Page 73 of The Marriage Deal
"Here's one Sprite coming up," Elle said with a crying glass of clear bubbling liquid in her hand. She drew a small coffee table next to Mom and placed the drink on it."Are you sure you don't want anything else?"
Mom picked up the glass and took a sip. Shaking her head, she said, "I ate on the plane." She placed the tumbler down and folded her hands in her lap. She had chosen the single chair, and Elle came to take her seat next to me.
"I had no idea you two had gotten married. I had to hear it from Tyler the other day."
"We're not—it's not—" Elle started, but I placed my hand on hers to stop her.
"I wanted to free up the trust fund. That's why we did it. She was more than happy to help me out."
"Good," Mom said. "At least now you're free to access your money. It's terrible what your father did. I had no idea that when he was asking me to sign those papers, it meant you three would be tied into an archaic trust."
I smiled tightly. "Whatever helps you sleep at night."
Elle pinched the hand that was holding hers. When I glanced at her, she was silent, but her face said, 'be nice.' I didn't want to, but Elle was right. Some civility would probably make Mom leave much sooner.
"Are you sure a Sprite is enough?" Elle said, trying to change the conversation in a lighter direction. "We have some wine if that's more to your taste."
"Oh no, darling, this is fine." She waved Elle off and raised the glass in her hand. "I am trying to reduce my alcohol intake. Preferably to zero, and this is helping a lot."
"Wow,'' Elle said. "How long have you been…"
"Sober? A month now. Thirty-two days and counting."
"Th-that's wonderful." Elle said and nudged my ribs.
I gave Mom a tight smile. "That's longer than last time."
It was meant to be a jab. She was always going on an alcohol cleanse or into rehab but getting back onto the bottle as soon as she got out. But she did not take it as an insult. Instead, she nodded, her face bright. She said, "It is! And trust me, I think about my bottle of sherry all the time, but I haven't touched it in a whole month!" She rummaged through her purse and produced a red chip. "Got this on Friday at my AA meeting!"
Elle took it and examined the little chip with thirty in the center of a triangle and the words; unity, service, recovery on each side of the triangle. "One day at a time" was written on the other side.
"That's amazing!" Elle said.
As much as I wanted to scoff, my heart swelled with hope. Elle showed me the coin, but I dared not touch it or else trick myself into believing again. Noting my resistance, Elle returned the coin to its owner, who put it back in her purse.
We went to sitting in silence for a good awkward minute until Elle said, "I wanted to thank you for the antiques you sent to my sister."
"Oh, don't be silly. It was nothing. The stuff was sitting around gathering dust anyway. I hope it rejuvenates your family's business."
"She was really happy. Don't be surprised to see a thank-you letter in your mailbox soon."
Mom raised her glass. "I'll be waiting for it." She darted her eyes around the living room. "Nice place you have here."
"I could show you the rest," I said.
Her eyes brightened. "You will?"
Her enthusiasm made me feel like a cold-hearted bastard. She immediately got up, her eyes taking in her surroundings. "I love the whole academic slash industrial vibe you have going on."
We went upstairs, leaving Elle behind while I marched ahead. The soft footfalls of her high heels clicked onto the staircase as Mom followed, a step away. We had reached the guest bedroom and were away from Elle's ears. I stopped and turned to Mom. "You need to leave."
She took a tentative step forward and reached for my chest. "I wanted to see my baby and make sure he's doing okay."
"And you flew all the way from London? A video call would have been enough."
Her throat rippled as she swallowed hard. She snatched her hand back. "Is it so bad that a mother would want to see her son?"
"You've never cared. Why now? And please don't tell me it's because you're doing your steps and one of them is atoning for your past sins or whatever."
