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“Did he hurt you?” Her mom asked.
So much, but not in the way her mom meant. “No, nothing like that.”
Her mom took her hand and held it tight. “You didn’t tell him, right? Please, tell me you didn’t tell him about your little issue?”
Hallie swallowed back the lump that had suddenly formed in the back of her throat. Leave it to her mom to make her feel like she had some contagious disease. “No, Mom. Of course not. It just didn’t work out.”
Her mom visibly sighed, then smiled. “I know your dad and I sometimes come off as a bit harsh, but we’re only trying to protect you and it’s not easy to find someone in the world we live in today. I think it was easier when I met your dad, and even easier still when our parents met. Everything is just so complicated these days, so high tech. I wouldn’t even know where to start looking if I didn’t have your dad. He’s my everything. I’m only saying this because I don’t want you to blame yourself for any of it. You’re amazing, and I truly believe you’ll find the right person when the time is right.”
Hallie sighed. This was probably the most depressing pep talk of her life. There was nothing she could do about the way life was now, and while she hadn’t told anyone, it was her fault Caden wasn’t in her life anymore. She was the one who’d run out on him and his friends. She could’ve reached out to him, but chose not to. Sure, she would’ve wanted him to reach out first, but she wasn’t dead, and neither was her cellphone. Those things worked both ways. “It’s okay, Mom,” she finally said. “I really am happy. I have a few friends, The Mystic Cow. And you guys. I have a lot more than a lot of people my age, and I’m grateful for all of it.”
Her mom sat up, pulling Hallie up with her. “You’re the best daughter we could’ve ever asked for. That’s why we stopped after having you. No one else would ever compare.”
Hallie laughed. She had long suspected they stopped having kids after her because she was such a handful growing up. It wasn’t easy having a kid who screamed from nightmares, sometimes three or four times every night, let alone during the day. It wasn’t until Hallie was older that she learned to keep quiet about what she saw, but by then it was too late, and her parents were already far too invested in taking her to doctors and pushing pills on her that only made things worse. “I love you too, Mom,” Hallie said.
The next day was Sunday, and her mom declared it a movie marathon day. They each got to pick a movie they wanted to watch. There was plenty of leftover pot roast, and her mom baked cookies and cupcakes so they’d have lots of dessert items to choose from.
This was the best part about coming home. It truly was home, and Hallie didn’t have to worry about things like money or men, or anything. She could just be wrapped up in the safety of her parents’ love, and shut the rest of the world out.
They were sitting on the oversized sectional in the living room after watching the last movie when her dad reached for another cookie. “So, Baby Girl, are you and Finn getting back together?”
Hallie nearly choked. What in the world was he talking about? “Why would you ask that, Dad?”
Her dad paused, looked at her mom who shrugged, then turned back to her. “He told me you two were getting along again.”
“You saw Finn? When?” Hallie asked.
Her dad sighed. “When he came in to interview for the director of marketing position.” Her dad was the VP of Marketing at Plateau Electronics, an international company that made microchips for various items including military supplies.
“Oh,” she said. “Yeah, he told me he had a job interview that he felt went well.”
“It went very well,” her dad said. “He got the job. I plan to tell him tomorrow. He starts next week. So, are you two back together?”
“No, Dad. I don’t know why you would think that.”
Her dad put his cookie down. “He approached me a few weeks ago. Told me he was more than qualified for the job that had just been posted on one of those large recruitment sites. I told him I didn’t want to work with a man who broke my daughter’s heart. Two weeks later, he told me I’d been mistaken and that you and he were getting along and even strongly considering reconciling. He even showed me a few text messages between you two, and a picture he’d taken of you when you went for Chinese food. You were laughing and looked happy. I thought maybe he’d finally gotten his head on straight. So, I helped move his application to the top of the pile.”
Hallie groaned. “Well, I have no doubt he’s qualified for the job, Dad, but I hate to say this, he played us both.”
“What a manipulative young man,” her mom said.
“That may be, but what’s done is done. I’d be putting my own reputation on the line if I tried to speak against him now,” her dad said.
“No, Dad, don’t. It’s fine. We just had coffee and lunch that one day, and exchanged a few texts. It’s not a big deal. I’m happy for him, really.” Hallie had suspected Finn was up to something that day, and now she knew what it was. At least some things never changed.
Her dad gave her a sideways glance, like he wanted to say more, but Finn Riley was the last thing on her mind. “Are you sure you’re okay?” Her dad asked. “I mean…” He let his words fade as he brushed his thumb over his temple.
Hallie cringed and stood to help herself to another cup of hot cocoa. “I’m fine, Dad. I’ve always been fine.”
“Baby, your dad is just worried about you, what with all the stress of your break up with Caden and the store -”
“We didn’t break up, Mom. We weren’t ever really together.” The words made Hallie’s chest tighten even as she said them, but they were the truth. She and Caden had gone on a few dates, then parted ways. To say they were together was embellishing facts, and with everything else going on in her head, Hallie needed to be clear on what was real and what wasn’t. She’d wanted there to be more with Caden, but it was what it was. Just...over.
Hallie spent one more night at her parents’ house before driving back to Dallas on Monday morning to be at The Mystic Cow before Katelyn left at two. Saying goodbye was always hard, but Hallie promised to come back soon, and meant it. These last two and a half days were like medicine for her soul, and she definitely needed more of those. Despite them treating her like a porcelain dollon the verge of breaking, she loved spending time with them.
She called Katelyn from the road, and was happy to hear the weekend had been busy, and today was shaping up to be a pretty good sales day, too. The Mystic Cow needed more of those.
Hallie had a lot to catch up on when she got back, including mail, bills, and packages that Katelyn didn’t have a chance to input into the inventory. The store was also in need of a good dusting and sweeping.
