Page 69 of The Charming Checklist
“I wish we’d had more time to spend together.”
“Me too.” She offered him a weak smile. “One thing I won’t worry about anymore is my daughter. I haven’t seen her this happy since...well, since Lucia lived with us. This town is good for her.You’regood for her.”
“I hope so.”
“I know it. Something tells me you’d notice if she was gone. You’d get her back if she left you.”
If she left you.Even the thought filled him with uneasiness.
His mind refused to go there. “Sure would. Pretty sure I wouldn’t be any good without her anyway.”
“She’s a lucky woman, my daughter. I wish I was more like her. She left home and found her own way. Terrifying though it must have been, a stranger in a new town, and not knowing a single soul. She’s a brave one, my girl.”
“I think she’s a lot like her mother, actually.” Max found that he meant this in every sense. It wasn’t just their passing physical resemblance, the straight blond hair and green eyes. “She’s strong like you andbecauseof you. With another type of mother, she might not have had the strength of character to choose a different path than yours. You don’t give yourself enough credit.”
“Thank you, Max.” She patted his hand and her eyes grew watery. “I think that’s the nicest thing anyone’s ever said to me.”
Max’s attention was taken away by new customers and drink orders, and by the time he came back to Dr. Long, she was gone.
Ava nearly floated home to tell her mother the good news. Her dream would finally happen. She already had tons of ideas in her head about branding. Rather than plastic bags, they’d use one hundred percent recycled paper. She’d been playing around with logos for a while, working withLs, thinking of something to honor Nanny Lucia. Of course, she laughed, LL Bean was taken, or that would be a nice homage to both Luciaandthe Longs. But she’d think of something. This, the creativity, was her wheelhouse. She thrived there and Max was a perfect partner, bringing his analytical mind.
When she arrived home, her mother wasn’t there. She’d left Ava a note saying that her little respite was at an end and she’d be headed back home in the morning. Ava was really going to miss her.
Without another thought, she picked up her phone and dialed her father. This had to end.
“Dr. Long speaking.”
“Yes, Daddy, I know who it is! Don’t you ever look at your caller ID? This is yourdaughter.”
“What’s wrong? Is it the BMW?”
“No, it’s not the BMW. For your information, I sold it.”
“You didwhat? That’s the best car there is on the market, young lady. Superior German engineering. Are you out of your mind?”
“Maybe I am, but what about you? Have you noticed your wife isn’t back yet?”
“I’m not worried. She’ll have to be back soon. I checked with Dr. Reynolds. She’ll be back in the office this Monday.”
“Are you sure she’s coming back to you, or just her practice?”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“It means that my mother isn’t just a doctor, she’s a woman with plenty of other interests. And I know you have other interests, too, besides golf and dissecting aortas. You’re more than a doctor if you’d just get your head out of your...your butt!”
“Ava Elizabeth Long!”
“Well, I’m sorry, I love you, but sometimes you’re a dummy. While Mom’s been here with me, she’s taken knitting lessons, taken my neighbor’s dog for walks and taught herself how to cook. She’s had so much fun, Daddy. You wouldn’t have recognized her.” She cleared her throat. “Or maybe you would have.”
At least he might have recognized the woman she’d been before children and career took over, and the balancing act took precedence over anything else.
Ava had always thought her father practically walked on water. He was handsome, tall, distinguished. Always the smartest man in the room. But he was positively stupid when it came to love. Her previously perfect father’s halo had been tarnished. His wife needed him, and he was too busy with his patients, with his own professional self-worth, to even notice.
“What is going on between your mother and I has nothing to do with you. We’ll work this out when she gets back. We always do.” With that, he disconnected.
He left Ava to wonder if her mother had always been this unhappy, simply trying to please her husband and do what had always been expected of her. Succeed and impress not just through her own efforts but through those of her children, and grandchildren. It had to be exhausting.
An hour later, Mom waltzed inside, hauling a large print from Artlandish.
