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They disconnected, but the warmth in her voice stayed with him. If anyone he knew understood the importance of family, it was her. And he would tell her about his mother’s condition, but not until he’d had a little more time to process it himself. By then, hopefully, he’d have answers to some of the questions that were bound to arise.
Mia had always been the girl of a million questions.
After freshening up, he joined his family in the kitchen, where his aunt Daphne was preparing soup and salad.
“Sorry, Alex,” she said with a wink. “No breakfast for you today.”
“So long as you were the one cooking, you’ll hear no complaints from me.”
He gave her a peck to the cheek, then crossed the room to kneel before his mother, seated at the kitchen table. Her face was without makeup, but the smile he received made her natural beauty shine. She placed her unrestrained hand on his cheek, and he leaned into her touch like he had so many times as a child. It felt the same as always, soft and gentle.
Maybe this morning had just been a bad dream. Maybe he’d been delusional after the stressful drive and lack of sleep. Hey, a man could hope, right?
“You look tired, sweetheart.”
“Nothing a hot meal and some caffeine can’t fix.” He took her hand in his. “How are you feeling, Mom?”
“Oh, I’m fine so long as I take my pain medicine on time.”
His father grimaced. “Apparently, I’m not the best nurse in the world and got behind on giving it to her. I’ve got it set in my phone now, so it won’t happen again.”
“Got behind on her meds? Man, you’re fired.” Alex grinned. He’d always wanted to say that to his oldest and closest boss.
His father chuckled. “Trust me, your aunt gave me all sorts of grief earlier. It won’t happen again.”
“Apparently, caregiving instincts come more naturally to some than others,” said Daphne, bringing plates of food to the table. “Isn’t that right, Evelyn?”
His mother looked from Alex to the food being set before her. “Oh, is it time for dinner so soon?”
“Lunch, sweetheart,” his father said. “Be careful, now, that soup’s hot.”
“I know how to eat soup, Nate. I’m fifty years old, for goodness’ sake.”
Alex’s heart sank. His mother wasn’t fifty—she was fifty-eight.
The others exchanged awkward glances as his father eased her chair closer to the table, careful not to bump her arm. “Of course you do, dear.”
“Actually, I’m not all that hungry. I think I’d rather go and rest for a while.”
“Your medicine kicking in, Mom?” Alex asked.
She nodded as his father helped her to her feet. Gently, he led her into the other room. Alex watched them go, struggling with the view. Moving as slowly as they did, his parents looked…old. Only, they weren’t—neither had reached full retirement age.
“We’re going to stay a few more days,” Zeke said softly. “Daphne will stay with your mom while I help your dad start working on his transition.”
Alex looked to his uncle, the CFO of their company. “Transition to what?”
Zeke dunked a slice of sandwich into his soup. “Retirement.”
“H-he can’t. I’m not ready.”
Daphne patted Alex’s hand. “You’ll do great, sweetheart.”
But that wasn’t what Alex meant. He’d been groomed for years to eventually take the helm at Wellington. What he wasn’t ready for was being tied to a desk job in Indy.
Not when the woman he was falling for lived an hour and a half to the north.
*
