Madge gave her a faint smile. “We didn’t sign the papers.”
Harper leaned forward until she was perched on the edge of her chair. “Really? You changed your mind?”
“Yes, for now. We have years of issues to work out.” She glanced at the crumbs remaining on her dessert plate, then back at her daughter. “I’m glad you and your father are working on your relationship too. I should have done more to encourage that.”
“Mom, don’t you think you did enough?” Harper said. “You were always there for me growing up. I wouldn’t be where I am without you.”
Madge reached for Harper’s hand. “I was hard on you sometimes.”
“And a little smothering—let’s be honest.”
She sighed. “I felt I had a lot to make up for because of your father’s absence.”
Harper nodded. “I understood that, too, once I got older.” She squeezed Madge’s hand and let go. “I think all three of us are starting over, in different ways.”
“What do you mean?”
Harper paused, and Madge noticed that she wasn’t wearing her false eyelashes today. Good. She looked much better with her natural ones. Her daughter was such a beauty, both inside and out.
“I’m thinking about taking some time off,” Harper said.
“That’s a great idea. A vacation would do you a world of good.”
“I don’t mean a vacation. I’m talking about a month. Maybe more.”
Alarm rose within her. “Is something wrong at work?”
“Yes, but I think it might be a good thing.” At Madge’s puzzled look she added, “I’m still figuring stuff out, though. Reevaluating, Dad calls it.”
“I’m doing some of that myself.”
Harper sipped on her latte. “Like going back to interior design school?”
“No, nothing that crazy. I thought about buying some leggings, though.”
Harper laughed. “You should do both.”
Madge shook her head. “I’m too old to go back to school.”
“You are not. There are plenty of nontraditional students in colleges today. Besides, you love interior decorating, and you’re good at it. The lake house looks like it belongs in a magazine.”
“I did enjoy decorating that.” Madge mulled the idea over. “I’ll think about it,” she said.
“What about the leggings?” Harper asked.
“Oh, I’mtotallygetting those.” They both laughed, and she took Harper’s hand again. “I love you. And I’m proud of you, no matter what you decide to do. I know whatever it is, you’ll be successful.”
“Thanks, Mom,” Harper said, tears in her pretty eyes. “I love you too.”
***
“If I was younger, I’d take you straight out to the woodshed, young man.”
Rusty shot a glare at Senior, who was adjusting his bow tie while he waited for an Uber to pick him up and take him to the ALS gala. He’d offered to take Senior himself, but his grandfather refused. “If you’re not going, I’m not riding with you,” he’d huffed.
“We don’t have a woodshed,” Rusty said, irritated that Senior was being so ridiculous.
“I’m surprised you didn’t build one, considerin’ all the repairs you’ve done on this house. Never seen it so spiffy before.”
