6
Mature oak treeslined the long drive to Well Brook Assisted Living, like some Southern estate in a movie. Despite the idyllic scenery, Grady hated that his mom was here. As much as he’d love to have her home with him, that was not something she wanted.
Besides her auto-immune disease she’d also suffered from a debilitating stroke three years ago and after that had begun having seizures. At the time, she was living with his brother and sister-in-law, well more his SIL because his brother travelled all the time. Once she began needing help doing basic living tasks and also round the clock monitoring it was decided, by her, that she should come to stay at Well Brook.
He’d tried to convince her to let him bring her to California, but if he had her at home, she’d need to have nurses come to the house and she didn’t want to do anything that stopped him from having a “social life.”
Not that he had any sort of social life. In Los Angeles, he’d dated casually. But his schedule was so chaotic that he’d never had time for anything serious.
His last serious relationship had been in college. It had lasted three years and had ended when college had. Mariana moved to the East Coast to continue her education and he’d remained in California and started his career in the LAPD.
He’d never seen himself as the settling down kind, but for some reason Olive had him thinking about relationships, marriage, family. From the first time he laid eyes on her, he felt a draw to her, a magnetic pull. It was strange, he’d only spoken to her in a professional capacity, but he could not stop thinking about her. A lot of drug addicts said that they were hooked from the first hit. That was how he felt after meeting Olive St. Claire, he was anxious about when, or if, he would see her again. He’d even driven by the B&B on his way to Well Brook to check and see if her car was still outside. It was.
She’d mentioned that she was in town for her cousin’s wedding. He hoped that their paths would cross again. He was off duty for the next few days and besides coming to visit his mom, his only plans were meeting a couple of guys from the station for a beer tonight. Maybe he’d ask around and see if anyone knew where the wedding was being held or if they’d seen anyone from the wedding party.
Or maybe, he’d just act like he had a pair and stop by the B&B. If she wasn’t there, he’d leave his info with Karen, who he knew would be more than happy to pass it along.
Feeling better for having a plan, Grady stepped out of his truck after parking in the lot and saw several horses grazing in the field. Well Brook used animals as part of their therapy. His mom loved going on rides.
If she couldn’t, or wouldn’t be home with him, this truly was the next best thing.
The automatic doors swooshed open and he walked inside the serene, spa-like facility. The walls were painted a light sage green which complimented the stone fountain with a large bonsai tree as its centerpiece. The earth and water elements really brought the outdoors in, giving the space a peaceful and calm atmosphere.
Marlene smiled at him as he approached the front desk. “Hello, handsome! How is Whisper Lake’s finest doing?”
“Pretty good how are you?” he asked as he signed in.
“I woke up this morning, I’ve got a roof over my head and food for my family. Can’t complain.”
Marlene could complain. She was raising her three grandchildren as a single parent after her daughter passed away from cancer. She’d had to come out of retirement to support the kids. But he never saw her down. She always had a smile on her face and a cheery disposition.
In his line of work, he saw people at some of the worst moments in their lives. He’d come to the conclusion that life wasn’t fair; there was no rhyme or reason to why good things happened to bad people and bad things happened to good. But what he’d observed was the people that thrived, not just survived, were the ones with a positive outlook. Life truly was a mental game. It was all about perspective.
As he signed in, he noticed that his sister-in-law had been there with the kids the day before. His brother hadn’t seen their mom in two years, but his soon-to-be ex-wife still visited with the kids several times a week. He’d forever be in debt to her for that. She could have easily cut the entire family off with how Jim treated her, but she never did.
When his dad passed away, she’d invited his mom to come live with them. Most women wouldn’t be so gracious and welcoming to their mother-in-law, but she had. He’d never been close to his brother, but he loved Chrissy like a sister.
“Here you go.” Marlene handed him a visitor’s badge.
When he entered the main living space, he spotted a familiar face. “Hi Mrs. Domenico, how are you?”
“Well, my hip went out again. And my arthritis is making it near impossible to knit.” She rolled her wrist in a circular motion.
“Hey, Grady!” Pierre, who was his mom’s favorite nurse, dipped his tattooed head in the direction of the hall that led to the resident’s room. “She’s in her room.”
“Oh, okay.” His mom usually spent her afternoons in the garden, especially on sunny days like this. If she was in her room, it meant she wasn’t having a good day. She was probably tired because she’d stayed up all night watching GoT.
He made his way down the hall and walked into her room. The curtains were drawn and the only light was coming from the Himalayan rock salt lamp beside her bed. He hadn’t been by for the past three days because he’d been on duty, but in that time it looked like she’d lost a little weight. Even in the dimly lit room he could see that her coloring was gray and she had dark circles under her eyes.
Grady leaned over and kissed her cheek. “Hey, Ma.”
“Don’t look at me with that tone.”
“I’m not.” Grady lied. He knew that the worry he felt for her was written all over his face. He couldn’t help it.
“Stop worrying.” She patted his hand. “I’m fine.”
“Have you heard from your brother?”