That name brought back the resentment. I understood, to a certain extent, why Ali hadn’t told me she was pregnant. I still didn’t get why she’d turned to a guy who was supposed to have been my friend. That was going to take some time.
Before I could ask her about him, Bridget ran back down the steps and leaped onto the sofa between us. “I couldn’t decide which ones to bring down, and I only wanted to show you my best.”
“Hey, no fair.” I brushed the back of my fingers over her cheek. “I want to see them all.”
“I will, but I wanted you to see my best first.” She grinned, and then her smile faded as she saw her mother’s face. “Mommy, what’s wrong? Why’re you crying?”
“Oh, I’m fine, baby. These are happy tears. I’m so glad your daddy is here with us.”
“Me, too.” She reached out her small hand to touch my knee and the other to take her mother’s hand. “Even if my daddy can’t live here, I’m glad we’re a family.”
A family.I met Ali’s eyes, and I saw thinly-veiled panic there before it melted into something that might have been close to hope.
CHANGE HAD NEVER BEEN my friend. When I was little, it took me weeks to adjust to the twice-a-year daylight savings time shift. And when I left home to live with Craig after we got married, I almost lost my mind. I hated being out of my routine and having to establish a new one.
Once Bridget and I had moved home, I’d quickly established a schedule and my own way of doing things. I’d reorganized the kitchen in my new role as woman of the house, and I’d laid down ground rules for Sam about helping me keep things clean and running smoothly. For the last seven years, our lives had remained essentially the same, with just a few tweaks in the schedule when Bridge started school.
Of course, a couple of things had changed when Meghan became a permanent part of our world, but even so, she’d been careful to adapt to our home and rules. I liked the fact that she cooked for us occasionally, that she took her turn at the dishes and helped with Bridget. As long as she didn’t rock my boat, I wasn’t going to complain. Sure, as I’d told Alex, sometimes I worried about what would happen when she and Sam made it all official, but I’d figure that out when it happened.
At the moment, I had a more pressing concern. When he’d left the farm on Friday afternoon, just before dinner, Flynn had suggested that we work out a schedule for him to see Bridget. He’d also asked if he could take her to meet his mother over the weekend. I couldn’t say no, of course, and I didn’t want to; Bridget was ecstatic about the plan, and I loved Cory Evans. She’d been good to me when I was dating Flynn, even stepping in to mother me once in a while. I remembered when it came time for our junior prom. There was no question that Flynn and I would go, but I was secretly dreading it. All my friends were talking about picking out gowns with their mothers, pretending to complain all the while I could tell they loved it. I knew Sam and I didn’t have the money for a fancy new dress. We were doing okay, thanks to help and guidance from the Guild, a group of local businessmen who’d taken Sam under their collective wing. But doing okay didn’t extend to trips to Savannah for gown shopping, even if I’d wanted to go by myself.
About a month before the dance, Cory had stopped me as I was leaving her house after a study date with Flynn.
“Ali, honey, could I have a quick word with you?” She flicked a glance to her son. “Flynn, run out and warm up the car.”
He wrinkled up his brow. “It’s not that cold, Mom.”
“Do it anyway, and don’t argue with your mother.”
Flynn was smart enough to obey, and with a shrug, he headed through the front door. My heart was pounding: I couldn’t imagine why his mother wanted to talk to me alone. Remembering what had happened down at the river two weeks before—Flynn and I had finally gone all the way—made me feel guilty as hell.Did she know? How could she?
Cory pointed to a stool at her kitchen breakfast bar. “Sit down, sweetie.” Once I’d boosted myself onto the chair, she leaned her elbows on the granite countertop. “Listen, Ali, I don’t want to overstep my bounds here. I know I’m not your mom, but I can imagine how much you miss her. And I was just thinking today that maybe you might want to go shopping with me for your prom gown. We could drive into Savannah if you like.”
My breath caught. “Really? Oh, wow, that would be . . .” Suddenly I remembered that the money for my dress was tied up on our fields, in the onions and peaches and what-all Sam had growing. My smile faded. “That would be great, but I’m not sure I can. I was just going to check out the thrift store in Farleyville.”
She nodded. “That’s perfectly okay, if that’s what you want. I’d still like to go with you.”
So that Saturday, Cory picked me up out at the farm, and we drove to the thrift store. I’d heard stories of almost-new gowns, beautiful dresses for just a few dollars. But apparently we were too late for those, since the only possibilities on the racks were tired old bridesmaids’ gowns or worn dresses that were several sizes too big for me. I flipped through the hangers one more time as desperation stiffened my shoulders.
“Ali, there’s nothing.” Cory put one soft hand on my back. “Honey, hear me out. Let’s just go into the city for kicks and see what we see. Sometimes they have amazing sales, and who knows . . . you might find something.”
Since she was driving—and since I recognized the determined gleam in her eyes, as I’d seen it often enough in her son’s—I really didn’t have a choice. And once I’d spotted the silvery-blue strapless gown with the soft lace overlay, I was a goner. When I checked the price tag, I nearly died. But Cory only covered my hand with hers.
“Ali, please. Let me do this for you.” She drew in a shaky breath. “When your mama died, I just felt so . . . helpless. There was nothing I could do for you and Sam, other than cook you some meals and try to be there for you if you needed me. But this is something I could do, on behalf of your mother. I want to think that if it’d been Brice and me who weren’t here anymore, your parents would be good to him. I can’t take her place, but I can make sure you have the perfect dress to wear to your prom. Please?”
I couldn’t say no. And when I saw the look on Flynn’s face the night of prom, I was glad I hadn’t.
So I had no qualms about Bridget hanging out with her grandmother. It was just the idea of sharing my daughter’s time with her father from now on that made my stomach clench. I was used to being the only parent, the one authority and the one who called all the shots. Sam had always been there as my back-up, to make sure Bridge knew she wasn’t going to get away with any nonsense. But he deferred to me as the one who made the rules and was the final say in my child’s life. Having to adjust to sharing wasn’t going to be easy.
Flynn was very business-like when he called me on Saturday morning. I’d just gotten to the stand and was unlocking the register when my phone rang.
“Hey, Ali. It’s Flynn.”
I had a dizzying flash of déjà vu and had to swallow hard before I answered. How many times had I answered his calls with anticipation and a swell of happiness? Too many to count. But now everything was different.
“Hey, Flynn. What’s up?” Silently I congratulated myself on sounding grown up and smooth. I could do this.
“I just wanted to let you know . . . I canceled my flight for today and backed out of the job I had in Los Angeles. I’m going to stay in Burton for the time being.”
