Page 178 of Smooth Sailing

But she lived a damn good life.

I didn’t even know how she spent her time up there, except she always had perfect nails, an immaculate pedicure, no roots in her hair, and she often went to spas.

I’d wanted to do it on my own, getting my degrees, but I’d wanted to do that to show Dad.

That said, it had been all kinds of hard work.

I’d met all of my girls our first year in college. They knew everything about me. They went through all of that with me. Hell, Bernice’s parents gave me a waitressing job at one of their restaurants. I’d worked there for three years.

And they were right. Mom and Rick gave me big checks at birthdays and Christmases, but they weren’t that big.

She could have helped.

She could have at least offered.

She didn’t.

She never even asked about it, and truth, she still gave me those big checks, though now I was seeing them as guilt checks, if she could feel that emotion.

What they weren’t were presents.

Even when I was a kid, Mom gave me money on those occasions.

Like, she was a superior shopper, and she didn’t bother to know me enough to buy me an actual present that I might want.

“Di?” Bernie called.

I focused on her.

“Oh shit,” Mel mumbled when she caught sight of my face.

“It really hurts,” I whispered.

“Okay, now we’re gonna lay off,” Charlie decided.

Bernie reached across our nearly miniscule table toward me.

I took her hand.

“It sucks you have to come to terms with this, but I’m glad you are, because you give that woman a lot when she demands it, and she doesn’t really deserve it,” Bernie said.

“Bernie!” Charlie snapped.

“No,” I cut in, giving Bernie’s fingers a squeeze and letting go. “She’s right.”

“Do you know what you’re going to do when she calls?” Mel asked.

“I think…I need to talk to Hugger about it,” I said.

“Hugger?” Charlie asked.

“No offense, but I…” I smiled. “He’s kinda become my touchstone.”

“Perfect segue,” Mel muttered.

Yep.

Now was the time to get into Hugger.

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