by Violet Paige
She brushed her teeth while the water warmed in the shower. She smiled at her reflection. It was finally starting to happen. She trusted him. What guy showed up with ice cream and refused to take your pants off if he wasn’t relationship material? Ben was in this for her. For them.
She spit into the sink and turned for the shower. Kari’s pep talk before Ben arrived had certainly helped. She was nothing if not a hopeless romantic. Skye wished she could find someone for her friend to date. She seemed to date one loser after another. Although it never deterred Kari from getting out there.
The water felt good on her back. She squirted a handful of body wash onto a washcloth and began to lather her body. This was the first time she had scrubbed dessert off her skin, she giggled. Maybe this is what a relationship with Ben would be like. Dessert every night.
She wrapped a towel around her chest and shook out her hair. She didn’t want to run the blow dryer right now and wake him up. She walked to the kitchen to make coffee, keeping the towel tightly tucked under her arm.
She watched the coffee drip into the pot, and smiled when she heard the water running in the bathroom. Ben was awake.
In only two days she had let him back into her life and he had kissed away all the doubts and reservations. She giggled thinking he had licked some of them away too.
Skye heard her phone ringing from her purse. She forgot to take it out and charge it last night. She dug through her bag until she gripped the phone.
“Mom?”
“Honey, I’m almost there. I started driving and what do you know, I ended up in California!”
Skye’s stomach rose to her throat. “What do you mean you’re in California?” Maybe her mother was hallucinating and really was on the way back from the grocery store. That was probably it.
“I told you I’ve never done it before. I wanted to drive cross-country, so here I am.”
Her mother sounded completely victorious and not as scattered as the last phone call . Skye realized it had been a few days since she had spoken with her. It was possible she had been driving for four days.
“Mom, just tell me where you are and I’ll come get you.” Skye pulled a notebook and pen from the kitchen drawer hoping her mother had some clear directions for her.
“That’s nonsense. I’ve done this entire trip on my own and I’m going to finish it that way. I’ll be at your place by dinner.”
Ben walked into the kitchen. His eyes not quite fully awake, his hair sticking up, and a towel tucked around his waist. He shot straight to the coffee, and reached into the cabinet for two mugs. Skye knew at any other time the fact that they were both standing in her kitchen with nothing but towels wrapped around their bodies would be the precursor to something wickedly fun, but right now she had to figure out what to do about her mother. She turned back to the pad and paper.
“I could at least lead you the rest of the way in. San Diego traffic is horrible, even on the weekends. I would hate for you to get lost. Just tell me what town you’re close to, and I can meet you half-way.”
“Honey, I’ve got this. I’ll see you for dinner. Pick some place really nice, and I’ll take you out tonight for a treat. Ok?”
“But Mom—” She looked at the dark phone in her hand. Her mother had hung up.
Ben handed her a fresh cup of coffee. “Mom trouble?”
Skye didn’t even know where to begin. She wished she only had ‘mom trouble,’ but it was more like a ‘renegade teenager trapped in a forty-eight year old woman’s body’ trouble.
“Apparently, my mom’s coming for a visit.” She slumped into a chair, resting her mug on the kitchen table.
Ben’s eyebrows arched. “Surprise parent visit? That’s interesting. You need me to clear out of here so you can get ready?”
“No. No.” Her hand landed on his wrist. “She’s not going to be here until dinner time, and I don’t have much to do before then except worry.”
“Is she a bad driver or something?”
“Or something.” Skye chewed on her bottom lip. She rarely discussed her mother’s illness, but she realized she didn’t know how long Patty Stephens would be in San Diego. At some point, it would interfere with her ability to see Ben.
She drew in a long breath. “My mother suffers from a mental illness.” She couldn’t look at him, it was better to focus on the cream swirling at the top of her coffee. “It only started a few years ago, but once it did it has progressed pretty rapidly. She’s paranoid all the time and thinks people are after her. She isn’t easy to spend time with.”
“Wow. I don’t know what to say.” Skye glanced up long enough to see Ben was concerned. His light blue eyes softened. “Does she have help?”
Skye sighed. “No. I’ve applied for a program so she can have in-care observation seven days a week, but we’re on a waiting list. I’m starting to think we’ll never get in. She can take care of herself, but when she has a paranoia episode her decision making isn’t the best.” She shrugged her shoulders. “Like this trip to drive cross-country without telling anyone. I had no idea she hasn’t been at home in four days. I’m an awful daughter.”
“I don’t think that.”
Skye met his gaze. “Well, you don’t know me very well. She lives in North Carolina, and I’m in San Diego. I should have moved back home as soon as she was diagnosed.” Crying was not an allowable emotion, but Skye felt the corners of her eyelids stinging and knew she had lost the battle. A tear trickled along her cheek.
“True, I haven’t known you very long, but I can’t imagine you’re anyone but the kind of person who works hard, cares about her family, and is way too hard on herself for things that are out of her control.” His thumb brushed against her cheek, wiping the tear to the side.
“That’s sweet.” Skye stood from the table, suddenly self-conscious she was wearing a towel. “But, I haven’t made the best choices where my mom is concerned and today that’s about to bite me in the ass.” She dumped the rest of her coffee in the sink.
“Let me help you.”
She shoved the mug in the top rack of the dishwasher. “Thanks, but I don’t think there’s anything you can do. She’s my responsibility. I’m going to have to face reality. Either I quit and go home to take care of her, or I have to put her in a home, and I can’t do that.” She shook her head. “I can’t do that to my mom.”
“There has to be something I can do.” He stood in between her and the exit to the hallway.
“No. I need to make a few calls. Tell my aunt where my mom is, and I need to call in to work and let them know I can’t present the new zoo slogans tomorrow. I can’t believe I finally got part of that project, and I have to cancel on my first meeting.”
"Why do you have to cancel your meeting?" Ben's eyes hadn't stopped following her.
"Because I can't leave her alone. She could get lost or start trouble with my neighbors. I just can't leave her here where she doesn't know anyone."
Skye noticed Ben was concentrating.
“Wait, what if I hang out with your mom?”
Skye shook her head in disbelief. “Oh no way, I couldn’t ask you to do that.”
Ben smiled. “You didn’t ask. I’m offering. Look, I have some leave saved up, and I can take a day or two this week to help you. That way you don’t have to miss your meeting, and it might buy you some time to figure out how to get her back home.”
She wasn’t sure if it was the smile, the eyes, or the warmth of his skin radiating in her direction, but she had never wanted to believe in someone so much in her life.
“You don’t look convinced.” He drew her into his chest. “I had fun yesterday touring the city. I can take your mom to the museum, or the beach. She’ll love it.”
Skye didn’t want to move, she only wanted to stay with her cheek pressed into his chest, listening to his heart beat. For the first time there was someone with her, offering to share the burden, offering to help. It felt like she could breathe.
She looked in
to his eyes. “You’re sure? She’s a handful. She once accused a waiter of poisoning our order at a restaurant. And she’s tried on clothes in the mall and walked out with them still on, insisting she paid for them. She’s not like other people’s mothers.”
Ben nodded. “I know women. I can handle her.”
Skye laughed. “You’ve never met this one.”
Nineteen
Bolt showered for the second time today. The last time he had met a girl’s parents was in high school, and it didn’t go so well when he brought her home after curfew. He never let dating get far enough into the parent stage. That was more commitment than he was usually interested in. Why in the hell was he headed over to have dinner with Patty Stephens?
Skye didn’t ask for his help. He volunteered. There was something about her that was making things that used to seem impossible, seem possible. Like sticking around for breakfast or volunteering to do something completely insane.
Skye suggested he come back over after her mother arrived so that she could explain to her they would have a guest at dinner. She said something about needing time to let her adjust.
Parents had stopped being a part of his life a long time ago. Ben hadn’t seen his parents since he left for college. He walked out the door and never looked back. He sometimes wondered how they were doing. Was his dad still drinking? Did his mother still make meatloaf every Sunday? But he didn’t call, he didn’t write, and he didn’t visit. Military life gave him the perfect excuse to stay as far away from Greene, Tennessee as possible. It hadn’t gone unnoticed that they never reached out to him either. He knew it was better this way. He would go back some day, but he wasn’t ready.
They didn’t seek each other out for that reason, but he and Riggs always had that in common. Riggs had left home at the same time. When he and Bolt were paired as roommates in college there was an understanding that none of the other kids got. Everyone else on their hall packed up for winter break and weekends home to do laundry, but not Riggs. He and Bolt took trips together, spent summers visiting as many ballparks as their car would take them to, met girls, partied in Cabo, and decided to join the Marine Corps together. Without exchanging the words, they became each other’s family.
Their senior year Riggs met Faith. She transferred in from a nearby art school. Bolt tried not to resent the relationship, and for the most part, he prided himself on how he didn’t give Charlie a hard time about getting so serious so fast with a girl. After graduation Riggs asked Faith to marry him. They eloped before Officer Candidates School and the rest was history. Bolt didn’t let his third-wheel status bother him. Faith was a cool girl and she made Riggs happy. Anyone who spent five minutes with the couple could see it.
“Why don’t you try it, man?” Riggs asked one night over a beer.
“Try what?” Bolt eyed his best friend like he was growing horns.
“Find a girl. Get married. It’s awesome.” Riggs kicked back the bottle.
“That’s your thing, man. Not mine.” Bolt shook his head. “I’m glad you have Faith. I really am. But I’m not the boyfriend type and definitely not the marrying type.” He stood to get another beer. “Can I get one for you?”
“Yeah, bring me one.”
Bolt walked through the patio door and reached in the cooler for two beers. The friends had managed to stay together through flight school. They only had three weeks left in Mississippi before they would be on to the next stage of the pilot process.
“Here you go.” He tossed the beer in Riggs’s lap.
“Thanks.” Riggs twisted the cap and tossed it in an open trash bin. “Look, I worry about you.”
Bolt chuckled. “Why do you worry about me?” He had lost count on how many beers they had consumed. Saturday nights were their chance to let loose. No flying on Sundays.
“Because, I’m with Faith and pretty soon we’ll probably start a family, and I don’t like that you’re out on your own with nobody to help you fly straight.”
The words cut into Bolt’s skin like thorns. He wasn’t alone. He had Riggs. He had the guys he would fly with.
“I’m fine. Women complicate things. Relationships complicate things. I like my life just fine without somebody in it, telling me what to do, where to go, how to dress. I don’t need the bullshit. I’m glad Faith’s not like that. But it’s not for me.” The cold beer was soothing on his throat. He didn’t know how many more of these humid Mississippi nights he could handle.
“Alright, brother, but you don’t know what you’re missing out on. One day you’re going to meet someone and it’s all going to change.”
“Negative.”
Riggs laughed so hard he spilled his beer on the concrete under his lawn chair. “You say that now, but just wait. I’m going to be there laughing my ass off the entire time. Just don’t wait too long. Ok?”
“Let’s talk about something other than women. What do you say we plan a trip after flight school graduation?”
“Chicago? We haven’t gone to Wrigley yet.”
“I’m in.” Bolt smiled.
Bolt thought about that night as he parked in the visitor space outside Skye’s apartment building. Riggs had tried for years to sell him on the benefits of monogamous bliss, but Bolt didn’t buy it. Riggs and Faith were different. That kind of relationship didn’t happen for other people.
He pressed the elevator button and looked at the flowers he held in his hand. Moms liked flowers, right? He wasn’t one to fidget, but he brushed off the imaginary lint on his shirt and pulled his collar away from his throat.
The doors retracted and Bolt stepped into the hallway. His heart was beating faster than usual. He reminded himself he was the guy who never got nervous before a flight. This was no big deal—just one little mother. It wasn’t like there was a dad with a shotgun on the other side of the door.
He knocked twice before Skye flung the door open.
“Hi!” She smiled.
“Hi.” He looked over her shoulder, ready to get the parent introduction out of the way.
A petite woman sat on the couch, thumbing through a magazine. She once had dark hair, but it was woven with patches of gray. Bolt wasn’t sure what he expected, but from the little description Skye had given, he was expecting someone who looked crazy, but Patty Stephens seemed comfortable and at home in her daughter’s apartment.
“Mom, this is Ben.” Skye led him over to where her mother was sitting. “Ben, Mom, or I guess you would call her Patty.”
“Nice to meet you.” He held out the assorted flowers. “These are for you.”
Patty stood, placing the magazine on the seat behind her. “Ben. It’s a pleasure. I wish I could say I’ve heard more about you, but Skye has a way of keeping secrets.” She laid the flowers on the coffee table and her hands clasped over his. “Thank you for those flowers.”
“Mom, I told you we just started dating.” Skye twisted her bottom lip under her teeth. “Ben’s not a secret.”
It was the first time either of them had said something so formal. Ben thought it would feel uncomfortable, like wearing a jacket made out of sandpaper, but he liked how it rolled off her tongue. Dating. He and Skye were dating.
Patty rolled her eyes. “Doesn’t mean you have to keep someone as handsome as this from me. I like to know about your friends.”
Ben chuckled. It didn’t take long to recognize some of Skye’s stubbornness. “So, where did you ladies decide we’re going to eat tonight?”
“Oh, I thought maybe we should order in. Mom, you’ve got to be exhausted from driving for four days. I have lots of menus.” Skye scurried to a drawer in the kitchen and returned with an armful of menus.
“That’s nonsense. I told you I wanted to take you out to dinner. What’s your favorite place?” Patty didn’t look at the menus.
“Mom, it’s too much. Maybe tomorrow night. We can order anything you want.”
Patty turned to Bolt. “Ben, what’s your favorite spot?”
He shifted his han
ds in his pockets. Being in the middle of two women like this wasn’t a comfortable position. “I’m up for anything. I’ll let you girls decide.”
“Ok. Fine. We can go out.” Skye walked to the door and reached for a jacket. “There’s an Italian place around the corner. How does that sound, Mom?”
A light flickered behind Patty’s eyes. “Honey, I’ll go wherever you want. I don’t want to be a bother.” She winked at Bolt. “I do love Italian.”
He followed them out the door.
“How’s your lasagna, Mom?” Skye asked over a glass of red wine. She hadn’t stopped peppering her mother with questions since they left the apartment.
“It’s quite cheesy. I like it.” Patty smiled. “So, Ben, I want to hear about your job. What do you fly exactly?”
“Mom, he doesn’t want to talk about work.”
Bolt smiled. “It’s fine. I don’t mind talking about flying. It’s one of my favorite things.” He looked at Skye’s mother. “I fly fighter jets for the Marine Corps out of Miramar.”
“Oh my word. That’s impressive. So you work for the government?”
“I guess so, but I don’t really think about it like that. I fly for the military. It’s not like I’m involved with what’s going on in D.C.”
Patty paused before asking another question. “But, do you fly secret missions? The kinds of things you aren’t supposed to tell us about?”
“Mom! That’s enough. Let Ben eat his pasta.” Skye looked mortified.
“I have been overseas if that’s what you’re asking.” He leaned into the table. “If I’ve flown a secret mission, I can’t really tell you about it.” He stabbed a penne noodle on the end of his fork.
“I knew it!” Patty laughed. “Secret missions. Skye, this is exciting.”
Bolt didn’t think it hurt to feed her interest in his job; however, the expression on Skye’s face told him otherwise. He knew he’d be getting a thorough rundown on what he could talk about tomorrow on his day with her mother.