“Maybe she swam off on the back of a dolphin,” Isabelle said. A faint giggle escaped from the pile of linens in the cart. “Or maybe she became a mermaid.”
“Or maybe she climbed to the top of the coconut palm and she’s eating coconuts with a monkey,” Letty said. “Which is okay, because if she’s eating coconuts, she won’t want any chocolate chip cookies, right? I guess you and I will have all the cookies to ourselves.”
The linens erupted and Maya popped her head out. “Here I am!” she declared. “I was hiding.”
“What?” Letty said, feigning shock. “I never would have guessed.” She scooped up her niece and deposited her on the floor of the laundry room.
Maya looked around the room. “I want cookies, Letty. Where the cookies at?”
“Miss Ava just baked them, and she said she would save some for you,” Letty said. “Can you go over to her apartment all by yourself?”
“I’ll take her,” Isabelle volunteered. “Then I’ll come back and give you a hand.”
“I go by myself,” Maya said. “I’m a big girl.”
Letty and Isabelle stood in the door of the laundry room, watching, until Maya reached the motel office and was greeted by Ava.
“How’sschool going?” Letty asked, as Isabelle helped her fold an unwieldy fitted sheet.
“Kinda boring, to tell you the truth,” Isabelle said, smoothing her hands over the folded sheet. “Graduation is in two months, but I’ve already finished most of the stuff I was supposed to do. School seems so lame right now. I’m ready for summer, and then college.”
“Senioritis,” Letty said. “I remember it well. But you’ve got so much exciting stuff still ahead of you yet. Take it from an old lady like me, don’t wish it all away.”
“You’re not that old,” Isabelle said, cocking her head. “You’re what, like, twenty-five?”
“I wish,” Letty said. “I’m thirty-three, but some days I feel like twice that old. Especially nights when Maya isn’t sleeping, or has one of her meltdowns.”
“She’s super smart, you know,” Isabelle said. “When I’m reading to her, she can sound out a lot of the words. And she can totally read the menu in the McDonald’s drive-through.”
“She’s got it memorized, unfortunately,” Letty said. “But I agree, she is pretty smart.” She sighed. “I guess I need to start thinking about kindergarten in the fall.”
“Here?” Isabelle asked. “I mean, do you think you’ll still be living here at the Surf?”
“I’m not sure,” Letty said. “Your mom has been so great to me, but living in a motel room isn’t an ideal situation for raising a child. Maya needs some stability. A room of her own. Maybe a backyard.”
“I get that,” Isabelle said. “I always used to wish we lived in a real house. My friends all think it’s so cool, living in a motel, with a pool right here and the beach and everything. They don’t really get that we live, like, above the store. Like, my mom is on call, twenty-four seven. If one of the guests’ air-conditioning isn’t working, they’llwake her up at two in the morning to bitch her out about it. And all the regulars think that they’re the boss of me. And Joe.”
“They think the same thing about me, if it makes you feel any better,” Letty said.
Isabelle nodded. “Where would you go, if you leave the Surf?”
“I’m not sure. I’m taking it a day at a time. I need to make plans, but right now, I feel sort of frozen.”
“Like Elsa,” Isabelle said, laughing at her own joke. “Well, I know I’m being selfish, but I hope you don’t leave anytime soon. My mom really, really likes you, and of course, she freakin’ adores Maya. I think it’s great that she can leave here for a few hours every day and have a life, knowing that you’re here and have things under control. I’ve been kind of worried, you know? About what will happen when I leave for school in the fall. I mean, Joe’s around, but not really around all the time like I am. I love my brother, but he’s kinda clueless when it comes to family stuff.”
“I envy you your relationship with your mom,” Letty said wistfully. “We didn’t really have that with my mom, growing up.”
“You and your sister? Maya’s mom?”
“Yeah,” Letty said.
“Is your mom around?” Isabelle asked. “I mean, she’s not dead, right?”
“No, she’s just not in my life. Hasn’t been for a long time,” Letty admitted. “She wasn’t what you’d call a traditional mom. She shipped us off to live with our grandparents when we were bratty teenagers and she was in the process of splitting up with her husband. We finished high school in West Virginia, then Tanya and I both kind of did our own thing.”
“Tanya?” Isabelle looked startled. “That’s your sister’s name? The one who died?”
Letty knew instantly, from the look on Isabelle’s face, that she shouldn’t have let Tanya’s name slip. But it was too late to take it back now.
