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“You know what I’ve learned, though?” he said. “Your mother is still in there. Yesterday when I visited, she couldn’t remember my name, but when I mentioned I wanted to make pumpkin pie for Christmas, she smiled and told me you like extra cinnamon in your pie. Clear as day.”
His weathered hands gripped the door handle. “The woman we knew is still there, Wes. Just harder to reach sometimes.”
Wes felt his throat tighten. Those bursts of clarity were both a blessing and a curse, brief glimpses of the mother he remembered, followed inevitably by her return to confusion.
“I know it’s hard on you kids,” Stanley continued. “But having her nearby feels right. Family should be together when they can be.”
As he got out to help his grandfather out of the truck and unload his groceries, Wes thought about Thanksgiving and about being grateful for his mother’s fleeting moments of recognition.
Maybe Stanley was right. Maybe proximity mattered, even when nothing else made sense.
Chapter 5
“Two months! This is a huge commitment. I really hope you know what you’re doing.”
The shock in her twin sister’s voice rang through the phone line, loud and clear, and Hannah winced as her own misgivings threatened to paralyze her.
“I don’t,” she admitted. “You of all people should know that. I’m an expert at having all these grandiose ideas that I have no idea how to implement.”
“Yet you always somehow figure it out. Remember that time you offered to write and produce an entire musical for our church youth group in three weeks? Everyone said it was impossible, but you pulled it off and it was beautiful.”
She hardly remembered that particular episode, a lifetime ago. She did remember being terrified she wouldn’t know what to do, just as she was now.
“What else could I say, Holly?”
“Nothing. You’re right. Offering to take them in was completely the right thing. I totally agree. I wish I had offered first. If you need me to help, I can step in.”
“You don’t have any extra room in Rose Cottage. I do. Plus you’re plenty busy with the store and with Lydia. My schedule is more flexible.”
“Not much.”
“Maybe a little. I don’t have Lydia. Hol, Morgan doesn’t have anyone else.”
“We’re lucky, aren’t we? We have a whole network around us.”
“If I can provide Carter and Riley with some stability amid their fear for their mother, I have to try.”
“Have you told Mom?”
“Yes. I texted her earlier today. She’s invited Morgan and the kids for Thanksgiving dinner tomorrow, of course.”
“She’ll be thrilled to have a couple of extra children around for the holidays. You know how much she longs for more grandchildren.”
“Fully aware.”
Their mother’s biggest frustration was that of her four children, all in their thirties, only one—Holly—had chosen to reproduce thus far.
“She can borrow them temporarily but I’m afraid she’ll have to wait a long time if she’s looking for more grandkids permanently,” Hannah said. “In a few months, Morgan will be done with treatment and the kids will go back with their mother. But in that time, I want to do my best to help Riley and Carter feel stable and comfortable.”
“Do you need help setting up your other guest bedroom? Lydia and I would be more than happy to help you figure out how to put together the bed frame.”
As she looked out the window, she saw headlights pulling into her driveway and her heartbeat accelerated.
Wes and his grandfather were there.
She debated how much to tell her sister then finally decided there was no reason to lie.
“I have help, actually. I bumped into Wes and Stanley Kenner at the store and Stanley volunteered to help me. I think they just pulled up.”
