AllFreeNovel
Share Us
She’d thought the movie would be a distraction, but she’d made the mistake of picking a sci-fi movie and every frame reminded her of Jonathan. She’d never gotten to read the final version of his sci-fi script. She wondered what he’d ended up doing for the turning point in act two. Now she’d never find out.
She got up and left before the end of the movie. It was obvious some of the characters were going to die, and some would live happily ever after, and she didn’t particularly care to find out which were which. Besides, the popcorn was making her feel sick to her stomach.
When she got home, Sally refused to greet her. She was mad that her dinner was late, so she walked to the far corner of the living room, turned her back, and petulantly groomed herself. Et tu, cat?
Esther gave Sally her food and crawled into bed. She didn’t even bother putting on pajamas, although she did take off her shoes. So what if she fell asleep in her clothes? Who was there to know? Or care? She was all alone in the world. She could die in her sleep and it would be days before anyone found the body, probably.
God, she was pathetic.
Esther rolled over and grabbed her phone off the nightstand. It was only nine thirty.
She called her brother.
“Hey,” he answered gruffly. The sound of his voice triggered an overwhelming wave of homesickness, and she hugged her pillow against her stomach.
She was so tired of being alone. It felt like her whole life in LA had fallen apart. Or maybe she’d never had much of a life here to begin with.
“I figured out a way to help you with Mom,” she said. “What if I moved back to Seattle?”
Chapter Twenty-Six
Esther didn’t have to stay in LA. She was an adult in charge of her own destiny, and she had family back in Seattle who would be glad to have her nearby. Eric, Heather, Gabe, even her mother. If she moved back home, she could see them more often. Get to watch her nephew grow up and be a regular presence in his life instead of a distant figure who visited a couple times a year. She could be part of a family, instead of being alone.
“What time is it?” Eric sounded dazed. Muddled.
“It’s nine thirty. Were you sleeping?”
“I fell asleep putting Gabe to bed.”
This was exactly why she needed to move back home. To take some of the load off Eric. He had his hands full with his own family. He shouldn’t have to take on all of Mom’s problems too. Esther could take some of the Mom stuff off his shoulders and she could help out with Gabe. It was win-win.
There was a rustling sound on the other end of the line, like Eric was moving around. “What are you talking about moving back here for?” He sounded a little more awake now.
“To help you. To help Mom. To help you help Mom.”
“Don’t be stupid.”
“I’d get to see more of my nephew. You and Heather too, obviously, but mostly I just care about your offspring.”
“You’re not moving back here.”
“Gabe’s toilet trained now, so I’ve missed the most unpleasant parts. It’s the perfect time to show up and start playing the indulgent aunt.”
“What’s going on?” Eric didn’t have any patience for her deflections tonight.
She sighed and rolled over onto her back. “I called Dad and asked him if he’d let Mom have one of his rental units.”
“That was dumb.” He didn’t need to ask what Dad’s answer was.
Eric had been older when their father left. He had more memories of their time as a whole family—and fewer illusions about what it had been like. Esther still held out hope that one day her father would be more of a father. Eric was right—she was dumb.
“I didn’t hear you coming up with any better ideas. I figured it was worth a shot.”
“It never is, with Dad.”
Sally butted her head against Esther’s hand, demanding affection. Esther scratched her behind the ears. “What are we going to do?”
“I told you I’d figure something out. You don’t have to worry about it.”
