Page 21 of Valentine's in Bayberry

But this visit, neither of them were involved with anyone. A little smile gently tugged at the corners of her lips. It was the perfect time for them to reconnect. The idea definitely appealed to her.

“I’m glad you’re back, even if you tried to ruin my grand opening.” She sent him a teasing smile.

“You aren’t going to let me live that down, are you?” A crooked smile played on his lips.

There was one thing that she’d been dying to ask him. “The one thing I don’t understand is what you’re doing back here when your mother is out of town.” It all struck her as a little strange. “What’s going on?”

He didn’t immediately answer her. His gaze lowered as he played with the wrapper from the straw. She knew that action. He did it when something was weighing on his mind. This was the only confirmation she needed to know something serious was going on.

And then she had a horrible thought. She didn’t want to believe it was true, but it would explain his mother’s absence.

She lowered her voice. “Is your mother sick?”

Jackson continued to stare down at the table. He remained quiet. In fact, he was quiet for so long she didn’t think he was going to answer her. Maybe he felt it was none of her business.

Carrie sat there for a moment, trying to decide how to handle the situation. Perhaps it was best to just change the subject. Yes, that sounded like the best course of action.

“Carrie, there’s something I need to tell you.” There was a weary tone to his voice.

Her heart sank. She wanted so much to be wrong about her suspicion. “You know you can tell me anything.” She remembered how when they were growing up, they’d held each other’s confidences. It’d been a while since they’d been that for each other, but she didn’t see why that had to change now.

Jackson’s handsome face creased with worry lines. He glanced around, stretching his neck as though to see in the booth behind her, and then he turned to see that the booth behind him was also empty.Oh, boy. This is really bad.

“Sorry.” His voice was barely more than a whisper. “I just don’t want this to make it to the rumor mill. I don’t want my mother to be upset and have a setback.”

Carrie reached out and placed her hand on his forearm that was resting on the table. “If either of you need anything, just say the word.”

When his eyes lifted to meet hers, she saw pain and turmoil in their depths. “I failed her.”

“Who? Your mother?” When he nodded, she said, “I can’t believe that. She loves you so much, and she’s so proud of you. She brags about you every chance she gets.”

Carrie knew she was missing something important, but she just couldn’t imagine Jackson would let down his mother. She knew how much he cared about her. The affection definitely went both ways.

This was a mistake.

Jackson regretted saying anything about his mother’s troubles. It was just so hard to keep it all inside. And Carrie was always so easy to talk to.

Still, her well-intentioned words only succeeded in making him feel worse. He didn’t deserve her sympathy. If she knew what had happened while he was off chasing his dreams, she wouldn’t look at him with sympathy in her eyes. Instead there would be disappointment or disgust reflected in her eyes. Maybe that’s what he deserved.

There were just too many people around for him to open up to her there. So, when the server dropped off their bill, he pulled out some cash and told the young woman to keep the change, which equated to a generous tip. The woman’s eyes lit up as her smile broadened. She thanked him and moved on.

Once they were away from the restaurant, Carrie said, “It’s okay. You don’t have to tell me what’s going on. Just know, I’m always here for you.”

She was still the same Carrie he so fondly remembered. She wasn’t pushy or demanding. It made it all the easier to talk to her.

“I recently found out that my mother...” This was harder to admit than he thought it was going to be. Still, he had started, so he had to keep going. “The bank called me when my mother tried to take out a second mortgage.”

Carrie sent him a worried look, but she remained quiet.

“I didn’t even know she was having money issues. When I started looking at her finances, I found that wasn’t the only financial worry.”

“I’m so sorry your mother was having a tough time. I had no idea. I thought things were fine with her, especially with her going off on all of her trips.”

“That’s just it. She should have been fine. When my father died, he left her financially set.” He raked his fingers through his hair. “This is my fault. I’ve been gone too long, and I’ve been too far away. It’s just that every time I spoke to her, she told me she was doing good and she was always busy. Even so, I should have seen there was something wrong.”

“You couldn’t have known—not if she didn’t want you to.”

He raked his fingers through his hair. “Her credit cards are all maxed out. Even the utilities are overdue. I’m working on straightening it all out. Every time I think I’m on top of things, I find another overdue bill or new debt.” This was the easy part.Now he had to tell her the reason behind his mother’s financial ruin. “My mother is addicted to gambling.”

---