“Wow, I don’t think I’ve ever got registered mail,” she said, heading for the kitchen. “Thank you for signing for it, I hate going to the post office.”
“No problem,” Mrs. Mathews said. “I’ll see you in the morning.”
The letter was waiting on the table for her, but before she even reached it, she recognized the flowing handwriting on the front and froze suddenly, not sure she wanted to see what was inside. It could only be bad news, which was the only reason her mother would ever write to her, and she wasn’t sure she could face what might be inside, not after what she’d been through with Walker over the last few weeks.
Knowing that she was being a coward again, she walked over to the table and sat down in front of the letter, then sat staring at it for a long time. The last time she’d seen her mother’s handwriting on something was on court papers formally disowning her, and she was tempted to just throw theletter in the trash. Instead, she reached out and pulled the letter a little closer to her, wishing she knew what was inside, but still too scared to open it.
She wasn’t sure how long she would have sat there, but Mrs. Mathews came into the kitchen. “Maddie, why are you sitting here in the dark?” she asked, flicking on the light over the sink. “Oh, the letter. Is it bad news?”
“I don’t know, I’m scared to open it,” she said, still staring at it. “It’s from my mother, that’s never good.”
“Tell you what, I’ll make us some tea and I’ll sit right here with you while you open it,” Mrs. Mathews said. “That way, if it’s bad news, you won’t be alone.”
“Thank you,” she said, letting out a sigh of relief. “I should be used to my mother by now, but it still hurts when I think how easily she turned her back on me.”
“Some people just weren’t meant to be parents,” Mrs. Mathews said, putting the kettle on the stove. “I’m sorry you got stuck with them, you deserve so much more.”
Mrs. Mathews came over to the table a few minutes later with the tea things, but she barely noticed; the letter had her complete attention. “Go on, open it,” Mrs. Mathews said, sliding a steaming cup over to her. “It can’t be any worse than the other stuff she’s done to you.”
She let out a long sigh. “Putting it off is only making it worse,” she said, grabbing the envelope and ripping it open, sighing with relief when she saw it was just a letter. “I thought for sure she was going to try and take my trust fund away again.”
After quickly scanning the letter, she folded it up and set it down on the table, then picked up her cup and took a cautious sip in case it was still hot. “My mother wants to make up,” she finally said, looking back down at the letter. “She goes on and on about mending fences and starting over, she says Justin won’tgrow up to be normal without grandparents in his life and I should be the bigger person and give her another chance.”
Mrs. Mathews was silent for a few seconds. “Wow, she sounds like a completely different woman,” she finally said. “How do you feel about it?”
She didn’t answer right away, needed to sort through her feelings. “She didn’t even apologize for what she did to me,” she said, shaking her head. “I can’t help but think there’s more to this than her being worried about Justin. She’s got another reason for trying to make up with me.”
“I wouldn’t be surprised, the woman only thinks about herself, and your father is no better. I’m sorry, Maddie,” Mrs. Mathews said. “What are you going to do?”
“Nothing,” she said, picking up the letter and walking over to the trash can. “Whatever my mother is up to, I don’t want any part of it. I’m going to pretend I never saw that letter and go on with my life.”
CHAPTER 13
***WALKER***
Pulling the car up to the curb, Walker looked up at the two-story brick house but didn’t get out of the car. Instead, he sat, waiting for Maddie, as she’d asked, even though his curiosity was eating him alive. He desperately wanted to know who or what was behind the closed door, but knew he also needed to respect Maddie’s privacy until she was ready to share that part of her life with him.
She’d been a little distant and distracted the last few days, like she had something important on her mind, but when he’d asked her, she’d acted like nothing was wrong. It bothered him that she wouldn’t confide in him; all he wanted to do was help, even just be there to listen if that’s all he could do. He’d never been in a lot of relationships, but he was pretty sure that’s what people did when they were dating.
Lost in his thoughts, he jumped when Maddie opened the door and got in, filling the car with a burst of cold air. “Hey, sorry to keep you waiting,” she said, flashing him a big smile. “Sometimes it’s so hard to get out of the house.”
“No problem, got everything?” he asked, putting the car into gear. “We’ve got just enough time to get there.”
“I’m good,” she said, buckling her seat belt. “Let’s hit the road.”
He’d been so pleased when she’d agreed to ride to the game with him; two hours in the car with Maddie sounded like pure heaven. But she was already staring out the window, her brows furrowed in unhappiness. After pulling away from the curb, he headed out of town, letting the silence between them stretch out, but as they crossed the city limits, he decided it was time to try and get her to talk about what was bothering her.
“You’ve been quiet the last few days,” he said, stealing a quick glance over at her. “I’m here if you want to talk about it.”
“How do you know something is wrong?” she asked, looking over at him. “I thought I was doing a good job of hiding it.”
“Not from me, I can feel it, Maddie,” he said, shrugging his shoulders. “I wish you would talk to me. I’ll just listen if that’s all you want, but you can trust me. I’d like to be here for you.”
Maddie studied him for a second, then looked out the window again, and he thought that was going to be the end of it. “My parents and I had a falling out after freshman year,” she finally said. “They disowned me and cut me off, they tried to take the trust fund that pays for my tuition and expenses away, and that was just the beginning of it,” she said, her voice barely above a whisper. “We haven’t spoken since then, but my mother sent me a letter the other day. She wants to make up, but something doesn’t feel right. I can’t stop thinking about it.”
“Oh, Maddie, I’m sorry, I thought you and your parents were really tight,” he said, reaching over and taking her hand. “That must be really hard. What are you going to do?”
“Nothing, well, except obsess over it for a while,” she said, shrugging her shoulders. “I don’t want to make up with them. I thought I was over it, but I guess it still hurts. I’ll be okay, I just need some time.”
