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“Good thing you named me Paige. Not too many of those.”
Joan nodded. Paige had been her second choice for a name. Heather had been her first. But her sister-in-law had given birth first and beaten her to it, a fact Joan had never shared with her daughter.
It seemed that Heather had started stealing from Paige even before she was born.
“What’s wrong, Mom?” Paige asked again.
“Have you ever looked at yourself in a three-way mirror?” Joan asked, changing the subject.
“Mom, for God’s sake. Is that what’s bothering you? Nobody looks good in those.”
“My bum has completely flattened out and is now circling my knees,” Joan continued, ignoring her daughter’s interruption. “And where’s my waist? I distinctly remember having a waist. Not to mention, my skin’s all wrinkly and covered with these stupid little brown spots. And my legs…I used to have such great legs…”
“You still have great legs.”
“Look at all these little purple veins,” Joan said, standing up and pulling her black slacks down past her hips, letting them drop to her ankles.
“Did you just pull down your pants?” Paige asked.
Joan promptly pulled them back up and flopped back on the sofa. “Sorry, darling. I’m obviously having a moment.”
“It’s quite a moment. Maybe I should call Sam and cancel.”
“Don’t be silly. You’re not canceling any more dates.” Joan gave her daughter’s thigh a reassuring pat. “Did you ever hear from that other guy again?”
Paige shook her head.
“You could texthim,” Joan suggested.
“No. I’ve already apologized. If he’s interested, he’ll get in touch. What are you going to do tonight?”
“Well, it’ll probably take me half the night to put on my new moisturizers,” Joan said, only half-joking. “And I was thinking I might go downstairs to the gym, try out those expensive new machines they put in.” She sighed. She hadn’t used the gym since she’d moved in, wasn’t even sure what floor it was on.
“That’s not such a bad idea,” Paige said, pushing herself to her feet and crossing to the doorway. “Nice panties, by the way.”
Joan laughed. “Thank you, darling.”
Paige looked at her mother with worried eyes. “I love you, Mom. You know that, don’t you?”
“I know, Wildflower,” Joan said with a wink. “I love you, too.”
