“And I’m sorry I got upset. You didn’t say anything wrong.”
“Yes, I did. I embarrassed you in front of Jack.” She sniffs and wipes her eyes with the back of her hand. “Can you forgive me?”
“Of course.” I take a deep breath, wondering why this family stuff has to be so horribly hard. “It would help if you didn’t ask me about my private life. Or tell me what to eat.”
“You’re absolutely right,” Kathi says, her head bobbing. “I’ll try to never do that again. It’s just that sometimes I can’t help but worry.”
“Well, you don’t need to worry about me.”
“I know that,” she says in a soft voice. “But worrying is something that all good mothers do. It gets mixed up with love somehow. I can’t always control it.” She reaches out and takes my hand, and I surprise myself by not pulling away. Instead, I curl my fingers inside of hers and let their warmth slip into mine.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Thank you to Robert Dugoni for paying it forward;
Steven James for sharing technique.
Phil Morreale, my patient first reader;
Cynthia Wessendorf, who smoothed later drafts.
Jessica Tribble for “getting” the voices;
Leslie Lutz for making words sing.
Monte Fligsten for insights on counsel;
Daniel Calderon for parsing police raids.
Jessica Therkelsen for sage advice;
Ali Morreale for drumbeats of support.
The women in my life who made the difference;
the friends and family who rooted me on.
And above all, thank you to Rebecca Scherer:
friend, cheerleader, agent extraordinaire.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Photo © 2017 Linda Blue
Catharine Riggs lives and writes on California’s central coast. A graduate of UCLA with an MBA from Drake University, Riggs is a former business banker, adjunct college instructor, and nonprofit executive who spends her free time traveling and exploring the outdoors. What She Gave Away is her debut novel. She is currently at work on the second novel in her Santa Barbara suspense series.
What She Gave Away (Santa Barbara Suspense Book 1) Page 29