Linda sighed again and shook her head. “Jake, my love, you can’t call your grandfather’s fiancée the Wicked Witch. Her name is Ursula.”
“Yeah,” Jake said with a nod. “The Wicked Witch. You know, like in The Little Mermaid.”
“I’m beginning to think you watch too much television,” Linda tutted. “Now go and get your things.” She glanced at her wristwatch. “We need to get going. I still want to stop at the store to pick up some food.”
“Are you going to get some of those frozen pizzas?” Jake’s eyes lit with enthusiasm.
“We’ll see,” Linda promised as he turned and dashed out of the living room, heading for the kitchen.
Sophia lingered, her eyes bright with concern.
“Gran, if you don’t want us to go to Grandpa’s wedding, you just say the word.” She watched Linda intently. “Dad said you’re not going, so we’ll come be with you instead that day.”
“Weren’t you invited, Gran?” Jake asked, frowning, rushing back from the kitchen with his stuff and his sisters. “That’s rude.”
“I was invited,” Linda assured her grandson. “I’m just going to be out of town with Maggie that week. I promised her I’d help with one of the dress shows in California.”
“Is that the same week?” Sophia’s eyes widened. “I wanted to go with you and Maggie.”
“I know,” Linda said. “Maggie has another two shows in California this year and has promised we’ll go with her on the next one.”
“Are you sure you don’t want us to go with you to this one?” Jake asked. “I really don’t like Ursula.” He shook his head, his eyes sparking with a flash of hurt and anger. “Grandpa has only just divorced you, and he’s already planning to get married again.”
“We’re sorry, Grandma,” Sophia told her, taking a step toward Linda and hugging her. “Just say the word, and we’ll boycott Grandpa.”
Linda smiled warmly at their loyalty. “Oh, no, don’t do that.” She told them gently. “Your grandfather loves you regardless of our relationship. Besides, we didn’t end on bad terms.”
“Then why did you end?” Jake blurted out the question before his sister could stop him, and she elbowed him in the ribs, making him grunt.
“We just grew apart,” Linda answered honestly. “It happens sometimes. As you get older, you change, and sometimes that means you start to like different things.”
“That’s sad, Gran,” Sophia said.
“Yeah, and not the best argument for someone to get married,” Jake pointed out.
“Just because it happened to your grandfather and me,” Linda explained, “doesn’t mean it happens to everyone.” She smiled encouragingly. “Your grandfather is a good man, and he loves both of you very much. I don’t want you to ever turn away from him because of me.”
She didn’t tell them about the secret gambling, the broken promises repeated over and over, or the way Richard Thompson, her now ex-husband of just over a year, had quietly drained the separate savings account they had both agreed to keep when they first married. Linda bit back the anger that still burned in her gut. She would never burden these two lovely children, or her son and his wife, with how much Richard’s wedding was actually costing her. Because while she’d been paying off and cleaning up his debt, Richard was planning a splashy, lavish wedding at the end of summer. To keep his new bride, who was ten years younger than him, happy with the kind of wedding that made headlines in their social circle. While he was againgetting credit from goodness knows where, Linda quietly packed up the last of her life in this house. Because he was so much in debt, she’d had no option but to sell it because, as it turned out, somehow Richard’s debt had also become hers. The thought of it still stung, but she refused to let her grandchildren see that hurt.
Linda’s phone rang, pulling her from her thoughts. She glanced at the screen, and her smile softened with genuine warmth. “It’s your father.” She looked up into their bright eyes.
“Hello, my love,” she answered on speaker.
“Hi, Mom,” Ethan’s warm, steady voice filled the room. “How’s the packing going?”
“Much faster with my two wonderful helpers,” Linda told him, watching Sophia and Jake beam with pride.
In the background, Olivia called out cheerfully, “How are my babies?”
“Hey, Mom! Hey, Dad!” the children chorused, crowding closer to the phone. “We’re missing you but are very happy at Gran’s.”
“We miss you two sweeties,” their mom and dad chorused back. “I hope you’re behaving for your grandmother?”
“Of course they are,” Linda assured her son and daughter-in-law. “My grandbabies are angels.”
They chatted easily about Ethan and Olivia’s current medical assignment with Doctors Without Borders. The kids excitedly told their parents about the upcoming trip to the cabin with Gran and how they hoped the bouncy castles would still be there. After a few minutes, Ethan came back on the line.
“Enjoy the quiet of the lake, Mom. And send me some property listings when you start looking for a new place. We’ll help you find something perfect,” Ethan told her. “I agree with the kids in that you can’t live in that cabin in the woods for too long.”
