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Sweetie stood. “We need to get home too.”
Everyone walked out to the porch to say goodbye. Once her sisters and their husbands had driven away, her parents went inside, leaving Liberty and Mimi on the porch. Feeling the need to ease her grandmother’s fears, Liberty spoke,
“Jesse won’t give up, Mimi. He’s one of the best negotiators I’ve ever met at getting what he wants.”
Mimi sat down on the swing and patted the spot next to her. When Liberty was seated, Mimi studied her with intent eyes. “I don’t doubt for a second that Jesse will do his best.” She hesitated. “And not because he likes your mama’s apple pies. After that kiss he gave you earlier, I figure I know what Jesse wants.”
Liberty didn’t deny it. She knew Jesse wanted her. Just not enough to stay.
“Don’t be thinking you hear wedding bells, Mimi. Jesse’s not the marrying kind.”
Mimi’s eyebrow lifted. “You usually say that you’re not the marrying kind. Are you starting to change your mind about marriage being the worst thing that could happen to an independent, strong woman? Does Jesse have you starting to doubt your belief that marriage takes your independence?”
She shrugged. “It doesn’t seem to have taken Cloe’s and Sweetie’s. So I guess it all depends on the man.”
Mimi pushed the swing and sent it swaying. “And is Jesse the kind of man who will let his wife be who she is?”
Liberty thought over the question. There was no doubt in her mind Jesse would allow the woman he married to be who she was. He wouldn’t try to change her or suffocate her. In fact, he seemed to love challenging Liberty to be even stronger and more independent. It was too bad he wasn’t the marrying kind. Even if he was, she wasn’t. And not just because she was scared about losing her independence.
“I can’t have kids, Mimi.”
Mimi didn’t even flinch or act the least bit surprised. Of course, she had witnessed Liberty’s horrible periods and emergency room visits when she was a teenager. “And what does that have to do with getting married?”
“Men, even men who say they don’t want children, don’t want the option taken from them. I don’t want to be the woman they end up resenting.”
“And you think Jesse will be the type of man to resent his wife for something she can’t help?”
She didn’t know why tears sprang to her eyes, but there they were. “No, but he doesn’t want to marry me, Mimi. He’s made no bones about struggling with relationships.”
Mimi snorted. “Everyone struggles with relationships. If they say they don’t, they’re lying. The question is ‘Does he think you’re worth the struggle?’”
She brushed a tear from her cheek. “I don’t know. But if he doesn’t, you don’t need to worry. I’ll survive.”
Mimi placed an arm around her shoulders and pulled her close. “Of course you will. Of all my granddaughters, you are a survivor, Liberty Lou Holiday, and I don’t doubt for a second that you can survive without Jesse or any man.” She paused. “But there’s a difference between simply surviving and living life to the fullest. If Jesse is the kind of man who lets you be the strong, independent woman you are, why would you want to survive without him?”
“I don’t think Jesse is going to give me that choice.”
“But if he did? If he showed up here tonight and said, ‘Libby Lou, you’re the woman of my dreams and I can’t live without you,’ what would you say?”
The answer came immediately. She just couldn’t bring herself to say it.
But Mimi knew. Her grandmother had always been good at reading her.
“So I guess you have a choice, Libby Lou. You can sit here hoping your Prince Charming shows up and says those words . . . or you can take matters in your own hands and go after what you want.” She gave her a tight hug before she got up from the swing. When she glanced down at Liberty, there was a twinkle in her eyes. “I know my strong, independent granddaughter will make the right choice.”
After Mimi left, Liberty sat there on the swing thinking about everything her grandmother had said. Mimi was right. All her life, Liberty had worked hard to prove to herself, her family, and everyone else that she was a strong, independent woman who could do quite nicely without a man. But being strong and independent didn’t mean she had to be alone for the rest of her life. Some people didn’t take away your strength and independence. Some people only added to it.
Jesse had forced her out of her one-track mind and made her notice the world around her. He made her laugh and cry and feel things she’d never felt before. He challenged her to enjoy life. To see more. To feel more. To be more.
She was more with Jesse. So much more.
So why would she let him go?
She jumped up and hurried into the house. Daddy and Mama looked surprised when she grabbed her purse and keys. Mimi only smiled.
“I’m going to see Jesse,” she said. “Don’t wait up.”
On the way to Corbin’s trailer, she went well over the speed limit. She wasn’t in a hurry to find out about the ranch. She was in a hurry to see Jesse and tell him she thought their relationship was worth fighting for. Correction, she knew it was worth fighting for.
