The standoff continued.
“Then I’m leaving, and you will only have half a porch.”
“Good riddance.”
“Dad,” Maggie cried, staring her father down.
Cursing everything he could think to blaspheme under heaven and earth, Roy opened the screen door and stepped outside. Nick handed him a hammer and told him what he needed to do. While her father was busy taking apart the steps, Nick worked on repairing the screen door.
Maggie had a dozen questions she wanted to ask him. Standing on the other side of the door, the screen between them, she watched him work.
“Nick.” She said his name as if it was a prayer. “I’ve missed you every minute of every day.”
He shrugged as if to say he’d gotten along just fine without her.
Maggie smiled to herself, knowing from the way he’d returned her kiss that he felt as strongly about her as she did about him.
“You told my dad you intend to take advantage of me,” she reminded him.
He shrugged. “That’s what your dad’s doing.”
“If you believe that, then why are you here?”
He looked up and sighed. “Because I couldn’t stay away. God knows I tried. Then Mom told me what you’re doing and that you need a bank loan. She said it was unlikely with the house in its current condition.” He met her gaze. “I figured you could probably use a carpenter, and so here I am.”
“This old house needs more than a few new steps,” she said, feeling more than a little overwhelmed.
“You can say that again,” Nick said, looking around him.
He was right; it all felt so hopeless. “I called for a bid to see the cost of what it would be to paint the house and it was thousands of dollars.”
“Can you afford the paint?”
“I…I don’t know.” She wasn’t sure why he was asking.
“Seems to me between you, your dad, my mom, and me, we could work on getting it painted a bit at a time. Phil would probably help, too.”
Maggie bit her lower lip and nodded. “We could do that.”
“I couldn’t let the woman I’m falling in love with tackle this all on her own,” he said, meeting her gaze through the filter of the screen.
Maggie placed her hand over her heart and then set it on the screen. Nick grinned and pantomimed her gesture, their hands pressing against each other with the screen between them.
In the background, Maggie heard her father continuing to cuss away. It was all she could do to keep from laughing.
Chapter 30
Joan was exhausted and at the same time exhilarated. She’d spent the day helping Maggie and Roy Herbert, with Nick and Phil working at their side. They’d been at it for two weeks and made vast improvements—enough for the bank to agree to a loan. Roy was in rehab and following the program, determined to maintain his sobriety.
Nick and a couple of his friends from the construction crew had repaired the leaky roof, the house had a fresh coat of paint, and they’d recently started work on the inside, painting and updating. Most all the updates in the furniture had come from the Salvation Army. The kitchen had been the first project Maggie had tackled, with freshly painted cupboards and an almost new table-and-chairs set. She’d been able to replace the stove’s burners after trying to repair them and failing, and Nick had found a toaster oven on eBay for less than ten dollars.
The best news was that Roy was a resident at the Turning Point Treatment Center. Even better, Maggie had decided to move back in with Joan. Hearing the news had made Joan’s day. She’d missed her.
The decision had come after the advice Lyle, Roy’s AA sponsor, had given Maggie. Lyle had suggested Roy’s daughter attend Al-Anon, a support group for those closely associated with alcoholics. After only a few meetings, Maggie decided she was fast becoming a crutch to her father’s sobriety. She’d done everything she could to help start Roy on the right path. The rest was up to him. At this point, his mind was set, and he was just as stubborn as Joan had found him to be. She believed he was capable of remaining sober.
Maggie was committed to loving and supporting her father, but not if it meant sacrificing her future plans to finish her schooling. She had her own life, her own goals. Knowing her father, Maggie realized he would use every opportunity to keep her with him. Convinced she had done all she could for him, Maggie realized that sooner or later, Roy would need to stand on his own.
Sitting now in her kitchen, a glass of iced tea in her hand and Edison at her feet, Joan reflected on how much her life had changed since her birthday. She was happy, when not long ago she’d been convinced she never would be again. Her life was full. She’d forged new friendships.
The grief counseling group had been instrumental in helping her to look toward the future. She’d become good friends with Mary Lou. They had a lot in common and often met outside the group for lunch and the occasional movie. Her friendship with Phil had progressed, too, as both he and his father had lent a helping hand with Maggie’s house.
When Joan’s phone chirped, she barely had the energy to pick it up and answer the call. Seeing that she’d left it on the kitchen counter, close enough to reach without major effort, she grabbed it.
“Hello.”
“Hey, Mom, it’s Steve.”
She grinned at the sound of her son’s voice. “Hey, yourself. What are you up to?” They communicated more often these days, and that pleased her. The deepening relationship with her children was another benefit that had come since May.
“What are you doing December fifteenth?”
She smiled at the question, thinking he was planning on sending her a Christmas surprise. Likely tickets to a show or something else he knew she’d enjoy.
“I don’t have a single thing on my agenda.”
“Good. How about flying into Phoenix for a wedding?”
Joan’s heart stilled. “A wedding?” The question was filled with hopeful anticipation.
“Yes. I asked Zoe to marry me again, and she accepted. We decided to set the date right away.”
“Oh Steve, that’s fabulous news.” The excitement in her son’s voice told her how pleased and happy he was. She swallowed hard at the lump of joy that filled her throat. Her son had come to his senses. He loved Zoe and was willing to commit his life to her.
“Nick’s agreed to be my best man, and Zoe already has her wedding dress picked out. Of course, she won’t let me see it, not yet. She wants me to wait for the wedding, which is fine. We put money down for a venue and are talking to a catering company next week.”
“Oh Steve, I’m so happy I feel like crying.”
“Don’t be silly. You should know I thought a lot about what you said earlier this summer. I knew I loved Zoe; I don’t know why I was acting like such a fool. Pride, I guess. When I heard she was dating someone else, it made me sick to my stomach. I was miserable and lonely and realized what you said was true. You’ll be happy to know I tore up that list.”
“I’m so pleased.” It was hard to hold back her excitement.
“It didn’t take me long to realize it didn’t matter how much money I had in the bank, or what my career goals were; if I didn’t have someone to share life with, they meant nothing. Thank you, Mom. I don’t know what made you reach out to me that day, but I’ll be forever grateful that you did.”