Chapter 17
Isla
1996
A fter months of fixing up the farmhouse, it was finally move-in day. Isla and Vera had chosen paint colors for every room, put in the hardwood floors themselves, and purchased only enough furniture to make the house feel like a home. It would take them years to get everything exactly how they wanted it, but for now, it was perfect.
Vera put her hands on her hips and sighed as she surveyed the wall of photo frames she’d arranged.
“What do you think?”
“I think it’s perfect.” Coming up behind Vera, Isla wrapped her arms around her waist and rested her head on her shoulder. “I love all the pictures you picked out.”
“Mason helped.”
“I love that even more.”
Isla smiled as she took in the sight of all the pictures. There were some from before they met and some from their last year together. Several pictures of Blake dotted the mismatched frame collage, which warmed Isla’s heart. She knew the years would never dull her pain over losing custody of her eldest daughter, but Isla was proud of the way she’d picked up the broken pieces of her heart and turned them into a mosaic.
Vera leaned her head onto Isla’s head as she squeezed her arms with her cold hands. “Do you think she’s going to be excited about her room?”
“Oh, totally.” Isla kissed her cheek as she spun her around in her arms so they could face each other. “It’s all she’s been talking about for weeks.”
“I’m so happy she’s happy.”
“Me, too.”
When Isla first told Mason about her and Vera being in a relationship, she wasn’t sure how much the four-year-old understood. She was a smart kid—smarter than any kid Isla had ever met—but she still worried how Mason would adjust to Vera being a new constant in their life. Of course, that worry was minimized only by the worry she had over the lingering question of what would happen if she and Vera ever broke up.
But as the weeks faded into months, Isla stopped worrying about that scenario. It became clearer every single day that she and Vera were meant to be together. She knew it when she saw Vera and Mason together. Isla knew it when Vera would hold her while she cried over Blake. And she knew it when Vera introduced her to her mother as her girlfriend. They were a family, in their own unique way.
“She should be home from school soon.”
Walking over to the large window at the front of the house, Isla looked down the road for the yellow school bus to arrive. She’d gone over the new route countless times with Mason, and hoped she remembered when to get off the bus now. Vera seemed to sense her uneasiness as she came up behind her and massaged her shoulders.
“She’ll be here soon. We went over the route with her, and I took her on the route in the car yesterday.”
“You did?” Surprised, Isla turned to face her.
Vera nodded. “I wanted to make sure she was comfortable.”
“Thank you.” Isla leaned in for a kiss. “And thank you for loving Mason.”
“She’s my kid; she’s easy to love,” Vera said with a smile.
“Your kid, huh?” Isla teased.
“ Our kid,” Vera corrected.
A warmth filled Isla’s body as she savored the feeling. Happiness. She was still learning to embrace that feeling, despite how guilty it used to make her feel. Isla was truly happy with Vera, and Mason and she deserved that.
The squeak of the bus’s brakes pulled their attention back outside as Isla watched Mason get off the bus and run toward the house. Her backpack and ponytail swung back and forth as she ran, making Isla smile. She hurried to the front door and opened it as Mason came barreling into her for a hug.
“I made it to our new house, Mommy!”
“I’m so proud of you, Mason!”
Discarding her backpack by Isla’s feet, Mason made a beeline for Vera. Isla watched as Vera scooped her up into her arms and spun her around in circles until they were both dizzy. Vera covered Mason’s face in kisses as Mason giggled.
“Mama, stop,” Mason said through her giggles.
The entire room seemed to freeze. What had Mason just called Vera? Up until now, she’s only referred to her as Vera. They hadn’t had the talk over what Mason should call her, and Isla assumed they’d cross that bridge eventually. But apparently Mason was already across it.
As Mason’s laughing stopped, a confused look filled her face.
“You didn’t really have to stop, Mama,” she flatly stated.
“I’m sorry, Mace.” Vera kissed her cheek as she held her close. Mason’s legs hung down nearly to Vera’s knees and she wrapped them around Vera’s waist.
Over Mason’s shoulder, Vera caught Isla’s gaze. Her eyes were filled with tears as she clung to Mason as if her life depended on it. Even though Mason typically wasn’t one to be cuddled contentedly, she seemed to understand that Vera needed it at that moment.
When Mason finally scurried out of Vera’s arms, the trio headed upstairs to Mason’s bedroom. Although Mason had picked out the paint color, furniture, and bedding, she hadn’t seen it all put together yet. They had all been staying at Isla’s apartment while they completed work on the farmhouse, and Isla was glad the hard work was finally behind them.
“I love it!” Mason jumped up and down excitedly as she looked around her room.
Her bunk bed had an area underneath that Vera had turned into a reading nook and painted to look like the inside of a spaceship. The dinosaur bedding Mason had picked out covered the bed, while light green curtains framed the window. Vera had painted the dresser to look like a rainbow, while the walls had a light blue color that somehow tied the hodgepodge of designs together.
“I have my own spaceship!” Mason squealed as she plopped onto the bean bag chair in her new reading nook. She looked so much like Blake sitting there, smiling happily. Isla hoped that wherever Blake was, she was happy, too.
“Do you like your room?”
“I love it, Mommy!” Mason quickly jumped up and hugged Isla before going to Vera. “I love it, Mama!”
“I’m glad, sweetie.”
“Can I have a snack to eat in my room?”
“Ever the queen of the segue,” Isla laughed, nodding her head. “A small one. We’ll have dinner soon, okay?”
“Okay, Mommy!”
As Mason ran out of the room to the kitchen, Isla took a moment to be alone with Vera. She playfully pinched her elbow to get her to look at her. It was then Isla could see the tears falling from her eyes.
“She called me mama ,” she whispered as a smile spread wide on her face. “Is that okay? I didn’t ask her to do that.”
“I know, babe.” Isla wrapped Vera in a hug and kissed her cheek. “But it’s okay with me if it’s okay with you.”
“It’s more than okay with me.” Wiping away the tears from her eyes, Vera seemed to try and compose herself. “I love her so much, Isla. I know you’re her mom, but I am so ready to be her mama.”
Isla’s heart could nearly burst with happiness. Never did she anticipate falling so hard so fast for someone as perfect for her as Vera. But better than that, Vera loved Mason. She wanted to be in Mason’s life. And that meant more to Isla than she could ever express to her.
“I’m so ready to start this next journey with you, Vera.”
“It’s going to be a great one.”
“I love you.”
“I love you, too.”