“Let me ask you something,” I said. “If you knew he was going to do what he did, would you have done it all over again?”
“Absolutely,” she said, zero hesitation in her voice.
“Seriously? After all the hurt he caused us? You’d put us all through that shit again.” I shook my head.
“I absolutely would. Without your dad, there would be no you and Talia. Yes, he hurt all of us, but life is a journey, Ty. And having you two is the best thing I’ve ever done in my life.” Her eyes watered and I squeezed her hand. It surprised me, because I’d think she’d avoid all that pain if she had the choice. I certainly would. And I’d never put my kids through that kind of shit.
Jake, my sister’s fiancé, used his spoon to tap against his wineglass and stood to make a toast.
I let my mom’s hand go and nodded before turning my attention to the bride and groom. This conversation had gotten heavier than I’d expected. Hell, my mom and Ivy knew me better than anyone, and they were both saying the same thing.
But I was happy. Taking care of the people I loved made me happy.
The rest of the night, we went around the table telling stories about Talia and Jake when they were young. My father told a story about one Christmas morning when Talia and I woke up before the sun came up. We were so young and so excited. She had this brilliant idea that we could open all our presents and then wrap them all back up before our parents woke up. Talia panicked halfway through me tearing open packages and burst into hysterics which woke up my parents. We both tried to take the blame and my father shared how we always had one another’s back, and he asked who actually came up with the idea. The table erupted in laughter that we’d still never given it up all these years later.
“I was never the brains behind this operation,” I teased, motioning between my sister and me.
“He’s telling the truth. It was my idea, but then I panicked once Ty got really into it and started tearing all the paper off his gifts. It was never hard to persuade him to get on board with a bad plan,” she said over her laughter and the table responded with loud chuckles.
My mother was laughing, my father was laughing, and for just a minute, I didn’t feel angry. I looked up and my gaze locked with Ivy’s. She was watching me with a big grin on her face and watery eyes as she stood across the room.
I think I fell in love with her the first time I saw her in kindergarten because she always felt all the things for everyone. If someone got put in time-out in class, Ivy would offer to join them when they sat out at recess. I loved that about her. She once led a crusade in first grade to “free Braden” because he’d lost Fun Friday for two weeks because he’d been talking so much during work time. She felt the punishment didn’t fit the crime. And the bastard got one of his Fun Fridays back after her protest.
I still loved that about her.
I winked and turned my attention back to my father who moved to his feet. “To the mother of the bride, who raised two phenomenal kids while I was off selfishly chasing my own dreams. Well done, Beth.”
My mother smiled, and Craig put his arm around her and kissed her temple. And I realized in that moment that my family wasn’t perfect, but we were still breathing.
Still surviving.
Still living.
In what alternate universe did I ever think we could all be in one room without a massive blow-up?
But here we were.
Chapter Seventeen
Ivy
“Find yourself a boy who has your back and knows your worth… even when you doubt yourself.” Addy, college junior
The rehearsal went off without a hitch. I noticed that Ty had slyly given his card to the manager when he arrived at the restaurant. He didn’t see me standing off to the side, and I heard him say to make sure all the expenses went on his card.
“That was nice of you to pay for the rehearsal,” I said as we walked hand in hand down toward our favorite quiet spot on the lake. We’d stopped by my house to grab a blanket and bottle of wine, which Ty held in his free hand. We used to always sneak off to this spot when we were young.
“How’d you know about that?” he asked.
“I’ve got eyes all over you, Greene.” I laughed.
“I know Jake’s parents are struggling. I pulled his father aside and told him I’d be happy to cover it, and no one would be the wiser. I remember being broke, and it’s no fun. So if I can help the people I love, I’m happy to do so.”
So generous. Ty always had the kindest heart. It was something I had been drawn to for as long as I could remember.
“What about taking care of you?”
“I’ve got a nice house in Nashville. I’ve got a fancy car that I never get to drive because I’m always traveling.” He shrugged. “The money doesn’t matter much to me.”
I stopped when we got down close to the water and reached for the blanket. I spread it out on the sand and we both dropped to sit. The moon was the only light and it shined down on the water, which lapped against the shore. It was my favorite sound in the world, well, it used to be… until I heard Ty sing “Missing You” in that bar the other night.
I leaned my head against his chest, and he propped himself up on one elbow.
“But does traveling all the time make you happy?” I asked because I didn’t understand his need to be moving all the time.
“I’m just used to it. It keeps my mind busy, you know?”
“I think you ran from this life five years ago, and I think a part of you is still running. But there’s nothing to run from anymore,” I said, pushing up to study his face. His eyes had always told a story. I’d been able to read this boy since he got detention in third grade for hitting Billy Welker because he tugged on one of my Princess Leah buns at recess hard enough to yank the elastic free. Billy was a bully, and I wasn’t afraid of him, but Ty had gone and shoved him against a wall because he’d seen me crying. I’d asked him about it, and he’d tried to deny it, but I’d known just by looking at him. It had been that way ever since.
“You pulling your psychic shit again?” He chuckled and stroked my hair. “I’m not running from anything, Ive. I just changed my plan somewhere along the way. Maybe I look at life differently now that I’ve seen how destructive marriage can be. It was strange to see my parents getting along tonight. I swear my mother cried for a solid year after we moved to Nashville, so hearing her say that things were bad long before everything blew up definitely surprised me. I made a promise to myself that I’d never be in a position to hurt like that, and I thought she did too. But here she is happy with Craig and joking around with my dad.”