Page 35 of Valentine's in Bayberry

His mother was quiet for a moment. She reached out to him, cupping his cheek with her hand. “You’re so sweet, but the last thing you need is your mother hovering over you.” She withdrew her hand. “I’m proud of you. I probably don’t say that often enough. You’re an important man over there, with an entire office to run. I don’t want to distract you. Speaking of which, you should get back to London, not here fussing over me.”

He shook his head. “I’m not going anywhere.”

His mother’s face creased with worry lines. “You can’t stay here forever. You have a job to do.”

“And I have a lot of saved-up vacation time. Besides, I’m overseeing the renovations on the building.”

“I thought we agreed to sell it.”

“We did. But the side that once held the family restaurant was in such poor condition that we couldn’t get any interested buyers.”

His mother nodded her head. “I’m sure you’re doing the right thing. I’m just sorry you have to deal with all of this.”

“It’s okay, Mom. It’s what family is for. Isn’t that what you used to always tell me?”

She smiled at him as tears shimmered in her eyes.

“Mom, don’t cry. Everything is going to work out.”

She swiped at her eyes. “I know. I’m the luckiest mother in the world to have you as my son.”

Jackson felt the same way about her. She was the best mom. And he was going to do whatever he could to help her reclaim her life.

Chapter Twelve

This isn’t a date.

This is just two old friends getting together.

Carrie repeated it to herself as she headed across the snow-covered backyard toward the Wrights’ house. Tonight would be like old times. They would talk. They would laugh. And they would revisit the old days when life was so much simpler.

In one hand, she held a zippered tote with the casserole dish. In the other hand, she had a small box with the shredded lettuce and diced tomato. She kept them separate because she remembered how Jackson would complain when the lettuce would wilt. And she didn’t want anything to go wrong this evening. She knew he would be flying back to London any day now. She didn’t want him to leave on bad terms.

She made her way past the line of overgrown shrubs and tall trees that divided their properties. The vegetation definitely wasn’t this big the last time she’d made her way over to see Jackson. This evening, she practically had to climb through the gangly bush, but at last she and the food made it to the other side.

She headed for the back door just like she’d done a thousand times before. The lights were on in the kitchen. She rapped her knuckles on the door.

“It’s open!” Jackson called from inside.

She let herself inside. She spotted him at the kitchen island, mashing avocados. “Running behind?”

“My visit with my mother took longer than I expected.”

She took off her snow boots and then slipped off her coat. “Is everything okay with her?”

He nodded. “As good as they can be at this point. It’s just that we got to talking, you know, about selling this house and the building.”

The breath stilled in her lungs. “Has she changed her mind about selling the building?”

“No. I’m sorry. But she’s just not up to managing it. Plus, she needs the money to pay off some bills.” Under his breath he muttered, “A lot of bills.”

She had a feeling she wasn’t supposed to hear that part. So, she let it go without comment.

“And how was your day?”

“It was good.” The shop was busy most of the day. The town’s reaction to her new business had been so much more than she dared to dream about.

“Did you get your Happy Hearts menu turned in?”

---