At least they weren’t angry tears. Because nothing fueled my anger more than someone who made me cry tears of rage.
But these tears hurt. They lodged in my throat and made my chest ache. I grabbed my own tissue, dabbed my eyes, and fanned my face.
“You didn’t see me cry, Mrs. Ru—Rita.”
“Well, look at you, you finally did it. You finally called me by my name.”
“Yeah, well, I needed you smiling. So smile. Because if you keep crying, I’m going to keep crying, and Rylee is going to be onto both of us.”
“We’re equals now,” she whispered as she took my hands.
“Yes, and we don’t have much time.” I blew out a rough breath and squeezed her fingers reassuringly before letting them go. “Okay. I’m calling a team meeting and we’re going to figure something out.”
“I love you girls so damn much, but don’t get your heart set on saving this. Really. It’s a lot of money and the people in this town don’t have a lot to spare.”
For a split second a weird shift rippled through me, like any last part of me who spent time with these kids only to play, faded into the background and thrust me into true adulthood where worries loomed.
I’d take the responsibility, but hell if I’d let the shift snatch away the fun parts. I wouldn’t let it. I’d be the bridge between responsibility and fun. I just needed a crash course on tightropes. Hopefully my good balance would give me a leg up. “No, but I’m willing to squeeze every last person who does,” I promised as I headed for the door while my eyes were dry again.
“Yes, well, squeezing people means unexpected piles of shit too, so wear boots.”
I laughed, the tightness easing in my chest when I did. “Good advice.”
“Maisy?”
Holding the edge of the door, I turned back to her. “Yeah.”
“I just want you to know, the time you’ve spent here with us giving back, working with you after seeing you go through this program yourself—it’s been the highlight of my career.”
I crossed the room and hugged her hard one last time. “Thank you…but wipe your eyes and prepare to be here for a good long time. We’re not going down without one hell of a fight.”