Page 31 of Silver Lining Love

“And you are his guardian?”

What was this, a Barbara Walters interview?

“No. I’m not. His aunt is, and she’s my neighbor.”

Understanding dawned on her face. “So, are you two…dating?”

My phone rang, and I’d never been so happy to be interrupted by a phone call.

I pulled it out and saw that my mom was FaceTiming me.

“I’m sorry, I have to get this,” I told Trina and then slid off the bleachers and walked a few feet away, out of earshot.

“Hey Mom,” I answered with a smile on my face.

My mom called about once a week, and I was always happy to hear from her, but I’d actually started looking forward to her updates lately. She caught me up on all the new developments in my brothers and sister’s lives. Which lately consisted of who was pregnant, trying to get pregnant, buying a house, and/or getting married.

Her eyes darted behind me. “Wyatt James, are you playing hooky from work?”

“I’m at the ballpark with Michael. Remember, I told you that I signed him up for Little League.”

“Oh right. How’s he doing?”

“Good, he’s doing good.”

I wasn’t sure if she was talking about in life or in baseball, but the answer was the same for both. He hadn’t faced any disciplinary measures for the fight at school, and he hadn’t been in trouble since. The kid he put in the hospital was fully recovered and had been expelled after he’d posted the video that he’d taped of girls in the bathroom.

“And how’s Whitney?” Concern filled my mom’s face.

The night after the accident, I called my mom and told her what happened. She’d been devastated for Whitney and the kids. She’d sent care packages, Amazon gift cards, and dinners to her house. Her reaction reminded me of who my mom was. If Dolly Briggs saw a way she could help someone, she did it. It’s not that I hadn’t known that about my mom, it’s just that after living away from home for twenty years you forget certain things.

When I was eight, my mom had just given birth to Trace and our neighbor Mr. Carter’s wife passed. My mom had a newborn and seven kids running around, but she still made sure to make an extra plate of food every night and my brother Sawyer and I would go deliver it.

When I was ten, Mrs. Olsen’s beauty supply store flooded, and my mom organized a clean-up crew in a matter of hours to go and clean it up. She also rounded up people with construction experience to get her back up and running.

When I was fourteen, Grant Lambert lost his house in a fire, and not only did he and his wife come and stay with us while he rebuilt his house, my mom had a clothes drive so that each of them had a new wardrobe.

Those were just a few examples of the incredible woman I was raised by. It didn’t matter what was on her plate or how busy she was; she always had time to help someone in need. That was just who she was and still is.

That was who I was trying to be for Whitney.

“Good, I think,” I answered as honestly as I could.

I hadn’t caught her crying since the night of our kiss. She seemed to be in better spirits. I’d love to think that her new outlook had something to do with our lip lock, but the truth was, I think it had just been a relief to her that I’d stepped up and told her that she wasn’t in this alone, and I was here. It’s not like I had changed that much of what I’d been doing before, it was just that now there was a schedule.

Instead of her wondering if I was going to show up with dinner, she knew I was. She also knew that when I got there, she could go take a shower or just take twenty minutes to herself. She knew that I’d help Michael with homework and that I’d take Alice to ballet on Saturday mornings and Michael to practice during the week.

We’d made quite a team, I had to admit.

“She’s actually going to an event tonight.” It was the first one she’d been to since the accident. When she got the email about it, I’d offered to watch the kids so she could have a night out. She deserved it.

“And are you going to be babysitting?”

“Yep.”

“You sure do spend a lot of time with them.”

“Yep.”

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