by Mary Alfort
“How are you?” His clear blue eyes were full of concern.
“I’m OK. Really Jake, I’m fine.”
He sighed and lowered his voice so that only I could hear him. “It’s OK to ask for help, you know. It’s not a sign of weakness. I know it’s hard with the baby and your aunts. I can take some time off from work.”
He reached for my hand and held it, and I fought back tears. When I looked into his eyes, I didn’t see Tom, or any hidden agendas. Only compassion. Everything about Jake made me love him that much more. “Thank you, Jake, that’s sweet, but I’ll manage. It’s just been a tough few weeks, but I’m getting the hang of this mother thing. Just keep stopping by each day. You have no idea how much I look forward to your visits.”
The warmth in his eyes told me the feeling was mutual. “Good, then why don’t I follow you home? We can drop Thelma off, and you and Ava can come home with me. I’ll make you lunch, and you can catch up on your sleep while I babysit.”
“You’d do that?” I looked at him in amazement.
“Are you kidding? I’ve been looking for excuses to spend time with Ava.”
“You’re on. I just hope you don’t live to regret it.”
Jake followed us home, and then took Ava from her car seat while I went inside to gather what we’d need for our afternoon away.
Thelma and I walked into the kitchen, expecting to see Selma there, but the house was quiet. Too quiet.
“She’s probably still sleeping. I’ll go check on her.” Thelma left Jake and me alone to look in on her sister.
“How’s Selma feeling? I tried to talk her into coming in for an exam, but of course, she refused.”
“Not good. Although she would never tell me as much.”
“Jake! Laney! Come quickly.” The panic in Aunt Thelma’s voice was something I would never want to hear again.
Together Jake, Ava, and I rushed upstairs, following the sound of Aunt Thelma’s sobs.
Thelma was kneeling next to her sister in the bathroom.
Selma was still dressed in a robe, her face ashen and drawn from pain.
In all my life, I’d never seen Selma shed a tear. The sight of her tears now brought home the severity of the situation. I dropped to the floor next to Thelma. “Aunt Selma, what happened?”
Thelma answered for her. “She slipped on the floor.”
Jake handed a now crying Ava over to me and shooed me and Thelma from the room with an order to call an ambulance. Long seconds later, he emerged to tell us it looked as if Selma had fractured her hip.
The EMTs arrived within minutes. They loaded Selma up on the gurney with Thelma close by, refusing to leave her sister’s side.
Jake and I followed the ambulance on the short drive to the hospital.
He excused himself to assist with Selma’s treatment. When he joined us a short time later, he confirmed our fears. Selma had fractured her hip in two separate places.
“She’ll need to be hospitalized for a while to make sure the hip heals properly. At her age, we can’t take any chances.”
“How long?” Although I asked the question, it was Thelma to whom Jake addressed his answer. She’d been quietly weeping the whole time her twin was being treated.
“Best case, a few weeks. Worst case, who knows? It all depends on Selma.”
“Lord, my poor Selma. Oh, Laney, what about the diner? How will we keep the diner going without Selma?”
I put my arms around her. “We’ll figure it out. Don’t worry. Can we see her?”
“Yes. She’s a bit groggy, but she’s been asking for you.”
Selma looked so pale, but somewhat more in control. “Where’ve you been? I thought this one here was going to poke me to death.” She gave Jake a scalding look, so typically Selma.
Aunt Thelma threw her arms around her sister and squeezed her so tight I was beginning to wonder if Selma might lose consciousness.
“All right, all right. Let me go Thelma, before you break any more bones.”
At the reminder of her sister’s fragile condition, Thelma released her and sat down next to her, still holding Selma’s hand.
“Who’s running the diner?” Selma demanded of her sister—but she didn’t let go of Thelma’s hand.
“Aunt Selma, it’s taken care of. You don’t need to worry about anything but getting better.” I didn’t tell her I’d been forced to call in the three teenage girls who worked after school. Aunt Selma would have a cow if she knew.
“I’m fine. I’ll be out of here soon.” With a pointed glare, she dared Jake to argue with her.
When Selma was sleeping comfortably, Jake left Thelma sitting next to her bed and asked me to step outside. He took a sleeping Ava from my arms. “We need to talk, Laney. How about I buy you some coffee?”
Please Lord, let her be OK.
I followed him to the cafeteria, dread curling in the pit of my stomach. God knew I didn’t want to have this conversation.
Once we had our coffee, I waited for him to begin.
“Laney, you’ll need to make some difficult decisions pretty soon. You realize that, don’t you?”
Fear gripped my heart. Of course, I knew. Still, denial was the handiest alternative. “What do you mean?”
“You know Thelma’s condition will continue to deteriorate over time. She won’t be able to care for her sister, and there’s a very real chance Selma won’t regain full use of her hip. With her age and advanced state of osteoporosis, you have to face reality.”
“You think she’ll need long-term care?”
He nodded sympathetically, his gaze holding mine. “Most patients her age do. I’d say the chances of her coming back to work at the diner at the pace she’s been putting in all these years are very slim. I hate to bring this up now, but I want you to know the extent of the situation.”
“What will I do?”
Tenderness bloomed in his eyes.
“You have me. Let me help you.” In that disarming way of his, Jake had asked me to lean on him again.
But there was no way I could saddle him with the enormous burden that lay ahead of me. “You have your own problems. You’re still trying to rebuild your life. I couldn’t ask you to take on my troubles.”
“I thought we’d gotten beyond this. I thought you and I were... Laney, I care about you. Don’t you know that?”
“I know that.”
“Then why can’t you trust me?”
The sincerity in his eyes made me want to.
“I’m not Tom. I promise I’ll never hurt you, but you have to trust me.”
After discovering Tom’s infidelity, I’d sworn I’d never let another man get close enough to hurt me like that again. Jake was different. He had a way of disarming people. He made me want to open up to him. And there, at last, looking into his eyes, I began to trust again. “I trust you. But I don’t know what to do.”
He smiled. “That’s OK. We’ll figure it out together. Let’s start with the diner first. Can Callie and Suzette take over the management of the diner for the time being?”
I nodded. They’d have to either sink or swim. “They’ve been with my aunts for a while. They can handle a few days on their own.”
“Good. Then I think you should let me take you, Ava, and Thelma home. I’ll bring some of my things over and stay with you all for a while.”
I resisted the urge to argue. “OK. Thelma will want to stay with her sister, though.”
“I know, but she needs to rest. You don’t need Thelma getting sick on you as well.”
“I almost forgot. Ramie and Louisa were supposed to stop by this afternoon.”
“You call Ramie. I’ll go gather up Thelma.”
****
Having Jake so close was both a blessing and a major distraction. Seeing his affection for Ava and the gentle way he handled Selma and Thelma made it easy for me to imagine him in our lives always. The times I’d wake in the middle of the night and he’d sit with me while I nursed Ava and we’d
talk were quickly becoming my favorite.
We’d talk about our pasts, share horror stories of growing up and, during those times, I’d tell him about my dreams for Ava.
“I never thought I’d say this, but I hope she wants to stay right here in Down. For the longest time, I couldn’t wait to get away. I hated growing up in a small town. Now, well, I can’t imagine living in a big city again.”
Jake stroked Ava’s downy, soft blonde hair. “I know what you mean. There’s something to be said for small town living.”
“Maybe that’s what happens when you get older. You get smart.”
He faked surprise. “You’re older?”
“Nice try. But if you ask me if this is my natural shade of blonde I’m walking out the door.”
Jake smiled before holding up a hand. “No way. I was married long enough to know there are some secrets I don’t want to know.”
We’d been talking for hours.
“Jake, look at the time, it’s almost two in the morning, and you have to be at work early.”
He touched my face and I felt the familiar spark between us. I closed my eyes, trying to hold on to that dizzy feeling of falling in love.
“Relax.” He took Ava from my unresisting arms and carried her to her crib. Then he knelt in front of me and took my hands in his. “You feel it, too, don’t you?”
I didn’t have to ask what he meant. “Yes.” I looked into the depth of those sincere blue eyes and smiled. “So what do you think it means?”
“I think it means we’re falling in love.”
I couldn’t say a word. I’d known for a long time how I felt. I just didn’t realize he felt the same way.
“I’m tired of keeping it a secret, Laney.”
“Jake...”
“I’d be lying to you if I said I wasn’t in love with you already.”
I started to turn away when he reached for my hand.
“Wait. Just listen to me for a minute. You are so beautiful, Laney. I was attracted to you right from the start—that first moment when I almost ran you over on our county road.” Jake wasn’t smiling. The expression in his eyes held more than promise. It held love.
I caught my breath. “You knew that was me?”
“From the moment I met you. And it made me love you that much more.”
Tears filled my eyes, spilling down my cheeks.
He brushed them aside.
“Does this mean you want your hundred dollars back?”
He bowed his head so that I couldn’t see him smile. “No, but I understand you need to take things slowly. You’re feeling overwhelmed right now. So let’s just take this one day at a time.”
“All right,” I whispered. Looking at him and trying to ignore just how much I wanted to be in his arms right now made it all but impossible to say more. I took a deep breath and plunged ahead with my fears. “I have to tell you, this is a first for me. In the past, well, I’ve always rushed into things and regretted it.”
“Good. I like that. I like being a first with you.” He got to his feet and pulled me to mine. “Goodnight, Laney. Sleep well, and I’ll see you tonight.”
19
Sometimes reality can be better than fantasy.
Aunt Selma was back at the diner, but not in the kitchen. She was mostly supervising Callie who’d been promoted to chief cook.
Jake drove the aunts to work in the morning on his way to the center and Ava and I picked them up in the afternoon.
One day while I was preparing to go in to the office to do a little paperwork before taking the aunts home, Ramie and Louisa showed up on my doorstep.
“Guess what?” Ramie was grinning from ear to ear.
I stood aside and let them in. “What?”
“I did it.” Ramie exclaimed. “I actually did it.”
“Did what?” I handed Ava to Louisa.
“I gave all the money I’d earned in my past life to charity. “
“You did? You’re kidding?” I stared at him, trying to decide if he was joking.
Ramie nodded, confirming the truth. “Nope, not kidding. I did it. I never felt so happy.”
“Oh, Ramie.” I all but flew into his arms. “That’s great. That’s better than great, that’s wonderful!”
After we finished hugging each other we finally came back to reality, and I invited them to join me for coffee. “So, no regrets?”
“None at all,” Louisa said empathically.
“That’s great. Will you be taking Thelma up on her offer to live here?”
I glanced up when they didn’t answer. “What is it?”
“Laney, Mother and Aunt Selma want to talk to all of us today. That’s the real reason Louisa and I showed up so unexpectedly. I was just going to call you with the news, but Mother insisted we come over for dinner.”
“What do you think they’re up to?”
He lifted his shoulders. “I wish I knew. It certainly sounds important.”
I had just put the finishing touches on the pot roast I’d made from Aunt Selma’s recipe when she called to tell us Callie would be bringing them home.
Once we were seated, Selma maneuvered her wheelchair to the head of the table so that she could see everyone’s faces.
“I’ll bet you’re all wondering why we asked you here today. Well, Thelma and I have been doing some thinking, and we realize we’re getting older. We need to plan ahead so that the diner is left in good hands once we’re gone.”
For a moment, I held my breath. I didn’t want to think about a time when they wouldn’t be in my life. I wanted Ava to get to know them and love them the way I did.
“I know you don’t want to talk about this, Laney, but the truth is we’re going to die someday. There’s no way around it.”
“Aunt Selma...”
“Now, hush up, child, and listen.” While she squinted at me, I could almost swear I saw tears in her eyes.
“You’ve been like our own child, Laney. We raised you as our own and loved you the same. And we’ll love little Ava the same way. But you have your life as a writer, that baby there to look out for, and a future with Jake whether you want to admit it yet or not.”
Her words took me by surprise.
“Ramie and Louisa here are older. Thelma and I want them to take over the running of the diner, with you taking care of the books as you’ve been doing so nicely. Don’t let Butchy close to them again, you hear?”
All three of us were so stunned that no one could speak for a while.
Finally, Ramie unglued his tongue. “Aunt Selma, I couldn’t−”
“Yes you can, Ramie Deautreve, because Thelma and I will be there with you, making sure you don’t mess things up. This has been our life’s work for as long as we can remember. This is our family business, and you’re part of that family.”
“We don’t know what to say,” Louisa whispered solemnly. “Of course we’ll accept. Thank you. Thank you both so much.”
“Don’t thank us. Just don’t mess the place up, you hear?”
****
Jake stepped onto the porch and sat down next to me on the swing. “I hear you’ve had an eventful day.”
Although the evening was warm, the weatherman was predicting a change soon. Snow was on its way.
I turned to him in the dark. “How did you find out?”
“Thelma. She called me. She wanted to make sure you were as OK with their decision as you seemed to be.”
I stroked little Ava’s face. She’d fallen asleep in my arms. “OK with it? I’m thrilled.”
“I’m glad. She’s really out of it, isn’t she?” He leaned in and kissed Ava’s cheek, then mine.
“She had a busy day as well.”
Jake glanced up at the moon. “It’s a nice night. I almost hate for it to change. Oh, wait, I almost forgot...” He left me sitting there while he returned to his truck and brought back a shopping bag from one of the more exclusive stores in Houston. He held it out to me. “I hope you like it. It’s
not white, like the one covered in potato salad, but I thought of you when I saw the color.”
I lifted the cashmere sweater in the softest shade of blue-green from the bag and was speechless. It was beautiful.
“You don’t like it?” he asked tentatively.
“I love it...but I can’t accept it. It’s too expensive. The sweater I had on that day was old. I don’t think you should have to replace it anyway, considering it was my mistake that ruined it.”
“Laney, I want you to have it. So please, just take it, and don’t look at me like that.”
“Like what?” I asked.
“Like you think I have some hidden motive. It’s just a simple gift.”
Old habits died hard. I nodded. “OK. Thank you.” And then I did something I would never have considered doing only a few months ago. I reached up and kissed Jake Montgomery. This man I loved was my miracle. Jake had brought me back from the brink of bitterness. In his arms I had found the strength I needed and the gentleness that promised he’d let me take my time, make my own mistakes.
“Thank you,” he whispered against my lips.
“For what?” The words slipped out unwillingly.
“For not running away.” Those promising eyes held mine, taking my breath away. “I’m so glad you didn’t.”
Reasons why I’m thankful I came home to Down:
1: To help my aunts stay out of jail.
2: To stop feeling sorry for myself.
3: Never to have to see Tom Winters’s face again.
4: To learn how to really write again.
5: To be there for my aunts when they ask for my help.
6: To free myself of the doubts tying me to my past.
7: To start believing in the God of second chances again
8: To witness Stan’s confession with my own eyes.
9: To learn how to wait on love.
10: To learn when to run away and when to stay.
“Me, too.”
Jake kissed me tenderly and then right on cue as if she’d planned it that way, little Ava actually giggled in her sleep.
Thank you
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