Page 70 of The Summer Request
How would she explain this to them? How could they come home and visit if their beds had been sold off?
Sierra had loved that bed. She’d bought it with her own money, years ago, after seeing it in a magazine. She always loved decorating and making things her own.
For him to sell it off like that… well, it was enough to make Lisa drop to the floor and weep.
She didn’t cry for long, though. There was too much work to be done.
It took nearly three hours to tidy up the kitchen and living room, then another hour for the dining room. She managed to get four loads of laundry washed and folded, then turned her attention to her suitcase.
That was tough. Every time she pulled something out of it, she remembered where she’d worn it and where they’d been. She’d accidentally taken Val’s shirt from their cleaning escapade. She’d have to return it, but some small part of her wanted to keep it.
Lisa sat on the floor, her suitcase empty, and started flipping through pictures on her phone. At the time, it seemed like they were taking a million pictures too many. Now, alone and back in the routine of her life, she wished she’d taken more.
She made up her mind to gather Val and Michelle’s pictures and compile them into a photo book. She’d make one for each of them to commemorate the trip. It would be a good way to patch things up, too.
Neil came home when she was still gazing through her pictures, misty-eyed. When she heard the front door open, she stood to meet him.
“Hi, Neil,” she said wearily from the top of the stairs.
He didn’t even look at her as he walked past, stomping up the stairs before shutting himself in their bedroom.
Terrific. He was in a mood. Of course he was. He’d made a big mess and left it for her to clean, and now he was the upset one.
Lisa didn’t want to deal with him. She carried the laundry down and got back to folding.
After that, she made herself a quick dinner and worked up the courage to make a video call to the kids. She braced herself as she told them the bad news, finishing with, “But don’t worry. We can get all new stuff and it’ll be a lot more comfortable when you visit.”
Sierra spoke first, rolling her eyes. “Don’t worry about that, Mom. I don’t care about the bed.”
“You loved that bed!” Lisa said.
“Yeah, when I was like fifteen. We can get another bed.”
Whew. A weight lifted from her shoulders.
Avery seemed to agree. “Yeah, Mom. My TV only worked half the time anyway.”
She smiled. Her kids had never been into material things. Lisa didn’t know how she managed to raise them that way, but she was grateful. “I’m sorry about all this. We’ll figure it out.”
“It sucks, Mom,” Avery said. He let out a sigh. “It’s…yeah. It’s bad.”
Lisa nodded. “Just a few bumps in the road. Nothing more.”
“Are you and Dad getting a divorce?” Avery asked.
Sierra’s mouth popped open, as did Lisa’s.
“What?” Avery shrugged. “We’re all thinking it.”
“I would never do that to you kids,” Lisa said firmly. “We’re going to get this under control. We’ll replace everything – ”
“I don’t care about the stuff,” Sierra said. “Avery doesn’t either. Like I said, Mom, I worry about you.”
Lisa shook her head. Not this again. “Sierra, like I told you – ”
Avery cut her off. “Just divorce him already, Mom.”
Lisa was stunned into silence. She dropped her voice to a whisper. “What?”
