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Exhaling, Macie said, “There are some things that will need to stay personal, even if we are family.”
“I understand.”
Macie tried not to be suspicious. Had Holt talked to his mom or something?
“Holt told us about your mother and how she died,” Heidi said. “I’m so very sorry, my dear.”
Macie gazed into the blue eyes of the woman who had done a one-eighty in a matter of minutes. Her compassion was undeniable, and Macie regretted the negative thoughts she’d had toward this woman. Heidi had more than her fair share of trials. “Thank you,” Macie whispered, because it was all she could manage at the moment.
Heidi clasped her hands together. “Holt also told me that you know . . . about my . . . cancer.” Her voice was so faint that Macie wasn’t sure if she’d heard her right. “I meant to tell you, but it’s hard, you know.”
Macie’s eyes burned. “I know.”
Then Macie moved forward and hugged Heidi. Could life get both harder and sweeter at the same time? Maybe she’d misjudged this woman.
When they drew away, there was a new understanding, a new bond, between the two women. It was as if Macie had the mother that she’d been missing for so many years, and Heidi had healed a small part of the broken heart caused by her son’s actions.
“When’s your next appointment?” Macie asked. “I want to go with you.”
“Oh, you don’t have to do that,” Heidi protested, though she was smiling through her watery eyes.
“I want to,” Macie said. “It would be my honor. I might know a thing or two.”
Heidi nodded. “All right, dear. We have a date next Tuesday, then.”
“It’s a plan.” Macie wiped the last of her tears, her heart near to bursting. This was family, she knew. Spending time with Heidi, while her daughter was sitting on her grandpa’s lap, in a house full of warmth and concern.
“Go tonight,” Heidi said, breaking into the warm buzz surrounding Macie. “Make new friends in Prosper.”
Macie exhaled. “I don’t know . . .”
Her phone vibrated. Sure enough, another text from Barb. Macie held up her phone with a half-smile. “She’s like a pit bull.”
Heidi laughed, then Macie laughed, too.
“What does it say?” Heidi asked, her blue eyes bright, as if they were two girlfriends discussing their crushes.
Macie cleared her throat and read, “Checking in again, hon. Still plenty of time to get dolled up. Just come for one hour, and if you don’t like it, then I’ll bring you home. Promise.”
“That’s a pretty good offer,” Heidi said, her eyes still twinkling. “Hard to pass up.”
Macie looked again at the series of texts. Something bubbled inside of her, like anticipation, or excitement? She wasn’t sure which. “Okay.” She looked at Heidi. “I’ll go. But I’ll probably be back in an hour.”
Heidi grinned. “Good for you, dear. Now . . . what are you going to wear?”
Ninety minutes later, after Ruby had been tucked in more than once, and Macie had finished her hair and makeup in the bathroom, it was nearly time for Barb to pick her up.
Holt still hadn’t returned, but Macie couldn’t think about that. Why should it matter to her anyway? Neither of his parents had commented much on it, so maybe he was going to spend the night at his own house in town. Maybe he had other things to do. Things outside of Prosperity Ranch. Things that had nothing to do with her.
As she touched up her lip gloss for the third time in the mirror, she wondered who she’d be fixing breakfast for in the morning? Would it include Holt?
“Stop,” she muttered to herself. Tonight, she was going out—to a small-town bar, no less. She’d never gone to a bar with friends before. She’d married Knox before she turned twenty-one, and then came the baby.
So it was strange to think this was her first official girls’ night out as an adult woman.
She stepped back from the mirror, and although she didn’t have a view of her full length, she knew her skinny jeans tucked into the boots Holt bought her looked good. She’d lost her baby weight pretty fast, despite what Knox had said, yet she’d maintained more curves than her younger self. And all the curves were real, unlike the enhanced ones she suspected Barb had. But to each woman her own.
Macie secured a pair of dangling earrings she’d made herself, then she finished curling the last portions of her hair. She wanted to wear it down and wavy, which made her feel more carefree. Younger. Like maybe she could forget her worries for a few hours and have fun.
