My phone rings, pulling me out of my thoughts, and I dig it out of my purse. “Hello.”
“Ms. Nottingham, Harold Garcia. How are you?”
“Hi, Mr. Garcia. I’m doing well. The remodel is moving along smoothly.”
“That’s why I was calling. I have something for you. It was in your father’s will that I not give it to you until you’d had experienced Tennessee for yourself. I just got a call from your mother, and the conversation led me to believe that you have indeed experienced our great state.”
“I have, in a sense, but it’s more the people.” I glance over at Kent, and he smiles from his seat behind the wheel of his truck. “We’re actually on our way to the estate now. Do you need to meet up with me today?” I find it odd he’s calling on a Saturday afternoon. Whatever my mother said to him must have him feeling as though he needs to act promptly.
“I can meet you there. An hour?”
“Sure. We’re on our way there now. We’ll wait for you.”
“See you soon.” He ends the call.
“That’s weird.” I explain the conversation to Kent.
“Something from your dad’s will? Maybe it’s the deed?”
“No. I already have the deed. Much to my mother’s dismay. Apparently, she called him. I didn’t ask him what she wanted. Looks like we’re going to find out soon enough. Should we call your parents? Check on Kendrix?”
“Nah, she’s fine… unless you want to?”
“Do you mind?”
“Of course not. Here.” He pulls his phone out of his pocket and hands it to me, rattling off the access code.
“Just like that?”
“Just like what?”
“You give me your code?”
“Laney, you own me, heart and soul. The password to my cell phone is nothing compared to what I’ve already given you.” Reaching over, he rests his hand on my thigh.
Unlocking the screen, I scroll through his recent calls. “Should I call your mom or your dad?”
“Either.”
Knowing he called his mom earlier, I hit her contact and place the phone to my ear. It rings twice before she answers.
“Hello.”
“Hi, Georgia, it’s Delaney.”
“Oh, hi, sweetheart.”
“How’s Kendrix?”
“She’s perfect. We just built a fort in the living room.”
“I bet she loves that.”
“She’s having a ball. We are too. She’s something else.”
“Thank you for watching her. Can I speak to her?”
“Oh, don’t thank us for watching our granddaughter. That’s an honor. Just a sec.”
I hear her call out to Kendrix, and then her little feet and her voice as she grows closer. “Hi, Mommy.”
“Hi, sweetie. Are you having a good time?”
“Yes.” She rattles on about cookies, and movies, and forts and popcorn and if it were possible, my heart would be smiling. I love seeing her so excited. My mom never plays with her, and my dad, well, he was too busy working all the time. She’s loving the attention, love, and affection they are showering her with.
“Daddy and I are going to go to the big house and grab some clothes. We’re going to stay at his house again tonight.”
“I wanna stay here and sleep in my fort.”
“You do?”
“Yep.”
“Okay, let me talk to Daddy, and we can decide when we get there.”
“Okay, Mommy, bye. Love you. Mamaw hewear.” The phone clatters to the table, causing me to pull it away from my ear, and then Georgia is back on the line.
“Sorry about that. You kids take your time. We’re enjoying our day.”
“Thank you. We’re going to run by my house. We have a few things to pick up, and then we’ll be there to get her.”
“She’s welcome to spend the night.”
“Okay. I’ll talk to Kent. Either way, we’ll be there.”
“Sounds good, sweetheart. Talk to you soon,” she says, and the line goes dead.
“She having fun?” Kent asks.
“Yes. Apparently, they built a fort.”
He nods. “Yeah, we used to do that all the time when I was a kid.”
“She wants to spend the night.”
“How do you feel about that?”
“I don’t know. She’s only ever stayed with my mom without me, and that was just recently when I came here.”
“Don’t worry about offending them. You decide what you feel is best for you and Kendrix.”
“And you?”
“I’m going with whatever makes you the most comfortable. Baby steps and all that.”
“We’re hardly taking baby steps.”
“Not us, Laney. I meant you and Kendrix with my parents. There are no baby steps where we’re concerned. It’s more of a sprint. No steps.” He laughs.
“Who’s that?” I ask, my attention pulled from our conversation to the car sitting in front of my house.
Kent stops the truck, and the front door of the house opens, and low and behold, there stands my mother. “Shit,” Kent mumbles.
“What is she doing here?”
“Only one way to find out.” He reaches for his door, but my hand on his arm stops him.
“You don’t have to deal with her. I know you said she treated you badly in the past. I don’t want you to have to deal with that.”