She walked from Harlow’s room to the junk room on the main floor, hoping the movement would make her feel better. But she arrived just as upset as she had been.
Why did it have to be like this between her and her daughter? Why did Harlow assume the worst? She would never cheat on Jase, and Harlow had to know that.
Only Harlow knew about Cord and his cheating, so that had to be upsetting. And, as her daughter had said, gross. No kid, no matter how old, wanted to know about a parent cheating. Worse, Cord was dating Kip’s sister. Yet another point of concern on the queasy scale. Harlow had a lot to deal with, and she hadn’t had much time to process it.
“Maybe I should give her a break,” Robyn murmured.
“I’m not sure she deserves one.”
Robyn spun and saw Austin walking into the room. She pressed a hand to her chest.
“You scared me.”
“Huh. Usually you’re happy to see me.”
She laughed. “And I am today as well. I can’t believe you drove cross-country by yourself.”
“Harlow was with me.”
“For part of it. You’re only eighteen. I worry.”
“As we’ve discussed, my judgment center isn’t fully developed, Mom. You need to accept I’m going to make bad choices.”
She hugged him. “I do accept it, but I don’t like it. I’ve missed you.”
“I’ve missed you more.”
She stared into his blue eyes. “Want to talk about why you’re here?”
“Can I have a little more time to process?”
“You can. Are you willing to tell me why you quit your job with your dad?”
Her son’s mouth tightened. “He wouldn’t listen. I tried to talk to him, but he wasn’t interested.”
Her heart squeezed tight as she felt his pain. “I’m sorry. Despite his actions, he loves you very much.”
His posture relaxed. “You always support him, even though he would never act the same way about you.”
“I find pleasure in being the bigger person. No matter what happened between me and Cord, he’s still your father, and I respect the connection.”
“If not the man?”
“I didn’t say that.”
“You didn’t have to. He can be a jerk.” He shoved his hands into his shorts front pockets. “When he wasn’t interested in what I had to say, I quit. I closed the apartment and turned in my keys, then packed up to drive here. Oh, I checked on the house. All good.”
She didn’t bother pointing out she’d hired a house-sitting service. Austin was the kind of man who would always check on the house, even when not asked.
“I’m glad you’re here. What’s your next step?”
He laughed. “I don’t get twenty-four hours to settle in?”
“It’s a mom thing. How about if you reassure me you have a plan? Then I can relax.”
“I have a plan.”
“Okay, then. I’ll be around whenever you’re ready to talk.”
He kissed her cheek. “Thanks, Mom. I love you.”
“I love you, too. Now go unpack, then hang out with Lillian.”
“What are you going to do?”
“I was going to clean out this junk room to help me deal with Harlow-generated emotions, but I’m feeling better.”
“Because of me. I’m like a unicorn. Basically I’m a magical creature.”
She laughed and pushed him out of the room. “You’re a weird kid, and I’m not sure what I was thinking, bringing you home in the first place.”
They went upstairs together. Austin went toward Lillian’s suite while Robyn retreated to her own room. She was pleased to see Mason reading on their shared balcony. She pulled a chair close to his.
He closed his book. “Kids all settled?”
“They will be.”
“Did they tell you what’s going on?”
She frowned. “What do you mean?”
“They both just followed you across the country. There has to be something driving that.”
“We haven’t talked yet.”
Which sounded better than the fact that she and her daughter were already fighting and Austin needed more time before he was ready to share what was on his mind.
She sighed. “I think I might have screwed up as a parent.”
“No way.” Mason shook his head. “I’ve seen a lot of kids their age, and you did just fine. I say that as a professional.”
She laughed. “Thank you. Somehow that makes me feel better. Still, they are going to change the energy in the room.”
“Is that good or bad?”
She leaned back in her chair. “Mostly good.” She looked toward the horizon. “It’s a beautiful day. Were you serious about selling me some land?”
He seemed surprised by the question. “Sure. If you want it. Would you move here?”
“I don’t know. Maybe. My children don’t need me as much, and aside from them, there’s nothing keeping me in Florida.” When Lillian was gone, she would be busy going through the house. That would take a while. It made more sense to open a store near her inventory.
“I like the idea of a little house overlooking the ocean,” she said, smiling at him. “I promise to be a good neighbor.”
“I’m not worried about that. I just hope I can afford to build a house for myself. Everything is more expensive out here.”
She tilted her head. “Why wouldn’t you have enough money? You’re selling this place to the historical society.”
“I know, but they’re a charity group. How much can they pay?”
He didn’t know. She hadn’t realized that until this second. “Mason, it’s a forty-thousand-square-foot house on twenty-five ocean-view acres. Even if you hold back five or six acres for yourself, you’ll get at least ten million from the historical society. You’d get more from a developer, but he would just tear the place down and put up luxury condos, so we don’t want that.”
Mason stared at her, unblinking. His eyes were wide, his mouth slightly open.
“What did you say?”
“Ten million dollars. That’s a guess, by the way. They could be offering you more, but you could probably speak to Lillian’s lawyer and find out. I’m sure they’ve talked numbers. Gregory will know better than me.”