Page 70 of Learning at 40

“My husband used the wrong credit card. Can you just confirm the amount and I’ll get the correct one?”

The man scratches the back of his neck. “We let the office handle such things, but I’ll give you the number both for the amount and the manager.” When he tells me how much the fence removal plus cleanup will cost, I almost fall over. I should deny the damn gesture, but something stops me.

“As long as you’re here, proceed. I’ll call your office, so I can clear up the credit card issue.”

Looks like I just bought myself fence removal, eliminating all barriers around me.

+ + +

The day turns into quite an exciting event. Anna’s worried about me and asks me to join her for dinner at her house. I think she also wants the company. I quickly learn Mason had left.

“Last year was the first time we’d had everyone here in a long time. My siblings and I own the place and used it as a vacation destination. My younger sister, Amelia, never visits, though, and my older brother, Archer, comes and goes on his own schedule without notice. After the other families left last year, Ben and I returned to Chicago, packed up our house, and moved. It was a whirlwind from that moment on. I didn’t realize how quiet it would be once everyone was gone.”

Despite dinner at her house, we came to my yard to enjoy the view and after-dinner wine. Anna gazes out at the sunset, which arrives a little sooner each evening as the calendar creeps toward September. We’re sitting together on my chaise lounge.

“Did you want Mason to stay?” There was a certain something in her voice when she told me he’d left.

Anna’s forehead furrows, deep in consideration. “No, he needed to leave.” She takes a deep breath. “Still, it’s almost too quiet with just the boys and Mila. Calvin and Bryce are busy with football practice beginning and their final days working with the landscaping company. Most days, it’s just Mila and me, and even she’s gotten used to going down the street to see Lorna, or Lorna comes to our house, and they disappear into Mila’s room.” She sighs. She doesn’t need to say it, she’s lonely.

Anna glances at the side of her property along my yard. “It really does look better.” She pauses a beat. The removal of the fence left perfectly spaced holes with a fresh circle of sod to fill in the missing posts. It does look better, but it takes some getting used to. It’s definitely a cleaner look.

“I can’t believe Zack’s father showed up,” she adds.

“Yeah, that was unexpected.” When Mr. Weller surprisingly showed up in my yard today, I saw the resemblance between father and son better. His silver eyes. His edgy cheekbones. His charming smile. It was a bold move to drop by the house. Perhaps he intended Anna’s place, but the ruckus in my driveaway drew him here. He was looking for his son. Zack’s disapproval of his father stems from resentment and hurt and a grieving heart, but still, he had been too harsh, in my opinion.

Anna glances at me. “I assume you know Zack’s history with his dad. It was an awful time for him. He really struggled. He was used to being popular and top alpha, much like little Trevor. He felt stripped of everything good when it happened, and then he had to face it every day. The rumors. The gossip. The judgment.”

I knew the feeling as I remained at the hospital after Quincy’s passing, his generous gift, and the unwarranted accusations. Although I wasn’t there long before they let me go.

“He meant well,” she says, nodding back at where the fence once stood. It feels weird without it although I never liked it.

“I didn’t exactly accept the offer, though,” I remind her, having maxed out my credit card to cover the cost. Guess the yard will continue to be my focus, and I’ll save the inside renovations for another year.

“River, I’m going to say something, and I don’t want you to take it the wrong way.” Anna pauses, taking a deep breath. “But don’t run from him.”

“I’m not the one who had to leave,” I remind her.

“I mean his love. Don’t shy away because of a silly misunderstanding. Everything has an explanation. It can be repaired.” She waves her hand toward the new, lush sod and open space between the yards. My eyes lift to the tree fort, where the old platform was removed and a new one built along with a beautiful square structure including windows and a roof.

“Broken trust is hard to repair,” I tell her. He didn’t trust me, and that was hard to accept.

“Yes, but it’s still something mendable.” There are cases when trust is irreparably broken, but Anna is correct. “It can be fixed and forgiven.”

My grandfather would have adored Anna Kulis.

I stare off at the lowering sun myself, questioning so many things. Zack hurt me. I don’t need that kind of pain in my life, but then again, I’m fortunate Zack is still here, alive. Anna will never have the opportunity to fight and make up with Ben again. She will never have the chance to mend fences between them or remove boundaries. She’s alone, and as much as I hate to admit it, I’m lonely as well without the boys having tree house adventures and Zack hoarding my chaise lounge.

27

[Zack]

“Mr. Weller, just wanted to let you know the job is complete, and your wife settled up with the mix-up in credit cards,” the fence company worker says through the phone.

“What mix-up?” I question, tipping back in my leather desk chair, staring out my office window at the river separating Detroit from Canada.

“The incorrect credit card. Your wife paid with her card.”

“She what?” I lean forward, and my feet hit the floor with a thud. What was River doing?