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“I listened in, the day James came to talk to you,” she adds, blush coloring her cheeks. “He’s right, you deserve more. You deserve to pursue your passion. You deserve to go be with him, no matter where he’s drafted.” She laughs a little, shaking her head. “Did I use that word right?”
“I think so,” Aunt Nicole says, leaning in with a little nod. “Right, Bex?”
“Right,” I say weakly. My mind is spinning so fast that I’m not even upset with my mother for eavesdropping on me.
“When your father and I bought the diner, we thought it would be something we could share, something we could build a life around. I didn’t want to give up that dream, even when it was gone. I need to move on, and I need to let you go.”
“Mom,” I say again, my voice strangled, half a sob. “What are you going to do?”
“We’ll sell it,” she says firmly. “The whole building. You can use some of the money to help with your student loans, and I’ll work on finding a place. There’s an apartment near Nicole that I might rent. And I’m thinking...”
She trails off, blinking back tears. Aunt Nicole pats her hand.
“She’s going to put herself in a program,” Aunt Nicole says.
Mom nods. “I need therapy. I need to get my head right. I never coped with your father’s leaving, with everything that happened after, and if I’m going to be a good mother to you moving forward, I need to find a way to make that happen.”
“I can’t believe it,” I whisper.
“I know,” she says. “But I’m going to prove it to you, honey. I want to be there for you, and I want you to have the chance to do whatever makes you happy. Truly happy.”
I practically launch myself across the table in my rush to hug her. She laughs against my shoulder, hugging tightly as she rubs my back. “I love you,” she whispers. “And I’m sorry.”
“I love you too.” I breathe in the smell of her perfume. A million memories rush through my mind; a movie of my childhood, the good parts. I’m not naive, I know if she’s serious about this, she has a lot of work ahead of her, but the fact she’s doing it at all is enough to rock my world. “Thank you.”
***
The gallery hours have just begun when I see James walk through the door... along with his entire family, Izzy included. Sandra I was expecting, but Richard? With a bouquet of flowers in his arms? He gives me a nod, and I nod back.
Oh boy.
I refocus on Donald Marks, the head of the visual arts department, who came over right away to congratulate me in person, but the urge to run over and tell James the news is almost overwhelming. I want to tackle him and kiss him right against the wall, but I’m sure that wouldn’t be considered appropriate fancy art gallery behavior.
“He’s an excellent contact to have,” he continues, gesturing across the room. “I’ll introduce you two later so you can talk more in depth about this. Are you considering a future in sports photography specifically?”
“Maybe,” I say, and the best part is, I’m not lying at all. I could do that—or I could do anything in the world. For the first time since I was a little kid, the whole world is open to me; I don’t have promises to worry about breaking. I’m free. “I really love the atmosphere of sporting events.”
“That’s important.” He smiles, breaking eye contact to look over my photography again. “Truly excellent work. I’m sorry that we didn’t have you in our department.”
“I’m starting to realize what I really want.”
He nods. “I’m glad, Ms. Wood. Do stay in touch.”
The moment he wanders away, Izzy darts over to me, James on her heels. She has a cup of wine in her hand, which James deftly takes away before she can gulp it down.
“Hey,” she protests, crossing her arms over her lilac velvet dress. “No fair.”
He hands the wine to me instead. “After the stunt you pulled at that party last weekend? You’re lucky Mom and Dad let you out of the house.”
I take a sip, but I don’t taste it. I’m practically vibrating with excitement. “Hey.”
He kisses me quickly. “How’s it going so far?”
“It’s actually kind of amazing.” I reach out and take his hand. “I have to talk to you.”
Izzy looks between us, raising one dark eyebrow. “That sounds ominous.”
“Why don’t you go bother Coop?” James says dryly. “It looks like he’s trying to chat up that poor girl over there.”
