Page 48 of Gumdrops and Garland

I swear, if she collapsed in the snow, I would start laughing. I shook my head and stuck the key in the door, but Indie was the one to reply. “What are you doing here then, Brenda? Shouldn’t you be with him? If his death is that imminent, you’d better return to his bedside. You don’t want to miss his final miserable breath, but I’m all too happy to stay home.”

“You don’t mean that, Indie! He was your father, regardless of who gave you your DNA. You’ll regret not saying goodbye.”

“Not even a little bit,” Indie assured her as I pushed the door open. “I haven’t seen that pathetic man in nine years, and I don’t plan to change that now. Let me know when he’s good and dead so I can come stomp on his grave. Please pass along a message for me, tell him I hope he rots in hell.”

Indie walked inside, and I followed her, but not before I noticed Brenda standing in my driveway with her mouth hanging open as I closed the front door. When I turned back, Indie’s wet coat and boots were in the hallway and she was gone.

When I finished in the shower, Lance wasn’t upstairs. I was grateful. I didn’t want to talk about what had happened in the driveway with Brenda. I regretted my decision to act as foolishly as she did, but I didn’t regret the things I said. I just wished I hadn’t done it in his driveway for his neighbors to hear. I couldn’t go to work tomorrow. There was no way I could face the community now that I had embarrassed Lance.

I pulled out my phone and checked the time. It was late, but I texted Mel and Ivy and told them I wouldn’t be in to the bakery in the morning. Ivy texted me back almost immediately.

I heard about what happened. Meet Mel and me at the diner at five a.m. We need to talk.

I don’t think that’s a good idea right now, Ivy.

Wrong. It’s the best idea. See you then.

I sighed and lowered the phone to the bed. That didn’t work out the way I wanted it to, but she was my boss, so I suppose I had to be there. I flopped back on the bed and tears pricked at my eyes again. They’d been doing that since Brenda showed up at the house. They weren’t tears of sadness, but tears of anger and embarrassment. How was I even going to look Lance in the eye now?

A sob escaped and I let it come, the tears running down my cheeks and into my ears to pool with the sadness and grief of the girl I used to be and the situation I had to deal with now.

There was a light knock on the door and then a pause. “Indie? Are you awake?” His voice was low and quiet, I suppose in case I were sleeping, but he knew better.

“I don’t want to talk, Lance,” I called out, my voice nasally and tired.

The door opened a crack and he walked in with two mugs in one hand and a plate of cookies in the other. “We don’t have to talk,” he promised, lowering the cups and cookies to the bedside table. “We can watch a cheesy Christmas flick on Netflix and eat cookies.”

I smiled, but my lips trembled at the attempt. He took a tissue from the box and wiped my face, making sure to dab the tears from my ears before he pressed the tissue into my hand.

“I’m sorry,” I whispered, my words as shaky as my chin.

“For what, Gumdrop?” he asked, sitting next to me on the bed and leaning up against the headboard.

“For what? For that,” I said, pointing out my window at the driveway below. I scooted up and sat against the headboard too, using the tissue to wipe my nose. “I shouldn’t have done that.”

“Why not?”

“Why not?” I asked, my voice ramping up another notch. “Why not? Oh, maybe because I embarrassed you in front of all your neighbors and gave her the satisfaction of knowing she riled me up!”

He squeezed my thigh until I leaned back against the headboard again. His hand relaxed, but he didn’t take it off my leg. I liked it there a little too much considering what had happened with Brenda tonight.

“You didn’t embarrass me in front of my neighbors. My neighbors are your friends and they all know who Brenda is. I can promise you not one of them would be surprised by what happened, if any of them were even up. We don’t know if anyone heard you or not, so I wouldn’t worry about it.”

“I’m more worried about how much I embarrassed myself in front of you,” I admitted, swiping at my nose again.

“You didn’t. I was proud of you for standing up to that horrid woman. You should have seen her face when I turned back to close the door.”

“Really?” I asked, surprised that he wasn’t upset or irritated with me.

He nodded, his hair flopping over his forehead until he flipped it back. “She was like…” He dropped his chin down and stared at me, making his mouth open and close a few times. “She reminded me of a fish out of water.”

“I suppose she didn’t know how to react. I’ve always swallowed her abuse because it was easier.”

“Easier than what, sweetheart?” he asked, taking my hand.

“Easier than standing up for myself, I guess.” I shrugged because I didn’t know the answer to that question either. “I snapped tonight. I didn’t like her assumptions or her crudeness. I don’t live in that world and it’s rude to behave that way.”

“I figured that would be a hot button for you,” he agreed. “I know you’re already worried that people will think we’re shacking up.”

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