Twilight time, p.22
Twilight Time, page 22
“Hey,” Leah exclaimed, “before you go. I heard from Wyatt about that singer you sent his way.”
“Oh? And...?”
“He likes her. So does the rest of the band.”
A spark of excitement lit up inside him. At least, there was one woman he hadn’t let down. “That’s great.”
“Uh-huh. But...”
Elation turned to disappointment. “But...?”
“They like your stuff more. Wyatt wants to feature you on a few songs for the next album if you’re amenable.”
Not exactly what he expected to hear. Maia’s expression transformed from miserable to wide-eyed surprise. “We can talk when he and I are both home again. No promises, though. I intend to keep my options open.”
Leah laughed. “I told him as much. As for your friend, Kaycee, he sent her CD to Cooper Wallace.”
“Is that good?”
“Good? It’s terrific. If he likes her, he’ll fly her out to LA and lock her up in a recording studio before someone else finds out she’s the next new pop star. Cooper lost out on a very hot singer a decade ago when he hesitated to sign her and another label swooped in while he sat on the fence. He’s never forgotten about the golden bird who got away and won’t let it happen again.”
“Okay, well, that’s good, I guess.”
“Trust me, it’s great. Keep me posted on Lily.”
“Will do.”
He was about to disconnect the call when Maia reached for his wrist to stop him. “Leah?”
“Yeah?”
“Will a few days make a difference on the vet visit? I mean, is it urgent Lily see someone here in South Dakota?”
A pause met Maia’s questions but after a tense minute, Leah replied, “I don’t see why it should. It’s really about your and Lily’s comfort level. Go with your gut. Does that help?”
“It does. Thanks.” She nodded at Spence, and he ended the call.
Before he could ask, she blurted out her reasoning. “I want to take Lily home. To Youngstown. She was born there; she should...” Her voice broke, and she cleared her throat with a pain-filled whimper. “She should finish her trip there.”
Pulling her into a protective hug, he asked, “When do you want to leave?”
“Now.”
Chapter 20
Maia had no idea who first said, “You can’t go home again,” but the phrase echoed in her brain as Spence drove through the downtown area. Where she remembered boarded-up buildings and empty lots now sat art galleries, boutiques, restaurants, and bars. The old Youngstown had undergone a makeover during her years away, sort of like Maia herself. She hoped the improvements in both of them foretold changes for the better.
“Where to?” Spence asked, breaking into her thoughts.
She gave him directions turn by turn until they pulled up in front of the three-bedroom ranch with its post-and-rail fence and cracked driveway. She’d called ahead, and her conversation with her mom had been pleasant but stilted.
“Mom?”
“Maia, is that you?”
“Uh-huh. How are you?”
“I’m well. You?”
“Good. I’m... umm... coming home—just for a visit. Would you be around? To talk? I can make sure we get there after five, so it won’t interfere with work.”
“Oh? Teddy’s coming with you?”
Even all these years later, iciness crept into Mom’s tone at the mere mention of Teddy.
“We’re divorced, remember?”
“Oh, yes, of course. When you said ‘we,’ I automatically assumed...”
As if Maia couldn’t possibly have met someone else in the years since she’d left home. She swallowed her bitterness. This was meant to be a reconciliation, not a renewed battle. Mom might still be the same fragile shell she’d become after Dad’s death, or she might have been caught off-guard by Maia’s out-of-the-blue phone call and reverted to type. Either way, Maia vowed to roll with the punches, give her mother time, and pray they could mend their fractured relationship.
“I’m bringing a friend,” she clarified. “Well, more than a friend, but let me reassure you he’s nothing like Teddy. I’ll let you see for yourself when you meet him.”
“I’ll look forward to it.”
The front door opened before Spence pulled to the curb and put the RV in park. Good Lord, Mom must have taken a position at the front bay window in the living room. She stepped out onto the porch, her hands clasped in front of her, eyes downcast. On first examination, she looked the same but older. Gray strands glinted through her dark hair. An invisible weight had settled on her shoulders, making her appear smaller. Or maybe Maia had finally grown up.
Spence unclipped his seatbelt. “You ready?”
On a deep, cleansing breath, Maia nodded. “I think so.”
“Remember.” He reached across the center console to squeeze her hand. “I’m here for you if you need me.”
Inhale through the nose, exhale through the mouth. Inhale through the nose, exhale through the mouth...
“Thanks.”
After a quick glance at Lily still snoozing in her bed in the back, Maia released her seatbelt and opened the RV door, stepping out onto the sidewalk she hadn’t stood upon in years.
The lilacs were in bloom, the dozens of tall bushes dancing on the late afternoon breeze. Memories flooded back: Dad’s cab in the very spot where the RV sat now, the smell of diesel fuel mixed with the light floral scent, the sound of her dad’s laugh and Mom’s reciprocating giggle as they reunited after a particularly long time apart, the scratchiness of his unshaven face when he picked her up and she hugged him tight.
Oh, Daddy, I miss you so much!
Her gaze strayed to her mother who remained in the same position on the porch, head still bowed, shoulders still stooped.
“Mom?”
At last, she looked up, and the visible lines on her face eased. “Maia.”
She descended the front steps while Maia strode up the walkway, Spence in tow. Meeting her mom in the middle of the front lawn, she was afraid to reach out to her in any way. Mom seemed equally unsure of how to handle this face-to-face.
“Nice to see you, sweetheart,” Mom said at last. “Come inside. I made coffee. Do you still drink coffee?” She must have noticed Spence loitering in the driveway because she craned her neck toward him and waved. “Hello. I’m Connie. Maia’s mother.”
“Hi there.” He drew closer and held out his hand. “I’m Spence.”
She placed both her hands around his, as if sensing he was the lifeline between mother and daughter. “Welcome. Please come inside.”
As Mom led the way, Spence wrapped an arm around Maia’s waist. When they walked through the front door, she stepped back in time. The living room still held the same furniture she remembered from high school. No carpet anymore, she noted, and the drapes were different. Otherwise, she might as well be sixteen again, waiting for the school bus to whisk her away from what she’d dubbed The House of Mourning.
“Let’s go into the kitchen,” Mom said. “I’ve got coffee and I made profiteroles. They’re Maia’s favorite.”
“Really?” Spence’s tone rose an octave, and Maia bristled at his keen interest.
“When I was ten.”
Mom’s expression turned crestfallen. “Oh. I’m sorry. I should have realized. You don’t like them anymore? I’ve probably got a few frosted sugar cookies in the pantry...”
Maia inwardly winced. She kept screwing up when all she wanted was to make things right. “No, Mom, please don’t. I still like profiteroles. I just haven’t had them in a long time.”
The unsaid part, “since I moved out” lingered in the air between them.
Her mother’s face brightened, and she exhaled a relieved sigh. “Oh, good. I also have treats for Lily—where is she, by the way?”
“She’s in the RV,” Spence replied. “She tires easily these days, so we’ll just let her sleep.”
“Poor pup,” Mom crooned. “Maybe the doggie cookies I bought will perk her up. There’s an organic pet bakery in town. Can you believe it? They sell all-natural cookies and tidbits for dogs. Cats, too. I think they even have snacks for birds.”
Maia couldn’t remember the last time she’d heard her mother chatter so much. Definitely long before they lost her dad. Was Mom trying too hard or had she finally come to terms with being on her own? Too soon to tell.
When Mom moved out of the doorway to fetch the coffee and cookies, Maia almost stumbled crossing the threshold. Whereas time in the living room had stopped like at Miss Havisham’s house, the kitchen had undergone a complete overhaul. Pristine white, glass-fronted cabinets replaced the old pine wood Daddy would routinely take down, strip, and polyurethane. Stainless steel appliances gleamed where Maia had expected the old harvest gold. The four-burner gas stove was now a six-burner with a double oven.
Her amazement must have shown on her face because Mom took one look at her and explained, “I redid the kitchen. After I retired, I started baking full-time. I have my own small business now, ‘Connie’s Confections.’ I make cookies and cupcakes for kids’ parties, bridal showers, and local events. I made enough in the first two years to pay for all the renovations in here.”
Wow. This was not how Maia expected today to go. Well, really, what did she think she’d see? With her gone, Dad gone, what did she want her mother to do? Curl up and die? Or find a new normal? She had no right to question the choices her mother had made—especially since Mom’s choices had turned out a helluva lot better than her own.
“Good for you.” Maia turned to Spence. “Mom used to make the most spectacular desserts for Dad and me on special occasions. One year, for my birthday, I wanted snow globes. Mom made the most intricate snow globe cupcakes, all with different scenes beneath spun sugar ‘glass.’ My classmates talked about those cupcakes for months afterwards.”
“I’m so glad you remember that.”
In other words, life didn’t always suck here, Maia.
Point taken.
They sat together at the stone-topped rectangular dinette table, another upgrade from the round Formica four-seater she grew up with. Her emotions jumbled. She wanted so much for her mother to move forward and seeing the same old living room had devastated her. But now, seeing the vast changes in the kitchen and dining area, what Mom had always called “the heart of the house,” she assumed her mother kept one foot firmly in the past while the other marched into a new world with confidence, creating a sort of half-life no one could sustain.
As Mom passed the plate of profiteroles around, Maia noticed she’d brought out the sterling silver coffee set and the good china.
“You shouldn’t have gone to all this trouble,” Maia said.
“Nonsense. One thing I’ve learned is that life is too short to wait for special occasions. So, I use the good plates, eat the good foods...” She waved a hand behind her at the kitchen. “Buy the good appliances.”
“And the living room...?” Maia bit her tongue—seconds too late.
Mom picked up her delicate cup of coffee and sipped, appearing unaffected by her daughter’s comment. “I’ll get to changing it eventually. I pulled up the carpet and changed the window treatments, but that’s as far as I got at the moment. It’s nothing nefarious, so don’t go thinking you have to lock me up somewhere for my mental health. The living room isn’t that important to me. I needed to update the kitchen for my business. That was my priority. I’m never in the living room. I usually go in and out of the house through the back door. And when I’m not puttering in here, I’m in my bed, asleep.” Placing the cup on its saucer, she reached across the table to touch Maia’s hand. “It’s so good to see you sweetheart. I never thought you’d be sitting here again with me. I’ve missed you.”
“I missed you, too.”
“I’ve been watching your videos. They’re really good. Although I was sorry to hear about Lily’s condition. Watching her on your adventures gave me a peek into who you’ve become. And I couldn’t be prouder of you. You’re smart, compassionate, witty. Even in the scenes without Lily, you come across as so... genuine. You’ve always had a wonderful presence when you interview people.”
“You’re...” Maia swallowed the lump that had risen in her throat. It might have been her heart. “You’re... proud of me?”
“Why wouldn’t I be? You’re making your mark on the world in your own way. You didn’t have it easy, and I worried about you for so long. Then, a few months ago when I saw you on that news show you did...” A nervous laugh escaped, strangled and uncertain. “I used to watch videos online from when you were at that television station in New York.”
“You did?”
Mom cocked her head. “Does that surprise you?”
“Well, yeah. I mean, I didn’t think you’d be interested in anything I was up to.”
“You’re my daughter.”
Maia floundered for Spence to help her out, but it was her mother who reached for her hand.
“I love you, Maia. I may not always agree with what you do, but I’m always interested in everything you do. Because I love you.” Mom lifted their clasped hands and squeezed. “All of you. The good, the not-so-good, the very-not-good. It doesn’t matter what you become in life: Maia the news journalist, Maia the independent vlogger, Maia the dog-owner. All of the Maias you’ve been and all the Maias you’ve yet to be. You’re always my daughter first and foremost. And all I’ve ever wanted was for you to be happy. When you hooked up with Teddy, I was terrified for you. I knew he’d try to crush your spirit. And I realized, your dad and I hadn’t really prepared you for a man like him. You and your father had such a connection, such a bond. When he died, I should have realized you were broken, too. I was so immersed in my own grief, I lost you, drowned you in my tears. I’m sorry.”
Tears pricked her eyes, and Maia rubbed a fist over her face. “I’m sorry, too.”
“You were a kid. You shouldn’t have to apologize to me for anything you did. You were a kid, and you were hurting. I should’ve been better to you. I should’ve been there for you. I understand why you needed to get away from me. But I should’ve fought for you. And the fact that I let you go—to him—I thought that would haunt me for the rest of my days. It’s why I buried myself at work, at school at first, and then with my baking when the board of ed forced me to take early retirement. But I see you now, in your videos and here in my kitchen, and you look happy. You look like you’re at peace. That’s all I ever wanted for you. Are you happy?”
She glanced at Spence, caught the smile on his face and smiled back. “I am.”
Aside from Lily’s condition, but she wouldn’t talk about that now. They had a vet appointment for tomorrow. Plenty of time for tears after that.
According to Dr. Hawkins, Lily’s original vet, they’d timed their visit perfectly. “She’s given you all the love she has to give,” he said during the exam. “Now, you have to let her go. I’ll give you two a few minutes to say goodbye to her while I get everything prepped.”
He left the room, and Maia folded into Spence’s embrace.
“Easy,” he murmured. “I know it’s hard, but she’s counting on us.”
Lily lay on the exam table on her side, her legs no longer able to keep her upright. Spence had been carrying her around for several days now, and Maia had resorted to hand-feeding the dog all her meals. It was time. They all knew it. Even Lily.
This was Lily’s last journey, and she’d travel this road alone.
“You’ve been such a good girl, Lily.” Maia crooned. “The best girl. You were my best friend for so long. I’m sorry I wasn’t there for you those last few years. I’m sorry I left you behind. Oh, God, I’m so sorry.”
Dr. Hawkins returned with his assistant and a tray. “We’re going to give Lily two shots. The first will sedate her to keep her calm. Once that’s taken effect, we’ll administer the second, which contains a combination of a muscle relaxer and a formula that will stop her heart. It’s quick, painless, and humane. If you prefer, you can wait outside—”
“No!” Maia broke from Spence. “I have to be here. We have to be here.”
“Okay, but if you change your mind or feel like you can’t be here for the end, you can step out after we give her the first shot. She’ll no doubt lose consciousness and won’t know—”
“I’ll know.”
“Easy, Maia,” Spence said again.
The words soothed her troubled heart, and she nodded. “I’m okay.” Steeling herself, she ran a hand down from Lily’s ear to her tail in one long stroke. “I’m so sorry, my beautiful girl, but it’s time for us to say goodbye. I’m gonna miss you soooo much.”
Spence did the same. “Thanks for coming into my life, Lily. You have no idea how much joy and love you brought me in your twilight time. I cherish every minute we had together.”
Within minutes, the light dimmed from Lily’s eyes, and she was gone. Though she swayed, Maia stayed on her feet, thanks only to the support of Spence’s bulk behind her.
Maya’s sunny face filled the screen. “Hi, friends! As most of you know, we lost our beloved Lily two years ago today. So, today, we’re honored to announce the opening of Twilight Time Ranch, our doggie camp for senior pets who have a bucket list to fill. Come on. Let’s take a tour.”
The camera’s focus switched to a panoramic view of lush green grass and a tree-lined horizon.
“We’re on four acres of property here, and areas are broken into segments for dogs based on their abilities at any given time. This is Lily’s Gambol, a fenced-in field for running, chasing a ball, and open play.”
In the next scene, a bare-chested Spence stood waist-deep in a rectangular swimming pool while several dogs of different breeds swam with delight.
“Welcome to Lily’s Pond, where dogs receive water therapy for arthritic limbs, to build up muscle, and help with other mobility issues. We’ve got a veterinary office on the premises, so our residents get the very best of care and receive a healthy diet, based on their needs and the vet’s recommendations. And you all remember Spence, right? Say hello, Spence.”
