“I’d like that.”
His eyes lit up. “Great. Just get in touch whenever you want to get together and we’ll make a plan.”
When they finished eating, Mac insisted on paying and when he pulled up to Gram’s house, he parked and walked Jill to the door.
“Thanks for showing me around today. Millie’s was great, as you said and I’m glad I finally saw the museum.”
“I’m glad you did too, and thanks for dinner. It was fun.”
“My pleasure.” Mac pulled her in for a hug and kissed her lightly on the cheek.
“I hope I get to see you again soon?”
“I’ll be heading back in a few weeks. I’ll get in touch then.”
“Perfect!”
Chapter 15
Mandy was grateful that she had the restaurant to focus on because otherwise, she suspected she would have been tempted to crawl back into bed after dropping the kids at school and stay there. She did give in once, when she wasn’t expected in the restaurant and spent the entire day lounging on her living room sofa, watching classic sitcoms and romantic comedies and eating the things in her freezer that she usually avoided—mac and cheese, and ice cream. She thought she was all cried out, but it turned out she was wrong and had to buy more boxes of tissues. She never knew when it was going to hit her and the tears would fall.
Sometimes it was the littlest thing, like once when she was folding laundry and a picture fell off her dresser. She picked it up, and it was of her and Cory on their wedding day. They looked so young and in love that the pain of it made her gasp, and she had to sit down. When she finally calmed down, she stuffed the picture in a drawer so she wouldn’t have to look at it and finished putting the socks away.
Cory called the day after he moved out to let her know where he’d landed. He’d made one phone call to a local real estate office, and they hooked him up with a stunning, three-bedroom rental in Brant Point, their neighborhood, one of the most desired areas of the island. He’d said it was on the water and had everything he and the kids needed, so he could keep them on the weekend. The location was good though a little too close for Mandy’s liking as it was just a few streets away. But she realized it would be convenient for the kids.
She still hadn’t had the conversation with them, yet. She was dreading it, but knew she had to do it soon. They probably sensed that something was up, as she’d been quieter than usual and Cory had been gone all week. She’d simply told them that daddy was busy with work, which they didn’t question as he was always busy with work.
Cory was all apologies when he’d called to tell her about the rental and again asked if she’d consider taking him back. He seemed surprised that she kept saying no. She knew him though and even though she’d told him it wasn’t going to happen, Cory was probably going to keep asking, hoping that eventually she’d say yes. That strategy usually worked for him. But she didn’t think it wasn’t going to work this time. Mandy did briefly consider taking him back and seeing if they could move on and try to get past it. But, she quickly dismissed the idea because she knew the trust was gone and oddly enough, she no longer found him even remotely attractive. The thought of being physical with him was repulsive. So, that made it a little easier to say no.
What she was still struggling with was why it had happened. Cory had said it had nothing to do with her, but she couldn’t help think that it had to be partly her fault, that she hadn’t been enough or did something that pushed him away. Maybe they’d just grown apart as Cory’s work consumed him more and more and they began to spend less time together. It was Mandy and the kids all the time, and Cory off doing his own thing. And it wasn’t like she hadn’t tried to get him to do more with them, with her especially. But he rarely agreed. He was either too busy or too tired from work. So, she had to keep reminding herself of that when she worried that she was somehow at fault.
It was hard, though. She’d never felt so alone before. The sprawling house seemed empty without Cory in it. His energy was big, and the house was quiet without him. Her first instinct was to move, to get out, but she knew that was selfish. This was the only home her kids had ever known and she couldn’t take that away from them. She knew that if they divorced, it was going to be stressful for the kids too. Not to mention an unexpected change and she would do whatever possible to ease that stress. So, they weren’t going anywhere.
She decided to tell the kids after she picked them up from school. They came bounding into the car, all excited to tell her about their day. While she was waiting in the parking lot, she’d called in an order for takeout from Millie’s. The kids loved tacos and it would be a fun treat for them and she wouldn’t have to cook. The food was ready when they reached the restaurant and once they got home and were all sitting around the dining room table eating an early dinner, she told them what was going on.