Ellie laughed. “What can you tell me about him?”
“Well, for starters, you won’t find a finer young man anywhere in Sims Chapel. But like most folks around here, he’s had a difficult upbringing.” Clara went to the sink and rinsed the saucer.
“Yeah, he told me about losing his father. By the way, I’m sorry for getting home so late. A storm ran us off the water, so we sat in the shack and talked and drank sweet tea while it passed.”
“No need to apologize, Ellie.” Clara cut the water and dried her hands. “Like I told you when you got here, I’m not your mother. That doesn’t mean you can go hog wild, mind you, but you’re a grown woman, for heaven’s sake. Besides, if you were with Jack, you were in good hands.” She put away the dishes in the cupboard, then leaned against the counter. “Speaking of your mother, she telephoned while you were out.”
Her heart rate kicked up a notch. “What did she want?”
“To know where you were and what you were doing.”
Ellie held her breath.
“I told her that you had gone next door to help one of the girls in the garden.” Clara winked at her.
“You didn’t have to do that, but thank you.”
“Don’t thank me yet. The reason she called was to see if I could arrange for a tutor to come by and help with your mathematics. She said you were having some trouble with algebra.”
“If you call getting an A minus trouble.” Ellie leaned back and folded her arms, irked that her mother, even from three hundred miles away, was still trying to control her life. “What did you tell her?”
“I told her what she wanted to hear, that I had the perfect person in mind. Her name is Sara Coffee. She’s a mathematics major at the University of Tennessee. Sara lives up the road with her mother and father and is sweet as pie. I talked to her a little bit ago, and she said she’d be glad to help. Trust me. You two will get along splendidly.”
“Can’t wait.”
Clara pulled out a chair and sat across from Ellie. “On the bright side, she’ll only be here in the mornings, which means you’ll have the afternoons to spend as you wish.”
Ellie perked up. “You mean it?”
Clara nodded.
“I guess I can live with that,” she said, thinking it could be worse.
Clara cleared her throat and looked earnest. “I don’t mean to pry, Ellie, so if I’m overstepping, just say so. But for someone your age, who appears to have a good head on her shoulders, your mother sure keeps a watchful eye on you.”
“You don’t know the half of it.” Ellie sighed, thinking how her relationship with her mother had deteriorated to the point that they hardly spoke to one another. “We were close once, but the truth is we rarely agree on much of anything these days. I suppose that’s part of the reason I’m here, so she doesn’t have to deal with me this summer.”
“Come now. That isn’t true, is it?”
“I’m afraid so. She and I have been at each other’s throats for years.”
“I hate to break it to you, darlin’,” said Clara, “but every girl your age fights with their mother.”
“They do?”
“Sure. When I was growing up, my mama and I fought like cats and dogs. You’d a thought we hated each other the way we carried on. And your mama was the same way.”
“Now that I can believe.” Ellie’s body relaxed. “But she’s only like that with me. She and Amelia hardly ever disagree on anything.”
“And how old is Amelia now? Sixteen? Seventeen?”
“She’ll be seventeen in October,” said Ellie.
“Well, if I was a bettin’ woman, I’d say her turn’s coming. You see, in your mother’s eyes, you’re still her baby, and her maternal instinct is to protect you even at your age. But eventually she’ll come around, one way or the other. They all do.”
“I hope you’re right.” Ellie wondered what it would be like to be friends with her mother rather than enemies. “Thanks, Aunt Clara. I feel better.”
“You’re welcome, honey.” A draft blew through the house, so Clara got up and shut the windows. “Now that we’ve solved the world’s problems, can I interest you in a piece of my world-famous blackberry cobbler? I made it fresh this afternoon.”
