Page 67 of An Ex Affair

I stood up and then sat back down again, my brain stuck on one more issue. “Can I say one more thing since we’re being honest with each other?”

“Tully…” Mama chastised. “Always be honest with me. Please.”

Tears hit my eyes before I even got the words out. I’d only talked about this with my therapist in Hollywood. I’d never told another soul. “It hurts me to see that you took Colson’s side after our divorce. I felt like I had no one on my side for years. Even now, when he left town, you kept his location from me. It feels like you always take his side and not your own daughter’s.”

“Oh, honey.” Mama’s face crumpled and tears streamed down her cheeks. She was the one to lean forward this time, pulling me into a fierce hug. “I’m so sorry. I just keep hurting you when you’re the most precious person in the entire world to me. There are no sides when it comes to you. You’ll forever be my best friend, my favorite person.”

I inhaled and let myself relax in her hug. The scent of flour and sugar clung to her like it always had. Then I exhaled and let the past go. I couldn’t keep clinging to the wound when I hadn’t even told her she was hurting me. We both deserved a fresh start.

“I love you, Mama,” I whispered.

“Oh, honey, I love you too. So much,” she whispered right back.

And then I let her go, needing to put my plan into action and get my man.

“Wait! Where are you going?” Mama said, standing with me.

“First to Gigi’s house. Then the jeweler, the tattoo parlor, and finally the fire station.”

Mama rolled her shoulders back and looked me in the eye. “I’ll come with you.”

We both froze, knowing the implication of that simple offer that was anything but.

“You’ll come with me?” I asked, giving her a chance to back out. “That’s a lot of places, Mama.”

She nodded. “Just give me a chance to get dressed. I’m coming with you, daughter of mine.”

I watched her march back to her bedroom, tears in my eyes and hope growing in my chest. As far as I knew, Mama hadn’t left this house at all for a few years now. I knew she was facing her fears today for me. She was showing me she would always be on my side, even when things got difficult.

“Slow down!” Mama cried.

“If I slow down anymore, I’ll be stopped completely!” I hurled back teasingly, turning into Gigi’s long driveway. Seeing the wooden Timberwolfe Farms sign out front felt like coming home. Mama facing her fears didn’t come without some major handholding, but if she was willing to put in the work, so was I. “Stay there and I’ll come around to help you out.”

She listened, letting me help her out of the car and hold her arm as we walked up to the house. “I’m not an invalid, you know.”

“I know. I’m just staying by your side in case anything gets to be too much.”

She squeezed my arm, but otherwise stayed silent as we headed up the stairs and knocked on Gigi’s screen door. Gigi answered, reading glasses on top of her head, another pair on the tip of her nose, and another one on a string hanging down over her bosom.

“Oh my gosh! Tully! Sofia! Please come in!” She pushed open the screen door and gave us both warm hugs as we stepped inside. I had nervous energy to burn off in the form of running a bazillion errands before Colson was back, but I needed to make sure things were right between me and my ex-mother-in-law first.

“What’s going on?” Gigi asked after she led us to her living room and we all found seats.

“Well, I don’t have time to beat around the bush, so I’ll just tell you. I plan to ask your son to marry me, but I need your help.”

Gigi blinked repeatedly. Then she took off the pair of reading glasses on her face, tossed them on the couch, and nearly tackled me when she came over to give me a hug. “Thank the good Lord!”

I hugged her back, laughing. When she finally pulled away, she was wiping her eyes. Then she went over to Sofia and gave her the same treatment.

“First, I wanted to get your blessing.” I rubbed my hands together and then jammed them under my legs to keep from fussing.

“Already have it!” Gigi answered right away.

I released a relieved smile. “And second, I would like to see if you know what happened to Colson’s old wedding ring. It’s not a problem if no one has it. I can just buy another one, but I thought I’d at least ask if the original?—”

“I have it,” Gigi interrupted me.

“You do?”

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