.

>   Without missing a beat, Lila said, “I was thinking of perhaps a young man. Someone who’d make Dominic feel more at ease being with all of us women.”

  Meghan wrinkled her nose as if she’d suddenly caught the odor of dirty gym socks.

  “Um, there’s nobody I’d feel comfortable asking.”

  “What about Pete Mulligan?”

  With her face still pinched into that look of skepticism, Meghan shook her head.

  “Why don’t you invite Wayne what’s-his-name?” Tracy said. “The guy you went out with last week?”

  Meghan pushed a piece of French toast around her plate. “I’d rather not.”

  “Why?” Lila asked.

  “Because inviting a guy to a family dinner makes him think there’s something more to the relationship. That’s not a message I’m ready to give anyone right now.”

  “How about if Tracy asks Dominic to bring a friend?”

  Meghan’s face froze in horror. “That’s as much as saying I can’t get a date of my own, Mama! Are you trying to embarrass the life out of me?” She stood, scraped the remainder of her breakfast into the garbage can, and turned toward the Snip ’N’ Save office. “I’ve got work to do.”

  Lila loved parties, and even if Dominic were the only male at the table, she was determined to turn the evening into a wonderful dinner. Instead of her usual chicken noodle casserole, she decided to do a crown roast of pork. This meant trips to the butcher shop and the supermarket, but it would be worth it.

  Dinner parties were festive and made everyone feel good. Once Meghan saw what fun it could be, she’d be more willing to invite a date. And now that Tracy was introducing Dominic to Aunt Phoebe, they could conceivably make this a once-a-month event.

  That afternoon, Lila chopped the celery and onions for the stuffing. She fried a skillet of sausage, melted three sticks of butter, and mixed it all by hand. Then she piled the stuffing into the center of the crown roast and slid her masterpiece into the oven.

  By six o’clock, everything was ready. The table was set with the good china, crystal wineglasses, and the anniversary silverware George had bought to celebrate their twenty-fifth. She stepped back, looked at the table with its linen cloth and napkins tented in the center of each plate, then gave a wistful sigh.

  If only George were here.

  The table was set for five; the spot at the head of the table was left empty. Not just empty but painfully empty. Most nights Lila and the girls ate in the kitchen. With the hustle and bustle of moving around, fetching things like an extra helping of potatoes or the saltshaker, the emptiness seemed less pronounced. But here, in the dining room, a place where they’d all gathered for Sunday dinners, she saw the emptiness for what it really was—not just a vacant chair but a vast hole in her heart.

  Lila stood for a moment, picturing the way George carved a roast with such flourish, then she brushed back a tear and returned to the kitchen.

  Phoebe arrived at six fifteen. She eyed the fancy table setting and said, “You should have told me it was a dinner party. I would have invited a friend.”

  It struck Lila as strange that Phoebe, a woman in her early sixties, would have a readily available date, and Meghan, who was young, smart, and beautiful, wouldn’t.

  Shortly after six thirty, Tracy burst through the front door, hollering, “We’re here!”

  Lila called for Meghan to quit working, then hurried in to greet Dominic. She stopped short when she saw him. She thought by coming to dinner at their house he’d dress up a bit more, but it hadn’t happened. He was wearing his customary T-shirt. This one read GRINDER’S SPECIAL and pictured a shapely dancer with her leg wrapped around a pole.

  She forced a smile and shook his hand.

  “It’s nice to see you again, Dominic,” she said. “You’re looking well.”

  “Yeah, I work out a lot.”

  From the corner of her eye, Lila saw the smirk on Phoebe’s face. Ignoring it, she said, “Tracy, will you pour a glass of wine for everyone while I get the food?”

  The pork roast came out of the oven as perfect as any Lila had ever made. The whipped potatoes were without even the tiniest lump and the string beans just crisp enough. Once all the serving dishes were carried to the table, she called the group to dinner.

  As they took their seats, Lila glanced over at Phoebe and asked, “Would you like to say grace?”

  Phoebe nodded and folded her hands in front of her.

  “Dear Lord,” she said piously. “We thank you for this food and ask that you bless all young men by giving them a proper shirt.” She might have said something more, but before she had the chance, Lila whacked her beneath the table.

  As soon as the amens were said, Dominic asked for someone to please pass the potatoes. Lila breathed a sigh of relief. Possibly he hadn’t heard the comment, or, perhaps with not knowing Phoebe, he didn’t understand the jibe she’d intended.

  After that single incident, the dinner went amazingly well. Meghan chatted openly with Dominic, and when he told a few lame jokes, she laughed as though she found them funny. Watching the ease with which the conversation transitioned from one topic to another, Lila again wondered why Tracy had been so reluctant to invite Meghan to the party. True, sometimes Meghan came across as a serious-minded workaholic, but that was only because she had the responsibility of the Snip ’N’ Save resting on her shoulders. Once she was away from it, she was quite pleasant to be with. Fun, you could even say.

  The bombshell came after the main-course dishes were cleared away and Lila had begun to serve her homemade chocolate cake. She was in the process of lifting a slice onto Phoebe’s plate when Tracy spoke.

  “Dominic and I have an announcement to make.” She glanced at him and grinned. “His cousin is getting him a great job working for the city, so we’re moving to Philadelphia.”

  Lila stopped with the server midair, halfway between the cake stand and Phoebe’s plate.

  “You’re doing what?” she exclaimed.

  The slice of chocolate cake wobbled off the server and plopped onto the good linen tablecloth, but Lila barely took notice.

  “Moving to Philadelphia,” Tracy repeated. “Dom has an opportunity for this really great job, and we think—”

  “I’m assuming there’ll be a wedding before the move,” Phoebe said sharply.

  Dominic spoke up. “Well, yeah, we’re planning to get married. Not right away, but maybe after I get settled in my job. You know, when I feel good about myself and comfortable with where I am.”

  Phoebe started sputtering like a Roman candle coming to its end.

  “When you feel good about yourself? And what about my niece?”

  “I forbid it!” Lila snapped. “I absolutely will not tolerate another word.”

  “Mama, I’m nineteen years old. You can’t stop me.”

  “If your daddy were here, he’d sure as hell stop you!”

  Dominic’s eyes shifted to Phoebe, then Lila, then back to Phoebe.

  “Maybe I’d better go,” he said. “You might need to talk this over.”

  Before he could stand, Tracy clamped her hand down on his arm.

  “You don’t need to go anywhere, Dom. We’re gonna settle this right here and now!”

  With her face twisted into a knotted scowl, Tracy looked at Lila and said, “I’m going with Dom. You can either wish us well or lose me forever.”

  “Mama, maybe we’re overreacting,” Meghan said, trying to steady her voice as she spoke. “We need to respect Tracy’s wishes. Let’s wait and see how she and Dominic feel about this in a few days.”

  Tracy didn’t change her expression one iota. “Don’t count on me changing my mind, because I’m not going to!”

  “Maybe not,” Meghan said, “but it would give us all time to consider the situation and behave more rationally.”

  “I really think I should get going,” Dominic repeated nervously.

  “Yes, perhaps you should.” Lila angrily grabbed the plate of chocolate
cake she’d placed in front of him and carried it off to the kitchen even though he hadn’t touched a bite.

  When Dominic left, Tracy followed him out. For a few minutes, they stood there talking, then she leaned back and tilted her face to his. He pinned her against the car, pushed his body into hers, and covered her lips with his own. After a short while, they climbed into the car and left.

  As Dominic and Tracy roared off, Meghan stood at the window and watched the red taillights fade away.

  In the background, she heard her mama’s and Phoebe’s angry voices coming from the kitchen. Phoebe yelled that her brother would turn over in his grave if he knew such a thing was happening; her mama tearfully swore she was doing the best she could. A short while later, Phoebe stormed out.

  In the kitchen, Meghan found Lila hunched over the kitchen table with her face buried in her hands.

  “Why?” her mama said through her tears. “Why would your sister do a terrible thing like this to me?”

  Dropping down into the chair beside her, Meghan wrapped a slender arm around her shoulders.

  “Tracy’s not doing this to you, Mama,” she said softly. “She sees things differently, and she’s just doing what feels right to her.”

  Lila

  I am just about at my wits’ end. If George were here, he’d know what to do, but I don’t, and Phoebe sticking her nose into it isn’t helping one bit.

  I simply don’t understand how the same parents can have two children who are so totally different. The girls were raised in the same household, and we didn’t make a bean of difference in how we treated them, but look at how it turned out.

  With George gone, Meghan is more dependable than ever. No matter what you ask her to do, you can trust she’ll get it done without your ever having to mention it again. You don’t have to ask, because you know she did exactly as she was told.

  Tracy is just the opposite. Without George around to act as the disciplinarian, she’s wilder than ever. She’ll look you square in the eye, say okay, and then once you’re out of sight, whatever you’ve asked her to do is gone from her mind. She wants to have fun today and let the devil take tomorrow.