Some Hearts (11 page)

He didn’t argue or invite me to stay. Not that I expected him to.

Twenty minutes later my overnight bag was in my car. I was sitting inside the small coffee shop Noah had taken me to for breakfast. My homework was spread out in front of me. A mug of chamomile tea was steaming off to the side. Adelaide had been right, it was soothing.

The moment I’d walked out of the dorms, I’d sent Noah a text telling him I’d gone to the coffee shop. I didn’t tell him why. I didn’t want to bother him with that while he was trying to get some work done. Instead, I simply asked him to meet me here when he finished up. An entire Intro to Psych assignment and two mugs of tea later, he showed up.

“Hey,” he said as he swooped in to kiss my cheek. “Did my room get too stuffy for you?” He took the seat across from me waited for an answer.

“More like your roommate got too stuffy for me,” I said lightly.

“What?” He frowned as my words sunk in. “He wasn’t supposed to be back until tomorrow. What’s he doing back already?”

I raised my eyebrows at him. “Did you really want me to ask?”

“No,” Noah admitted as his shoulders slumped. “Now what?”

We both knew the answer to that.

“If the hotels in town are all full, I suppose I’m going to have to go home. Landon didn’t seem all that inviting,” I pointed out.

“He’s not. He’d never let you stay. I’m sorry I had you drive all the way here. I thought we’d have a lot more time together.”

“I’m glad I came,” I argued. “I mean, yes, I’d love to spend another night.” I leaned in close, though there weren’t that many people here this time of day. “Last night was amazing and I’d love a repeat. But I’m just happy to be with you. We still have the rest of today. We can still make time for dinner and a movie. Seeing you last night and today was so much better than not seeing you at all. It was worth the drive.”

“
So last night?” he asked shyly as he lowered his voice. “It was okay? Really?”

I rolled my eyes and playfully swatted at him. “As if you really need to ask!”

He bit his lip and dropped his head for a second. When he looked at me again, it was through lowered lashes. His cheeks were pink and his face was scrunched up in a look of embarrassment. My aggressive Noah from the night before had vanished, leaving my adorably predictable Noah in his place.

It didn’t matter.

I loved both sides of him.

“I’ve wanted to do that for awhile. I just didn’t know if you’d like it,” he admitted.

Now it was my cheeks that flooded with color. I glanced around to make sure no one was within ear shot. “I’m pretty sure you got your answer,” I whispered. “I’m also pretty sure you could do just about anything to me and I would like it.” I winked at him and his body slammed backward in his seat.

He let out a little groan and shifted around uncomfortably
. The vinyl groaned under the friction. I did not miss the way he readjusted his jeans. “Enough of that talk. You’re killing me. Damn Landon for coming back early.”

“Damn him!” I agreed with a little laugh.

He reached over to take my hand. His expression shifted from playful to serious.

“
I’ve been meaning to ask you about your mom. When I called the other day, you said she was having a hard time. Do you want to talk about it?”

I shook my head. He was giving me the perfect opportunity but our weekend was already being cut short. I didn’t want to waste what little time I had left with him dumping my problems on him. “It’s nothing.”

“I don’t believe you. You think it has to do with it being almost a year since Evan died?”

He obviously remembered that from our phone call.

I nodded.

“I know that’s going to be a really hard day for all of you. Maybe I could come home then. I know I wouldn’t be able to stay very long. It’s in the middle of the week. But would you like me to do that?”

“That’s really sweet of you. But I can’t ask you to do that. You’re right. It is during the week. It’s such a long drive…”

He gave my hand a squeeze. “I want to. I’ll be there. Now, let’s get out of this place. I’ve only got you until the end of the day. I want to make the most of it.”

It had been nearly one in the morning by the time I got home from Noah’s. I hadn’t told Mom I’d be coming home early. Empty wine bottles littered the countertop. Evidence of her two day binge. At least she was in her room, tucked into bed sleeping when I got home. It was better than being passed out on the couch.

But it still wasn’t good enough.

I was infinitely grateful to Caleb for taking Tyler for the weekend. I told him so when he brought Ty home Sunday night. Caleb didn’t have to tell me that Tyler had had a blast. Ty couldn’t stop talking about how awesome the whole weekend had been. Even after Caleb was gone, Ty gave Mom and me a play by play of every fish caught, of every marshmallow roasted and every card game played.

I kept an eye on Mom the rest of the week. She knew I was watching her and I could tell that she resented. That was too damn bad. I was pretty sure I disliked it even more than she did.

She had put me on the schedule at Tiny Tots Boutique for Friday afternoon. I didn’t mind working. I enjoyed being in the store. I could always use the extra money.

Mom had left in a rush. I wasn’t sure if she had somewhere to be, or if she was just anxious to get away from me. We hadn’t been talking much lately, living in the house as almost-strangers.

I spent the afternoon rearranging a window display when I wasn’t busy with customers. Surprisingly, I was left with a lot of time to work on the display. Typically, Friday afternoons were busy. I attributed it to being payday for many people. That wasn’t the case tonight. Sales were a fraction of what of what I was used to. I wondered if it was the economy. Had it taken another plunge that I wasn’t aware of? Was it the season—halfway through fall but not quiet winter weather yet?

I got my answer half an hour before closing.

A woman came through the door, a flurry of movements and complaining.

“I can’t believe you’re finally open!” she proclaimed.

I glanced at the clock hanging behind the counter. “We don’t close until six. We’re open for another half hour.”

She shook her head at me and tossed her heavy messenger bag onto the counter. We rarely got cranky customers but I could tell this one was not going to be a treat.

“That’s not what I meant. I’ve stopped by three, maybe four times. The shop is always closed.” She gave me a condescending narrow-eyed look. “The sign on your door says you’re open Tuesday through Saturday, ten to six. So pardon me for thinking that you would actually be open from ten to six.”

I opened my mouth to argue with her but immediately shut it. My stomach felt like it sank down to my toes. We
were
supposed to be open those hours. I got the distinct impression that she knew something I didn’t. “I’m sorry?”

“I think you heard me. I heard from a friend that the shop’s hours had become
erratic. I have several items here on consignment. If the store is not going to be open, I want to bring my things somewhere else. I’ve stopped by a few times this week. My friend was right. It seems this place is never open. I’d like to collect my things. Now.” She wasn’t exactly rude, but her words were very firm.

I knew better than to argue with her.

“I’m so sorry,” I apologized. “I didn’t realize. I’m not entirely sure what’s going on.” The tiny business minded voice in me was telling me I should try to talk her out of taking her items. I shut that voice down. She clearly wanted them and she did not seem to be in the mood to be swayed. And really, I couldn’t blame her.

I also could not blame her when she insisted that I help her round everything up immediately. She didn’t want to risk coming back only to find the shop closed. My cheeks were flushed from embarrassment. I said as little as possible because I had no idea how to explain my mother’s actions away.

It took us nearly until closing time to find everything that she’d brought in. I bagged everything up for her and paid out what she was owed. I apologized as profusely as I could. She didn’t seem to want to hear it.

Instead, I got an earful about how it was bad business to be closed so often at random. I couldn’t argue with her. I just listened, and nodded…and completely agreed. When she was gone, I straightened out the store to keep myself busy. I tried calling Mom’s phone but it went straight to voicemail. As soon as six o ’clock rolled around, I locked the front door and shut off the lights.

As anxious as I was to leave, I didn’t. I stormed into Mom’s office. It was a disaster. It took me nearly an hour but I managed to go through her latest bank statements, her unopened mail, and her unpaid bills. A few of them were overdue.

I wrote out checks for the bills that needed to be paid. I didn’t know for sure that there was money in the account but I wrote them out and hoped for the best. I organized the mess on Mom’s desk. I wanted her to know that I’d gone through everything. When I left, I went straight to the Post Office.

After I stuffed the envelopes inside, I headed home.

I didn’t get very far before I pulled over.

I was furious.

She was completely falling apart.

It was bad enough that she was becoming incompetent at home. But her business? She got alimony and child support from Dad but she needed her business. If what her customer said was true, and I had absolutely no reason not to believe her, she was going to run Tiny Tots Boutique right into the ground.

Then what?

I let out a frustrated scream as I slammed my palm against the steering wheel. Angry tears flared up behind my eyes.

What if she lost her business?

What in the hell was she going to do then?

Another question…what was she doing if she wasn’t at work?

Nausea flowed through me because I was pretty sure that I knew.

***

Caleb opened his door wearing a pair of dark washed jeans and a blue, short sleeved button down shirt. The scent of his cologne slammed into me. He was freshly shaven, his dark brown hair still damp from his shower. He narrowed his midnight blue eyes at me. There was no doubt he was heading out. Probably on a date, I realized. I wasn’t sure why I hadn’t thought of that before.

Caleb was young, gorgeous, sweet, kind…of course he was dating. This thought process took all of a second but it felt like forever. I blinked up at him, wishing I’d never had the nerve to pound on his door.

At least he didn’t look unhappy to see me. Just confused.

“Emory? What’s going on?” he asked. He poked his head out the door. As if maybe I’d brought a problem with me. Or maybe he was peeking out, hoping his girlfriend wasn’t going to catch him with an emotional girl standing on his front steps.

“Nothing,” I said as I took a step away. “Nothing. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have come here. At least not without calling first.” I spun on my heel and darted back down the stairs. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d felt so foolish.

“Hey,” he said as his fingers closed around my elbow, pulling me to a stop. He turned me around so that I was facing him but I kept my eyes on the ground. “Let’s get something straight right no
w. You’re not leaving here until you tell me what’s going on.”

“It’s nothing,” I repeated as I finally looked up at him. He was looking at me with concern. I decided to give him an excuse so that he’d let me go. “I was just having a bad day. I needed
someone to talk to. It was stupid of me to think you wouldn’t be busy. I’m sorry,” I said with an apologetic shrug.

“Come on inside.”
He tugged at my arm and I was pretty sure he wasn’t going to take ‘no’ for an answer. I didn’t even try to protest though a part of me was screaming that I should. I had no business being here. Caleb had already done so much for us. It was unfair of me to dump my problems on him. Especially right now, when he clearly had somewhere he needed to be.

“Caleb,” I finally said as we reached his door, “I’m fine. Really. You look like you’re getting ready for a date. I don’t want to keep you.”

He blew out a breath and scratched the back of his neck. “It’s fine. I can cancel.”

I shook my head and tried to move away from him. He didn’t let me budge. “That’s not fair to your girlfriend. We can talk some other time.”

He looked at me, his expression grim. “For one thing, calling her my ‘girlfriend’ is getting a bit ahead of yourself. We’ve only gone out a few times. For another, I can tell you’ve been crying. I think you need to talk to someone right now. Now, get in here,” he ordered. “Let me worry about my date.”

I followed him inside and took a seat on his couch. He swiped his phone off of the counter and disappeared down the hallway. I couldn’t make out his words but I could make out the placating tone of his voice. He came back a few minutes later, wearing a smile that was clearly forced. He dumped his phone onto the coffee table and then took a seat on the chair across the room.

“That didn’t go well?” I guessed. I didn’t know who she was, but what girl is happy about getting ditched at the last minute? I felt a bit bad about that because it wasn’t fair to her, whoever she was.

“She’ll get over it,” he said. “And if not…oh well. I’m not all that interested in her anyway.”

“Oh.”

“So. Talk to me,” he commanded.

I did as ordered. I told him about the woman who had come in, her claim that the shop seemed to be closed more often than not. I told him about the unpaid bills that I’d found.

“She’s falling apart,” I said. “What’s going to happen if she loses her business?”

“Don’t get ahead of yourself. Have you talked to her?”

“I tried calling her but she didn’t answer.”

“You need to talk to her. As unfair as it is, I think you’re going to need to be the adult here. Maybe she needs to hire help? I don’t know. I’ve no idea what her finances are like, but maybe she needs to hire someone to cover for her if she feels like she can’t be there. At least the store would be open. That has to be better than having it closed, right?”

I nodded. “Yes. But at the same time, I think she needs to work. She needs something to keep her mind off of everything. If she’s not working, she’s wallowing.”

“I agree but she’s
not
working.” He stood up from his chair and crossed the room to me in three quick strides. He held out his hand to me. “Come on.”

I took it and he pulled me up. “Where are we going?”

“We’re going to talk to her. Right now.”

I let out a shaky breath.

He placed his hands on my shoulders and looked me in the eye.

“Emory, I know that this is bullshit. You should not have to be telling your mom to get her shit together.
But life, it sucks sometimes. You just have to push your way through the sucky parts.”

I stared into the depths of his eyes. I felt like he was willing me to be strong. I nodded. “You’re right.”

His hands slid from my shoulder to my elbows. “I’ll come with you. We can go do this right now.”

“No, it’s okay. I should do this by myself. It’s just, I don’t know what to say. I don’t know how to get through to her, you know? I’ve told her how I feel. I can ask her to stop drinking, I can ask her to get help. But I can’t
make
her do it. I have no…no recourse. Does that make sense? It’s not like I can tell her to snap out of it or I’ll call Dad, or Aunt Aubrey. Really, it’s none of their business but more than that, it wouldn’t help matters. It’s not like she’s committing a crime or anything. So what do I
do
?” I wasn’t sure that I was getting my point across but Caleb nodded.

“I get it, I do. I think right now, maybe you just need to start by telling her how worried you are. Maybe asking what you can do to help?”

I shrugged out of his grip and turned away from him. Tears were stinging my eyes again and I didn’t want him to see them.

“I have helped!”
I’d helped because I was the only one around to pick up the pieces. Me. Just me. It was exhausting both mentally and physically. I felt so beaten, so worn down and defeated.

“I don’t mean help by cleaning up the empty bottles, or covering for her so Ty doesn’t know what’s going on. I mean, offering her support. You know that a lot of this is stemming from Evan’s death.”

A tiny sob escaped. I pushed my fingers to my lips, trying to keep the other building sobs inside. I felt Caleb move up behind me, he turned me around and pulled me into his chest. His arms around me felt comforting and I didn’t feel quite so alone.

“I said it before and I’ll say it again. It’s not fair, I know. But think about it this way. You have friends. Riley’s been a great support from what I’ve seen. You have Noah…me.
But your mom, who does she have?”

I lifted my head from Caleb’s chest and he let me go.

“No one. Because she’s pushed everyone away.”

“So maybe you need to try a little harder to reach her. Not just about her drinking, but about how she’s feeling. What she’s going through. Maybe you can lean on each other.”

I let his advice take hold. “Okay. I’ll go talk to her.” I took a step toward the door before turning around. I put my arms around his neck and pulled him in for a hug. “Thank you. I didn’t mean to dump on you.”