Page 84 of The Deadbeat Next Door

“I’m sorry,” I said. “I’m sorry you lost your husband and I’m sorry you didn’t get to have your retirement and your horse farm.”

She smiled. “I’m hoping you can help me with that, actually.”

“Of course. Whatever you need.” I wasn’t sure what I had to offer, but I was willing to do everything I could to try.

“I was so sure you’d say that that I’ve put my house on the market. I want to move in here. I’ve been setting aside money of my own to start a horse farm.” She looked around at the room we were in. “But I think renovating and running a bed and breakfast for a while might be a fun project for me.”

I was speechless for several long moments as my mother just smiled. “What about Atlanta? What about Jonas?”

She shrugged. “I’ve never loved living in the city as much as I loved that little house in the woods you grew up in, Cody. As for Jonas…I put my dreams second to help your father build his business and I won’t do that again. Not for anyone. If Jonas is serious about a relationship with me, he’ll make the effort.”

“But a bed and breakfast isn’t your dream. You’d be putting your dream second to mine.”

Her smile widened. “I don’t see why we can’t have a few horses here. All I’ve wanted was a few horses I could ride and the opportunity to give lessons, to have kids around me. I miss having a house full of kids. I could do that here.”

“At a winery?” I asked. “Not exactly a family oriented destination.”

She shrugged. “I’ll give lessons to local kids and take winery guests on trail rides. The important thing is I get to be here with you and still get my dream. It might not look exactly the way I’d always imagined, it might be even better.”

I didn’t have to think long and hard about my mother’s offer. Though I wanted to make my winery a destination to increase overall revenue, my real passion was making wine. Having someone as capable and hard-working as my mother to take over the bed and breakfast portion of my business was more than I could have ever hoped for. I hesitated for only a moment, wishing I had the money to offer so she wouldn’t have to use hers to make the business work, but I pushed that worry aside. What mattered was Carrie and the kids. I could accept help for them. “I couldn’t dream of anyone else I’d rather have run this bed and breakfast.”

She grinned. “Thank you, Cody. Of course, I do expect to be given full reign over all design and remodeling decisions.”

“I am planning to live in this house,” I said. “I think I should have some say.”

“Every room in this house will be a guest room. You’ll have to deal with decor you don’t love for at least a little while.”

A shriek outside distracted her attention outside, where May was welcoming Jared and Jenna to our house of crazy. When she turned back to me, tears glistened in her eyes. “I loved your father, but I think the biggest mistake he ever made was throwing himself into building his business. He believed he was gaining wealth to give you kids better lives, that he was making the family name mean something, but I never stopped missing the man he’d been when we’d had so little. The business became his new wife, his new family, and I don’t think he ever for one moment regretted that. He never looked back. Making money and garnering praise for his business acumen made him…I don’t think happy is the right word, but it made him feel like the person he’d always wanted to be. It made him feel powerful and strong. I don’t think he ever understood that the best thing he could do for you kids was give you his time and attention.”

“He was a good father,” I said. But I knew what she meant. I remembered my bewilderment as a kid when my father stopped being around, stopped showing up for my basketball games and school award ceremonies. I’d felt like I was no longer anything special to him, and I guess I had thought I could earn his respect and attention by succeeding in his industry or exceeding him in another industry. Except now he was gone.

“He honestly wanted the best for you kids,” she said. “And he’d want you to have the money he worked so hard for. Please take it. I’m so very, very proud of you and I want you to have every happiness.”

What was it about being around my mother that always made me feel like a kid again? Twenty-eight years old and her being proud of me meant more than all the money in the world. “How about you invest the money in my business. I can’t promise a good return, but I’d feel better about that than just taking the money.”

“Done. Now, why don’t you show me around this place?”

The house was enormous and it was a mess. I showed her the downstairs, the outdated kitchen, the library full of old musty books, the den with a collection of animal heads nailed to the walls. Upstairs, there were seven bedrooms, including the master, all in varying states of disrepair. As far as I could tell, Bart had been sleeping in the den with the animal heads. The third floor had a large bonus room and three other rooms that were currently being used for storage.

“Hey, man,” Winston said, giving my mother a once-over that made me want to punch him. “That your sister?”

“Winston. This is my mother. Please keep your eyes and your hands to yourself.”

Winston glared at me like I’d criticized his rather corpulent figure and turned back to what he was doing. Jersey walked over and offered Mom his hand. “Hi, Mrs. Reynolds. I’m Jersey.”

“Very nice to meet you,” Mom said, not at all put out by the strange look of the guys. “Where’s the rest of your crew?”

“This is it,” Jersey said. “I should get back to work, quitting time is in an hour.

My mother gave me a wide-eyed look and hurried back down to the first floor. I followed with a growing sense of doom. “Cody, this is outrageous. How could you possibly…?” She shook her head. “I need to make some phone calls.”

“Mom, don’t you want to do a bit more research, spend some time in the town, make sure this is what you want?”

She glared at me, all fierceness. “Do not take that tone with me, young man. I am not going to allow…Just no. I am a grown woman and I’ve made my decision. You can do whatever you want to the land and the winery, but this house is mine.”

She stormed into the kitchen, phone tight in her grip, and I smiled. It was good to have her there.

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