Chapter 6
6
T abitha had rolled out the awning on the deck so she could sit outside in the rain. It was the first measurable rain since the women had been in Melbourne Beach. Summer rain made everything smell alive. The weather and being alone in the house allowed her to reflect on her summer. The other girls would leave in just over three weeks, but she was staying through September. The time alone would be a good opportunity to get mentally ready to return to work.
She compared the time that she was having to the trip she had planned to Maine. She couldn’t compare the two, which she considered a good thing. If she had tried to duplicate Maine after it was canceled, she would have been disappointed. Instead, she stepped into an unknown little trip twenty-five miles from home. Tabitha wasn’t alone, but she was with the friends and family that she loved. Mel, Deb, and April were lucky in love and their bliss warmed her heart. For her part, Tabitha was learning to explore the other parts of herself besides staying on the boyfriend carousel.
Tabitha always encouraged Deenie to spend time alone so she could get to know herself, but then failed to take her own advice. It was good advice, and she was glad she was finally following it. She had boyfriends from the time she was sixteen right up until she met Greg. That couldn’t have been good for her mental health.
As Tabitha reminisced about her relationship with her daughter, she thought of her own mother. Their relationship was special in its own way and had changed as they grew older. They were never as close as she was with her daughter, but when they had to be, they were there for each other. Her mother came from Arizona for two weeks when Greg moved out. Tabitha couldn’t have done it without her because she was a walking zombie at the time.
Before that, there was the death of her father, Tank. Years on the football field caught up with him, and Gloria was quite unprepared for life without him. For two years, she spent time with Roth in New York and Tabitha in Florida. Thank goodness she met Chet, who escorted her into her golden years in Arizona. They were two peas in a pod and happy as could be.
Tabitha picked up her phone.
“Hey, Mom. I hope I’m not calling at a bad time. I always forget the time difference until it starts ringing, and by then, it’s too late to hang up.”
“No, it’s fine. We were just about to sit down for an evening cocktail. We haven’t been out of the house all day because it’s 112°. The streets are empty when it gets this hot because everyone is in air-conditioned bliss. Is everything going well in Melbourne Beach?” Gloria asked. “Last time we talked, you were smitten with a realtor.”
“That didn’t work out in the long run. He moved to California and broke my heart,” Tabitha said.
“You sound upbeat, nothing like you sounded after the Greg debacle.”
Tabitha wasn’t even going to tell her mother that her ex-husband was staying with her. She loathed him more than anyone else Tabitha knew. She had learned not to tell her mother things that she didn’t need to hear.
“I couldn’t allow myself to fall apart. First, the two don’t compare because I was married to Greg, and he was the father of my child. I have good friends surrounding me and I worked on myself,” Tabitha said.
“Oh, that’s so modern. I never did get that whole ‘working on oneself’ thing. Next thing you know, you’re going to become a vegetarian and join a cult,” she said.
Tabitha didn’t comment because nothing would change her mother’s old-fashioned ways. She had her life in Arizona, and she was happy in the bubble she and Chet had created. Things like that did bother her, but now they rolled off her like rain on a duck’s back.
“How are things going with you and Chet?” Tabitha asked.
“Good as they can be. Chet and I both have little health issues to pay attention to, but nothing catastrophic. My bursitis has been acting up, and Chet’s blood pressure has been creeping up. Last week, I went to the doctor?—”
Tabitha kindly cut her mother short. As long as it was nothing serious, she didn’t have the patience to follow her mother’s health journey.
“I have another call that I have to take. I love you so much, and we’ll chat again soon.” Tabitha didn’t have another call, but she was trying to protect her sanity.
“I love you, too. Go get your call, dear,” Gloria said before hanging up.
Tabitha didn’t have the time to put down the phone before it rang again. It was Marcus, and Tabitha didn’t know how to react. She nearly dropped the phone. Was he back in Melbourne Beach and ready to sweep her off her feet? Would she take him back that easily? She pressed the green button.
“Marcus, how are you?” Tabitha asked.
“I’m good, thanks for asking. Is Dalton with you?” he asked.
“No, I think his buddies are stopping by because Deenie is spending time with her cousin. They’re probably too busy catching up to answer a ringing phone.”
“I was just making sure he wasn’t having a setback. He has been answering on the first ring since all he does is sit in bed. I’ll try him again later. Have you been well?” Marcus asked. “I’m sure there hasn’t been a boring moment with the four of you women and a couple of teens mixed in.”
“Yeah, it’s turning out to be a great summer,” Tabitha lied, sort of. On second thought, she hadn’t fibbed because it had turned into a great summer. His little ghosting maneuver had thrown her off her game for a few days, but she recovered nicely.
“Good to hear. If you see Dalton, tell him I called. He can run, but he can’t hide from his favorite uncle. Come to think of it, he can’t run.” Marcus laughed at his joke. “Take care, Tabitha.” Click.
Tabitha looked down at the phone and couldn’t believe that was a call from the man she thought she loved. He was so cold and distant. There was no apology or explanation of why he chose to end things the way he did. Tabitha figured he believed everything was covered in the note. A letter was never enough and bordered on cowardice.
Tabitha bent over, and when she sat up straight, Greg was standing there and swaying as he did. He had been out with his former work colleagues and was a little drunk. He hadn’t driven since they always chose a designated driver, and it clearly wasn’t him.
“I take it that wasn’t your best friend on the phone, was it?” Greg asked.
“Not really, I guess,” Tabitha said.
“Who was it?”
“You’re awfully nosy tonight, but your filter evaporates when you have a couple of drinks. It was no one – long story.”
“I’m guessing that it was the realtor who left you high and dry. I’m sorry you have to deal with that. He couldn’t regret leaving more than I do. Julie was the worst mistake of my life. It took living in the same house as you to make me realize what I had.”
Tabitha couldn’t believe what she was hearing. She thought it had to be the beers or tequila, maybe both. He would forget ever saying those words once he sobered up. At least, she hoped so. There was a time when his contrition was all she wanted to hear, but now things were different.
“Before you say another word, I have to recommend you go to sleep. You’re going to be hungover tomorrow, and then it’s time for you and Deenie to head back to Houston,” Tabitha said.
“You may not want to hear it, but I know where I’m meant to be now, and it’s with?—”
Tabitha cut him off quickly. “Seriously, get to bed before you dig yourself further into a hole.”
“I’ve been sleeping on the top bunk, and I don’t think I can climb up there on my own,” Greg said with slurred words.
“You can either sleep on the floor or have Kylen help you when he gets home. I expect him within the hour. I’ll inform him of your predicament,” Tabitha said flatly. She was not entering a bedroom with her ex-husband. She was still stinging from her phone call with Marcus, and who knows what kind of stupid mistake she would make.
Greg got the hint and swayed back to the bunk room after a false turn into the linen closet.
Tabitha was heading to bed just as Kylen and Deenie arrived home. She told Kylen about his uncle’s predicament, which made him and Deenie laugh. They decided to head to the kitchen and have snacks instead of dealing with Greg right away.
“A night on the floor isn’t going to kill him, and it might give him a good dose of humility,” Kylen said.
“I think Julie is giving him enough of that. I’ll at least go in and cover him with a blanket,” Deenie said.
Tabitha smiled. There was nothing that girl wouldn’t do to keep her folks happy, which made her and Greg fortunate parents. She told the kids to eat anything they wanted while she went upstairs to bathe before bed.