Shelley Galloway - The Good Mother

“What about you?”

“I’ll eat something, soon,” Evie said, getting a mug and pouring a generous amount of coffee and cream into it.

With a flick of her wrist, Evie watched her mother turn off the burner and pull out a giant box of Cheerios. “Feed your daughter,” she said, thrusting the box at her with a sharp look. “Then feed yourself something. Anything.”

“Oh, Jan. Leave Evie and Jenna alone,” her dad said as he rose from the couch. “Nothing wrong with Cheerios.”

“Morning, Daddy.”

“Morning, sunshine,” Mike said, propping Missy on his hip and taking a seat across from Jenna. “How’d you sleep?”

Evie leaned close and kissed Missy on the forehead. “Great.”

A knock sounded at the door, then it opened slowly, revealing August in a faded blue golf shirt, khaki shorts and a worn leather belt. “Hello?”

Mike smiled brightly. “Hey, August, come on in. Want something to eat?”

August eyed the kitchen counter. “Got any egg sandwiches?”

Mike winked at Evie. “You bet. Jan, can you make August some breakfast?”

As they all expected, Jan bustled back in and hurried to get August a plate. Mike laughed.

Finally, August turned to her. “How are you this morning, Evie?”

She’d just rolled out of bed. She’d barely had a cup of coffee. Her daughter was pouty and her mother was ticked at her. “I’m…good. You?”

“Me?” August looked her over, for some reason making her feel pretty and attractive instead of in need of a hot shower…and well, a makeover. A slow smile lit his eyes. “I’m perfect,” he drawled.

For a split second, Evie felt perfect, too.

“Watch your toes!” Evie cried to Missy as the toddler pulled herself up onto a big rock and scrunched her tiny toes in the powder-soft sand next to Evie’s towel and umbrella on the edge of Cascade Beach. “The sand’s hot!”

“Hop,” Missy mumbled, squishing her toes again in the sand before plopping down on her bottom.

Evie rolled to one side and watched her baby girl giggle as she scooped up a handful of sand and looked at it in her palm before letting it flow through her fingers. “Oh, Missy. You bring me joy.”

“She’d bring anyone joy,” Tanya said from her left. “Missy is such a sweetheart.”

Evie couldn’t deny it. From the moment Missy had been born, she was Jenna’s polar opposite. Easygoing, sleepy at night, happy with life. Evie could only imagine what life would have been like with two Jennas. Most likely, she’d have white hair and be talking with a stutter. “I’m lucky.”

“You are that. You have two adorable girls while I’m still trying to find Mr. Right.”

Thinking about John, Evie now knew there was a whole lot more to people than labels. “‘Mr. Right’ isn’t as easy to find as you might think. Actually, ‘Mr. Right’ might not even exist.”

Tanya’s shoulders slumped. “I suppose not. But, still…”

“But still…I know.” Evie knew what Tanya meant. It would be nice to find someone who was as good as his first impression. Someone who lived up to expectations.

As Tanya stretched out her legs on the beach towel, she smiled at Missy and her handful of sand. “She’s so adorable, she makes me want to have a baby.”

“Be careful what you wish for. Missy’s a good girl, but she had me up for almost two days straight when she was getting her front teeth. You may like sleeping.”

“I hadn’t thought about that.”

“I have a feeling there’s a lot about raising a kid that you might not have thought about,” Evie said with a smile.

“Maybe so.” Tanya chuckled. “I do like eating adult food…not things with cartoons on their containers.” As she picked up a bag of fruit snacks, she shook her head. “I can’t believe you eat these.”

“I don’t, Jenna does.” Well, Evie had been known to eat through a whole box when there was nothing else in the house. “And speaking of Jenna, I hope she’s not driving my mom batty at the grocery store.”

Tanya winked. “I bet she’s only asking for one thing in each aisle.”

“You do know my daughter.”

“I learned a thing or two from my visits to Texas over the years.”

Tanya had visited her and John at least one weekend a year from the time they’d both graduated college. Every time, their friendship had seemed to pick up exactly where it had left off. Consequently, Tanya had been the only person who hadn’t been surprised when Evie announced her separation.

Laughing, Evie said, “If my mom only has to deal with food requests, she’s getting off pretty easily.”

Still rummaging in the beach bag, Tanya pulled out a box of Goldfish. “Now these, I like.”

“You’d look at them as a gourmet treat in no time,” Evie commented. “You’d have a good feeling about juice boxes, too.”

“I would if I could add a shot of vodka on occasion. Hey, speaking of drinks, we’re probably due for something cold and wet, too.” Tanya popped open the cooler she’d brought from home. “I’ve got Diet Coke or iced tea. Which one?”

“Sweet tea?”

Tanya looked properly horrified. “Is there any other?”

Evie smiled at their old joke. “Tea, then, please.”

Tanya unscrewed the top of a large glass jar, poured out two cupfuls, added some ice out of a plastic baggie, and handed the cup to Evie, who smiled appreciatively. “You are a sweet tea genius.”

In a ridiculous Elvis impersonation, Tanya bowed. “Thank you, thank you very much.” After closing the cooler, Tanya sat down next to Evie. “So, you’ve been here two days. Are you relaxing yet?”

“Getting there. My body’s going through shock, I think, from getting so much rest and relaxation.” Not wanting to discuss her health with one more person, she sipped her tea and turned the tables. “What’s new with you?”

After handing Missy a juice box, Tanya shrugged. “Not much. I’ve moved next to my mother and teach ballet at her old studio.”

“Do you like that? You always had dreams of going to New York.”

Tanya smiled. “I think every dancer has that dream. To answer your question, I do like it, but I don’t love it. I’m not the teacher my mother was.”

“You might be.”

“I’m not. My mother was a born instructor—I wanted to perform. The two are pretty different entities.” Curving her legs underneath her, Tanya said, “I’m having to learn a lot about patience.”

The confession made Evie realize that they’d all given up some dreams at one time or another. Obviously, that was what growing up was all about—picking and choosing the path to take. “August told me you’re helping him, too.”

“I am…well, I work at the resort as much as August asks me to.”

“Asks you? What’s up with that? The Tanya I know takes what she wants when she wants it.”

“We both know I haven’t been that demanding in years. Besides, I’ve been trying to give August some space. He’s still trying to get over his breakup with Erin and, well, he feels a lot of responsibility for Silver Shells. It makes him grumpy at times.”

Erin. For a second, Evie thought about asking about August and Erin, but decided against it. She focused on the easier subject instead. “Grumpy, that’s hard for me to imagine.”

“Oh, he’s not mean, August just likes things how he likes them, and forgets to ask for help. But with Silver Shells doing such good business, he can use all the help he can get. Especially with Mom. She can be trying at times.”

Remembering August’s frequent glances at his mom while they were setting the table, Evie nodded. “August seems worried.”

“He is. We both are. Neither of us wants to see her go through some of the procedures my dad was subjected to.”