by Holly Jacobs
“Anna, I—” Ceelie was interrupted by a sound that would make a thundering herd of elephants sound quiet. Thuds and scuffles, finally the remaining bits of a conversation.
“…and I’m going to tell her, ’cause you know you ain’t supposed to…”
Enrico and Natalie, more commonly known as Nico and Nat, stopped short when they saw her. “Aunt Anna,” they cried, pushing past each other in order to hug her.
They were eight and seven, respectively, both with dark-brown hair bordering on black, and the most soulful brown eyes Anna had ever seen. Their father, Emmanuel, had left shortly after Natalie was born, and Anna had always marveled at how flawlessly Ceelie seemed to balance raising her children on her own with everything else she did. They had no family in the area, and Anna filled in as a surrogate aunt. There was nothing surrogate in her feelings for the kids. She adored them as much as they adored her.
She kissed the tops of their heads as they hugged her. “Oops, my lips slipped,” she joked.
“Your lips always slip, Aunt Anna,” Nat said with laughter in her voice.
“Yeah, your lips are the slippiest ever,” Nico agreed. “But you gotta be careful they don’t slip in front of the guys.”
“Nico’s guys are mean,” Nat tattled. “They said I can’t play baseball ’cause I’m a girl. And he said okay.”
“Nico?” Ceelie asked.
“Mom, I know Nat’s good at baseball, but the guys don’t play with girls.”
Anna could see how important fitting in with the guys was to Nico, but she could also see he felt guilty about hurting Nat’s feelings. The two were closer than most siblings she’d known.
“Nico, I’m not going to make you take your sister.” Ceelie’s tone was gentle, without reproof or censure. “Everyone deserves to have some alone times.”
“Oh yeah, you don’t take us on dates,” he said.
“That’s true,” Ceelie replied. “Although to be honest, you generally wouldn’t be interested in my dates.”
“Museums, blah,” Nico graphically illustrated his feelings with a gagging motion.
“Yes, I know. You’re not a big fan. But Nat is a fan of baseball. Still, I won’t insist you take her, though. That’s up to you.”
“Ah, Mom.”
“You can go without me, Nico. I don’t want the guys to pick on you ’cause of me.” Nat hugged her brother. “I won’t bug you guys.”
“Thanks, Nat,” Nico said, as he ran out of the room.
“That was very understanding of you, Nat,” Anna said.
“Nah. He’s gonna go tell the guys to let me play,” she said with a little girl’s confidence in her big brother.
“How do you know?” Anna asked.
“’Cause he loves me more than he likes them. I’d better go get my mitt.”
“And if he doesn’t come back?” Anna asked Ceelie.
“He will because Nat’s right, Nico loves her more than he’s worried about what the guys say.” Ceelie paused, then added, “And Liam will get over his scare about Colm on the bus because he loves his brother more than he’s worried about his own anxiety. He wants what’s best for Colm, and it’s obvious to anyone who knows you that you’re what’s best for him.”
Anna felt a coil of tension that had twisted in her stomach begin to loosen thanks to Ceelie. “I hope you’re right, but I can’t do anything about it now. What I can do is work on what we’re going to say in front of City Council. Maybe letters—testimonials—from neighbors of our two other homes?”
For the next fifteen minutes they talked strategies, and then Nico stormed into the kitchen. “Where’s Nat?”
“Upstairs, I think.”
“Okay. I’m gonna get her and take her with me. The guys said she could play, too.”
Ceelie didn’t comment on Nico’s torn shirt or dirt-smudged face; she only nodded and said, “Well, that’s nice of them. Be back before street lights come on, okay?”
“Sure, Mom.” He sped back out, screaming, “Nat,” at the top of his lungs.
“See, I was right about Nico, and I’m right about Liam. Don’t worry.”
Telling Anna not to worry…well, it was like telling Colm not to smile. Worry seemed to be coming as naturally to her as smiling came to him.
CHAPTER SEVEN
THE NEXT MORNING, Anna arrived promptly at Colm’s. “Hi, Aunt Betty. How are things here?”
“You’ve got everything in a tizzy. Colm is upstairs packing a fanny pack for your bus ride for ice cream, and it’s only 10:00 a.m. Meanwhile, Liam hasn’t done more than grunt at me. He’s in his office with the door shut.” And in case Anna missed the significance, she said, “And he never shuts his office door.”
“I know.”
“And I’m not asking what happened between the two of you, but I hope you’re over your lovers’ tiff soon.”
“I don’t think there’s anything between Liam and me anymore except Colm. And unfortunately, we disagree about what’s best for him.”
“So you had a fight,” Aunt Betty stated.
Anna knew every couple disagreed and occasionally fought, but yesterday hadn’t been a lovers’ tiff. “It was more than that, Aunt Betty. And it was my fault. I should never have allowed myself to get involved with a client’s relative.” She glanced up the stairs. “I am sort of waiting for Liam to come and tell me I can’t have Colm today.”
Aunt Betty put her hands on her hips and shook her head. “He won’t do that. He might be obstinate, but he’s not stupid. Anyone can see how much you’ve helped Colm accomplish.”
“But there’s so much more he can do, and Liam—”
“Anna, you’re a take-the-world-by-the-horns sort of woman.”
Aunt Betty’s words struck Anna as ironic since she’d been thinking of how carefully she’d been treading, trying not to upset Liam.
“Not everyone functions at full steam ahead,” Aunt Betty continued. “Give Liam a bit of a breather. Let him catch up with you. You both have what’s best for Colm in mind, and—”
Anna leaned forward and hugged the older woman. It was uncharacteristic. Normally she wasn’t nearly as demonstrative. Maybe Colm was rubbing off on her. She smiled at the thought. “Thanks.”
Suddenly, Colm ran into the room and screamed, “Anna, I’m all ready!”
“Inside—”
“—voice, Colm,” he supplied. “Okay, my inside voice says let’s go catch the bus for ice cream.”
“It’s only ten o’clock. Are you sure you can eat ice cream at ten o’clock in the morning?”
Colm laughed. “I can eat ice cream anytime.”
“Then let’s go.” She turned to Aunt Betty. “If Liam comes out will you tell him we should be back in an hour or so?”
“I’ll tell him.”
“And will you tell him I’d like a few minutes to talk to him? I need to make an apology.” Maybe she needed to step back from this case? It would break her heart to go, but Ceelie could step in.
“I’ll tell him that, too, sweetie. It will be all right. You’ll see.”
“Colm, are you ready?”
He patted his fanny pack. “Oh, yeah. I got the phone you gave me, in case I get lost on the bus. And I got bus money. And—”
He continued cataloging the impressive list of items he’d brought for their excursion as they walked outside. Anna looked back at the house and thought she saw the curtains in Liam’s office window move. She wasn’t sure whether it was a breeze or he was watching. In case he was watching them, she gave a small wave in his direction.
“Let’s go, Anna. You sure are slow…”
IT HAD BEEN an hour at least since Liam had lost sight of Colm and Anna, and he was still gazing out the window, waiting for them to come back. He presumed they had gone for ice cream. And had taken the bus, despite the fact the ice cream store was within walking distance.
He’d thought earlier about calling and telling Anna not to come, but in the end, he couldn’t do it. I
ntellectually, he knew she was right. She was good for Colm. She had taught his brother so much in the past two months. He’d be selfish to take that away from Colm.
And yet, he wanted to.
He wanted things to stay the same.
He wanted to know that Colm was here, at home, safe, not out in Whedon, riding the bus on his own, being forced to deal with unkind people.
However, as much as he didn’t like admitting it, it was true that he couldn’t keep his brother in bubble wrap. He had to let Colm go out and become everything he could be. He had to give his brother the world, even if it meant some bumps and bruises along the way.
But he didn’t have to like it.
And he could be pissed at Anna if he wanted.
Even as he had the thought, he realized that he didn’t really want to be mad at her.
She just made him feel…
That was it. She simply made him feel. And he knew he had to man-up and apologize for yesterday. He’d known as he’d railed against her that she didn’t deserve his anger. He couldn’t pinpoint all the things he was mad about. It seemed that for as long as he could remember that anger was a part of him. Most of the time it merely smoldered in the background, and on a few occasions, like yesterday, it erupted.
Betty opened his door without knocking and caught him still staring out the window. He felt embarrassed and he wasn’t sure why.
“There you are, brooding.” She crossed her arms over her ample chest and gave him the Betty-eye. It was very much akin to a mom-eye. It said things like straighten up, or stop pouting. Or brooding, as the case might be.
“I’m not brooding. I’m…” He wracked his brain for something. “I’m thinking. I’ve got a problem. A computer problem,” he clarified. “And I need to think it through.”
He glanced at his computer screen, which had long since gone to screen-saver mode. Pictures of Colm flashed one after another.
Betty nodded. “Yes. Thinking a problem through is always good. Trying to figure out why that problem happened is good, as well. Sometimes, what you think the problem is, it isn’t really.”
He didn’t think Betty even knew how to send e-mail. “Oh? You’ve been studying computers?”
“No. I’ve studied you since you were a boy. And I know that you love your brother more than words can say. You’ve been good to him, taken care of him your whole life. Like your parents did. And then here comes this woman, this outsider, who’s made it clear your parents, you and me, we’ve all underestimated Colm. We didn’t see how many things he could do. We saw his disability. Anna, she sees Colm. Not some medical label. She waltzes in here and starts turning everything topsy-turvy. You wouldn’t be human if that didn’t get to you.”
He pointed at the computer. “Hey, we were talking about business problems.”
“You were talking about business problems. I was talking about you. You and Anna. She would like to talk to you when she gets back with Colm. And I wanted to tell you that maybe she was wrong not to warn you. But let’s face it, you fought against having her here and she was leery. So, you’re wrong, too. And I’m as guilty as you about Colm. I feel horrible about it.”
“You think we screwed up.” He’d meant it to come out as a question, but instead it was a statement. He agreed. They’d all screwed up with Colm. “You think that we’ve hurt him?”
“I don’t think you can hurt someone by loving them, Liam. And you love Colm and you know he deserves to go as far as he can go, even if it means he leaves us behind. And I believe that you’re going to continue to let Anna work with him because you love him and you know she’s good for him. For you, too, if you’re not too pigheaded to admit it.”
“Aunt Betty—”
She waggled a finger at him. “Don’t Aunt Betty me, Liam Franklin. You sit up here and mull your problem over. And when Anna comes back with Colm you talk to her. Really talk to her. I trust you’ll make the best decision for Colm.”
She left, quietly shutting the door behind her.
Liam continued his mulling—hell, his brooding—until he saw Anna and Colm coming up the front steps.
Downstairs he found Colm telling Betty about his adventure. “…and Anna, she didn’t say nothin’. I got us all the way to the ice cream store and back. I didn’t get lost like yesterday. I did it perfectly.” He spotted Liam. “Hey, Liam. I rode the bus again, but no mistakes this time. Anna was with me, but she didn’t say nothin’. Maybe next time you can ride with us? You coulda today, but you had your door closed and Aunt Betty said not to bother you, so I didn’t. But next time, you can leave the door open and then you can come, too.”
“Next time I’ll try to leave the door open,” he promised. Liam looked at Anna, who wasn’t meeting his eyes. “Hey, why don’t you go with Aunt Betty a minute and let me talk to Anna.”
“Okay. Anna, you tell him how good I did?”
She reached out and ruffled his hair. “I will, Colm.”
As Colm went into the kitchen with Aunt Betty, Liam faced Anna. “About yesterday—”
She looked stubborn. “I am not going to apologize. Well, I am going to apologize for not talking to you about it first. I’m sorry about that part. That was cowardly of me. But about actually working toward a solo bus trip, I’m not apologizing. Colm was right. I didn’t say a word about how to get to the ice cream store. He figured it out himself. He was never really in danger, Liam. I know you think you’re protecting him, but—”
“I want to apologize.” There, he’d said it and immediately felt lighter for it. “I’m sorry about yesterday. I was afraid, but rather than coming out as fear, it manifested as anger. It’s easier to be angry than afraid. And you didn’t deserve the way I acted. I’m very sorry.”
She seemed surprised. “You are?”
He nodded. “I am.”
“Oh.”
He waited, thinking she was going to say more—he’d already learned that Anna almost always had more to say, but this time, she obviously didn’t, because she was silent. “So, am I forgiven, or should I grovel?” he prompted.
She smiled. There was a hesitancy that hadn’t been there before, and he hated that he’d been the one to put it there.
“Groveling is never necessary, Liam. You love Colm and you were worried. I get that. I was worried, too. I always am. I work with my clients and try to prepare them for every contingency, but still it’s hard to let them go. And they’re not my family, so I can only imagine how much worse it is for you.”
She paused, then added, “I need to offer to step out of the picture, if you’d feel more comfortable. Ceelie, the other life coach at the foundation, she could fill in.”
“I’m sure Ceelie is good at what she does,” Liam said. And he was. But she wasn’t Anna. Anna was the person Colm needed. The person he needed. “But I want you to keep working with Colm. Unless you’d prefer not to?”
“No, that’s not what I prefer at all.” She glanced at her watch. “I should find Colm and say goodbye. I need to get going.”
On the surface things were okay, but Liam couldn’t help but sense that they weren’t. “Maybe we could go out to dinner tonight to celebrate?”
“I’ve got three other appointments this afternoon, but if you guys don’t mind waiting…”
“We don’t mind,” he assured her.
“Uh, Liam, I hate to broach the subject and make you mad again, but I’d like to have a chat about Colm applying for that assistant’s job at Keller’s.”
Liam wanted to shout no. To tell her that Colm didn’t need a job, any more than he needed to know how to ride a bus. But even as he had the knee-jerk thought, he knew he couldn’t voice it. “You said you had an interview set up. When?”
“Next week.”
“I really don’t know how I feel about it. So, I’m not saying yes to the job. But I will agree to the interview. Maybe he won’t get hired.” He tried to feel optimistic about the possibility, but couldn’t quite manage it.
“You�
��ve met your brother. He’s the most people-person person I’ve ever met.” She laughed. “Okay, that was convoluted, but you know what I mean. There’s no way he won’t get the job. I want to be sure you’re okay with it.”
“I’m not, but I’m beginning to suspect that’s my problem, not yours or Colm’s. So, yes. Go ahead, let him apply and interview. Give me a chance to adjust, Anna. I’m trying.”
Anna hugged him, her delight evident. “Thanks, Liam. You won’t regret it.”
He didn’t tell her, but he knew that he already did.
ANNA HAD SESSIONS with Gabriella, then with Gilly and finally with Josh. It was a long day, but a good one. Gilly and Josh both lived at home with their parents, but they were both ready to be on their own. That’s what the Trudy Street house was for—Josh and Gilly. And maybe Colm. There would be 24/7 supervision at first, but Anna was confident that eventually that could be cut back.
She didn’t doubt that Colm would fit in well with Gilly and Josh. He was a man who had been coddled and waited on for thirty years and was now coming into his own. Yes, she was pretty sure that by the time the house was ready, Colm could be.
She wasn’t sure about Liam, though.
Not for the first time, Anna wished she could understand him better.
She parked in front of the Franklin house and stared at the porch. It reminded her of Colm. That porch was beautiful and had so much potential, but for years it had sat there, alone and neglected. She didn’t want to see that happen to Colm. And regardless of her feelings for Liam, she was going to be more professional in her dealings with him about Colm.
She couldn’t avoid telling him things because she didn’t want to rock the boat. Her entire job description was one of boat-rocking.
Maybe it would be better to break things off with Liam and get back to a simple professional relationship.
But even as she had the thought, she discarded it.
Liam was sort of like the porch, too. Maybe with a little attention she could figure out what was going on with him. She wanted to know, to understand, not only for Colm’s sake, but for their sake. She liked Liam more than anyone she’d met in a very long time.
