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20
KRISTEN
Ashland was a nice little drive away, but it was the closest city with an airport, a fact that I lamented as I waited in the terminal for my mother’s plane to land. It had been delayed twice now, both due to unforeseen weather in her adopted hometown of Listowel, Ontario. She had moved there because of a man she had met a few years ago and fell in love with the small farming community. When he passed away two years ago, he left her his house and belongings, and she’d stayed.
This would actually be only her second trip back to the States since she’d officially moved there, and I was beyond excited to see her come to me rather than the other way around. She had been pitching me moving to Ontario to work at the university there for years, and finally had given up on the idea when I told her about Camden. Now that we were engaged, she was coming to stay for a while, taking up residence in one of the rooms at Ryan and Allison’s bed and breakfast.
It was a super sweet gesture from the two of them, and though they both expressly said it wasn’t our wedding gift, I was adamant that they shouldn’t get us anything else. Making sure Mom was somewhere comfortable and easily accessible while she stayed in Texas was incredibly important to me, and I knew they would take care of her.
That was, if the plane ever landed.
Eventually, it touched down, and I went to the terminal where she would get off, and excitedly ran up to her when she got into the lobby area. She wrapped her arms around me, and I took a second to just hold her, not even realizing how much I had missed her until that moment. I knew I missed her, but not that much. We saw each other over video calls nearly every other day but being able to hug her was an entirely different experience.
“Oh, Kristen, I am so happy to see you,” she said. “Where is Camden? I was hoping I’d get to meet him.”
“He was here,” I said sadly. “But with all the delays, he had to go back to the ranch and take care of some things. Ryan and Allison just texted to let me know they are here to pick me up and take you to where you’ll be staying.”
“Darn,” she said in her classically reserved way. “When will I get to meet him then?”
“Tonight,” I said. “Providing you aren’t too tired. We thought we’d have a little dinner together.”
“That would be lovely,” she said.
“Good,” I replied. “We have reservations at this newer place called Mero’s. It’s really fancy. You’ll love it.”
“Oh, Kristen, the fanciest thing I’ve had in ages for dinner that wasn’t in my own house has been Burger King. There isn’t a whole lot up in Listowel.”
“It’s better than Burger King, Ma,” I laughed. “By a lot.”
“Hallelujah,” she said.
I helped her get her luggage, and we made our way out to the parking lot where Allison and Ryan were waiting in their oversized truck. Ryan hopped out and got the luggage in the bed, putting down the cover to protect it, and then opened the doors for Mom and then me.
When we arrived at the bed and breakfast, Camden’s truck was already there, and he came out of the front door as we pulled in. Mom’s face lit up when she saw him, and they exchanged a big hug. They had spoken a few times over video calls, but this was their first chance to meet each other, and I was so happy to see them get along. He helped with the bags, and when we had everything set up in the suite Mom would be staying in, Allison and Ryan bid us farewell, and we headed out to dinner.
“Seems like this area sure has built up,” Mom said as we drove to Mero’s.
“It has,” Camden said. “Lots of new businesses coming in.”
“A lot of that has to do with his ranch,” I said, bragging on him a little. “Camden’s business ventures have been very lucrative and are drawing people to this area.”
Camden shrugged. “I think my impact is less important than say, the Brewer’s rebuilt store or Graham running his baseball camp, but yeah, I suppose we’ve had some effect on revitalizing the town.”
Mom smiled at me and patted my leg.
“A modest man,” she said. “Reminds me of your father.”
I felt a warm rush of nostalgia run over me, and tears stung the corners of my eyes. I missed my father terribly. He had passed away in the line of duty as a state trooper when I was only fourteen. He’d missed so many things that he often talked about doing one day with me and walking me down the aisle was one I knew he would have wanted.
I wiped the tears away as we pulled into the restaurant and Camden got out to open our doors. Helping us both out of the truck, he then walked ahead and held open the door. It was the little things that I often took for granted that seemed to impress Mom. He wasn’t doing them for show; it was just how men acted down here. But to Mom, it was flashes of a bygone era and a time she missed with my father.
The dinner was spectacular, and Mom had a couple more glasses of wine than usual in celebration.
When we got Mom back in the truck and headed back to the bed and breakfast, she asked if I could stay with her for a little bit while she settled in.
“Go ahead,” Camden said, kissing my cheek. “Allison should have some extra pajamas and stuff she sells in the shop. Get what you need. I’ll pay them tomorrow. Stay with your mom.”
“Are you sure?” I asked.
