by Cassia Leo
“Oh, shut up.” I turn back to Jimi and I think this is the first time she’s flashed me a genuine smile since I arrived eight days ago. “Want to help me do something?”
She nods. “You name it.”
I let out another sigh and glance over my shoulder at Caleb before I continue. “I need to figure out how I’m going to break it to my parents that I’m not majoring in business this fall. I’m changing my major to music.”
“No sweat, but first we have to figure out how we’re going to break it to our parents that you and Caleb will be sharing a room for the rest of the summer.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
THERE IS NO BIRTHDAY gift I could give Claire that would ever compare to having all our children under the same roof, and getting along, for the first time in eighteen years. And we may have missed all of Abby’s birthdays, but I know that we will do anything not to miss another for the rest of our lives.
She’s back. Abby came back to us, just the way we always hoped she would.
In the first years of our marriage, Claire and I were very open with each other about how it felt to lose Abby. But as the years went by, and the topic was broached less often, it became more unsettling. For the last few years, as we anticipated her eighteenth birthday, it was almost taboo to bring up the subject of Abby.
I anticipated the sadness I’d feel over losing her again, if she decided not to meet us. And the anger I might feel toward Claire when all those feelings of loss were dredged up again. But I never expected to get Abby back only to have to push her away.
So, as I watch Claire as she watches Abby taking a nap with Ryder, I truly know how Claire feels. I don’t want my baby girl to ever go away. But, as painful as it is to admit, I have to accept that she was Brian and Lynette’s baby girl first.
“Why can’t she stay? Look at them.” She watches them with a mixture of longing and anger. “It’s not fair. It wasn’t fair then and it’s not fair now.”
“Babe, do I need to give you the same life-isn’t-fair speech I give the kids?”
“Please spare me.” She turns to me and wraps her arms around my waist as she buries her face in my neck. “Please don’t make her go.”
I hold her tightly and kiss the top of her head. “I can’t speak for you, but this has been the best seven weeks of my life. But I’ve been living in a fool’s paradise. This was always going to end. You know that as well as I do.”
“But I don’t feel right keeping this from Abby. She should know her parents are coming tomorrow.”
I thought my reaction to Abby and Caleb sharing a room was extreme. When I came home from Carolina Beach six weeks ago to find Jimi and Abby sitting next to each other on the sofa in the living room, watching videos on Abby’s phone, I almost cried tears of joy. It was the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen in my life. But they shrugged off my excitement, as if it was no big deal, like it was inevitable that they would become the best of friends. But when they explained the new sleeping arrangements to me, I could feel my eye twitching.
Luckily, Claire pulled me aside before I had the chance to accuse Caleb of orchestrating this new friendship between Jimi and Abby so he could sleep with my daughter. Claire talked some sense into me and promised she would have a discussion with them about… protection. Just the thought of it makes me want to bash Caleb in the head with my ’68 Stratocaster. See how cool he thinks it is then.
But after six weeks with the new sleeping arrangements and six weeks of family dinners without any sniping between Jimi and Abby, I’ll admit Caleb has worked his way back into my good graces. In fact, Claire and Abby may never hear me say this aloud, but I’m actually very grateful for him. He takes care of my girl better than I ever could.
So I’m very disappointed with Lynette and Brian’s reaction. I wasn’t aware that Abby had been lying to her parents about the sleeping arrangements. Then they called Claire last night to accuse us of giving Abby the “bright idea” of changing her major from business to music. Claire was obviously confused and upset that they were accusing us of doing something so underhanded.
I grabbed the phone out of Claire’s hand. “What’s going on here?”
There was a shuffling on the other end, then Brian came on. “Did you tell my daughter it would be a good idea for her to major in music? Do you get your kicks off of ruining our lives? Now you have to try to ruin Abby’s?”
“First of all, I had no idea Abby was changing her major. This is the first I’ve heard of this. And second of all, I’m not the one ruining Abby’s life. If she wants to change her major to music, it’s obviously because that’s what she wants to do with her life. You should support her decision instead of calling me and my wife to accuse us of meddling in her academic career.”
“All you’ve done this summer is meddle in our lives! If I had any legal recourse, I’d have had Abby forcefully removed from your home weeks ago. She’s probably playing music, smoking dope, and having unprotected sex, like her wonderful parents.”
“Are you fucking serious? From what I can tell, Abby is happier here with her siblings and her freedom than she has ever been. And if she’s thinking of changing her major, it’s only because she’s trying to stay true to herself. And if you had any sense at all, you’d see how fucking talented she is and how changing her major is a good thing. And, as for unprotected sex, she can do that anywhere. She doesn’t need to share a room or an apartment with her boyfriend to do that.”
“Is she sharing a room with Caleb?”
I could have lied, but I was so pissed off at Brian’s delusional ranting, I didn’t think he could take it one step further and threaten to come get her himself. I want to tell Abby that her parents are coming for her tomorrow, but that would probably send her and Caleb off somewhere, to a motel or somewhere worse, just so she could avoid dealing with them. But if I don’t tell her, and she finds out I knew, it will be as if I condone Lynette and Brian’s attempt to corner her.
I keep hoping that once they see Abby and hear her side, they’ll understand how much she loves music. I’ll offer to get her a vocal coach and start laying down some tracks in the studio. With my help, Abby can be extremely successful. Since starting my own label thirteen years ago, I’ve helped launch the careers of more than thirty bands and eight solo artists. Nothing would make me happier than to help my daughter achieve her dreams.
I take Claire’s face in my hands and kiss her forehead. “It’s going to work out. I promise. But you have to promise me that you’re not going to encourage Abby to distance herself even further from Lynette and Brian. You have to remind her how important it is that she has them in her life, even if they don’t approve of her career choices or her choice of roommate. Promise me you’ll do that? For Abby?”
She lets out a heavy sigh and nods. “Fine. But if they try to push her to do something she doesn’t want to do, they’re the only ones who can be blamed for alienating her. If I want to offer her comfort or a place to stay when they push her away, you can’t fault me for that.”
I kiss the corner of her mouth then turn her around so we can both watch Abby and Ryder as they nap on Jimi’s bed. At first it worried me when I found Abby taking a nap. But Caleb assured me that it’s common for her. It’s only natural that Ryder, my little night owl and Abby’s biggest admirer, would eventually work his way into the bed with Abby for the most adorable nap time ever.
“Can you imagine what it would be like to see Abby performing for a crowd of ten thousand screaming fans?”
Claire chuckles. “Don’t get ahead of yourself. You still have to see if that’s what she’s interested in.”
“I’ve only known her for eight weeks, but I can honestly say it’s what she was born to do. We just have to convince the Jensens that Abby knows herself better than they do.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
CALEB WAS NOT too thrilled about the prospect of going shopping with Jimi and me. But when I told him it was August 9th, Claire’s birthday, he dec
ided he would brave the experience so he could get her a gift.
Caleb was lucky that his boss at the tire shop needed to give his teenage son a job for the summer. It worked out great for both him and Caleb, so he agreed to let Caleb take the summer off to come with me to the beach house. Of course, without the extra income, we needed to work something out with Caleb’s roommate, Greg. And Caleb was very grateful that Chris and Claire offered to pay his half of the rent while he’s been staying with us at the beach house.
So Caleb was actually happy for the opportunity to go shopping with Jimi and me today. He’s been wanting to get something for Claire that would show his appreciation before we leave on Tuesday.
“Do you think she’ll like these?” Caleb asks, holding up a pair of four-inch-long turquoise earrings over his earlobes.
“I don’t know if she’ll like them, but I sure do.” I growl at him and he shakes his head to make the earrings wiggle.
He sets the earrings back into a basket of accessories on the counter in The Blue Fedora and we continue toward the gray velvet sofa where Jimi is talking to Chris on my phone.
“Why do we have to be back so soon? Dinner isn’t until seven.”
She rolls her eyes as Chris speaks. Though we can’t hear what he’s saying, I’m sure he’s given her a perfectly acceptable reason. Finally, she ends the call and hands me the phone.
“He said we have to be back in forty-five minutes.”
“But we just got here,” I reply, tucking the phone in my purse.
“Yeah, but he said he has his reasons and not to question him. Ugh. He’s probably planning some kind of surprise for my mom or something.”
I sit down on the sofa next to her. “Well, you know your mom better than any of us. What do you think she’d want?”
“Our mom.”
“Right. Still getting used to it.”
“Honestly, she hates this store. But there’s a used bookstore just a few miles north of here that she goes to sometimes. That’s where she got a lot of the books in the library. Maybe we can find something there.”
“Let’s go.”
It takes a little less than ten minutes for us to make it to The Bookery on Market Street, but there’s no parking. Caleb agrees to drop us off in front of the shop and he sets off down the street to look for a space. The frantic short drive across town combined with the sticky August humidity has me feeling a bit woozy and overheated. When we enter the cool interior of The Bookery, I grab the edge of a wooden table and draw in a long breath.
The sweet smell of old books is intoxicating. It transports us to another time and I instantly know that this is the right place. This is where we’ll find the perfect gift.
Jimi stops at the mouth of a long aisle of books and glances at me over her shoulder. “Are you coming?”
I nod as I let go of the wooden table and set off behind her. The aisle we’re in is designated for 19th-century classics. I don’t know which of these books Claire has liked or read, but it seems like a good place to start.
“Have you read this?” Jimi asks, holding up a copy of Jane Eyre.
“Yeah, we read that last year. I don’t read much, but it’s one of my favorite books. Does your mom—” Jimi raises an eyebrow. “Does our mom like Jane Eyre?”
“She has at least two copies of it. It’s one of her favorites,” she says, putting the book back on the shelf. “Why is it so hard for you to call her Mom? I haven’t heard you call them Mom or Dad the whole time you’ve been here.”
I swallow hard as my heart begins to race. This isn’t the kind of conversation I expected to have while perusing the shelves.
“I don’t know. I guess… I guess I just wonder if it would sound weird. You don’t think that would be weird? I’ve only known them for a few weeks.”
She shrugs as she grabs a worn paperback copy of Great Expectations off the shelf. “I don’t know how these things work. But it seems more weird to me that you don’t call them anything at all. Like, what do you call them inside your head? Chris and Claire?” She laughs at this suggestion as if it’s ludicrous and I feel the heat rising in my cheeks. Her eyes widen when she sees my reaction. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean that the way it sounded. I mean, of course that’s probably how you think of them. Shit. I feel like an idiot. Just forget I said anything.”
I gently take the book from her and turn it over in my hands a couple of times. “Does she have this one?” I ask, viscerally aware that I just referred to Claire as she. And now I just referred to her in my head as Claire.
“I don’t think so. I haven’t seen it in the library. Have you?”
I chuckle at the awkward tone in her voice. “You’re right. After everything they’ve done for me, and for Caleb, I should at least try to break that large wall of ice standing between us.”
“Hey, don’t do it on my account.”
“Don’t do what on your account?” Caleb asks as he enters the aisle, his face flushed pink from the heat.
Jimi glances at me as if to say, “This is all yours.”
“Nothing. I just… I think I want to go back. I want to go home.”
“But we didn’t get anything.”
Jimi smiles as she squeezes past us to leave the aisle. I look up at Caleb and he’s confused. “We can’t find anything here that she can’t get on her own. Let’s go.”
His shoulders slump with frustration. “Fine. Just wait in here while I go get the car. It’s hotter than Satan’s ass crack out there.”
We make one stop at a local bakery to pick up the birthday cake Jimi ordered, then we pull into the driveway a few minutes before the forty-five-minute deadline. Caleb carries the cake into the kitchen and Jimi helps him make room for it in the refrigerator while I look for Claire. I’m not surprised to find her upstairs in the laundry room, working on her birthday. She slams the dryer shut and when she spins around to leave, she jumps at the sight of me.
“Oh, my God. You scared me,” she says, clutching her chest. “Do you have something you need washed?” I shake my head and she looks confused. “Are you okay? Are you out of medicine? What’s wrong?”
I shake my head again. “Nothing’s wrong. In fact, everything couldn’t be more right. And I have you to thank for that. So I just want to say… Thank you… for everything you’ve done for Caleb and me. And… Happy birthday… Mom.”
Her whole body trembles as she reaches up to cover her mouth. “Oh, God,” she whispers.
Her chest is heaving so hard and her hands are shaking uncontrollably. It actually scares me.
I lightly place my hand on her shoulder. “Are you okay?”
She nods furiously, but she still can’t speak, so I do the one thing I hope will help. I slowly wrap my arms around her waist and she lets out a soft cry as she takes me in her arms.
“Oh, Abby,” she whispers. “I have never heard anything so beautiful in all my life.”
We hold each other a moment longer until she’s no longer trembling. When she releases me, Jimi comes bounding up the stairs. She looks a bit surprised when she sees us both standing just inside the laundry room, crying. Then she smiles as she realizes her little pep talk at the used bookstore worked.
But her smile disappears quickly. “Someone’s here.”
“Who?” I ask, but Jimi doesn’t answer. She casts us an ominous look as she turns around and heads back down the steps.
I turn to Claire and she’s wringing her hands as she looks me in the eye. “Your… your parents are here to take you home.”
My chest aches with the force of my heart pounding. I race down the steps and I can’t believe what I’m seeing. My mom and dad are standing in the living room. My dad’s arms are crossed over his bulky chest and my mom’s lips are pressed together in a hard line across her face.
My dad speaks first. “Get your things. We’re going home.”
“I’m not leaving right now. I’m leaving with Caleb on Tuesday.”
My mom rolls her eyes as sh
e steps forward. “Just get your things and get in the car, Abby. We’ve allowed you to live your little hard-rock fantasy long enough. It’s time to go home and get ready for school.”
“Hard-rock fantasy? Are you kidding me? This has been the best summer of my life and you’re calling it a fantasy?”
“Oh, please, Abby. Of course it’s the best summer of your life. And who knows how much damage you’ve done to your heart in the meantime?”
Caleb comes up behind me and places his hands on my shoulders and my dad casts a vicious glare in his direction. “Abby has been doing great,” Caleb says, squeezing my arm. “She’s been taking all her meds and I think the physical activity has been helping. She has less—”
“Physical activity?” My dad cuts him off. “Are you two having sex?”
“Don’t answer that!” I shout at Caleb, then I round on my dad. “It’s none of your business what Caleb and I do, just like it’s none of my business what you and Mom do in the bedroom. I’m an adult and I’m not stupid. A little trust wouldn’t hurt, Dad. I’ve never given you a reason not to trust me.”
Chris and Claire come down the stairs and I must admit that I’m happy to see the angry look on Chris’s face. Then I remember how Claire already knew my parents were coming, which means Chris probably knew, as well.
“Did you know they were coming?”
Chris nods his head. “I’m sorry, Abby. We wanted to tell you, but they asked us not to. And we really didn’t want to cause any more trouble for you all. It’s really hard being in the middle of this. We really just want whatever makes you happy.”
My mom laughs at this. “Of course. Take the path of least resistance so we’re the bad guys. You were right, Brian. You knew this would happen.”
“Lynette, I think there’s been a grave misunderstanding here,” Chris continues. “We’ve done everything you asked of us seventeen and a half years ago. We stayed away. We didn’t tie you guys up in an expensive legal battle. We did it all for Abby’s sake. Which is why I have to set my foot down here. I truly believe what you’re doing is not in her best interests. I think it’s time for you all to step aside and let Abby make some decisions for herself. She’s an adult and a very intelligent soul. She deserves for all of us to put some faith in her.”