comfortable getting in my face about my past and they don’t know what they’re talking about. I don’t see anyone blaming you. I want you to know your son. I want you to be a part of things, but whatever plan we come up with isn’t going to include me staying here. When the house is finished, we’re all leaving.”
Ethan stared at her for a long time. She tried to read his expression but couldn’t tell what he was thinking. He wasn’t happy, but it hardly took insight to figure that out.
Finally he stood. “Thanks for the update,” he said at last.
“You’re pissed.”
“You’re stealing him from me. Again.”
“What do I have to do to convince you that’s not what I’m doing? You keep forgetting I’m the one who tried to get you into his life five years ago. I want this to work. But it’s going to have to happen with him living in San Francisco.”
He nodded once and left. Liz checked on all three kids, then leaned against the tree and drew in a breath.
There would be consequences, she thought grimly. With Ethan there were always consequences. He would probably try to convince her to stay. Which was fine. Let him try. But there was nothing he could say or do to keep her in town. And the sooner he figured that out, the better for all of them.
LIZ STILL WASN’T SLEEPING, SO morning came early. With the kids out of school, she didn’t have to worry about getting them up and ready, but there were other considerations. Mostly that today the construction team would arrive to start the remodeling. Jeff, the burly fifty-something contractor she’d hired, had promised his team would be at her place no later than seven. The fact that they would be done by four each day was minimal comfort.
She had set her travel alarm for six, showered, dressed and made coffee. She was on her second cup when someone knocked on her front door.
She crossed the living room to open it and smiled at the three women and one guy she saw on her porch.
“Right on time,” she began, then blinked several times when she noticed the identical beige T-shirts they wore.
Instead of the ladder and truck logo she’d seen in the phone book, the name “Hendrix Construction” was spelled out in a sturdy font.
“You’re not Jeff’s crew, are you?” she asked already knowing the answer.
The woman closest to the door handed her a cell phone. “Boss said you’d want to talk to him.”
She did her best not to shriek. “How thoughtful of him. If you’ll excuse me?”
She closed the front door, looked at the number already punched into the cell phone, and pushed the send button. He answered on the first ring.
“Don’t take it out on the team,” Ethan said.
“Take what out on the charming construction crew on my front porch?”
“You know. And it’s not Jeff’s fault, either. He owed me.”
“You seem very determined to make sure I blame you,” she countered, her voice low, but still thick with anger. “Don’t worry. I have every intention of making sure you pay for this.”
“Look, you wanted your house fixed up. My team will do a great job.”
She stepped away from the door and clutched the phone tighter. Outrage churned the coffee in her stomach. “Dammit, Ethan. What is wrong with you?”
“I bought out Jeff’s contract. At a premium.”
“I hope he totally screwed you.”
“He made a profit.”
“At least one of us is happy.” She glanced around the run-down house and knew fixing it up wasn’t optional. “Why are you doing this? Is it the thrill of constantly bugging me?”
“I want to know what you’re doing. You’re taking my kid away from me, Liz. I don’t want any surprises.”
“How is any of this a surprise? I told you my plan and made it very clear I want to work things out. I want you to have a relationship with Tyler. Why can’t you believe that?”
“I do. I’m covering my bases. You ran once. You can do it again.”
The unfairness of the accusation made her catch her breath. “I ran after you told all your friends I was some cheap whore you’d never bother with. The night before you’d promised to love me forever.” She grabbed the back of the sofa. “Never mind, Ethan. I totally get it. You can’t be trusted and you assume the world is just like you. Watch me all you want, if it gives you a thrill. I don’t care. I’ve got nothing to hide. But here’s the thing. Some of us do the right thing because it’s what we’ve been taught, while others do it because it’s who they are. I know which side I’m on in that discussion. If you’re worried about how someone is playing this game while hiding his true character, you should look in the mirror.”
She hung up, then crossed to the front door and pulled it open. After handing back the cell phone, she motioned for the crew to come in.
“You might as well get started,” she told them.
It didn’t matter who did the work, she thought as she walked upstairs. The sooner everything was finished, the sooner she could get the hell out of Fool’s Gold.
But the morning surprises weren’t quite over. As she walked into the master bedroom where Tyler was sleeping, she found Melissa standing by her dresser. The teen had Liz’s wallet in her left hand and three twenties in her right.
Their eyes met. Liz had a feeling she looked shocked and more than a little stupid. The mystery of the lost pizza money and the missing bills from her wallet the previous week was suddenly solved. A sense of betrayal battled with the realization that the few months of abandonment had affected Melissa more than she’d let on.
The teen dropped the wallet back into Liz’s purse, let the twenties flutter to the floor as she pushed past Liz and raced out of the room. Liz followed, reaching Melissa’s bedroom door just before the girl could push it closed.
Melissa sat on her bed, her arms folded across her chest, her gaze locked on the floor. Liz pulled over the chair at the desk, then sat down.
“I guess we should talk about this,” she said slowly. “I’m sorry. I should have thought the situation through. You were left with nothing, forced to steal to feed yourself and your sister. I can tell you that you’re safe over and over again, but why should you believe me? You don’t know me from a rock, I’m threatening to take you from your home and your friends. What if I leave like Bettina did? You’d have nothing. Nowhere to go. And there’s Abby. You love her, but she’s a big responsibility. You’re only fourteen. It’s way too much.”
Melissa didn’t speak. Her hair covered most of her face, but Liz saw the tears dropping onto her folded hands.
Liz ached for her. While she knew there had to be consequences for stealing, these were extraordinary circumstances. She wanted to be fair but also supportive.
“How much do you have?” she asked, trying to remember exactly how much was missing.
Melissa swallowed and raised her head. There were tears in her eyes, and a look of both defiance and shame. “One hundred and twenty dollars.”
“Did you have a goal in mind? An amount that would make you feel safe?”
The girl shrugged. “I don’t know. Maybe two hundred dollars.”
From a fourteen-year-old’s perspective, that probably was enough. Reality was very different.
“I should be giving you and Abby an allowance,” Liz told her. “I didn’t even think of it. Let’s talk later, when your sister is up. You’ll get it weekly. That will be for spending money.” She hesitated, not sure how to handle the stealing, but determined to do what felt right.
“I’ll give you the rest of the money you need so that you have two hundred dollars. We’ll put it in a safe place that only you and I know about. It will be there to make you feel safe. In return, you’ll stop stealing from me. Agreed?”
The defiance faded. “You’re not mad?”
“I’m disappointed, which is different. I understand why you took the money, but that doesn’t make it right.”
“So I’m still going to be punished.”
Liz hid a smile. “I think it’s important to be consistent.”
