Page 67 of Suddenly Yours

My mother wasn’t one for physical affection, even with her daughter.

“What do you mean?” I asked.

She released my hand and started eating again. “The moment I filed for divorce, Max shut him out. If you don’t work, you don’t get paid.”

“Max did that?” I asked.

My mother nodded. “It’s sensible. He’s been bleeding the business for years. It’s one of the reasons I had Max take over a while back. I didn’t have the backbone to stop your father from spending the money on all those…” She stopped herself and took a low deep breath before shaking her head. “He’s been spending what little money he still has on trying to stay in the right circles. Acting as if he isn’t going dry.” She smiled. “I’d wager he only has a few months left of living high on the hog until his accounts are due. He wants more from me in the divorce so he can continue that lifestyle he doesn’t deserve.” She leaned closer. “Did I ever tell you that it was my parents’ money that started Sharper Image?”

I nodded slowly. “I think I knew that.”

“What your father doesn’t know is, I don’t need a dime from the business. My parents set up a trust fund years ago for me. Since daddy died, my mother has control of that trust. She’s changed her will and when she passes, everything will get split between the three of us evenly. Since you and Max are their only grandchildren, she thought it was only fair to include you.”

“I…” I didn’t know what to do with that information.

“Your father won’t see a dime. Once the divorce is final, I plan on handing over Sharper Image to Max. He can do what he sees fit with it.”

“But you’re still going to work there?”

She smiled and for the first time in a very long time, I saw pure joy on her face. “Yes. I missed it. Not just the dancing, but the lifestyle. The work. The costumes. Watching young dancers grow.” She closed her eyes. “Seeing people come together and make something beautiful.”

This time I reached across the table and took her hand.

We sat in silence for a moment, the kind that felt heavy but honest.

“I need to tell you something,” I said finally, heart thudding.

She waited.

“I’ve moved in with Cade. We’ve, we’re together.”

Her brows rose slightly, not in shock, not in disapproval. Just surprise.

Then she leaned back in her chair and let out a slow breath. “Well,” she said, a small smile tugging at her lips, “it’s about damn time.”

I blinked. “That’s it?”

She reached across the table and squeezed my hand again, this time lingering longer. “I have always liked Cade. He sees you for who you are. He always has.” Her eyes softened. “If you’re happy, Missy, then I’m happy for you.”

Something in my chest loosened. Not completely, it never really did, but enough that I could breathe.

“Mom?” I waited until our eyes met. “I’m sorry.”

Her smile was quick. “Oh honey, you have nothing to be sorry about. I’m happy for you. Really.” She glanced around and sighed. “Now that I’ve seen this town, and what you’ve made here, I realize how lovely it is. I can see why you and Max love it here. I’m tempted to spend as much time up here as I can. Someday.” She leaned back again. “If things go well with the divorce, maybe I will get a summer home here.” She winked at me.

I laughed. “That would be wonderful.”

The strange thing was, I really meant it. A lot had changed in my mother over the past few months. Was she even the same person?

I left the café with a lightness in my step that surprised me. Not joy exactly—things between my mother and me were still too complicated for that—but a quiet steadiness, like something long out of alignment had finally clicked into place.

The rest of the workday flew by quickly. While I finished the handful of orders in the back, Brit closed up shop in the front.

Cade phoned and said he was going to head home and start work on the bathroom upstairs. I mentioned that I’d stop by and get us something for dinner once I was done dropping off the keys for my old apartment to Crystal.

Since it was nice out, I decided to walk the couple blocks to Holley Hall. The old historic house rose up ahead of me, elegant, proud, and impossibly well cared for. The cream-colored clapboard and the tall windows framed in white always made me smile. The massive wraparound porch looked like it belonged in another century. It was the kind of house that carried stories in its walls.

Cade’s place, our place, was nice, but Holley Hall was incredible.