“I like the idea of it, just not the actuality of it. I do find this time of year to be rather special, though. Always made me want to reach for my paints.” She said wistfully.
As we approached the farmhouse, I saw my parents standing outside on the front porch and waving. Mom looked smaller than I remembered, this new vision of her forming an immediate lump in my throat. I had been gone too long…
Swallowing back my guilt, I parked the car and turned to Carly, but she was up and out of the car in seconds, surprising me with her eagerness.
“C’mon, Mr. Big Shot, this was your idea.” She winked. She seemed to revel in being mischievous and I had to admit that it looked good on her.
“What happened to your adventurous side?” She asked. “If I remember you well, you used to have one.” Carly giggled.
Her teasing fueled my temper. “It’s still there! This was my idea, remember?” I growled back. Glancing over her shoulder one last time, she grinned before jogging down the rest of the pathway to the front porch.
I could hear her voice in the distance as she approached my mom. “I’m so happy to finally meet you!” She cried, throwing her arms around my mother and pulling her into in a big bear hug. Such an overboard performance, yet my mother clearly bought right into it.
“Get over here, my boy!” Mom called out to me as I made my way up the rickety wood steps towards her. My mother’s blue eyes sparkled with happiness, but behind that joy there was something else. Something sad and tired. I tried not to notice how her steps seemed a little forced and her hair a little thinner.
“Mom! You okay? It’s been a while, I’m so sorry.” I said truthfully as I hugged her back. It scared me how I could feel her bones beneath my hands. “What happened, have you been sick, Mom?” I asked, pulling back to look at her more closely. She blinked and looked away.
“Everything is just fine now that you’re here with your beautiful fiancée!” She beamed as she pulled away from my embrace and shuffled along. “Come inside and let’s catch up.”
We made our way into the house and settled in the living room where my step-dad, Dave, was reading his newspaper. “Welcome back.” Dave said as he rose from his chair. “Good to finally see you again, boy.” He continued, his voice gruff and to the point.
His words grated on my nerves but I chose to ignore them. I wasn’t here for him.
I began the introductions. “Dave, this is Carly.”
“So nice to finally meet you!” Carly squealed, opening her arms to hug Dave as he rose from his seat.
Dave and I typically didn’t have much to say to one another but with Carly there, the conversation flowed. The air between us was calmer and I found myself relaxing and actually enjoying the moment.
We didn’t sit around for long, though. Dinner had always been early in my family. Despite it being just a hobby farm, my step-dad was up with the birds daily and out in the fields and tending to the animals. For him, dinner at 5pm was a necessity even though it seemed like the middle of the day for the rest of the world. The smells of my mother’s cooking flooded my head with childhood memories. No matter where we were, how small the town, or how much we had left behind, my mom had always made the most amazing Thanksgiving feast. Turkey, stuffing, Brussel sprouts, roasted sweet potatoes with almond slivers, and butternut squash soup. Just the smells alone made my mouth water.
“All right, everyone, it’s almost time to move to the table!” My mother called from the kitchen.
“Excuse me.” Carly announced to Dave and I. “I’m going to make myself useful and help serve.”
For a minute, my heart skipped a beat. Leaving Carly alone with my mom was risky…I was so deep into this lie that I couldn’t go back.
Leaning over, Carly kissed my cheek. The feeling of her soft lips on my skin made me bristle with electricity. “No worries, babe. You know me, Little Miss Helpful!” She commented brightly before moving off to the kitchen.
Okay fine. Clearly, she had this under control.
With Carly gone, silence set in between Dave and I. He went back to reading his newspaper and I pulled out my phone. It had always been like this and if I was being honest, it was probably better like that. We didn’t have anything in common other than my mom.
Looking up from my phone, I watched through the doorway as Carly made herself useful and helped my mom around the kitchen. I couldn’t quite hear their words but both women were smiling and laughing as they worked.
“So…she seems nice.” Dave began, breaking the silence of the living room.
“Yeah.” I nodded. “Carly is a special girl. Reconnecting with her was, uh…” I trailed off, unsure of where to go with that thought.
“Meant to be, I suppose.” He finished off. “Listen, Matt.” He said, startling me by reaching over to put his hand on mine. “Your mom and I are really happy that you’re finally settling down. Honest to God, I wasn’t sure you ever would, but she always had faith in you.”
I smiled weakly. This felt wrong. His touch was as awkward as his words. We never talked like this or talked at all really. Was he being…nice? Was it even sincere? Probably not. When it came to Dave, an ulterior motive was most likely his driving force.
Glaring at him suspiciously, all my senses on high alert, I probed further. “What’s going on here, Dave?”
“I need to tell you something, son.” He continued.
Son? I’m sure I raised an eyebrow. In all the years I’d known Dave, he’d never referred to me as his son. I took another swig of the maple whiskey that the cove was famous for and felt it burn down the back of my throat.
Dave spoke again. His voice was a little softer this time, as if we were sharing secrets. “Your mom hasn’t been well lately.”
“What do you mean, Dave?”
“I mean that she’s been fighting the good fight, but we know it won’t be for much longer.” His voice shook as he wiped a lone tear form the corner of his eye.
“I don’t understand, she hasn’t said a thing…” I began, ready to jump up and go confront my mother.
But Dave’s hand held fast on my wrist. “Don’t do it, Matthew. It’s a heart condition just like her dad and she doesn’t want to discuss it; not with the doctors, with me, and especially not with you. She’s in denial, or at least she was… But why do you think she was so insistent all this time about you settling down?”
My elbows leaned on the arms of the chair and I dropped my head into my hands. I couldn’t believe what he was telling me. “But it wasn’t just her, you did the same!” I protested.
“True, but that’s because I’m on your mom’s side. Yesterday, today, and always.” He answered, a distant sadness in his eyes.