Page 44 of The Christmas Ring
“Back then I couldn’t wait to be a teacher.” Sadie set the book down on the arm of the sofa. “But now... I love the idea of taking pictures. Finding beauty in everything around me. People... pets... places. All of it.”
Vanessa could see Sadie’s joy. “I need to get you a toy camera for Christmas.” They both laughed. “Your old Bible. It was just a night to remember. That’s all.”
“I’m so glad Hudson’s okay.” Sadie pressed her shoulder into the sofa and faced Vanessa. “He texted me.”
Sadie put her hand on Vanessa’s Bible. “You know what I miss?”
“What do you miss?”
“Waking up and seeing you reading your Bible. Early in the morning.” Sadie flipped through the pages and then looked back at Vanessa. “I love that.”
“The words get me through life. They always have.”
For a minute neither of them said anything. But Sadie clearly had something on her mind. She met Vanessa’s eyes. “Can we talk about the other day, when I cut you off? We haven’t had a lot of time, but... tell me what you were thinking that night. Would you, please?”
There would never be a better time than now to tell Sadie the story. Every detail. “It goes back a bit.”
“Okay.” Sadie looked ready to listen. She settled into the sofa cushion once more.
“It started this past summer after I dropped you off for orientation. I stopped at Millers’ Antiques in Marietta.”
“I remember that. You looked for your ring.”
“Right. But I ended up finding something else. Someone.” Vanessa gave a slight shrug. “I met the owner’s son. Ben Miller. He lost his wife to an illness eight years ago, and... well, we had a lot in common and we started a friendship.”
“Since July?” Sadie sat up straighter. She didn’t sound angry, just surprised.
“Yes.” Vanessa wasn’t keeping anything from Sadie now. Not anymore. “We would talk and text. Once in a while we’d FaceTime. And when I came to visit you, I’d stop and have lunch with Ben on the way home. Or we’d look at other antique stores in Marietta.”
Sadie couldn’t have looked more surprised if Vanessa had said they were moving to Mars. “And you never told me?”
“You were busy, honey. Getting used to college, writing papers. Memorizing textbooks.” Vanessa sighed. “It seemed like something I should tell you in person. And then I was never sure if he and I were just a passing fancy. Nothing more than friends. I didn’t want to upset you.”
Remorse seemed to come over Sadie. “Mom. You’re still my best friend. I’m never too busy for you.” She took Vanessa’s hand. “I need you.”
Her words were like oxygen to Vanessa. “Thank you.”
“There’s more, right?”
Vanessa was going to tell her, but Sadie looked like she knew something. “Why do you ask?”
“I saw the two of you. Shopping the other day.” Sadie looked guilty for not telling her sooner. “You were holding hands.”
The blow hit hard. Vanessa hung her head for a fewseconds, and then she looked at Sadie again. “You were supposed to be at the mall.”
“The girls and I switched plans.” Sadie sighed. “At first I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. And then... I remembered. You tried to talk to me about him, but I shut you down.”
“This is all new.” Vanessa blinked back tears. “I wanted to tell you way before this. I did.”
“It’s okay, Mom. Let’s just start from here.” Sadie wasn’t angry, Vanessa could see that in her daughter’s eyes. She was only ready to hear the rest of the story.
They moved into the kitchen and made coffee. Then they sat down and Vanessa continued. She told Sadie how she and Ben had spent the past week looking for antiques for his store and picking up donations for the military dance. “We were together every day.”
“Wow... so... you must really like each other.”
“I thought that.” How could she explain this part to Sadie when she didn’t understand it herself? “At first we were just friends, and I was trying to find a way to tell you that.” She took a sip of her coffee. “We had so much fun, and then... well, it felt like maybe we were falling for each other. If I couldn’t tell you about us being friends, how was I supposed to tell you that?”
“I didn’t make it any easier.” Sadie winced. “Sorry about that.”
