1105 Yakima Street - Debbie Macomber [83]
A moment after Olivia got home, Jack pulled into the driveway behind her. He’d been to an AA meeting and, as was his habit afterward, had gone for coffee with his friend and sponsor, Bob Beldon.
“How was the meeting?” she asked, walking back to join him.
“Good.” Jack wrapped his arm around her waist and kissed her. “How’d everything go with your mother and Ben?”
She blinked back tears, and Jack leaned forward to get a better look at her. “Liv?”
“Not good…”
“Come inside and tell me about it.”
The early evening was dreary and overcast, and it reflected how Olivia felt. With his arm around her waist, Jack led her into the house through the back door.
While he removed his coat, Olivia put on the kettle for tea. This was something her mother had done all her life. Whenever it was time to have a serious discussion, Charlotte would reach for the teakettle and her favorite ceramic teapot with the butterflies painted on it.
Olivia remembered the day she’d come over to tell her mother that she and Stan were separating. Olivia had been emotional and weepy. That had been the most horrible year of her life, and her mother, teapot in hand, had been a constant source of love and support.
In a one-year span, Olivia’s oldest son had drowned and her marriage had fallen apart. She didn’t know what she would’ve done if not for her mother and, of course, Grace.
“Olivia?” Jack asked gently. “You’ve been standing in front of the stove for five minutes.”
“I have?” Embarrassed, she brushed the tears from her cheeks. “I was just remembering all the talks I had with my mother over tea,” she whispered.
Jack guided her toward a chair, then set out two mugs. At the moment Olivia felt incapable of performing even that simple task. Reaching across the table she grabbed a tissue and blew her nose. “I’m sorry. I’m being ridiculous.”
“No, you aren’t,” Jack said.
“I was thinking about the day Mom made me tea when Stan and I decided we couldn’t stay married.”
“What brought that up?”
“I…I don’t know exactly. It’s just that she was so wonderful, so reassuring and supportive. That wasn’t the only time, either. I could always count on her to see me through whatever crisis I faced.”
“And you can’t now?”
She shook her head. “Everything’s reversed—I’m the one taking care of Mom. She needs me more than I need her. So does Ben.” She held the tissue to her mouth and swallowed a sob.
Jack stood behind her and rubbed her shoulders. “You have me and your brother and your kids.”
“Yes, I know. But this is…different.”
The kettle whistled and Jack returned to the stove. He poured the water into the pot and carried it to the table.
“This is all because of taking your mother and Ben to the house?”
“Oh, Jack, it’s so hard for me to watch my mother grow old… . She’s trying to pretend everything’s the same, but it isn’t. Today it was even more obvious that she and Ben can’t stay in the house much longer.”
“Do you want me to talk to them?” he asked after a short pause. “My parents both died years ago, so I haven’t been through this, but…”
“No. I appreciate the offer, but this has to come from Will and me. I can’t blame Mom. I wouldn’t want to leave my home, either. And then there’s the problem of what to do with the house itself.”
When they’d visited the assisted-living complexes, both Olivia and Will had felt encouraged and excited. It’d all sounded so positive, with a variety of programs that would keep her mother and Ben entertained and