I didn’t want to think too hard about that as I followed Marie to the register to collect her money. I didn’t want to let him go.
Chapter Seventeen
Austin
I sat on the bench outside of the house, paying attention to the voice at the other end of the phone. It was cold out, but I liked the winter.
I nodded and smiled, even though no one else could see me. “That’s right. A million dollars.” They said something, and I glanced at the door, hoping that Mom didn’t come looking for me. “I am going to have my assistant Preston handle things from this end, and my name won’t be attached to any of this.” I listened. “That’s right. It’s an anonymous donation. Thank you so much.”
I ended the call with a wide smile, feeling like I was doing something good for a change. I was giving rather than taking. It felt pretty good. I looked around the snow-covered land, and I took in the peace around me.
I stood to go inside, knowing that Mom was finishing dinner up. She had been on cloud nine since I came home, and I knew that she wanted things to progress with Rebecca and me. I didn’t say much as far as anything further happening, but I enjoyed her happiness.
I went into the kitchen to see her finishing a salad to go with the pasta that she’d fixed. I asked if I could help with anything.
“No, thank you, sweetheart,” she said. “I’m almost done. Go tell your dad to wash up for supper.”
I felt like a weight had been lifted off my shoulders. I went to the living room where Dad watched a college football game on television. He’d done some work around the house today, and he looked tired when he looked up at me.
I smiled at him. “Supper’s ready. Mom told me to tell you to wash up.”
“Good, I’m starving,” he grumbled as he stood up. He looked more than tired. I frowned as I watched him walk into the small bathroom. I considered hiring someone to take care of the house and the yard for them on a steady basis before I left so he wouldn’t have to keep doing this to himself. I knew that he wasn’t about to leave so that was the least that I could do.
I used the hall bathroom to wash my hands, then helped Mom get the food to the table. Dad was already there. She gave him his milk before going to get her water. I poured some milk for myself and watched their routine with interest. Memories flooded me all over again as I thought back to the past and my childhood. I knew Mom had been pregnant with another baby when I was around five, and they’d downplayed the miscarriage for me.
Looking back now, I knew they’d wanted more kids, but it just didn’t happen for them. They were happy with me, once they accepted their fate.
Mom heaped some pasta on Dad’s plate, along with some salad. She gave him a loving smile. It reminded me of the look that Rebecca gave me before I left her this morning, and I wondered how her night was going.
We settled in to eat. Mom kept giving me curious glances. “So, is Rebecca working tonight?” she asked.
“She is,” I told her, smiling playfully at her.
She narrowed her eyes. “It was good to see her again. Invite her for Christmas, along with that sister of hers, if they don’t have plans. It didn’t sound like it last night.”
Dad looked at Mom. “You’ll have enough to feed them, right?”
Mom had an open-door policy on Christmas. Since our family was small, she always cooked extra for anyone who was alone on the holidays. We were getting a tree tomorrow morning. Mom would keep it up and decorated for as long as Dad would allow it.
Preston was coming over to help decorate it. Mom insisted that he enjoy some of Christmas. She already had a special meal planned for that.
“I always do.” Her smile was bright, and I realized how much she loved having Christmas here, although she’d been all over the i
dea of feeding the homeless last year in the city. It was horrifying to hear how many people lived on the streets in New York. Dad had to reign her in from giving them all money. “I am going to make a good ham tomorrow for that assistant of yours, with all the fixings.” She looked at me. “Is Rebecca working?”
“I’ll find out,” I promised her, thinking that I’d appreciate some alone time with Rebecca. I couldn’t stop thinking about how great last night had been.
Mom beamed at me. I took a bite of spaghetti, aware that nobody in the city cooked it like Mom. They could claim to be authentic all they wanted, but there was just something about home cooking that appealed to me on this trip. We talked about the farm that we’d be going to in the morning. Mom described her perfect tree to us, and Dad rolled his eyes in feigned annoyance. I remembered how much of a chore picking out a tree had been as a kid. I thought about warning Preston in advance, if I hadn’t already. But it was tradition, and I was going to enjoy it.
We finished dinner, and I helped Mom clean up while Dad went back to his game.
“Mom, I want to get you guys someone to help out around here. A contractor of sorts. There has to be someone in town who’s willing to work for a little extra cash.” My voice was quiet.
She gave me a sad look. “He won’t have that, Austin. He’s a proud man and still considers himself to be active at sixty. Besides, it gives him something to do. Take away a man’s purpose, and you take away his reason to go on living. Now that he’s retired, all he’s got is his work around the house. Maybe if he had some grandkids to distract him…”
“Mom!” I said, shocked.
She smiled innocently. “I’m just saying.”