“Yeah, I’m definitely not loving this,” she murmured as she drove through town.
Tomorrow, however, was Saturday, and she was looking forward to it. Haley had a gymnastics meet. Kyle was coming with her, and then they were all going over to Hunter and Violet’s for a barbecue with his whole family.
She was really looking forward to the gymnastics part. Sydney and Kyle had gone to that first one together—he got off early from work and went home to shower and change so he’d look presentable and not embarrass Haley. It was the sweetest thing she’d ever seen him do. Then they sat in the bleachers with so many other parents and it felt…good. Natural. Like they were a family unit, and that had brought a ton of emotions to the surface, but at least they were happy ones.
Kyle took pictures and praised every task Haley had performed. And while Sydney was certainly proud, there were a few things Haley certainly hadn’t mastered yet.
Not that Kyle seemed to care. She had a feeling if Haley had been on a team sport like basketball, Kyle would have been the loudest “dad” there cheering her on.
He was so good for both of them and so much more than she ever imagined he’d be. And that’s why she hated not being up to spending more time with him lately. It felt like she’d be burdening him, and that wasn’t something she wanted to do.
Kyle understood grief—he knew precisely what Haley was dealing with. But she also knew that it was something he still struggled with. Did she really want to keep bogging him down with these issues?
So tomorrow, they’d go watch Haley together and then have dinner with his family.
And yeah, she was more than a little nervous about that second part.
Sure, they’d hung out with Hunter and Violet already, but this would be the first time she was seeing Dean and Scarlett in over ten years. Back when she and Kyle dated in high school, they didn’t spend a lot of time with his family. However, she did remember his sister being more than a little intimidating.
Maybe marriage has mellowed her…
None of them had kids Haley’s age, so she had a feeling that was going to be an issue, but hopefully it wouldn’t be so bad. Her niece was very friendly and didn’t seem to mind hanging out with the grownups when they were at Hunter and Violet’s. Maybe she could even broach the topic of babysitting with them.
As much as Sydney knew Haley was growing up, it was still hard to come to grips with her being old enough not to need a babysitter of her own. She’d missed so much of her life because she lived in Boston and her sister had moved around a bit from Magnolia Sound to Atlanta. They’d seen each other for Christmas each year and sometimes over the summer, but mostly her interactions with Haley were limited to twice-a-year visits. There was still so much she needed to learn about being a parent—and yes, she was still struggling with that label—but more than that, there was still so much she needed to learn about her niece.
“And I’m overwhelmed again.”
Turning onto their block, she did her best to push any and all negative emotions aside. Haley would be home from school by now and she wanted to be able to walk in the door and greet her with a smile. It was something she always tried to do, but her niece was very perceptive and always seemed to know when Sydney wasn’t quite feeling it.
So she sat in the driveway for a solid five minutes and decompressed before going into the house.
“Haley? I’m home!” she called out when she walked inside. Haley poked her head out of her bedroom door and Sydney saw she was on the phone. So with a smile and a wave, they each went their own way. Needing a drink, she went into the kitchen and grabbed a bottle of water when her own phone rang. Smiling, she answered. “Hey, boss lady! How’s the writing world today?”
“Ugh,” Mia replied. “It’s like my brain and my hands are refusing to work together today. I can’t seem to type more than two sentences before I lose my train of thought.”
“Is that normal? Once you get started on a project, you tend to type non-stop. What’s going on?” Opting to go and sit out on the deck, Sydney slid her sandals off and went outside.
“I don’t want to bother you with my nonsense. I was calling to check on you and see how you’re doing.”
“Please, I’m begging you to bother me!” she replied with a small laugh. “I could seriously use the distraction.”
“Uh-oh. Come on, Syd. Talk to me.”
“No way. You first.”
Mia sighed loudly. “Fine, but as soon as I’m done, you have to promise to tell me what’s up with you—the good and the bad.”
“Deal.” Kicking her feet up on the bistro chair beside her, Sydney took a long sip of her water and settled in to hear what was going on with Mia.
“I have writer’s block,” she blurted out.
“O-kay…”
“You know me, Syd. I never get that. There are always characters talking to me in my head, and right now, no one’s talking to me! And no matter what I do, they won’t!”
“Mia, you know this sort of thing is normal. I know it’s not for you, but you know almost every author ever has struggled with this from time to time.”
“I guess…”
“And on top of that, you’re ahead of schedule. You don’t even need to be starting this book for another month, so why don’t you cut yourself a little slack and take some time for yourself?”
With a small groan, she replied, “I wish. I may not have to write, but there’s so much going on with the movie. The screenplay is almost done and we’re getting ready to start casting. So even if I wanted to get away and go to a spa or something, there’s just no way for it to happen.”
“So if you know you’re so busy, why are you beating yourself up over the writer’s block? It seems to me all the other projects are taking up most of your creativity. Get through one thing at a time. And while you’re waiting for the screenplay, maybe just go to a day spa. Then, after you read the screenplay, celebrate by doing something else that you love.” She paused. “Ooh! Maybe now would be a good time to do the renovations on the house that you’ve wanted to do! The new kitchen, the new master bathroom…it would be a really great distraction!”
“Hmm…I hadn’t even considered that. Maybe I can make some calls and start getting estimates.”
“There you go!”
“See? This is why I called you! You always help me, Syd.”
“Well, we’ve known each other a long time and I’m glad I could help.”
“Okay, your turn.”
“Are you sure we’re done talking about you?” she asked with a nervous laugh. “That seemed like a really short conversation.”
“Syd…”
“Maybe we should talk about the plot of the new book! You know, maybe that will jog something and motivate you to get started.”
“Stop procrastinating. Out with it!” Mia demanded lightly.
“Fine,” she huffed. “I’m overwhelmed.”
“With what specifically? Is it the job? Oh my God, it’s the job, isn’t it? I threw too much at you at once. I can’t believe I did that. We can totally put off some things if that will help.”