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A cell phone rings, but I don’t move. I know it’s not mine. Harper flinches, so I figure it must be hers. Lillian springs out of the recliner and hurries to the sofa. She practically has to pat Harper down to find her phone.
“Thanks, Mom,” Harper mumbles. “I feel like I just went through security at the airport.”
The mention of the airport makes me wonder about Truman, why he was in town last night when he was supposed to have flown to Vegas yesterday.
Lillian swats Harper on the arm and rolls her eyes when Harper yelps dramatically.
“Hello?”
Harper looks at me when Lillian turns and walks out of the room.
“Thanks for coming to see me,” she says quietly. “Mom’s great, but she just keeps telling me to go to sleep.”
“She’s a mom,” I answer, but Harper and I share a smile. “Does it hurt much?”
“Mmm.” She shrugs and nods. “Yeah, when the pain meds wear off. Like now.”
“Want me to get you a pill?”
“Nope.” She sighs and closes her eyes for a minute. “I don’t want to get hooked on them. Maybe just some Tylenol?”
“Sure.” I’m on my feet before I realize I don’t know where she keeps anything. I’ve been here often enough through the years to drop Ryle off or pick him up, but I’ve never been in this house as a guest. She and Keith moved in after Truman and I split up.
“Kitchen cabinet to the right of the sink.”
“Got it. Be right back.”
The house is beautiful. I notice framed family photos as I head down the hall. Harper and Keith have three kids—Ethan, Hattie, and Craig. They’re smart kids, just like their mother and their uncles. I don’t see as much of Hattie and Craig as I do Ethan.
The hall opens into a big, bright kitchen with white cabinets, stainless steel appliances, and slate gray counter tops. A deep green vase in the center of the table adds a splash of color, the fresh flower arrangement an explosion of pastels. Ethan and Ryle’s voices are on the go now; I hear the door close and know they went out back.
As I make way to the cabinet to get Harper’s Tylenol, I look around to make sure Ryle didn’t help leave a mess anywhere. But I don’t see anything other than a plastic cup in the sink. Relieved, even though I know my son is well-behaved, I grab the Tylenol and then stop, wondering if Harper has something to drink.
Just in case, I decide to take her some water. I check another cabinet and find bright green Fiestaware dishes. On the shelf above the place settings, I see water glasses, so I take one down and fill it with ice and water. Her refrigerator is covered in pictures, and I freeze when I see one of Ryle and Truman. It’s jolting to see a picture of my son, here in her house—one that I’ve never seen before. Truman has my son slung over his shoulder in a fireman’s carry. From the look on Ryle’s face, he’s eating it up.
I scan the rest of the pictures, and a hollow pit forms in my stomach. There are several of Ryle—with Truman, with Truman’s parents, his sister and brother. In every picture, both Truman and Ryle look happy. While I love seeing the proof that Truman loves our son, it breaks my heart, too. Once upon a time, I wanted to be part of this family.
But Truman didn’t want anything to do with it.
And now, I see proof that he and my son are family. And I’m not part of it.
I turn away from the fridge, feeling like a voyeur, like I’ve seen something that wasn’t intended for me, and take the Tylenol and water to Harper. Lillian is still gone; Harper has her eyes closed. I stand for a moment and eye her bruises, feeling again like an outsider.
“Hey.” She clears her throat when she opens her eyes and sees me standing there again. “Thank you.”
“Of course.”
“Would you do me a favor?” she asks and then she grins sheepishly. “Another one.”
“Sure.” I nod and hand her the two pills. She throws them back easily and then takes the glass of water. I watch her drink, my eyes caught on a cut in her upper lip.
“Will you let Ryle stay and play?”
“I don’t want to wear you out,” I argue.
“Mom’s here. Ryle keeps Ethan busy.”
I swallow any further argument. I don’t want it to look like I brought Ryle over to dump him on her. But then, if I were in her position, it would help to have Ethan over to keep Ryle busy.
