“Want to go for a walk?” she cooed.
His ears perked up and he lifted his head, but he didn’t move.
“For real. I want to take you for a walk. Should we go?”
That did it. Baxter hopped off the bed and raced for the hallway. Laughing, Jessica followed him for a change. Outside, it was a warm, early spring afternoon. The air was fresh with the smell of the day’s rain and the sun was starting to go down, giving a magical glow to the world. Jess strolled along, hoping she wouldn’t run into any neighbors who wanted to talk about what Noah had done. Or worse, saw a neighbor whodidn’twant to talk to her. Of course, both of those things would happen at some point, but for once in her life, she wasn’t going to let that bother her. She was going to hold her head high, knowing that everybody makes mistakes, and anyone who didn’t understand that wasn’t worth knowing.
By the time they got back to the house, the sun was just setting, and Baxter trotted along beside Jess, his tongue hanging down and a wide smile on his little face. Jess was happy too, because by the end of the evening, she’d have made things right between her and Winnie. And that was something else that should have been done a long time ago.
* * *
“Pizza’s here!” Jess called up the stairs.
Noah’s door opened first and he came out with a novel in his hand. The sight of it warmed her heart. Maybe him losing screens for six months was going to be a blessing in disguise. Her stomach lurched at the thought of them going to the Pattersons’ on Sunday so he could apologize and offer to make amends, but it wasn’t keeping her up at night. That was his stuff and he was going to handle it. He already wrote up a list of ways he can make it up to them, including mowing their lawn for the next year, painting their fence, and walking their dog. Whether they’d take him up on any of it was anybody’s guess, but they’d handle the consequences as a family. Noah smiled down at her. “Did you order pizza?”
“I did.”
“Sweet!”
A couple of minutes later, the four of them were seated around the kitchen table together—something they hadn’t done since November. Noah was shoveling the pizza into his mouth as fast as he could chew, Mike was sipping at his beer, and Winnie, who had yet to say anything, was picking the mushrooms off her slice.
Jess took a deep breath. “So, I’ve made a decision that you should all know about.”
That got their attention. All three of them stopped what they were doing and waited.
Jessica’s heart pounded a little, knowing she was about to serve herself up some humble pie to go with the pizza. “I’m not going to law school.”
“Seriously?” Winnie asked at the same time Noah said, “How come?”
“Yes, seriously, and the reason is because I don’t want to be a lawyer.”
Mike set his beer down, his expression difficult to read. If Jess had to guess (which she did), she’d say he was doing his best not to look too excited, in case what felt like good news was actually bad.
Jess offered him a smile that said, ‘go ahead and be happy.’ “After months of working in a law office, I’ve discovered that I have absolutely no interest in practicing law. I’d hate it. I would really, really hate it.”
“But I thought it was your dream?” Noah said.
“It was, but as it turns out, some dreams are better in your imagination than they are in reality.”
“Does this mean you’re not taking our college money?” Winnie asked, her eyes narrowed.
Jess stared at her daughter for a second, trying to decide how to answer. “You know, Winnie. I earned that money. It took me eight years. That’s a lot of shifts at the pottery shop, cleaning up after people. Hundreds, in fact, cleaning up after thousands of people. So, instead of acting like you’re entitled to it, you should show some appreciation.”
Winnie’s cheeks turned slightly pink. “You’re right. I’m sorry. I’ve just been so scared that I won’t be able to go to Stanford, or that even if I stayed here for college, I’ll still wind up so deep in debt, I’ll never be able to afford a place of my own. I guess I didn’t really think about what you’ve done for me.”
“No, you didn’t. And even though I wanted to do that for you, and I’m proud of how much money I’ve managed to save, it’s still a gift. And gifts should be accepted with gratitude.”
Winnie offered her a tentative smile. “Pleases and thank yous are for everyone.”
Jess smiled at her. “Yes, even for moms.”
“I’m sorry. And I am grateful for whatever you can give me.”
Nodding, Jess said, “Good. Because I’ve already put back what I spent on my night class, and then some.”
“So I can…” Winnie started, but then stopped herself, seeming too overcome with emotion to finish her question.
“Go to Stanford?” Jess asked.
