“Wait a few hours before you text him back,” Chloe advised before hanging up.
Probably a good idea, Paige thought, opening the text.
Hey, Wildflower.
Hey, yourself,she texted back immediately. She’d kept him waiting long enough.
Sorry about taking so long to get back to you. Family emergency.
Is everything okay?
My mother hasn’t been feeling well. Looks like I might have to head down to Florida for a few days.
I’m so sorry. Is it serious?
Hard to say. She’s had a heart condition for years. Every so often it acts up. I’ll know more once I talk to her doctors.
You’re a good son.
No choice. I’m all she’s got.
Your father?
Died last year. And I’m an only child. You?
I have a brother. He’s a cardiologist in New Jersey. Maybe once you know what’s happening with your mother, we could ask his opinion.
No response.
Damn it,Paige thought, as five minutes dragged into ten. She’d done it again. Gotten too personal. Appeared too eager. It was the “we” that had scared him off. She should never have said “we.”
“Damn it,” she said, closing her phone and tossing it next to her book on the cushion beside her.
“Problem?” her mother asked, coming into the living room, adjusting the diamond stud in her left ear.
“No. Just can’t seem to get past chapter three of this damn book. You look nice. Is that a new blouse?”
“Yes. I bought it yesterday.” She patted the ornate buttons at the front of her white silk shirt. “Do you like it?”
“It’s lovely. Are you going somewhere?”
“I have a bridge lesson.”
“Since when do you play bridge?”
“Since about an hour from now. It’s my first lesson. I’m a little nervous. Harry says bridge players can be quite cutthroat. But he loves the game, so I thought I’d give it a go.”
Harry,Paige repeated silently. Of course. She should have known. Her mother had been spending almost every waking minute with the man since their date last weekend, and if she wasn’t with him, she was talking about him. As much as Paige wanted to be happy for her, she couldn’t help being a little resentful. Not that she begrudged her mother her happiness, but she’d gotten used to being the center of her mother’s universe, to having her all to herself.
“Sweetheart? Are you okay?”
“What time will you be home? I was thinking maybe we could go to a movie…”
“Oh, darling. I’m so sorry. Harry is picking me up after my lesson and taking me somewhere nice for dinner. I might not be back until quite late. Are you all right with that?”
No,Paige thought.I want you to stay here with me.“Of course.” She pushed herself off the sofa and walked toward her mother, folding her body into her mother’s waiting arms and relishing the comfort of her embrace.Don’t leave me,she thought. “Go,” she said. “Enjoy your lesson.”
“I will,” her mother said, heading for the door. “Don’t wait up,” she called as the door closed behind her.