Page 97 of The Deals We Make
I uploaded the few photos she’d taken from her phone, then gave her phone a solid software update while she watched another courtroom reality show.
“Okay,” Melanie says as we’re wrapping up. “If you two are finished, there seems to be a break in the weather. We should go to the store.”
Mom places her hand on top of mine and pats gently. “Thank you for helping me with this, Calista.”
She used to pat my hand when I was little, and it’s a core memory. Immediately, I’m ten again. Tears threaten and I swallow them down. “You’re welcome, Mom.”
She heads to the front door and Melanie has to remind her to grab her coat. It’s bittersweet, knowing she has Melanie, but also knowing why she has her.
I look at the photographs she saved. A black cat on the wall across the street. A bird on the planter in spring. A squirrel on the same planter in snow. A purple flower.
There aren’t any of people.
Not a single one.
Mom’s lonely. Or maybesolitaryis a better word.
But she’s seemed a bit more engaged today. Perhaps having company is good for her. So is getting out of the house and taking responsibility for daily tasks that require some thought: meal planning, food shopping, and cooking.
I’m pleased to see Melanie hasn’t just moved in and taken over. She’s encouraging Mom to be responsible for herself without infantilizing her.
And she doesn’t seem fazed by my dropping in and out.
I pull all my things together and ready them for Vex…Ti to collect. As we lay in the clubhouse the other night, I told him about my living situation predicament, and he was more than happy for me to stay with him until it’s time to leave, which…
I dial Becca’s number.
“Hey,” she says with her permanent high energy. “All packed up and ready for your flight tomorrow?”
“About that,” I say. I hear the wince in my tone. “I need to stay longer.”
“Okay,” she says without missing a beat. “How long do you need? And let’s work through your calendar to see what we need to change.”
It takes about ten minutes to give me an extra ten days. We make my advisory board meeting virtual instead of in person. We do the same with some of my other meetings. I delegate four meetings to two of my most trusted people. We cancel three things and postpone five. But it really means that I have to catch that flight in ten days.
“Okay, so I’m not going to ask how things are, because you wouldn’t be asking for ten extra days if everything were sunshine and daisies.”
“I’m not even sure how to answer that.”
“That bad?”
“No. It’s not even that. I got Mom a great live-in carer who I really like, but…”
There’s a long pause. Becca doesn’t jump in straight away, but finally she speaks. “But you feel like you should be the one looking out for her. Or feel like you should make the most of the relationship you have with her before it’s too late.”
I sigh. “Yeah. Something like that.”
“Here’s the plan,” Becca says. “I’m going to find you a realtor. We’re going to find you a small but perfect place to stay that requires zero renovation near your mom. You’re going to buy it because you’re wealthy enough. I’m going to look at your calendar and clear it in such a way that you have at least one week a month that does not require you to be in California. I’ll adjust the time zones for those meetings for that week only. That way, you can spend more time with your mom. We’ll get you some first-class vouchers and you can give me all the miles or points or whatever it is you earn as a thank you.”
I hadn’t realized how much stress I was carrying until the tight band around my chest loosens.
“Thank you,” I say. And yet, it still doesn’t feel like quite enough.
“The free trip I’m gonna take to Greece will be thanks enough.”
I make a mental note to get her a hotel booking to go with those flights for her birthday. “There’s also a man, Becs.”
Her squeal is loud enough to make me move the phone away from my ear. “Tell me.”
