by Terri DuLong
“Thanks, Mom. That was delicious,” Orli told me after her second helping of her favorite meal.
“My pleasure and now . . . let’s have a talk.”
She took a sip of water, folded her arms, and leaned across the table. “I’m ready.”
“Okay. Now, I want you to be perfectly honest with me. Do you want to go live with your dad and finish your senior year up there?” She started to say something, but I held up my hand. “Wait. I’m not finished. Because if you do, I want you to know I approve one hundred percent. If this is what you truly want.”
She nodded. “I do. I really want to do this, but . . . I feel bad about leaving you here.”
“Orli, first of all . . . that’s not for you to be concerned about. You’re sixteen. You’re not a little girl anymore, and you have to begin doing what you feel is best for you. And besides . . . I don’t want you to think that I’m following you, but . . . I’ve also been invited to live with your dad.”
I saw a confused expression cross her face, but bright girl that she is, it took only a moment for her to realize what I was saying.
“Oh, my God! Dad asked you to marry him, didn’t he?”
“He did,” was all I could say before she jumped up and wrapped her arms around me.
“When? When’s the wedding?”
“Whoa. Hold on. I haven’t exactly said yes yet.”
“What do you mean?”
“Well, he gave me some time to think about it, which I have, and between you and me, my answer is yes. But he doesn’t know that yet.”
Orli let out a giggle. “So when are you telling him?”
“Your dad called this morning and he’s flying down next Thursday. . . to spend Valentine’s Day with me. With us.”
“Oh, wow! That’s great. And you’ll tell him then?”
I nodded. “Right. What better time than Valentine’s Day?”
“Pure romance,” Orli gushed. “Wait till Laura hears this.”
I put up my hand. “Do me a favor—don’t tell anybody until I’ve told your dad.”
“Oh, right. No problem. Does Mallory know?”
“Nope. Not yet. Only you and Nana.”
“Oh, God! Nana? She’s probably not going to be very happy about both of us leaving here.”
I tapped her on the nose with my finger. “Don’t be too sure of that, sweet pea. Nana is full of surprises lately. Come on, help me clean up so I can get to the yarn shop. I want to pick up a piece of needlepoint before the knitting group starts.”
“Do you have anything specific in mind?” Marin asked.
“Yeah,” I said, browsing through the multitude of canvases that hung from the racks. “You don’t have anything that’s a map, do you?”
“I do. I have state maps. Is that what you want?”
“Yeah.”
She pointed to a rack at the back of the shop. “Right back there. I have quite a selection. Which state?”
“Massachusetts,” I said.
Marin reached into the rack, withdrew a hand-painted canvas, and held it up. “Is this what you want?”
“Yes. Perfect. I’ll take it.” I looked at the outline and saw the hook of Cape Cod and in small letters BOSTON and other large cities throughout the state. “Would it be possible to put my own mark on it?”
“I’m not sure I know what you mean.”
I pointed to an empty spot just north of Boston. “Like right here, would it be possible to stitch maybe a heart?”
Marin held the canvas closer. “Sure. I don’t see why not. That’s a white empty space, so you could do that.”
“Great. I’ll pick out my threads now.”
By the time I finished choosing and she rang up my sale, I could hear the women arriving in the yarn shop. I walked through the archway to see Dora, Chloe, Sydney, and my mother talking.
“Hey, Josie,” Chloe said. “Shopping for needlepoint?”
“Yeah, I enjoy switching between that and knitting.”
Sydney laughed. “Don’t we all.”
Within twenty minutes, the shop was filled with ladies chattering, knitting, and laughing.
“Sydney, I heard you’re getting booted out of your house,” I said.
She laughed as she knitted away on a gorgeous blue cable pullover that I knew was for one of Monica’s triplets. “Not exactly. As all of you know, Noah and I have decided to spend the month of April in Paris. And it seems the Sisters of ’68 were looking for a place to stay for a long weekend.”
“So you’re giving them your house?” Raylene said.
“I’m offering it to them for the long weekend. It’s the perfect spot for a gathering.”
My mother nodded. “It’s ideal. We’re all just thrilled. And we promise not to behave so badly that Officer Steve has to come out and quiet us down.”
Everybody laughed as Berkley said, “Geez, now, that’s no fun. Behaving badly is a girl’s claim to fame.”
Raylene sniffed as her needles increased their speed. “Well, in my day . . .”
“Yes, Raylene,” Dora said, cutting her off. “In your day girls and women were perfect angels. But we still managed to have some fun. At least some of us did.” She looked up from her knitting and winked at the group.
This brought forth another round of laughter.
I heard Chloe clear her voice. “Well, I have some news,” she said. “The only ones that know about it are Dora, Maude, and Grace, but I may as well share it here.”
I saw some raised eyebrows, and Grace shot her sister a smile.
“As you know, I’ve been seeing Gabe Brunell, and as some of you know, a couple of weeks ago we took a weekend trip to Ormond Beach. Gabe is an expert knitter and it’s been his dream to open his own yarn shop someday. Well, it looks like that’s going to happen. He’s found the perfect spot over there and . . . he’s also found the perfect house with some farmland, so he plans to keep a few alpacas and use the fiber for spinning.”
“Oh, that sounds wonderful,” Berkley said. “If he needs any suggestions or info on alpacas, I’d be more than happy to help him or have my friend Jill talk to him.”
“Thanks so much. I’ll be sure to let Gabe know.”
“This is really exciting news,” Sydney said. “How great to be setting off on a new venture.”
“It certainly is,” my mother told her. “Sometimes we reach a point in life when it’s time to take a leap and head in a whole new direction.”
I saw the smile she gave me and nodded.
“Wait a minute,” Raylene said, placing her knitting in her lap. “I don’t understand. What does any of this have to do with you, Chloe?”
“Geez, Raylene, connect the dots,” Berkley said, laughing. “Chloe is going with Gabe. She’ll help him run the yarn shop over there.”
“What? You’re leaving Cedar Key? You mean you’re going to be living with him there? In his house?”
“Yeah, I am,” Chloe said. “That’s exactly what I’ll be doing.”
“Well, what about Maude? And your sister? You’re just leaving them?”
Raylene’s indignant tone left no doubt that she found the idea preposterous.
“She’s not leaving us, Raylene.” Grace put her knitting in her lap. “Chloe is a grown woman. She knows what she’s doing, and even better, she knows what she wants. Aunt Maude and I support her decision completely. We’re very happy for her, and besides, it’s not even a three-hour drive to visit each other.”
Raylene shrugged. “Well, I still don’t get it. Why on earth would you want to do something like that?”
Without missing a beat, Chloe leaned toward Raylene and said, “Because I can . . . and because life is too short not to.”
A round of applause went up in the shop before we moved on to other subjects.
About an hour later, Dora announced it was time for tea, coffee, and our pastry. “Berkley brought a beautiful red velvet cake, but before we get to that, I think Chloe has another announcement.”
Chloe jumped up, ran into the back room, and returned with a gift bag, which she passed to my mother.
“Shelby, this is for you. I designed it and knitted it, and I hope you’ll like it.”
My mother reached into the bag and removed the gorgeous peach-colored cowl.
“I’ve called it the Healing Cowl. I hope it will help in your continued recovery and bring you good health.”
My mother placed it around her neck, and I saw the moisture in her eyes as she got up to give Chloe a hug. “Thank you so much. This means the world to me.”
My thought at that moment was the hope that once I got settled into my new home, it wouldn’t take me long to find a yarn shop with a new group of women who would make me feel part of that very unique alliance—female friendship.
45
Thursday morning I was busy polishing furniture, running the vacuum through the house, and thinking that for the first time in a long time my life seemed to be on track and I was in my element. I also realized that everything that had happened over the past sixteen years had brought me here. Meeting Ben and meeting Simon were things I needed to do. I couldn’t help but feel that I’d come full circle.
After I finished cleaning, I was about to prepare myself a sandwich for lunch when I heard Mallory come in the front door.
“Hey,” she said. “Oh, good, just in time for lunch. Can you make me one of those?” She pointed to the rye bread, turkey breast, and cheese.
“Sure. Sweet tea with it?”
“Sounds great,” she said, positioning herself on the stool. “So Grant’s due here about two?”
I nodded.
“Has he mentioned yet what you’re doing for Valentine’s Day?”
“He booked a reservation at the Island Room for us.”
“Hmm, nice. What’re you wearing?”
I laughed. “Haven’t given it a thought.”
“Josie, Josie, Josie, what would you do without me? We’ll go through your closet after lunch.”
“I can’t guarantee we’ll find anything worthy in there.”
“Well, if all else fails, we can raid my closet.” She took a sip of the tea that I placed in front of her. “You’re telling him yes, aren’t you?”
I laughed. “You’ve always been such a nosy friend.”
“Well?” she said before taking a bite of her sandwich.
“Maybe.”
“You have to promise me that, except for Orli and your mom, you tell me first. I expect a phone call from you at seven Sunday morning . . . with all the details.”
“Eat your sandwich,” I ordered.
After we finished, we headed to my bedroom, where I began removing dresses from my closet. Each one I held up brought an emphatic shake of Mallory’s head.
“None of those will do, Josie. You want to look glamorous. Sexy. Seductive.”
I laughed. “You seem to forget, this is Cedar Key. Nobody gets quite that dressed up.”
“Too bad. You mean to tell me you have nothing else?”
As soon as she said this, I remembered the garment bag hanging in the guest room closet. Cocktail dresses from my college days that I was never able to part with.
“Follow me,” I said.
I removed a blood-red dress, sleeveless, V-neck, with a scalloped hemline, and I recalled wearing it the night that Grant took me to Marliave to celebrate our first Valentine’s Day together.
“Bingo,” Mallory said. “Oh, Josie, it’s stunning. Try it on.”
I slipped it over my head and was grateful that, even sixteen years later, it fit to perfection. I walked to the full-length mirror and twirled around. I felt like I was nineteen again, but the image in the mirror showed me that the college freshman had been replaced by an attractive woman—a woman who had grown and evolved, and a woman I was proud to be.
“You think?” I said.
She gave me a thumbs-up. “Perfect. Grant will love it.”
I wondered if he’d remember it. “Oh, no,” I wailed. “I know I don’t have any heels to go with this.”
“Not to worry. We’re the same size, and I have a pair of black strappy ones that will be perfect. With your black cashmere shawl, you’ll be a vision.”
I removed the dress, hung it carefully on the hanger, and slipped back into my jeans and sweatshirt.
“Okay,” Mallory said. “Mission accomplished. Thanks for the lunch, but I have to scoot. You take a nice scented bubble bath, put something pretty on, and be ready when Grant gets here.”
I followed her to the front door and gave her a hug. “Thanks for your help.”
“Just don’t forget,” she said as she jogged down the walkway, “Sunday morning. Seven o’clock. Phone call.”
I laughed and closed the door just as the phone rang.
“Hey,” I heard Grant say. “Landed right on time. I need to stop to pick up a few things, so it might be closer to three before I get there.”
I thought of the bubble bath that Mallory had mentioned. “That’s fine,” I said. “I’ll be here, and I love you.”
“I love you too. See you soon.”
I walked into my bathroom and wondered when I’d last used my garden tub. Too long ago, I thought.
After turning on the faucets, I poured some lavender bubble bath into the water and realized that Sydney had brought me the bottle from Paris the year before and it was almost full. I grabbed the igniter from the drawer and proceeded to light the candles surrounding the tub.
After I slid down into the warm water, I let out a sigh. I really should do this more often. It was pure luxury. I thought about Grant arriving in a few hours, and my excitement at seeing him again grew. I did feel like I was about to embark on a whole new life, and that made me wonder about my house. Technically, it belonged to my mother, but I was pretty sure that she wouldn’t part with it and would rather keep it for when Grant, Orli, and I came to visit. That gave me a sense of comfort, to know that I wasn’t cutting all my ties to Cedar Key.
When the water began to cool, I got out and decided that jeans and my black cotton pullover were perfect for a casual evening. After I dressed, I sprayed on a bit of Shalimar and headed to the kitchen. Orli was home from school and nibbling on an oatmeal cookie.
“What time will Dad be here?” she asked.
I glanced at the clock. “In about an hour or so. He called from the airport and said he had a few things to pick up and he’d be on his way.”
“I’m glad he’s coming for a few days.”
I turned on the oven and began stuffing the chicken that I planned to roast for dinner. “Me too,” I said.
“I’m going to go get my homework done before he gets here.” She poured herself a glass of milk, grabbed two more cookies, and headed to her room.
By the time Grant arrived, the aroma of roasting chicken was filling the kitchen, the dining room table was set, and I had just uncorked a bottle of wine.
I ran to the front door to greet him, and laughed. I couldn’t see his face because two huge bouquets of flowers were covering it.
He peeked from behind one of them and grinned. “For my two best girls for Valentine’s Day.”
I reached out for the bouquet he passed me and placed a kiss on his lips. “Oh, Grant. They’re gorgeous.”
Orli came running from her bedroom. “Hey, Dad,” she said, sliding into his free arm.
“Happy Valentine’s Day,” he told her.
“Wow, they’re so pretty. Thank you.”
I headed to the kitchen. “Let’s find some vases for these.”
Grant and I had a glass of wine before supper as we relaxed on the patio.
“How’s your mother doing?” he asked.
“Still doing well. She’s changed.”
He shifted in the lounge. “In which way?”
“More mellow. Relaxed.”
He nodded. “Yeah, sometimes we’re slammed with a life-changing event
and we see that things that seemed important before aren’t important at all.”
“I’m glad. Well, I’m not glad she was diagnosed with cancer . . . but I’m glad she’s . . . different.”
Grant reached for my hand. “So are you,” he said.
“What do you mean?”
“I mean this in a good way, but you’re less defensive. I think you always felt you had to prove yourself. As the good single mom. The responsible breadwinner. I think you know now that you’ve accomplished both of these things.”
I nodded. “You’re right. Maybe no matter what I said or tried to project, I think deep down I felt some guilt that I didn’t cave to tradition.”
He brought my hand to his lips. “And now?”
“Now I’m not sorry that I did it my way . . . but I love being exactly where I am in my life. With you.”
“I was hoping you’d say that.”
I enjoyed watching Orli and Grant converse and joke with each other throughout dinner. It reminded me of my teen years at my parents’ table. Mothers and daughters can have a complex and sometimes adversarial relationship, and I was grateful that so far Orli and I had never had that. But there was something very special about the father-daughter relationship. A father is the first man a girl loves, the one she depends on and looks up to, the role model for the man she chooses to spend the rest of her life with. Grant was that person to me.
The three of us pitched in together to clean up the kitchen after we ate, and even this mundane task took on new meaning with Grant to help us.
“I’m going to go watch TV in my room,” Orli said when we finished, and I couldn’t help but think she was purposely giving Grant and me some private time. She kissed us and said good night before heading to her room.
“Another glass of wine?” I asked.
“Sounds good,” Grant said as he sat on the sofa.
I passed him a glass and curled up beside him. “Oh, no,” I said. “I just realized, I’m working till noon tomorrow. Simon’s been so nice giving me time off because of my mom, I didn’t want to ask for another day.”
“That’s not a problem.” Grant took a sip of wine as he slid his arm around my shoulders. “I’m sure I can manage to stay busy. I think I’ll go over and visit with your parents for a while, and then I can pick you up at the office and take you to lunch.”