AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I had to remember I was the one who was here every day. I knew what was best for Maggie. This coming and going had to change. Maybe it would be best to talk to a counselor and work out what would be healthy for Maggie.
Satisfied I had a plan, we headed to the kitchen and sat down to dinner together. Felicia sat in Alice’s seat, and it felt wrong.
Maggie must have noticed because she asked, “Is Miss Alice coming back?”
“She’s just visiting with her family for the weekend. Remember, she has her workshop too.”
“Can we go to that?” Maggie asked, her eyes filling with interest.
“I’d like to.”
Felicia pursed her lips. “I don’t like her living here.”
“This isn’t the time to talk about it.” And she didn’t get a say in how I ran my life.
“I love Miss Alice,” Maggie said softly, as if she was aware of the tension in the room.
“She’s been a lifesaver for us.” I wouldn’t allow Felicia to disparage or criticize Alice. Not when she didn’t know her.
“Hmm,” Felicia said.
I knew I hadn’t heard the end of it, but I hoped she wouldn’t talk about it in front of Maggie. She wasn’t around kids enough to understand how she needed to control her emotions and watch her words. I didn’t want Maggie to feel guilty for liking Alice.
When dinner was finished, Maggie carried her plate to the sink, and I praised her. Alice was working hard on Maggie’s manners and encouraging her to do small chores around the house. Warmth filled my chest at how much Alice had changed our lives. I wished she were here now.
“Do you want to play a game?” Maggie asked Felicia.
I held my breath because it was the first time Maggie had reached out to her since I’d come home, and Felicia wasn’t one to sit and play with her.
Felicia gave Maggie a funny look. “Not especially.”
Felicia was here to visit with her daughter, and she should make the effort whether she liked games or not. “Why don’t you show your mom your new toys?”
Felicia allowed Maggie to pull her upstairs to her room, and I was alone in the kitchen. I braced my hands on the counter, feeling the tension creep up my neck. This whole situation was uncomfortable. Had it been like that before, or was I so desperate for a little bit of help in the parenting department that I’d blurred the boundaries? Allowed Felicia to have too much access?
It wasn’t right that Felicia had stayed here in the past. She felt like she had a say in what went on here, and she didn’t. I took a few deep breaths before I finished cleaning the kitchen.
It was normally the time I’d be looking forward to spending quality time with Alice and Maggie. But that wasn’t happening.
I doubted Felicia would help with the bedtime routine. She never had in the past. She always said I was better at it, but that was because I was the one doing it every night. If she made the effort, she might have a deeper relationship with her daughter. But it wasn’t my place to constantly remind her of that fact.
I needed to check on Maggie. When I approached her bedroom, I heard them talking in low voices.
“What do you like about her?” Felicia asked Maggie, and I knew she was talking about Alice.
I should walk in there and discourage the conversation, but I wanted to hear what she had to say.
“She reads me books, plays games with me, and she taught me to make mosaics.” Her sentence was long and drawn out, as if she was playing and thinking at the same time.
“What are these mosaics?”
“She made me a sea star. She let me pick out the colors and everything. She said I’m too young to do the glass yet. Maybe when I’m older.”
Before Felicia could ask how long Alice would be sticking around, I popped my head into the room. “What are you two up to?”
It felt wrong that Felicia was in Maggie’s room. Alice belonged here. Felicia had a role and a place in her life, but it needed to be outside of my house. In the future, I needed to make that clear.
“Maggie was showing me Alice’s artwork.”
