A Year on Ladybug Farm - Donna Ball [18]
As though in answer to her unspoken thought, Kevin said abruptly, “Mom, Kate and I have been talking it over, and we think you should go live with her.”
Bridget’s eyebrows shot up. “With Kate? In Chicago? Why in the world would I want to do that?”
Her children exchanged a glance in which Kevin was apparently elected spokesperson. The way he squared his shoulders and jutted out his chin reminded Bridget so much of his father that she felt a stab of longing in her chest. He said, “Mom, we know losing Dad has been hard on you. You’ve never been alone before. And God knows, he didn’t exactly leave you a wealthy woman . . .”
Bridget said sharply, “Your father was a college professor. He did the best he could.”
“What we’re trying to say,” Kate intervened quickly, “is that we know this whole plan of moving to the country is just your way of trying to build a new life for yourself. But it’s just not necessary, Mom. I mean, moving in with two strangers—”
“Sinking all your assets into a broken-down old house and leaving the only life you’ve ever known—”
“It’s not as though you don’t have a family, or anyplace to go. You don’t have to do this,” Kate repeated. She took a breath, tightened her fingers in her lap, and declared, “We’ll take care of you.”
Bridget’s first reaction was astonishment. What did she mean, they would take care of her? What was she, a hundred and eight years old? And her second reaction was a flare of anger at the grim determination on Katie’s face as she made the announcement, as though having considered all the options and weighed all the evidence they had come to the reluctant conclusion that yes, they had no choice but to step up and take care of their mother, no matter how inconvenient, how great the sacrifice.
She wanted to say, Damn right you’ll take care of me, Missy. When I’m old and sick and too tired to feed myself and too weak to dress myself, you’ll do it for me just like I did for you. You’ll tie my shoes and wipe the drool off my chin and change my diapers just like I did for you about a hundred and thirty-seven times a day for the best years of my life. You’ll put a roof over my head when I can’t afford to do it myself and you’ll put groceries in my cupboard when my only other choice is to eat cat food and you’ll take me where I want to go when the state takes my driver’s license just like I did for you for the first twenty years of your lives and by God you’ll do it with a smile on your face.
But then she saw the strain behind the bravado in Kate’s eyes, and the fear disguised as determination in Kevin’s, and her heart softened. They had lost their father at the same time she had lost her husband. They, too, were trying to find their place in a world without him. And the sudden realization that the one person they had always depended upon—their mother—might need them to take care of her was more than an inconvenience. It was terrifying.
She said, “Thank both of you for worrying about me. But it’s not necessary, really. I’m fine.”
Kevin said, “It’s not Cici and Lindsay, you know that. We love them like family, always have. I’ve looked at the contracts and they seem fine, but I don’t think you realize what a potentially devastating risk this is. I know they’re your best friends, but owning property together—”
“You could lose everything,” Katie said, “including their friendship. It’s just crazy, Mom. Come to Chicago. There’s a three-bedroom apartment becoming available in a few months in my building, and with your help we could afford to move. Meanwhile, there