Page 89 of Forbidden Kisses
Mrs. Smith nodded. “Yes, of course. Come in. She doesn’t get many visitors. Aside from her daughter, of course.”
Jack listened as the older woman led him inside. The house was old and in need of a lot of renovations he noted as he followed her into the living room.
“Watch that board,” Ms. Smith said just as Jack stubbed the front of his shoe. “It’s loose.”
“I see that.” He sat on the couch and clasped his hands in front of him. Maybe this wasn’t the greatest idea. He and Tammy might end up arguing. If Chris’s mother could still welcome him into her family, though, then he could at least try to be civil to Tammy. Grace had told him that her mother was trying to make up for her mistakes. And even though he’d acted differently, he didn’t want Tammy to carry around any undue blame and regret. It wasn’t Tammy’s fault that Grace had gotten hurt. It was his.
“I’ll go get her,” Mrs. Smith said.
A couple of minutes later, Tammy shuffled inside the room, almost stubbing her slippered feet on the same loose board. Jack cringed at the thought of Tammy falling down. She didn’t have the reflexes to catch herself—not in her condition.
“Jack,” Tammy said, taking a step closer. “Why are you here? Is Grace all right?”
He nodded. “This doesn’t have anything to do with Grace.” Or it did, but not everything to do with her. “I came because I owe you an apology, Tammy.” He’d thought the words would taste bitter in his mouth, that they’d be hard to say. Instead, a weight seemed to lift off his chest as he continued. “I blamed Grace’s boating accident on you and that wasn’t fair. Grace was out there because of me. It’s my fault.”
Tammy could’ve agreed. She could’ve called him a certified jerk. He’d have deserved that. Instead, she smiled at him the same way she’d been doing every time she looked at him lately. “Have you met my daughter? She’s strong-willed and she does exactly what she pleases. That’s one of the reasons, I assume, that you fell in love with her.”
The comment kicked Jack hard in the chest. Everyone knew how he felt about Grace, except Grace. He should’ve told her.
Now it was too late.
Silence swam between them in the dimly lit room. Jack glanced around at the lighting sources. Tammy needed more light to navigate safely, especially with loose boards popping out of the floor.
“Do you have a toolbox?” he asked, breaking the silence.
Tammy looked perplexed. “We are a couple of old women, Jack. Of course we don’t have a toolbox.”
Despite himself, he laughed. “I have mine in the truck. I’ll go get it and fix that board on the floor.”
Tammy followed his gaze. “I’ve tripped over that thing I don’t know how many times.”
“Do you have lightbulbs to replace the two that are burned out there and there?” He pointed at the ceiling fan light and the one in the hallway that were no longer working.
“I’m not sure, but you don’t have to—”
Jack stood. “I don’t do anything I don’t want to do, either. I’ll be right back.”
Jack spent the next two hours fixing one thing after another in the home as the two women watched him, chattering and giggling among themselves.
When Jack was done, he wiped his brow with the back of his hand.
“Let me get you a glass of water.” Mrs. Smith hurried into the kitchen.
“Thank you, Jack. I really wasn’t expecting this,” Tammy said.
He looked at her. It was the first time he’d really seen through his hatred. There wasn’t really any hate there anymore. Now he just saw a fragile woman he’d allowed to come between him and Grace.
What a fool.
He took the glass of water from Mrs. Smith and drank. “Thank you.”
“No, thank you,” Tammy said. “I mean it. This means a lot to me, Jack.”
They stood with less than two feet between them. Jack remembered the fear he’d felt when he’d seen Chris’s mom earlier. She’d quenched that fear with a hug. Then she’d told him,“Once family, always family.”He didn’t exactly feel that way toward Tammy, not yet at least, but he felt something. He stepped forward and awkwardly wrapped his arms around the frail woman, giving her the smallest of hugs.
—
Grace leaned back in her chair and sighed. She’d spent the last half hour of her shift completing paperwork for an online college program at a nearby university. She could complete the first two years online while working here at Sawyer Seafood Company. Then she’d have to figure out a way to take one class a week at the university, but she’d worry about that later. She’d always dreamed of having a college degree.
