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“I was getting that impression after spending a few hours with Clara today. I actually have an appointment with my realtor tomorrow to look at a property. Then Clara was telling me that the schoolhouse was for sale. I think that she and I could make that work if we were to work from here and handle both the office in the Cities and the office in Chicago. We might have to travel some, but it might be a compromise.”
“You would leave Chicago? What about your family?” Lana couldn’t stop herself from asking, even though she knew that modern children didn’t typically stick around and hang out with their parents much.
“There isn’t anyone who is going to miss me if I leave the city.”
Lana wasn’t under the mistaken impression that Alex wanted to talk about that anymore.
“Did you get something to eat? I have a few things set out on the sideboard for the guests who are arriving back from the festivities. Some fruit, a couple of little desserts, and that type of thing. Help yourself if you’re interested. I... I assume Clara invited you to stay in the attic room tonight?” Lana said as she led the way down the hall and toward the steps.
“She said it would be okay,” Alex answered.
“Of course. You’re absolutely welcome. Anytime. A friend of Clara’s is a friend of mine.”
“He’s my boss, Mom. Not my—”
“Aren’t we friends?” Alex’s voice was low, and maybe he had meant it only for Clara’s ears. But Lana was old, and her hearing was not as good as it used to be, but with her hearing aids, she picked up a lot of things that she didn’t used to.
“I... I guess we are,” Clara said softly. So softly Lana almost didn’t hear. But she could tell that Clara was breathless. And Lana guessed it wasn’t from descending the stairs.
“All right. You two can help yourselves. If you don’t mind, I’m going to go see to our guests,” Lana said, excusing herself with a little smile. She wasn’t sure exactly what was happening, but she would say that the relationship was evolving in a way that Clara hadn’t foreseen. That might make the decision of whether or not to relocate even more difficult. She’d been thinking about branching out and starting her own business, a much smaller business, and one that didn’t have a whole lot of potential for growth, but painting was something she was passionate about and loved. If she was in love with her boss, and her boss returned her feelings, leaving his employment might be a little bit more difficult.
Although, Lana supposed that there was the off chance that he was catering to Clara just to get her to accept his offer.
Clara had never described him as the kind of man who would do something like that. Usually Clara wasn’t a terrible judge of character, although Lana knew that her daughter had a tendency to be too trusting.
She liked to think that all the world was hearts and rainbows, and it just didn’t work like that. But Lana could never find it in herself to dash any of Clara’s hopes or dreams, because the world needed people like Clara. People who believed in the good and looked for it everywhere.
It seemed natural, but maybe Clara worked harder at focusing on the positive than Lana gave her credit for.
That night, Lana dreamed about Clara’s wedding. It was on the beach at sunrise with long shadows and the crashing waves rolling in the mist.
Lana woke with a smile and a good feeling, although she couldn’t help but be concerned for her child. She didn’t suppose a mother ever stopped being concerned for her child.
Knowing that Jubilee would have everything under control, Lana slipped out for an early morning walk.
As she was walking down toward the beach, she was surprised to hear Clara calling her name.
“Mom! Wait!” Clara jogged up, sporting a sweatshirt but wearing shorts and flip-flops.
“You’re up early,” Lana said, smiling at her daughter and hooking her arm in hers.
“Every time I come here, I can’t help but wake up with the sun or before it.” She laughed, looking around at the sky that was barely light. “I love mornings on the beach.”
“I do too. And now that Jubilee is helping with the bed-and-breakfast, I can take a walk, which is good for my physical health, but it also gives me a mental boost as well.”
“I don’t know anyone who needs a mental boost less than you do. You are the most positive and upbeat person I know.”
“Have you ever met me?” Lana said, bumping Clara with her shoulder as they hit the beach and started walking north.
“Maybe you can introduce me later,” Clara said, and they laughed and walked in silence for a bit.
Lana wasn’t sure whether or not they would meet the older gentleman that she typically saw out along the beach area, and she supposed it didn’t matter. It wasn’t like Clara didn’t know she walked on the beach, and the gentleman must be eighty if he was a year.
“So I finally met your boss. After all these years of hearing about him. He’s younger than I thought he would be.”
“He’s older than me. He must be thirty-five at least.”
“That’s not too terribly much older than you. I bet you’ve overestimated that by a year or two. He’s probably about the same age as Luke,” Lana said, referring to her second son.
