The Perfect Family (37 page)

“You’re joking, right?”

“I’d never joke about this, Shirley.”

“You don’t approve of it, do you?”

“Of what? My son being who he is? I absolutely approve.”

“I can’t believe Mike does.”

“Mike loves Jamie as much as I do. Tell me, Shirley, what would you do if you found out one of your boys was gay? Or your daughter was a lesbian?”

Her eyebrows skyrocketed. “They aren’t, thank God. I’d die of embarrassment. And I certainly wouldn’t let them flaunt it.”

“Then thankfully you weren’t given a gay child. But I was, and I’ll love and nurture and cherish him until the day I die.”

Shirley’s face had turned red. “They’re not welcome at my house. Well, Jamie is, but not if he comes with his
friend.
”

Oh, dear Lord, Jamie didn’t need this complication right now. Battling back her real feelings, swallowing her anger as she’d done at the baseball game with Judy Johnson, Maggie softened her tone. “Shirley, please, reconsider what you’re saying. Your position’s going to hurt everybody.”

“I won’t reconsider.” She stood abruptly. “Please tell your son.”

Damn her. Maggie rose, too. “I’d like you to have Kyle call and tell Jamie what you’ve decided.”

“Kyle? He can’t do that.”

“Does he know you’re here, doing this awful thing?”

“Of course not. I’m trying to protect my boy.”

“So am I. In any case, I suggest you tell Kyle what decision you’ve made. He’s a nice kid. I don’t think he’s going to be very proud of his mother right now.”

“I can’t believe you’re being so unreasonable.” She stalked down the deck steps and took the slate path around to the front of the house.

Dazed, Maggie sank onto the chair. Shirley Lewis had rubbed in her face what had been her greatest fear since she began to suspect Jamie was gay. This was the kind of prejudice her son would encounter all his life. Sickened by the thought, she sat outside, pondering what to do, until she heard noise in the house, people calling, “Maggie,” and “Mom, where are you?”

“Out here.”

Jamie was first to reach the deck. He studied her face and frowned. “You okay?”

“No, I’m not.”

Brian came in behind Mike. “What’s going on?”

“Sit down, all of you. We need to talk.”

Jamie dropped down at the table, but Brian and Mike remained standing.

“Is anyone hurt?” Mike asked.

“Not like you mean, though this is going to hurt us all.” She faced Jamie. “Jamie, sweetheart, Mrs. Lewis came over tonight.”

“Kyle’s Mom?”

“Yes. She’s concerned about the party they’re having before the Junior Prom.”

It didn’t take him long. The resignation on his face came quickly, all the more heartbreaking that he’d gotten the message so fast. “Let me guess. She doesn’t want me and Luke to come to her party.”

Brian’s face blanked. “You’re going to the prom with Luke?”

“Yes.”

“Like on a date?”

“Uh-huh.”

Maggie saw the struggle etch itself on Brian’s face. He was trying to be better. Instead of storming off, he held his brother’s gaze a long time but said no more.

Mike said, “Tell me exactly what happened with Shirley. She doesn’t want Jamie and Luke at the party?”

“That’s right. I tried to reason with her, but she was adamant.”

“Does Kyle know about this?” Jamie’s voice was raw. “He’s my friend, Mom.”

“No, honey, he doesn’t.”

“He’ll be pissed.”

Crossing to Jamie, Mike squeezed his shoulder. “I’m sorry, son.”

Brian managed to get out, “Me, too, Jame.” Then he left the three of them on the deck.

Maggie tried to content herself with that little bit of progress, but in light of what else was happening it was small comfort.

*

The day of her encounter with Shirley Lewis, Maggie drove to the lake to visit Caroline. All three of her men were home. Jamie was reeling from two big blows. Brian had been quiet but at least he wasn’t sulking, and Mike was holed up in the den paying bills. Maggie couldn’t stand the stifling stress coming from everywhere, and she thought a dose of her older sister might help.

The May evening was hot as she pulled up in front of the Simons’ lovely house. Its backyard was larger than most of the other lakefront properties and the structure itself was cedar. Exiting the car, she crossed the lawn to the porch, but before she could press the buzzer, the door flew open.

Chloe flung herself at Maggie, who scooped her up. Her bathing suit was wet and her hair smelled like lake water, but Maggie savored the child’s embrace. “Hi, Aunt Maggie.”

Teresa, also in a suit, came to the door. Her hair was up and soft blond strands floated around her face. “Sorry, she’s wet,” Caroline’s daughter said.

“No worries. I love her hugs.” Tears threatened but she battled them back. “Enjoy these years, Terry. You can never recapture them.”

“Come on in.” Teresa kissed Maggie’s cheek and gave her a concerned look, much like Caroline’s. “You okay?”

She nodded.

“Was Mom expecting you?”

“No. This was a spur-of-the moment decision.”

“She’s on the phone.”

“I’m done.” Caroline appeared in the kitchen, dressed in a black net bathing suit cover-up. She seemed younger than her fifty-five years and less sad than when she arrived in town. “Hi, Mags. This is a surprise.”

“I hope I’m not interrupting.”

“No, we took a swim after supper. Want coffee?”

“Yeah, sure.”

Teresa placed a hand on Chloe’s shoulder. “Okay, cowgirl, time for a bath.”

“I wanna see Aunt Maggie.”

“You can, after.”

As Caroline’s daughter dragged her own child down the hall, Maggie said, “That was thoughtful of her to leave us alone.”

“You’re upset.”

“I am.”

“Is it Ma?”

“Not this time.”

“Mike again?” Caroline asked, leading Maggie to the kitchen and pouring them coffee.

“The world in general, I guess. I can’t believe how much happened this week.”

They took their mugs to a sunroom with walls of glass and screens facing the lake. The water lapped right beyond it and the low sun glistened off the surface. Maggie felt soothed by the calm setting.

“What is it, Magpie?”

“Jamie’s had a lot to deal with.” She told Caroline about the blood drive.

“Honey, I’m not blaming you, but didn’t you know about those questions? There’s been a huge uproar from the gay community over them. Our school considered not having a blood drive because so many people objected on principle.”

“Astonishingly, I didn’t know. I have a kind of anemia that keeps me from giving blood. Brian was always scared to donate and Jamie wasn’t old enough. The issue just never came up.” She thought about Mike. He gave blood, but never mentioned this. It wasn’t anything he’d think about. “That’s not all.” She recounted Julianne’s tirade and then Shirley Lewis’s dictum.

Caroline’s dark gaze narrowed. “Shirley’s behavior is abominable. I guess small towns like Sherwood
are
different.”

“You know, now that Jamie’s come out, I notice discrimination against gay people everywhere. It’s just more prevalent in Sherwood.”

“I’m sorry. Truthfully, I love this place, your town, the lake, the surrounding areas.” She glanced out at the water, distracted by its soft whooshing. “Is it always this beautiful?”

“In the spring, summer, and fall it’s breathtaking. Winters can be tough, like in Cornwall.”

Caroline focused back on her. “Have you told anyone in our family about Jamie?”

“Not Ma, of course. But I did talk to Sara. Which was another issue with Jamie.”

After Maggie finished
that
story, Caroline sighed. “I feel sorry for Sara, like I said before. But she should have overcome her prejudices to support you.”

“You think so?”

“I do. I’m sorry she reacted badly to Jamie’s situation.”

“At least Jimmy pulled through.”

A grin. “What a guy, even if he did overestimate his influence on Ma.” Caroline swallowed hard. “I missed so much.”

“But no more,” Maggie said helpfully. “You’ll be back certainly for holidays, maybe next summer.”

“I’m not sure that’s soon enough. Earlier, when you arrived, I was talking to the Simons’ realtor.”

It took a minute for Maggie to internalize the meaning of her words. Her eyes filled. “Oh, my God. Oh, Caroline!”

“We’re just in the beginning stages, so don’t get your hopes up. But if I retired from teaching, sold our place on the lake and my home in Colorado, I
could
swing this house.”

“What about Teresa and Chloe?”

“Well, it would be a moot point if they wouldn’t move here with me.”

“They might?”

“Yes. Though the divorce was amicable, Terry’s ex remarried and it’s hard for her to be around them. He doesn’t pay a lot of attention to Chloe, either, since he’s got a son now. My granddaughter will be starting school next year, so this would be a good time to change residences. A small lake town would be a nice place to raise her.”

“Just the possibility of this cheers me up.”

“Me, too. It even tempers Ma’s reaction last week.” After a moment, Caroline asked, “What do you think will happen now with her?”

“I have no idea.”

“If Jimmy couldn’t change her mind about even seeing me, I don’t know who can.”

Maggie was about to agree, when she recalled Father Pete’s comment. “When I was talking to Mike’s priest about Jamie, he brought up what happened with you and Ma. He said he’d pray for us.”

“I think we need more than that.”

“He offered to talk to Ma.”

“And what? Beg her to change her mind?” Caroline’s tone was bitter. “I don’t think so.”

“No, to tell her it’s okay to forgive.” When Caroline looked askance, she added, “Not that you need forgiveness, but maybe Ma might be able to see your coming back in a different light if the Catholic Church tells her it’s okay.”

“It sounds so manipulative.”

“Hey, you were the one who said Ma had a hard life, that much of her personality was formed by it. It made me think a lot about forgiveness.”

“Maybe. I guess we should consider it.”

Maggie’s spirits were lifted by the thought of her mother coming to terms with Caroline almost as much as the thought of having Caro back in her life full-time.

Jamie and Luke were wrestling in the Cranes’ basement, which was bigger and fancier than the Davidsons’ whole first floor. Thick Berber carpet sprawled over a huge recreation room and there was a full kitchen off to the right and two bedrooms and a bath. Luke’s parents were at a charity event, and though Jamie planned to be long gone before the Cranes came home, it was fun having some alone time with Luke. And being physical.

“Gotcha,” Luke said, flipping Jamie to his back and straddling him.

His weight felt good, and Jamie’s whole body tightened when Luke’s muscles pressed against him. An edgy kind of need raced through him. “No fair. I was thinking about something else.”

“Gotta concentrate.” Luke grinned down at him. He was mellow tonight, probably because he’d smoked up earlier. Jamie wanted no part of it.

Your brother does it
, Luke had said.

I didn’t know that.

Hunching forward, Jamie tried to throw Luke off, but he was pinned to the floor. “Let me up.”

Luke didn’t move. Then he bent over and kissed Jamie. Hard on the mouth, with a lot of tongue. Jamie got really turned on. When Luke started to sit up again, Jamie grasped the back of his neck and kept him close. The cologne Luke used, now familiar and exciting, filled Jamie’s head. “I like when you do that.”

“What?”

“Take the initiative. Physically.”

That crooked half-smile of Luke’s did Jamie in, like always. They’d gotten their shirts off when they heard noise on the steps. There was no time to cover up what they were doing before Luke’s father burst through the doorway.

“What the
hell
is going on here?”

Shirtless, Luke bolted up. The top button of his jeans was undone.

His father’s fists clenched. “This is sick.”

“Dad, it’s—”

“Not a word out of you.”

Behind him, Luke’s mother placed a hand on his father’s arm. “Lucas, don’t fly off the handle.”

“Off the handle? It’s bad enough we had to leave the club because Shirley Lewis can’t keep her mouth shut. I’m not going to ignore what’s going on under my own roof.”

Luke’s stance became taut, belligerent. “Yeah, Dad, like you’d be upset if this was happening with a girl.”

Shrugging into his shirt, Jamie buttoned it and stood. “I should go.”