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“The women he hung out with were bold as brass. I’ve never seen anything like it before or since.”
“Your husband sounds a little unhinged, to give up a nice lady like you, so he could sleep around.”
“He eventually convinced his family that I was bad news and divorced me. The only thing I truly regret is losing my child. Little Marcus meant everything to me. I had no skills to fall back on, and even if I had been able to afford the lawyers’ fees there was no way the courts would have granted me custody in those days, as I had to live in shared accommodation.”
I smile at the older woman. “Well, I’m loving all the honesty. It’s a refreshing change in a world that’s becoming more jaded every day. You have a fascinating life story. You say you came back to beg Smoke’s forgiveness, what did he say? He’s said nothing about you being his mother.”
Marge looks down at her feet.
“You didn’t tell him?” I ask incredulously.
She changes the subject and tries to draw me into the new conversation. “What do you think men want in a woman, Miss Sommers?”
I freeze in mid-drink, put down my coffee and reply quietly. “I feel like it’s different for every man. Some want a woman who’s loyal and kind, others are all about the looks. I’ve noticed these days men seem to expect more. I don’t see that as a bad thing necessarily, because they seem willing to give a little more as well.”
“I’d love to hear about how you and Marcus met,” Marge states.
“I met Smoke when I was young, he was one of my brother’s friends, so I guess he’s always been in my life. It was Smoke who inspired me to get into law. Talking of law, how did you become a legal secretary? Was it intentional, or did you just kind of fall into office work?”
“I used to work for the attorney who was in this suite before my son took over the office. My job was basically answering phones, like an old-fashioned receptionist I guess, rather than the newer fashion for having office administrators. He moved into a bigger suite across town and wanted to upgrade his business to keep most of his client information locked in an encrypted digital portal. That’s how I got left behind.”
“It was a stroke of luck that Smoke took over this suite.” I say, thinking that in a town the size of Las Salinas, the fact she ended up working for her son is practically a miracle.
Looking embarrassed, Marge says, “Luck didn’t have too much to do with it. When I learned that Mr. Carlos was interested in selling, I made sure that Marcus got sent the brochures from the real estate office. Las Salinas may be a large town, but the world of law is small, and I’d heard word that he was looking to open up on his own.”
“Wow! I can see where your son gets his smarts from, that is devious in the best possible way. You seem to do really well in this job,” I point out. “I know Smoke is really happy with your work.”
Her expression lights up. “I like working here because I can continue keeping most of the information we use on paper. But the real draw is getting to know my son over the last few years. I worry that he’s going to want to modernize his office as he scales his business up, and I’ll get left behind again. I don’t suppose anyone would want someone whose skills are out of date.”
“You keep avoiding the question of talking to Smoke about being his mother. You are planning to do that, right?”
“I don’t know how he would feel about me coming back up after all these years of him thinking his mother was dead. Sure, he might be thrilled. But on the other hand, he might be happy just to let sleeping dogs lie, rather than dredging up all the past. Or he might be angry that I’ve kept this from him.”
“Knowing him the way I do, I think he would be overjoyed to find out he still has family alive. You know he thinks the world of you. Ever since I’ve been working here, he can’t say enough good things about you. That has to count for something, right?”
“I’ve tried to tell him dozens of times over the years. Every single time I chicken out.”
“Have you tried putting it in writing?” I suggest. “That might be easier than a face-to-face conversation because you can think about what you want to say ahead of time, and phrase things just the way you want him to hear them.”
“That’s not a bad idea,” she responds almost eagerly. “I don’t know why I thought it would be a good idea to bring this up to you before I did him. I guess I just needed another woman’s perspective.”
I’m so excited that I can hardly stand it. “Well, this woman says go for it,” I say enthusiastically. “What do you have to lose?”
Her face falls. “Only everything. If I talk to him about this and it doesn’t go well, he might decide he doesn’t want to look at me every day. It’ll be hard, but I can get another job someplace else. But what I can never replace are the days I get to spend with my boy after all these years. I won’t be able to keep his appointments, file his paperwork or help him become a successful attorney.” The more she talks, the more tearful she becomes. “The truth is I just don’t know if I can lose him twice. He’s not just my only son, he’s my only child. If things go badly, I’m not looking forward to the prospect of being all alone in the world with no family.”
“Well, I’m not going to force you one way or another. But I will say that one day Smoke is going to get married and have children. Since his children probably won’t be coming to work with him, you’re going to miss out on the experience of being a grandmother. And those children are going to miss out on the experience of having a wonderful woman like you for a grandmother.”
“Oh, that’s so sweet of you to say,” she says as she wipes the tears from her eyes.
I try my best to be positive and supportive, “I think now is the time to wrangle all your anxieties to the ground and put yourself out there. Even if he’s not wild about the idea at first, he’ll probably decide to give it a chance once he’s time to process the information. What kind of orphan would pass up the chance to have a parent back in their life, especially when they were forced away though no fault of their own? You’re his family, after all.”
“I didn’t think about it like that. In my mind it was an all or nothing one shot deal. But you’re right, we can take things slowly and see how things work out long term.”
“If you want, I can talk to him. Maybe get a feel for how he would come down on the issue, without coming right out and telling him all your secrets.”
“I don’t know about that. He might see that as me being too much of a coward to speak up and advocate for myself. I wouldn’t want him to think badly of me.”
“Just remember that everything in life is a negotiation. Things aren’t always cut and dried. Smoke has always been a reasonable person. I can’t see him acting out of character just because he meets his long-lost mother.”
