What Lucy didnotwant to do was confess she was feeling down because Gran had come home, and she was thrilled to see her, but it meant she didn’t have Nick around anymore.
“Just thinking about how daunting it will be to get in my car and just drive to Miami without much of a plan.”
Gran laughed. “You’ve driven farther than that without a plan.”
“That’s valid,” Lucy admitted, pulling out the chair across from Helen’s and dropping into it. “But this was a visit—like a time-out. Going to Miami is starting my actual life over. It’s what I’ve wanted for a while, but it feels…huge.”
“Itishuge. Chasing a dream is no small thing, and it shouldn’t be.”
“What if it doesn’t work out?”
“Then you’ll come back here and figure out a new plan.”
Lucy smiled sadly. “I can’t keep running back to you every time life gets hard.”
Gran laughed. “Of course you can. You come back here, you get a hug and lots of love, and you regroup.”
“Thank you, Gran.”
“Life is like a house, honey. You have to build thelifeyou want the same way you build a house—with a solid foundation—before you can live in it.” Gran reached across the table to cover her hand. “This home and I are your foundation, Lucy. We’re not going anywhere. We won’t shift with the tides. No matter where you go or what you do, we’re right here if you need us.”
For what was possibly the first time in her life, Lucy felt as though, if she fell, there was somebody there to catch her. To soothe her and help her get back on her feet. She could feel that unconditional love in Gran. She heard it in Nick’s voice when he talked about his brothers.
“I’m sorry I didn’t come visit,” Lucy said softly.
“And I’m sorry I didn’t encourage you to.” Helen closed her magazine. “It wasn’t easy for me to tell Iris I didn’t want to see her anymore. She’s my only child and I do love her, but…”
“Was it Jack?”
“No, not specifically. I never knew for sure if those rumors were true, or any of them, really. Because there were a lot. She’d disappear, but then she’d come back when she needed money. And while she was here, she’d stir things up again. She always wanted more—more excitement, more attention, more money. And she was beautiful, so men liked to give her those things—even the ones who weren’t single. She left a trail of heartbreak and anger every time she came through Wayward Harbor.”
“I’m sorry, Gran. She still…she still looks for men to take care of her.”
“I hoped she’d grow up and change—especially after she had you. But when your grandfather passed, when you were just a baby, she got worse. He’d always been tighter with the money, and she thought I’d be more vulnerable. And I was, for a while. The last summer you were here, the bank called me because she’d tried to use one of my checks to buy a car. And I told her she could leave and not come back, or I’d press charges. Losing you about killed me, sweetheart, but I couldn’t do it anymore.”
Lucy nodded sadly. “When I called to tell her I’d driven all the way here because I felt like she should know where I was, her first thought was for me to convince you to sell this place and move into a retirement home.”
Gran snorted. “I wish I could say that shocks me, but I would have expected nothing less from that girl.”
Her phone rang, startling both of them, and Helen laughed as she pressed her hand to her chest. Lucy picked it up, certain it was going to be Nick, checking on them. He’d already sent a text that morning, warning her to check the weather forecast and reminding her to put the cushions and umbrella way, which she had. Because him thinking about her gave her all kinds of mushy feelings, she’d sent back a heart.
She’d been overthinking that emoji choice ever since.
But when she looked at the screen, she saw her mother’s name. Frowning, she turned the phone so Gran could see it. “It’s Iris. Did we summon her somehow? Did she feel a disturbance when her daughter was given love and support?”
Sorrow flashed across Helen’s face before she hid it behind her usual loving expression. “You can answer it, sweetheart. It won’t bother me.”
Even though she hated the idea of her mother being in the room with Helen, even over the phone, Iris rarely called her. Maybe her boyfriend dumped her and she needed Lucy to pay the deposit on a new place to live, but there was a chance something was actually wrong. After taking a breath, she swiped to accept the call. “Hi, Mom.”
“Hello, Lucy. I haven’t heard from you at all, so I wanted to check and see how things are going there.”
“Everything’s fine. And with you?”
“Same,” Iris said, and Lucy could tell by the way she practically spit the word out that her boyfriend still hadn’t proposed. But at least she didn’t need money for a new apartment yet. “And how is my mother?”
“She’s doing well.” Lucy had no intention of offering more than that.
“Oh, that’s good.” Sure, that sounded totally sincere. “I’ve been looking into property values in the Wayward Harbor area, and it really would be foolish for her not to sell and move into a retirement condo somewhere. She’d have averytidy nest egg.”
