Chapter 16 #4
Lily immediately regretting saying anything. Maybe her mother wouldn’t want him to know that she was selling all the designer bags he’d given her.
She met his gaze levelly. “Well, she needed to make money somehow. It’s hard to get a good-paying job when you haven’t worked in a long time and especially here, where job opportunities are limited. It’s mostly hospitality and retail. So she’s selling off her designer bags.”
Her father looked surprised. “No kidding? That’s actually pretty smart of her. That stuff was expensive. How is she doing?”
Lily thought that was inappropriate to ask in front of his girlfriend, and she considered how best to answer it.
“She’s great. Really happy, and we’re all looking forward to the baby.”
Rebecca looked away while Ellis cleared his throat. “Right. Glad to hear it. So tell me about school.”
The rest of the evening was pleasant enough. Lily gladly told him how much she liked the school and the people she’d met. The food was delicious, as expected, and she took half of it home with her.
When he dropped her off at home, he confirmed their plans for tomorrow.
“So Rebecca is going to relax and do some shopping. I thought I’d come by around noon, and we can grab lunch somewhere—wherever you want.
Then maybe check out the Whaling Museum.
It has been years since I went there, and I heard it’s bigger and better now. ”
“Sure, that sounds good. We can go to the Rose and Crown maybe. They have great burgers, and it’s right down the street.”
“Perfect.”
Lily said goodbye to Rebecca and got out of the car. Her father stepped out too and gave her a hug good night.
“See you tomorrow, kid.” The familiar endearment made her smile for a moment. She sighed as she watched them drive off. She was happy now, but it still hurt that they weren’t together as a family anymore.
Claire was in her favorite big chair with a fluffy fleece throw over her lap, a book in her hand, and a Christmas movie on the Hallmark channel. She looked very comfy and smiled when she saw Lily.
“Hi, honey. Did you have a nice time?”
“It was okay.” Lily put her leftovers in the refrigerator, poured a glass of water, and headed into the living room. She sat on the love seat across from her mother. “Where’s Nana?”
“She went out to dinner with Warren.”
Lily sighed again. “Rebecca looks so young. I don’t understand Dad at all.”
Claire just picked up her mug of tea and took a sip.
“They’re moving in two weeks,” Lily continued. “Dad said they’re going to a condo on Fifth Avenue, near the Met. He gave me the address.” She wrote it on a scrap of paper and handed it to her mother.
“Interesting. That’s an expensive area. Is he renting?”
“I don’t think so. He said something about closing, and that usually means buying something, right?”
Claire looked thoughtful. “Yes, usually. Is Rebecca buying it with him? Or maybe her father is helping? Otherwise I don’t see how Ellis could qualify.”
“Maybe I heard wrong. Maybe he is renting.” Lily had thought it seemed strange when they were talking about it, but maybe she’d missed something.
Her mother folded the scrap of paper and dropped it in her purse for safekeeping. “I’ll look up that address later. I’m curious now to see where they are going. What are you and your father doing tomorrow?”
“Lunch downtown and the Whaling Museum. I should be home by dinnertime. Rebecca is going shopping. But they’ll probably go somewhere that night.”
“You don’t want to go with them?” Claire asked.
Lily made a face. “One night with her was more than enough. I’ll spend the afternoon with Dad. Then she can have him back. I think we’re going to have breakfast Sunday at the airport before they fly out.”
“They have a good breakfast at Crosswinds. Just give me a call when you’re ready to come home, and I’ll come get you.”
“Thanks. How are you doing with this, Mom?” Lily grinned. “I saw you and Nana peeking out the window.”
“I’m fine. We couldn’t resist. And of course he had to get a Mercedes convertible.
He loves his BMW so much, I’m surprised it wasn’t a Beemer.
” Claire laughed. “Really though, I am fine. Your father cheated, and there’s no excuse for that, but things had been off with us for a few years.
I just didn’t want to admit it. Now that I’m here, I’m happier than I’ve been for years. ”
Lily smiled. “That’s what I told Dad, that you seem really happy. I am too. I like it here more than I expected to.”
Lily had a good afternoon with her father.
They had burgers and fries and shared a plate of chicken wings at the Rose and Crown pub, then walked over to the Whaling Museum.
It was fun to see the museum. Ellis was enthusiastic about everything and made her laugh as they walked around, looked at the exhibits, and read the history about the ships, the whales, and life on Nantucket.
They spent a few hours there, and the time flew.
It was around three thirty by the time they left, and her father suggested walking down to the wharf and going to the fudge shop.
He bought a box of assorted fudge for them to share, and they walked over to a bench on the wharf where they could watch the ferries come in and go out.
They spent at least an hour there, and Lily asked how Rebecca was feeling.
“She’s good. It was easy for your mother at her age too. She’s been a little tired, but that’s it. No morning sickness at all. You said your mother is doing well too?”
Lily nodded. “She was tired too, but that’s not as bad now. She craves ice cream almost every day, but we all like ice cream, so it works out well.”
Her father laughed. “Who doesn’t like ice cream?
” He looked at her seriously for a moment.
“Lily, honey, I just want to say how sorry I am that this happened. I didn’t mean to blow up the family.
People change as they get older, and I think your mother and I grew apart.
Doesn’t excuse my behavior of course. But I am sorry for hurting you both. ”
Lily nodded. She appreciated the apology, but she wasn’t ready to tell him it was okay. She didn’t think she would ever be ready for that.
“So I meant what I said yesterday. Once we’re settled into the new place, I’d love to have you come for a weekend. Anytime you want. There will be a bedroom there for you.”
“Thanks. Did you say you were renting that place? Or buying it?”
Her father hesitated for a moment. “Buying. We got a deal we couldn’t pass up—owner financing. We got lucky there.”
“That’s cool.” Lily didn’t really understand how that worked, but her father seemed happy.
Still, she wasn’t keen on spending a whole weekend with her father’s girlfriend around.
She suspected Rebecca probably wasn’t thrilled about the idea either.
It was still a month or so away. Maybe she could put off visiting with the excuse that she had a summer job.
Hopefully that would be true. Even if it was just helping out in her mother’s shop.
She’d love to get a fun job working with other kids her age too if possible.
Maybe at one of the ice cream shops or even the movie theater.
“You sure you don’t want to come to dinner with us?” Ellis asked as he pulled the car up to her grandmother’s house.
Lily shook her head. “I’m sure Rebecca doesn’t want me around again tonight.”
“That’s not true at all,” her father protested. “We came here to see you.”
“We had a great dinner last night, and today was really fun. Thank you for lunch. And I’ll see you tomorrow for breakfast. I’m actually kind of tired and still really full from that huge burger. Have a romantic dinner with Rebecca.”
Her father nodded. “Okay. I’ll be by in the morning to pick you up.”