“No. I don’t know. They might be at the ADU. I just…I just came to and called you.”
“Okay. I’m so glad you called me.”
“I broke one of Lauren’s mugs.”
“Oh,hon.” The sympathy in Georgia’s voice practically reverberated across the line. Just as he knew it would. He felt blood rush to his cheeks anyway.
He was embarrassed he’d said it.
He was embarrassed he hadn’t been able to make himself go outside and collect the broken pieces first, before he had to call his mom. That he’d broken the mug at all.
“Have you reached out to her recently?”
“No.”
He wasn’t sure Lauren would like to hear from him anyway; he’d never seen much good come from reaching out to exes. And either way, Lauren was from Before.
“It wasn’t the only mug of hers you have left, was it?” There was a twinge of desperation to Georgia’s voice, one he could tell she regretted from the way she cleared her throat after she asked it. The corner of his mouth twitched, a hint of relief opening up in his chest.
His mom knew Lauren was in the past, respected it. She just couldn’t say goodbye to good pieces of art.
“No. Although most of the rest are at your spot.”
This was how he’d always referred to the ADU.Your spot.
“It rather sounds like it’s Mae’s spot, now.”
Dell held in a groan. Georgia had known Mae had moved in the week it happened. It had been the most interesting thing he’d had to report during their Sunday afternoon chats for months. Even if he knew she’d give him shit about it. He had made some resolutions, after the incident. One of which was to call his mom more. To tell her things. To keep her close, even if she refused to leave Michigan.
It was probably the best resolution he’d ever kept.
“That’s temporary.”
“Maybe it shouldn’t be.”
“Mom.”
An airy, Midwestern mom noise was her only response.
“I just…I don’t know what happened.” Dell returned to the moment at hand. Sometimes he was able to talk it out. “Maybe they just knocked at the door and it took me by surprise, but it’s been three years. That shouldn’t be enough to trigger me anymore. Unless they were outside shooting off fireworks or something?—”
Dell stopped himself short. He knew setting off fireworks at ten in the morning without giving him notice wasn’tactuallya logical thing for Mae to do. Then again, this was Mae they were talking about. Dell could never quite predict what she would do.
But no. He shook his head at himself. He didn’t know what had happened, but whatever it was, if Mae had been involved, Dell knew she hadn’t deserved it. That he’d probably scared the shit out of her.
Dell’s stomach clenched into a stone.
“It’s been so long since I’ve had a trigger,” he eventually mumbled into the phone.
“Well,” Georgia said slowly, “it is getting close, you know. October 4th is just around the corner.”
Dell froze, momentarily stunned.
And then he blew out a hard breath.
Fuck.
“Did you forget?” Georgia asked when Dell didn’t respond, her voice so soft Dell could barely hear her. “That the anniversary was coming up?”
