Chapter Twenty-One
It’s official. My mom is the proud new owner of the Wheaton Nursing Home. The seller was so eager to offload this property that they put little investment into it. The staff at this morning’s meeting seemed happy about the change, and my mom assured everyone that it’s business as usual for now.
But now, as I stare at the article on the front page of Wheaton Happenings , it all feels real. My mom owns this entire building. I look around at the drab walls and furniture. Whether it succeeds or fails is solely in her hands.
According to Liam, it was a steal. It didn’t feel like that to me. Almost all of my mom’s inheritance is wrapped up in these very large, and very dated, four walls.
“How’s it going, boys?” I turn the corner into the cafeteria, where Sunny sits with his buddies, Walt, Juan, and Lawson.
“The water’s turned green,” Walt says. “The walleye haven’t bitten for a week.”
“You’re fishing in the wrong place,” Juan says. “I was at the dam yesterday and was pulling in fish left and right.”
Lawson shakes his head. “That feels like a fish tale if I’ve ever heard one.”
“Can I top off anyone’s coffee?” I hold up the pot.
“I’ll take a little.” Sunny holds up his cup.
“Don’t get too rowdy,” I say as I walk away. “It’s almost some of the residents’ nap time.”
Juan laughs. “We wouldn’t dream of it.”
I head down to the south wing to do rounds. Abigail sits in the bird room, watching them. I grab a chair next to her.
“How are you feeling today, Abigail?”
She turns to me. “I’ve been a bit down, I’m afraid. Next week is my birthday. This is not where I thought I would be when I turned seventy.”
“You know, Abigail,” I say, grabbing her hand. “Sometimes I wonder if any of us are where we think we’ll be.”
“You’re probably right.” She purses her lips. “Where did you think you’d be?”
“Hmm.” I tap a finger against my cheek. “I guess when I was younger, twenty-five seemed so old. I figured I’d be married, with two kids, and living in a beautiful home. Instead, I’m very much single and live with my mom.”
“You’re still so young.” Abigail smiles. “You have your entire life in front of you. You’ll have all of those things someday.”
“Maybe,” I say, shrugging. “I don’t mind where I’m at. I don’t think I’d be ready for the responsibility of a family yet anyway.”
“You know, Birdie,” Abigail says, as if conjuring up a memory, “I once imagined my seventieth birthday party. I’d be surrounded by my kids and grandkids, and a few friends. And, of course, my handsome man. I’d look around and feel so proud of what I’d built. My life couldn’t be more different from that.”
Lucy walks out of a room down the hall and motions for me to come her way. I stand.
“Start thinking about what you want to do for your birthday next week, Abigail. Let’s make it special.”
“Thanks for the visit,” she says.
I wander down the hall in search of Lucy. None of the staff stays in one place for too long. We’re always running from one spot to another. I turn the corner, and when I see Will, I head in the opposite direction.
“There you are.” Lucy grabs my arm and pulls me into an empty room, where she’s updating resident charts.
“Hey,” I say. “Sorry, it’s been a busy day.”
“Are we still on for drinks and pizza after work?”
“Yes.” I look at the clock on the wall. “I should be able to get out of here by five today.”
“Perfect.” Lucy claps her hands together. “Will is coming too.”
“Ugh.” I grab Lucy’s arm. “Are you forcing me into a situation where I need to have a blunt conversation with him that I’m not interested in dating?”
She laughs. “It may be the only way he gets the hint. But after seeing you and Liam on a jet ski together, I’m going to go out on a limb and say there is zero chance of you being interested in Will.”
“Lucy,” I say, covering my mouth to stifle a laugh. “Liam was just being nice.”
“You could use more of that kind of nice in your life.” Lucy smacks my butt as I walk out of the room.
I spend the rest of the day doing rounds and getting everything ready for the night crew. When I walk by Sunny and Sis’s room, I pause when I see Liam and Camilla talking and laughing.
“Hey, guys.” I step inside. “What are you up to?”
“Birdie.” Camilla smiles and holds up a frame. “We are redecorating. I roped Liam into helping.”
Camilla sits at the end of Sunny’s bed, and Liam at the end of Sis’s, and it makes me envious that I’ll never have cousins who I can share inside jokes with and laugh with. Being an only child of an only child has its disadvantages.
“I was hoping to see you.” Liam gets off the bed. “Your mom and I are grabbing dinner when she’s off work to discuss phase one of fundraising. Can you join us?”
“Wish I could,” I say. “I already have plans.”
“Popular, aren’t we, Birdie?” Liam reaches into his bag and hands me a thick packet. “Look through this when you have a chance and give me some feedback. That’s what your mom and I will be going over tonight.”
“You got it.” I run my hand over the smooth, laminated surface. “Good to see you both.”
*****
The pizza is steaming hot, so I blow on it before taking another bite. Will sets down three drinks and pulls up a chair.
“I’ve been dying to hear how your date went last night, Lucy,” I say.
Lucy dramatically rolls her eyes and takes a long sip of beer.
“There are no good men left, I’ve decided. Present company excluded.” She glances at Will. “But you’re too young.”
“Oh, no.” I stifle a laugh. “What happened?”
Lucy and her husband have been divorced for over a year, and ever since I arrived in Wheaton, she’s told me about one dating disaster after another. It’s probably one of the most entertaining experiences I’ve had since coming here.
“Everything was going great,” Lucy says. “He took me to the steak joint outside of town, and we had a few drinks and conversation was flowing. He asked if I wanted to come over to his place afterward, and I figured, why not? I’m single. I’m ready to mingle. Gavin was at his dad’s for the night. A girl has needs, right?”
“Inverted penis? Specific and disturbing kinks? What was it?” Will leans forward, a grin on his face.
“No, and I wish it had been the latter.” Lucy takes another sip. “We walk into his house, which, from the outside, was quite lovely. For a moment, I thought I had hit the jackpot. So there we are, and his mom greets us. She was very nice. I figured she was visiting her son from out of town.”
I laugh. “So far, it doesn’t sound like the worst.”
“Wait for it.” Lucy puckers her lips. “After niceties with his mom, he brings me to the unfinished basement, and it smelled like wet basements often do. Mold. Cat piss. Water damage. You know the smell. There was a sheet hanging in the corner, and he moves it out of the way and brings me inside. Yes. If you guessed he still lived with his mom and brought me to his makeshift basement bedroom with a twin bed, you would be correct.”
“What did you do?” Will puts his head in his hands. “You didn’t—”
“Lucy,” I interrupt. “Who is this man? Where is this house?”
“I ran,” she says. “What did you think I did?”
Will and I laugh, and after another sip of beer, Lucy joins us. Her stories take away all of my hope of finding someone decent in this world. For a town this small, there is a lot of action on the dating apps. And I love that Lucy puts herself out there, time and time again, especially because I benefit from hearing her stories.
“Birdie.” I look up to see Liam, his hands gripping the edge of our table. He glances at Lucy and Will. “Hello.”
He came out of nowhere, but somehow, Will and Lucy, and everyone else fades into the background, and Liam takes all the light.
“Wait,” I say, looking around. “Are you here with my mom?”
He points to the corner table, and then I spot her. “We’re talking business. Are you free later to go over the documents I gave you? I had a couple of thoughts I wanted to run by you.”
Liam focuses entirely on me. He intensely stares, and my breath hitches in my chest.
“Not tonight,” I say, proud of myself for having these boundaries. “But I’ll look over everything and let you know if I have any questions.”
He slowly nods and presses his lips together. “Let me know when it works, okay?”
Liam turns and walks away, and Lucy leans forward.
“Now, if a guy like that would ask me out, my date stories would be so much dirtier.”
I grab a napkin, throw it at Lucy, and laugh.
“I’m going to grab another round,” she says, and pops up from the table.
Will stares at me from across the table. I’d almost forgotten he was there.
“What’s up?”
“Guys like that,” he says, looking over his shoulder where my mom and Liam sit. “All they want to do is take things from people.”
“Who? Guys like Liam?”
He nods.
“What does he want to take?”
“It’s obvious, isn’t it?” Will leans forward. “He’s everywhere you are. You’re his current object of affection, but guys like that, they wear you down, and then when they get you, they move on.”
“Sorry.” I bite into my bottom lip. “What does ‘get you’ mean?”
“Come on, Birdie.” Will puts his hand on my arm.
As if on cue, Lucy comes back to the table with our drinks.
When I get home, I lie in bed with the table lamp on and read through Liam’s fundraising ideas. He’s thought of everything. The first thing on the agenda is to create a website with fundraising capabilities. In addition to that, he’s already researched top contributors to nursing homes in the country and created a list of organizations that provide grant funding. He’s made a separate list of enhancements to the building, solely based on donations, such as furniture, paint, and labor. In another bucket is fundraising, and he’s laid out plans for a gala at the end of the summer to bring the community together to support the nursing home. He also plans to seek out a public relations professional to donate their services.
The entire plan is meticulous. I lie back on my pillow and read through everything again. Liam is smart and capable. I imagine he was great at his job. He gives me hope that together we can turn things around, and that my mom buying the nursing home was a good idea. I want to call him, but when I glance at the clock, I’m reminded how late it is.
This could actually work.